Reviews

Under the Radar Review: A Story About Dyslexia Told Through Dance in Little Murmur

Aakash Odedra’s autobiographical piece makes its US premiere at the New Victory.

Pete Hempstead

Pete Hempstead

| New York City |

January 14, 2025

Murmur
Subhash Viman Gorania in Little Murmur
(photo courtesy of Aakash Odedra Company)

Writing our names is something that most of us take for granted, but for some, it’s a difficult task. For 21 years, Aakash Odedra, who has dyslexia, spelled his name wrong, leaving out an “A.” The story of his journey toward finding that A is told in his visually stunning work Little Murmur, choreographed by Odedra and Lewis Major, and now running through Sunday at the New Victory Theater. Filled with rich symbolism and a stirring performance by Subhash Viman Gorania (Kallirroi Vratti takes the stage on select dates), Little Murmur illuminates Odedra’s experience and shows how dyslexia can be a gift rather than a disability.

There’s a sense of mystery from the beginning as Gorania (who is mildly dyslexic himself) takes the stage barefooted and meticulously arranges a dozen large fans in a circle. Introducing himself as Subhash, he picks up a purple notebook and quickly flaps its covers like birds’ wings. Over the next 40 minutes, we watch him dance scenes from Odedra’s childhood as shadowy projections (by Ars Electronica Futurelab) depict his battles with bullies at school as well as with himself. Eventually, we see what those fans are for, as a sheet of paper with an A on it falls from the flies, followed by a deluge of blank white pages that swirl in a cyclone. In few seconds, it swallows him, and his letter is lost.

Aside from being very cool to watch, those swirling pages tie in with the show’s bird imagery. When Subhash opens his notebook, a huge murmuration of starlings appears to fly out of it (projections on a scrim work that magic). It not a big leap to see the correlation between a massive flock of birds and that tornado of pages, and we begin to understand how difficult it must be for someone with dyslexia to find something as small and specific as an A in a swirl of white paper. It’s a brilliant metaphor that’s made more dramatic by the whooshing of Nicki Wells’s ethereal music as Gorania (born in India and raised in the UK) stamps his feet in a Bharatanatyam dance (Kesha Raithatha is the rehearsal director).

The New Victory Theater usually programs shows geared toward younger audiences, and this one fits that bill. Gorania has a few comical bits that get kids giggling, and the special effects keep everyone, including the adults, engaged. As a family-friendly show, it’s a valuable addition to the Under the Radar festival lineup, and I recommend sticking around for the 15-minute talk-back with Gorania or Vratti. Every show has one, and it’s worth it. At the performance I attended, the youngsters in the audience were incredibly eager to ask questions, proof that the story caught their attention, and Gorania illuminated the show’s dance elements with friendly answers. But whether you bring the kids or not, you’ll leave Little Murmur thinking about dyslexia in a different way.

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