Former Bollywood actress to grace Geraldton stage for premiere show Kin celebrating lineage through dance

A duo paying homage to the family lineage of dance will bring a combination of traditional Indian rope acrobatics and western contemporary dance to the Queens Park Theatre next Friday. The couple, Russell Thorpe and Isha Sharvani, have been developing the show for four years and wanted to find the sweet spot between both of their training. Sharvani, a Bollywood actress who trained in classical Indian dancing and martial arts, said mixing her craft with western contemporary dance was like yin and yang. Her partner, Thorpe — a former WAFL footballer who decided to pursue professional dancing at 21 — is by her side throughout the whole performance. The show, named Kin, explores cultural identity and how it is passed on generationally, inspired by Sharvani’s mother who is a well known Indian dancer. For the duration of three weeks before the show, the duo have been choreographing and shaping the show uniquely for the space. Their work will culminate in a 60-minute show on Friday May 24 at the QPT, which will be the premiere performance of Kin. During the show, Sharvani is seen scaling the rope with absolute grace, combining acrobatics with skills from classical Indian dancing and western contemporary choreography. “We have had a quite recent conversation with some mob here, we find that the themes of this show really aligned to the cultural traditional practices of this place,” Thorpe said. For the duration of their three-week stay in Geraldton, the pair have visited the Mid West aerial and acrobatic studio, taking classes with kids to teach them the ins and outs of rope dancing. The pair chose Geraldton to premiere their work given the opportunity and scale presented by the QPT, and have since secured two trips to India to perform the piece. “Because of the trust placed in giving us a premiering platform . . . that’s where this opportunity here has been really pivotal to us,” Sharvani said.