Digital Programme: Mathroo Basha
Welcome to the Barbican
Thank you for joining us in The Pit, our unique space for artists to be able to develop new ideas, test out ways of working and explore what live performance can be. We are thrilled to work with Dance Umbrella to share this brand new project with you first, created by London-based visual artist, filmmaker and choreographer, Hetain Patel.
In his latest solo show, Hetain responds with movement to the voices of women in his Brit-Gujarati family, discussing loss, transformation and ritual, adding another, physical, language to the English and Gujarati spoken across the generations.
Hetain has been part of Dance Umbrella's festivals for many years and we are delighted with this opportunity to host him. It’s a joy to collaborate with Artistic Director and Co-CEO Freddie Opoku-Addaie and the whole team again. The festival is a fixture on the cultural calendar and holds a very important place in introducing us to groundbreaking contemporary dance, from local London artists to those who have come from around the world.
We hope you enjoy this preview performance of an exciting new work.
Toni Racklin, Barbican Head of Theatre & Dance
On behalf of the Dance Umbrella team, I am thrilled to welcome you to these performances at the Barbican as part of our 46th festival across London, and fourth online. It is a privilege to be able to present this preview of a very personal new work by visual artist and filmmaker Hetain Patel, whose stories I am sure will resonate deeply with the residents of our global city.
Looking ahead to the rest of the 2024 Festival, I am hugely excited to be offering Londoners the chance to see ten UK premieres by some truly trailblazing artists who are pushing the boundaries of what dance can be. This year’s festival is dedicated to the memory of DU’s former Artistic Director and CEO Emma Gladstone, who passed away earlier this year. Emma’s creative brilliance and ethical compass were always pioneering in our rapidly changing world.
With a line-up of truly transformational works, we invite you to join us this October for #DUFest24
Freddie Opoku-Addaie
Artistic Director and Co-Chief Executive, Dance Umbrella
Details
Company
Performer and creator Hetain Patel
Rehearsal Director Vidya Patel
Costume Designers Holly Waddington, Lee Yaroshevski, Malin Anderson
Production Manager Andy Downie
Creative Programmer Clancy Flynn
Stage Manager Ella Corcoran
BSL Interpreter Stacey Green
Interviewees Leela Patel, Nina Chaagan, Lola Perry, Mital Patel
Performed in English and Gujarati
Presented by Dance Umbrella and Barbican. Dance Umbrella’s presentation of Mathroo Basha is made possible with the support of the Cockayne Foundation and Fabric International.
Part of Dance Umbrella Festival 2024
Images by Camilla Greenwell
Related events
Post-show talk, Sat 12 Oct
BSL interpreted. Free to same-day ticket holders.
BSL-interpreted performance, Sat 12 Oct
Find out more about accessible events at the Barbican.
About the show
In his first appearance at the Barbican, acclaimed visual artist and filmmaker Hetain Patel returns to the stage with a preview performance of his latest solo Mathroo Basha (Mother Tongue, in Gujarati). Following the passing of a number of first-generation immigrants in his family, British-born Hetain reflects on what is lost and what is transformed, revisiting rituals rooted in his family’s working-class Brit-Gujarati experience.
Responding physically to audio interviews of women from his family speaking in Gujarati about inheritance, loss and the future, Hetain delves into the emotional realities of generational change through personal movement explorations where his body becomes the conduit.
About Hetain Patel
Hetain Patel is a London-based artist and filmmaker known for his work in various mediums including films, performances, and photography. His art has been showcased worldwide in venues such as Tate Modern, Venice Biennale, and Ullens Centre for Contemporary Art. His work, exploring identity and freedom, has been viewed over 50 million times online, including his 2023 TED talk, Who Am I? Think Again.
Hetain has received several awards such as the Film London Jarman Award and the Best International Film award at Kino Der Kunst Festival. He is a patron of QUAD, Derby, and serves on various committees. He is represented by Chatterjee & Lal in Mumbai.
Hetain Patel: Animations, 2020
A series of animations created during lockdown in 2020 has been made into a single screen taster for this year’s Dance Umbrella Festival.
Available via Dance Umbrella’s pay what you can Digital Pass. 9-31 Oct
About Dance Umbrella
Dance Umbrella is a London festival 46 years in the making and moving with the times.
Every year our festival ignites London and online with the next generation of trailblazing artists. Since 1978, we have been an international home for dance across a global city, presenting more than 1,000 artists from 45 countries to over one million people. We have brought outstanding dance to more than 145 venues throughout London; from the high-profile stages of Sadler’s Wells, Southbank Centre and Barbican to local arts centres – and taking in the more unexpected locations of canal boats, ice rinks and car park rooftops in between.
