The Wool Ballrooms are about to get a bit more colorful as Saint Louis University’s Indian Student Association (ISA) is set to host its annual Fall Show Saturday night. This year’s performance is called Pyaar: Impossible, or love impossible, and centers on an Indian bachelor coming to America to find love. The show is open to the entire SLU community and according to ISA President Kena Vyas it presents a good opportunity to learn about and experience Indian culture in an exciting way.
“[This is] one of SLU’s largest cultural events where you can participate in a culture in so many different ways,” Vyas said.
The night will open with a full-course Indian meal, followed by a collection of six dancing acts and acapella acts from Astha Acapella and Decadence. Many performances will blend modern American music with Indian music, capturing the multicultural nature of the show. Pyaar: Impossible’s two co-chairs, Esha Sama and Shivani Parikh, have been working on the performance since June.
“We knew we wanted to do something light and fun but [that] also appealed to the entire St. Louis area,” Sama said of their inspiration for this year’s theme. There will be four dances organized by graduating class as well as a more classical piece and ‘North vs. South’ performance that aims to illustrate the differences between northern and southern Indian culture.
“Unlike most classical dances performed at fall show in the past, this piece tells a story and conveys a message, which I hope will be refreshing for the audience and a unique way to begin the show,” Priya Badhwar, the choreographer of the dance, said.
“Song and dance are a really big part of being Indian,” Vyas said, noting that the show will encapsulate many different types of Indian dance and culture performed by different types of students to illustrate the various dance and song forms of Indian culture.
According to Sama, each group’s performance will be noticeably different from the other. As an example, she said the senior class dance is more light-hearted and celebratory of the performers’ final year at SLU, the North vs. South dance will be something of a ‘dance-off’ and the classical piece will take on more religious tones.
Skits will carry the show’s theme in between performances, telling the story of the bachelor as he watches different dances and tries to find a woman to marry. In order to create a more appropriate environment, ISA will be decorating the ballrooms with bright colors, candles and various cultural details.
The night of performances isn’t just the work of a few, as it is coordinated by the 14 members of the ISA executive board and a show committee of 25 people, along with the work of 15 choreographers and several participants.
“It’s nice to see all of ISA come together in [the show] that not only benefits ISA but SLU in general,” Vyas said.
Pyaar: Impossible is set for Saturday, Nov. 16 at 7 p.m. in the Wool Ballrooms. Tickets are $12 and will be on sale in the BSC for the rest of the week.