Blue Pieta, Sarah Santos and Mathangi Keshavan

Resolution Festival 2025

About Blue Pieta, Sarah Santos and Mathangi Keshavan

A woman seated to the right. A young male in a foetal position seated on a chair to her left and a woman rising from the ground on his left.
Credit: Photo by Elisa Goroya

Mother Heart

You are invited to imagine your heart carved out of your body and affixed into the sky through an immersive performance combining poetry, dance and opera.

A mannequin cut in half with strings in-between it stands centre stage. Opera resurrects two dead bodies on the Day of Judgement as they face themselves and the Divine. The poet Bhanu Kapil reads the story of an immigrant guest and a citizen host from her T. S Elliot Prize-winning book 'How to Wash a Heart'.

And you are invited to lie between these two worlds and dream.

About Blue Pieta

Blue Pieta is a choreographer, visual artist, performer, dramaturg, and writer. Their hyper-visual language is inspired by dreams, mythology, ancestry and the History of Art, which they studied at Cambridge University. Their works have been curated by Royal Court Theatre, Courtauld Institute, Serpentine Galleries, Battersea Arts Centre, Horse Hospital, and Theatre Peckham.

Cast & Credits

Choreographer/Performer/Musical Director/Set Designer/Producer: Blue Pieta
Poet: Bhanu Kapil
Dancer: Samantha Hines
Singer, Sound Designer: Kath Gifford
Musician: Ynys Barnard-Masterson

A black dancer with braided hair lies on a wall adorned with portraits of iconic Black figures.
Credit: Photo by Ariane Almeida

Stranded

Stranded explores the emotional and physical journey of women with curly, coily, and wavy hair as they choose to transition back to their natural hair, free from chemical treatments. Through movement, the work responds to the colonial history that falsely linked Black physical features to notions of primitiveness and animality. Rather than a pursuit of beauty, the piece reflects a reclamation of Black aesthetics, celebrating the inherent beauty that has always been present.

About Sarah Santos

Sarah Santos is a dancer and choreographer based in London. She graduated from the State University of Campinas (Brazil) with a BA in Dance and a Dance Teaching Degree, and from Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance with an MA in Choreography, supported by the Leverhulme Trust. Sarah incorporates text, poetry, and philosophy into her choreographies to weave narratives and evoke feelings. Recent works include 'What I Keep' for the Young Company of Jundiaí (Brazil), 'Rain' (Ireland) and 'Unfamiliar Flesh,' a co-creation with Irene Fiordilino for the London Philharmonic Orchestra (England).

Cast & Credits

Choreographer and performer: Sarah Santos
Costume Design and Scenography: Viviane Kiill

Rest of the list to be confirmed.

Credit: Photo by Vipul Sangoi

0’s & 1’s

0’s & 1’s traces the evolution of data and its impact on human life. The abstract nature of information is expressed through dynamic footwork, recited syllables, sharply etched hand gestures and creative use of props. The choreography blends ensemble sequences with narratives, bringing the concept of data to life.

Rooted in the movement vocabulary of Bharatanatyam, the performance incorporates veena, vocal, and percussion music, enhanced by an electronic score and data sonification. Combined with evocative projections and futuristic costumes, it creates an immersive sensory experience that brings the beauty of data patterns to life.

About Mathangi Keshavan

Mathangi Keshavan is a third-generation Bharatanatyam artist whose practice pushes the boundaries of the South Asian dance form through innovative juxtapositions of abstract concepts with traditional movement vocabulary.

With a master's degree in Bharatanatyam and over 30 years of training at her ancestral dance school, the Academy of Bharatanatyam in India, Mathangi also draws on her training in Carnatic vocal music and her experience in the technology industry to inform her creative process.

Mathangi has collaborated with several dance establishments in the UK and has performed across India, the US, and Mexico. Recently, she was selected for the Sadler's Wells Artist Choreography Development Programme for South Asian dance.

Cast & Credits

Concept, choreography and artistic direction: Mathangi Keshavan
Dance Artists for the performance: Suhani Dhanki, Kirsten Newell, Akshara Mohan, Shivaangee Agrawal
Other dance collaborators: Divya Ravi, Anaya Bolar, Sai Supriya Sreecumaar

Music collaborators:
Data Sonification & Electronic Music: Adrian Lewis
Veena: Divyanand Caird
Percussion & Morsing: Mithushan Sivagurunathar
Vocals: Akshara Mohan
Nattuvangham & Sollukattu: Mathangi Keshavan

Costume Design: Sandhya Raman
Set Design: Florence Wright
Dance mentor: Suba Subramaniam

With thanks to: Bhavan, London, Linda Saunders, Supritha Aithal and Akademi

Image gallery

  • A sculpture of an ice heart held in four hands with one person below reaching towards it.
  • A woman covered in shadows wearing a white dress turning to the left.
  • A male body on a crucifix with a toy in a plastic bag is opened by two people.
  • One body kneeling on floor covering face with a horse puppet behind it held by four people in suits. On the back right a woman in a jacket turns away.
  • A female body with a plastic toy held in her centre with multiple hands holding it from people kneeling below to evoke birth.
  • Two bodies lying entwined on the floor and two bodies in suits standing behind.
  • A woman seated to the right. A young male in a foetal position seated on a chair to her left and a woman rising from the ground on his left.
  • Black and white image of a black dancer with braided hair arching her back close by a wall adorned with portraits of iconic Black figures. Movement and Memory.
  • A black dancer with braided hair lies on a wall adorned with portraits of iconic Black figures.
  • A woman with braided hair lies in soft sunlight, her body curved, the vivid red of her skirt contrasting with the shadows and brick floor.
  • Top-down view of a black woman seated in quiet reflection, her eyes softly closed, arms wrapped around her knees. Gentle shadows play across her face and body and her Afro hair framed in the delicate light.