Montpellier Danse Festival
Montpellier, France22 - 24 June 2025
BookWorld Premiere: Wadi AlFann, Valley of the Arts, AlUla: 25 January 2025
World Premiere of indoor adaptation: Montpellier Danse: 22 June 2025
Thikra: Night of Remembering is a performance born from the collaboration between Akram and award-winning visual artist Manal AlDowayan, drawing inspiration from the AlUla’s timeless landscapes, ancient myths and cultural heritage.
14 dancers unite to blend Bharatanatyam and contemporary dance, set to an original score by Aditya Prakash. With sound design by Gareth Fry, lighting by Zeynep Kepekli, and dramaturgy by Blue Pieta, Thikra has now been adapted for indoor venues.
Thikra is performed by: Pallavi Anand, Ching-Ying Chien, Kavya Ganesh, Nikita Goile, Samantha Hines, Jyotsna Jagannathan, Mythili Prakash, Azusa Seyama Prioville, Divya Ravi, Aishwarya Raut, Mei Fei Soo, Harshini Sukumaran, Shreema Upadhyaya, Kimberly Yap, Hsin-Hsuan Yu, Jin Young Won
Akram Khan
By Maxime Dos
Behind the scenes of the indoor adaptation
Director / Choreographer Akram Khan
Visual Director / Costume and Scenography Manal AlDowayan
Narrative Concept Manal AlDowayan & Akram Khan
Music Composer and Soundscape Designer Aditya Prakash
Sound Designer Gareth Fry
Lighting Designer Zeynep Kepekli
Creative Associate / Coach Mavin Khoo
Dramaturge Blue Pieta
Rehearsal Directors Charlotte Pook, Angela Towler and Chris Tudor
Musicians (in recorded composition) Aditya Prakash, Loulwa Al Sharif, Sushma Soma, Ananya Ashok, Melanie Pappenheim, Sohini Alam, London Bulgarian Choir, Zafer Tawil, M Vijay, N Rajan, N. Deepan, Dimitris Menexopoulos, Amal Waqar, Zafer Tawil, Naseem Alatrash, Layth Sidiqi, Megan Shung, Guhan Venkataraman, Jay Julio, Megan Shung, Isaac Alderson, Sumesh Narayanan, V. Prakash Ilayaraja, Ayesh Hodayban Alkhamaaly AlEnezi, Maged Ahmed ElAtiek, Tarek Saleh ElAtiek, Sultan Gaber El Alawi and Haitham Ahmed Mohamed
Dancers Pallavi Anand, Ching-Ying Chien, Kavya Ganesh, Nikita Goile, Samantha Hines, Jyotsna Jagannathan, Mythili Prakash, Azusa Seyama Prioville, Divya Ravi, Aishwarya Raut, Mei Fei Soo, Harshini Sukumaran, Shreema Upadhyaya, Kimberly Yap, Hsin-Hsuan Yu, Jin Young Won
Site-Specific Community Engagement Programme Director Christine Maupetit
Site-Specific Community Movement Directors Jumana Al Refai and Bilal Allaf