I Am... by Swaroopa Prameela Unni - Review

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Sat 09 Nov 2024

Unni, S. (Performer). (2024). I Am…by Swaroopa Prameela Unni. 9 November 2024. [Theatre Production] Subiaco Arts Centre. Photo credit Swaroopa Prameela Unni.

Swaroopa Prameela Unni is an expert in the South Indian dance forms of Bharatanatyam and Mohiniyattam. She has been passionate about dance ever since she was a child. She started training in Bharatanatyam at the age of four and made her debut performance at the age of nine. She moved from India to New Zealand in 2010 and became the founder of the Natyaloka School of Indian Dance in Dunedin. She has performed packed-out shows in India and New Zealand. Her solo performances include Aananda – Dance of Joy (2012), Sringaram – Dance of Love (2015), and Ātete - Resistance in 2019. On 9 November 2024 Swaroopa introduced her unique dance style to Perth audiences for the first time with a one-night performance of her new show "I am..." at the Subiaco Arts Centre.


Unni, S. (Performer). (2024). I Am…by Swaroopa Prameela Unni. 9 November 2024. [Theatre Production] Subiaco Arts Centre. Photo credit Swaroopa Prameela Unni.

“I Am…” is a celebration of femininity, romance, and cultural identity. From the moment Swaroopa stepped into the spotlight, with her arms raised high and a smile fixed on her face, she was captivating. She floated across the room in her traditional dress, clapped her hands and stamped her feet to the music. Her every step was graceful and her face shone with joy to be performing in front of an audience. I was really struck by how beautiful she looked and how skillfully she moved her body to the music.

I found the history of Indian classical dance to be really interesting. Mohiniyattam is a traditional dance performed by women that involves delicate, graceful movements, and singing and acting told through dance. Bharatanatyam is a dance form that combines expression, melody, rhythm, and movement. The dancer performs with bent legs, flexed knees, and a fixed upper torso and uses expressive gestures of the hands, eyes and facial muscles. Mohiniyattam and Bharatanatyam dancers were considered to be married to the gods and were supported by patrons. Temple dancing was banned in India under British colonial rule and the dancers were labelled as prostitutes.

In “I am...” Swaroopa performs Mohiniyattam and Bharatanatyam in defiance of patriarchy, colonialism, and cultural genocide. Her dancing is an act of worship and gratitude that this form of dancing was able to survive due to the actions of the brave women who came before her who defied the anti-dancing bans.


Unni, S. (Performer). (2024). I Am…by Swaroopa Prameela Unni. 9 November 2024. [Theatre Production] Subiaco Arts Centre. Photo credit Swaroopa Prameela Unni.

In the final half of the show, Swaroopa talks about her memories of her childhood in India, her immigrant experience, and the racism she has come up against while living in New Zealand and Australia. I liked listening to her speak about India, her memories of the monsoon rains, and what it was like growing up in her family home. After she moved to New Zealand, and later Australia, she had to endure racism and people telling her to go back where she came from. Her last performance was political. She performs her own unique dance to recordings from television and radio of people complaining about immigrants. I thought it was powerful that Swaroopa didn’t stop smiling or dancing in the face of the racism. She didn’t let other people’s racism kill her joy for dancing and worship. Australia is her home now.

Marisa Quinn-Haisu was invited as a guest.

Summary: I am…by Swaroopa Prameela Unni is an exploration of cultural identity told through the South Indian classical dance forms of Mohiniyattam and Bharatanatyam.

More Theatre Reviews by Marisa
Pipedream - Blue Room Theatre
A Doll's House Part 2 by Lucas Hnath - Blue Room Theatre
GROUNDED: Fringe World 2017 - Review
The State - The Blue Room Theatre
Gal Pals - The Blue Room Theatre
Hell is Other People - The Blue Room Theatre
Where Water Once Was - The Blue Room Theatre
We'll Always Have Bali - The Blue Room Theatre
The Bleeding Tree - Blue Room Theatre
Borderline - The Blue Room Theatre
Watch and Act - The Blue Room Theatre

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