BURNING SKIN
Burning Skin denounces racism in its various forms
2017 / 23 MINUTES
” Touching, forceful, sad and yet funny, this solo is completely original! A presentation filled with emotions and images, some of the most beautiful being of a dance right to the fingertips. “
Andrée Martin, Le Devoir, 1997
For the company’s 25th anniversary, Roger Sinha revisited his 1992 success Burning Skin, created in reaction to the choreographer’s personal experiences of racism. Inspired initially by the autobiographical text The Rainbow Sign, by British/Pakistani author Hanif Kureishi, Burning Skin is a reflexion of Roger’s turbulent childhood and youth in the UK and Canada, shadowed by violence, racial confrontations and suppression of his Indian heritage.
The original solo was transformed in an intergenerational duo with Mark Medrano as the dancer and Roger Sinha, on texts and voice. Both are of mixed origins, Mark was born in Canada and of Indian and Philipino parents and Roger was born in the UK of Indian and Armenian parents. A multiplicity of movement forms, such as Bharata Natyam, martial arts, ballet, modern dance, combined with theatre techniques have inspired the choreographer and were integrated in his improvisation based vocabulary.
As relevant today as it was back then, given the growing tide of nationalism and anti-immigration worldwide, the piece has won unanimous praise of critics and spectators alike. Burning Skin denounces racism in many forms.
Read Dena Davida’s article Kinetic crossroads: Chouinard, Sinha and Castello
Calendar
October 2, 2018 -Festival of New Dance, Saint John’s
March 31, 2017 – Harbourfront Centre-Fleck Dance Theatre, Kalanidhi Festival, Toronto
September 12 and 18, 2015 – Maison de la culture Rosemont-La-Petite-Patrie, Quartiers Danses Festival, Montreal
1994 Television adaptation for the CBC SERIES In Performance
1992-1994
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The cast

Roger Sinha
Dancer, choreographer

Mark Medrano
Dancer
Credits
Choreography and dance / Roger Sinha 2017 dancer / Mark Medrano / Text / Hanif Kureishi / Original music / Charmaine LeBlanc, Dino Giancola, voice Ganesh Anandan / Other music / Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Johann Strauss / Musical design and direction / Roger Sinha / Taj Mahal created by / Alain Cadieux / Wardrobe / Josée Gagnon / Lighting / Caroline Ross / Technical direction / Jack Pilon











