Sigma produced by the Gandini Juggling Company, explores dialogue between bharatanatyam dance, juggling and percussion.

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‘Sigma’ is the letter S in the Greek alphabet: in the upper case, meaning to sum up and, in the lower case, expressing variations in value of a set of data. In performance, Sigma adds together the rhythms, gestures and movement of Bharatanatyam dance with the mathematical scores of juggling. The resulting product is a hybrid in form that compliments both juggling and Bharatanatyam techniques by highlighting difference rather than dissolving both styles into one. 

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Developed in partnership with Seeta Patel, a specialist in bharatanatyam aesthetics, dancer Indu Panday and Kati Ylä-Hokkala & Kim Huynh - pioneering jugglers from Gandini Juggling - the work investigates classical Indian geometries, mathematics, and rythm by looking at similarities and differences, processes and choreographic architectures. There is also a focus on the parabolic accelerating velocity of objects in the air versus the more subtly changing speeds of the dancer and the underlying Carnatic musical structures.