⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Intimate, soulful, and transcendent.
Tonight in the Patrick Studio at Birmingham Hippodrome, something sacred took flight. Songs of the Bulbul, a new work by the Aakash Odedra Company in association with Manchester Camerata, didn’t ask to be understood – it asked to be felt. And we felt it. In our breath. In our bones. In the stillness that followed.
Rooted in an ancient Sufi myth and blooming into a visceral, contemporary experience, the piece tells the story of a caged bulbul. Its wings clipped, its song aching with longing. As the end draws near, the bird sings more sweetly. A final surrender. A final flight.
Odedra’s presence is magnetic. A spectacular solo performance. Every movement, every step – audible over thousands of rose petals. The setting and performance, both intimate and sacred. The grace of Kathak, entwined with the devotional energy of Sufi storytelling, becomes a meditation on life, loss, and release.
And then the third dance, the moment the candles flickered to life, sent goosebumps across my arms. Pure magic.
Rushil Ranjan’s score moves effortlessly from orchestral sweep to textured quiet, held aloft by vocals from Abi Sampa and Sarthak Kalyani. The music doesn’t accompany the movement – it speaks with it.
Fabiana Piccioli has worked wonders with the lighting. Balancing light and shadow, presence and absence.
In the post-show Q&A, Odedra shared the deeply personal roots of the piece, revealing the loss of his mother to suicide in 2020. “The bulbul leaves in the end,” he says quietly. And suddenly, everything makes sense.
This isn’t just a dance piece. It’s a ritual, a reckoning, a gift, and one of the most exquisite things you will ever see.
You’ll walk out changed, wondering when you can watch the performance again.
Birmingham Hippodromes Creative Director, Chris Sudworth is right, Aakash “makes incredible world-class work.”
You can see it in the Midlands at the following locations;
Midlands Tour Dates:
9th – 10th April 2025 – Birmingham Hippodrome, Birmingham (the 9th has sold out. Tickets available for the 10th)
29th – 30th April 2025 – Curve Theatre, Leicester
3rd June 2025 – Nottingham Playhouse, Nottingham
If you would like to book tickets, you can book here: https://aakashodedra.com/productions/songs-of-the-bulbul/
Disclaimer: I attended the media performance of this spectacular dance production.