Featured Artists:
SAMEER PATEL
ASHWATY CHENNAT
MANOU MAGDALENA CHAKRAVROTY
Join us for a live stream on Mandala’s Facebook Page or Youtube Channel. Proceeds go towards Mandala Makers artists. Donate today: https://www.facebook.com/donate/1885545514916110/
Cello protégé Manou Chakravorty opens our evening with Sameer Patel and Ashwaty Chennat who recently collaborated on an adaptation of “The Firebird Suite” presented with Chicago Sinfonietta. Sameer and Ashwaty will share their story and the creation process, followed by Q&A with the audience!
Sameer Patel (conductor)
Internationally recognized for his versatile musicianship and passionate communication, Sameer Patel is one of America’s most exciting young conductors. A recipient of 2016 and 2017 Solti Foundation U.S. Career Assistance Awards, Mr. Patel is the Associate Conductor of the San Diego Symphony. A graduate of the University of Michigan, Mr. Patel furthered his training with some of the greatest conductors of our time, including Gianandrea Noseda, Daniele Gatti, the late Kurt Masur, Bernard Haitink, David Zinman and Neeme and Paavo Järvi.
Ashwaty Chennat (choreographer)
Ashwaty Chennat is rooted in Bharatanatyam and ballet, among classical and folk forms of South Asia, and has choreographed works that find connections between disparate dance forms and histories. Principal artist with Mandala Arts, Ashwaty currently grows her work with director Pranita Nayar; she began her journey in dance with Sudha Chandrasekhar, Deena Fournier and Lisa Holland (Michigan).
Manou Magdalena Chakravorty (cello)
Manou Magdalena Chakravorty started cello at the age of four with Karen Schulz-Harmon and now studies with Richard Hirschl and Oleksa Mycyk. Manou has performed at Weill Recital Hall in Carnegie Hall, at the Kremlin and Moscow Conservatory in Moscow, the Studebaker Theater in Chicago, the opera house in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan and various venues in Austria (Gmunden, Zell an der Pram, Sankt Johann im Saggautal), Germany (Kirchberg-an-der-Jagst), Italy (Urbino, Brisighella), Liechtenstein (Nendeln) and Spain (Daroca). She studies Bharatnatyam, a form of Indian classical dance, with Pranita Nayar.
About Mandala Makers:
Emerging artists immersed in South Asian performance traditions share their passion and artistry in this concert series. Each week features a different line up of outstanding Chicago-based musicians, dancers and experts. These artists are resilient in their creations and are building a space to share work and find healing and expression through art. All contributions go towards Mandala Makers Festival launching June 13th.
About Mandala Makers Festival:
The festival returns this year as a digital space to support Chicago-based artists engaging with South Asian culture and identities. Artists respond to the process art-making during the COVID-19 crisis and contribute their voices in this project.