Since 2020, we have also given online audiences the chance to experience the festival through a curated programme including dance films and artist encounters.
Dance Umbrella is a commissioner of new work, co-producing with partners based in the UK and abroad, to invest in the next wave of international choreographic talent. Alongside this, we deliver year-round creative learning initiatives for all ages and nurture the development of arts professionals.
Appointed in 2021, Dance Umbrella’s Artistic Director/CEO Freddie Opoku-Addaie‘s vision for the festival builds on its 46-year track record of commissioning and producing excellent work. This new chapter introduces a programme that puts emerging and diverse talent at its heart, reflecting the global identity of our London home.
Dance Umbrella Festival 2024
Dance Umbrella Festival 2024
https://danceumbrella.co.uk/festival
Moving with Equity: A panel discussion on body politics
9 Oct, Barbican & Online
https://danceumbrella.co.uk/event/moving-with-equity-panel-discussion-body-politics/
Mamela Nyamza – HATCHED ENSEMBLE
9 – 12 Oct, Barbican
https://danceumbrella.co.uk/event/mamela-nyamza-hatched-ensemble/
Hetain Patel – Mathroo Basha
11 – 12 Oct, The Pit Barbican
https://danceumbrella.co.uk/event/hetain-patel-mathroo-basha/
Lea Anderson – Artist Encounters
15 Oct, Trinity Laban & Online
https://danceumbrella.co.uk/event/artist-encounters-lea-anderson/
Diana Niepce – The Other Side of Dance
16 – 17 Oct, Southbank Centre’s Queen Elizabeth Hall
https://danceumbrella.co.uk/event/diana-niepce-the-other-side-of-dance/
Abby Z & the New Utility
18 – 19 Oct, Sadler’s Wells Theatre
https://danceumbrella.co.uk/event/abby-z-and-the-new-utility-radioactive-practice/
Is Theatre Stealing Dance’s Moves? Panel Discussion on the Role of Movement Director
22 Oct, Shakespeare’s Globe & Online
https://danceumbrella.co.uk/event/is-theatre-stealing-dances-moves-panel-discussion-on-the-role-of-movement-director/
POCKETART – Fairy Tales
22 – 23 Oct, The Place
https://danceumbrella.co.uk/event/pocketart-fairy-tales/
Dance Umbrella Family Weekend
de Stilte / Hackney Showroom
26 – 27 Oct, Unicorn Theatre & Potters Fields Park
https://danceumbrella.co.uk/event/dance-umbrella-family-weekend-2024/
Dance Umbrella Digital Pass 2024
For the 2024 Festival, Dance Umbrella has produced and curated a selection of innovative dance films, unique encounters with this year’s festival artists and a panel discussion. If you can’t be there in person, this is a great way to experience the festival from wherever you are in the world.
Featured artists include: Ioanna Paraskevopoulou, Hetain Patel, Lea Anderson, POCKETART, Abby Z & the New Utility, Rosemary Lee & Hugo Glendinning. You can also access live and recorded panel discussions.
The Digital Pass is Pay What You Can and will give you access to the entire digital programme, available online 9-31 October.
Dance Umbrella Principal Funders
For Dance Umbrella
Artistic Director & Co-Chief Executive Freddie Opoku-Addaie
Executive Director & Co-Chief Executive Tania Wilmer
Festival Producer Jessica Greer
Head of Creative Learning Bethan Peters
Technical Director Andy Downie
Head of Marketing Lucy White
Digital Content Manager Isabella Hubbard
Head of Development Dawn Prentice
Festival Administrator Teresa Skamletz
Dance Umbrella Festival Team
Assistant Producer Geni Lou
Stage Managers Carly Hook, Amy Johnson
Production Transport Edwin Shirley Limited
BSL Interpreters Sula Gleeson, Erin Hutching
Press & PR Bread and Butter PR, Midas PR
Website & Digital Advertising HdK Associates
Film & Photography Roswitha Chesher, Foteini Christofilopoulou, Henry Curtis, George Maud, Luke Lentes
Print Design O Street, Cat Lips Creative, Isabella Hubbard
Dance Umbrella Founder Val Bourne CBE
Dance Umbrella Patrons Jonzi D, Liz Lerman, Dame Arlene Phillips
Dance Umbrella Trustees Jake Ulrich (Chair), Peter Barker (Treasurer), Rhiannon Bail, Nikhil Bolton-Patel, Simelia Hodge-Dallaway, Eva de Blocq van Kuffeler, Alex Mecklenburg, Jacqueline Rose, Manohari Saravanamuttu
Dance Umbrella charity registration number 277221
With thanks from Dance Umbrella
To our venue partners for your collaboration and for welcoming artists onto warm stages. Thank you, artists and your teams, for bringing wondrous joy to this global city and beyond.
Thank you to all of the Dance Umbrella Festival Volunteers.
Dance Umbrella’s work would not be possible without the enthusiasm, commitment and financial backing of a number of individuals and organisations, both listed here and those anonymous. Artistic Director’s Circle: Eva & John de Blocq van Kuffeler, Michael Lamont, Ashleigh Ruxton, Sandi & Jake Ulrich, Helen Webb.
For the Barbican
Barbican Centre Board
Chair
Sir William Russell
Deputy Chair
Tijs Broeke
Deputy Chair
Tobi Ruth Adebekun
Board Members
Randall Anderson, Munsur Ali, Michael Asante MBE, Stephen Bediako OBE, Farmida Bi CBE, Zulum Elumogo, Nicholas Lyons, Mark Page, Anett Rideg , Jens Riegelsberger, Jane Roscoe, Despina Tsatsas, Irem Yerdelen
Clerk to the Board
John Cater and Kate Doidge
Barbican Centre Trust
Chair
Farmida Bi CBE
Vice Chair
Robert Glick OBE
Trustees
Stephanie Camu, Tony Chambers, Cas Donald, David Kapur, Ann Kenrick, Kendall Langford, Sir William Russell, Sian Westerman
Directors
Chief Executive Officer (Interim)
David Farnsworth
Deputy CEO (Interim)
Ali Mirza
Director of Development
Natasha Harris
Head of Finance & Business Administration
Sarah Wall
Director for Buildings & Renewal
Dr Philippa Simpson
Director of Commercial
Jackie Boughton
Director for Audiences
Beau Vigushin
Director for Arts and Participation
Devyani Saltzman
Executive Assistant to CEO
Hannah Hoban
Theatre Department
Head of Theatre and Dance
Toni Racklin
Senior Production Manager
Simon Bourne
Producers
Liz Eddy, Jill Shelley, Fiona Stewart
Assistant Producers
Mrinmoyee Roy, Mali Siloko, Tom Titherington
Production Managers
Jamie Maisey, Lee Tasker
Technical Managers
Steve Daly, Jane Dickerson, Nik Kennedy, Martin Morgan, Stevie Porter
Stage Managers
Lucinda Hamlin, Charlotte Oliver
Technical Supervisors
James Breedon, Charlie Mann, Matt Nelson, Adam Parrott, Lawrence Sills, Chris Wilby
Technicians
Kendell Foster, David Kennard, Burcham Johnson, Bart Kuta, Christian Lyons, Josh Massey, Kieran Poynter, Fred Riding, Fede Spada, Matt Turnbull
PA to Head of Theatre
David Green
Production Administrator
Caroline Hall
Production Assistant
Ashley Panton
Stage Door
Julian Fox, aLbi Gravener
Creative Collaboration
Head of Creative Collaboration
Karena Johnson
Senior Manager
Sarah Mangan
Producer
Josie Dick
Assistant Producer
Carmen Okome
Marketing Department
Head of Marketing
Jackie Ellis
Deputy Head of Marketing
Ben Jefferies
Senior Marketing Manager
Kyle Bradshaw
Marketing Assistants
Olivia Brissett and Rebecca Moore
Communications Department
Head of Communications
James Tringham
Senior Communications Manager
Ariane Oiticica
Communications Manager
HBL
Communications Assistant
Sumayyah Sheikh
Audience Experience
Liz Davies-Sadd, Oliver Robinson, Ben Skinner
Ticket Sales Managers
Lucy Allen, Oliver Robinson, Ben Skinner, Jane Thomas
Operations Managers
Ben Raynor, Elizabeth Davies-Sadd, Samantha Teatheredge, Hayley Zwolinsk
Operations Manager (Health & Safety)
Mo Reideman
Audience Event & Planning Manager
Freda Pouflis
Venue Managers
Scott Davies, Tabitha Goble, Nicola Lake, Maria Pateli
Assistant Venue Managers
Jess Caute, Sam Hind, Bronagh Leneghan, Melissa Olcese, Daniel Young
Crew Management
Dave Magwood, Rob Magwood, James Towell
Access and Licensing Manager
Rebecca Oliver
Security Operations Manager
Naqash Sheikh
Audience Experience Coordinator
Ayelen Fananas
