Parkinson’s Disease Still dancing
April 11 is World Parkinson’s Day. Movement Mantra and Third Half Theatre brought their play, ‘Still Dancing,’ based on a true story, to raise awareness about Parkinson’s Disease, (PD). A truly wonderful production! Movement coach and founder of Movement Mantra, Dr Vonita Singh, has championed Parkinson’s in the Middle East and India for 10 years. Explaining the importance of dance in the production, Dr Singh said: “For people with Parkinson’s Disease, physical activity, mental stimulation and social engagement are recommended. Without a doubt, dance provides all three. Thinking and moving like a dancer instinctively applies to most aspects of living with Parkinson’s. Using the brain consciously to guide the body is the basic tool of dance and a patient needs to do just that when autonomous commands are compromised.”
She produced ‘Still Dancing’ to give patients and their families hope through the true story of her father whom she lost to Parkinson’s in 2009. She said: “It is not enough to talk about Parkinson’s once a year during World Parkinson’s Awareness Month. Particularly alarming is the rise of young onset cases, people as young as 20. It’s time we stepped up building awareness through something immediate and effective like theatre. It is our hope that ‘Still Dancing’ will contribute to this cause.”
Award-winning writer, director and founder of Third Half Theatre, Sanjeev Dixit, the mastermind behind this production, commented on the play’s journey: “We had such a beautiful response to the play when we first staged it in Dubai. … while it is a play on Parkinson’s, at the heart, it is still quite simply the story of a family. A family like yours and mine, with the same hopes and dreams. The play follows their lives, their joys and, of course, their hardships. And I think it resonated with the audience with that simplicity and sincerity of purpose.”
Dance as a medium to heal
With the amazing Kumar Sharma, the dance troupe, Kathak Rockers, blended emotions with real issues using classical and modern dance. “Movement through dance is an integral part of this family’s journey through their trials. It has been a privilege to interpret dance as a medium to heal and I am excited to help raise this awareness,” said Kumar.
Theatre management company QTP coordinated the production, which demanded great sensitivity in choosing a cast. “Our efforts were focused … on ensuring a cast that would do justice to the emotive quotient required via not only their talent but through a recognition of the social contribution their efforts would make”, says Quasar Thakore-Padamsee.
‘Still Dancing’, a play about Parkinson’s Awareness by Movement Mantra & Third Half Theatre, is supported by the Adani Foundation. Founded in 2013 by Dubai based classical dancer, Dr Vonita Singh, Movement Mantra is a social enterprise dedicated to improving life for the mobility challenged. What started out as movement sessions with one PD ‘hero’ Gity Bazargan, it is the only social platform in the Middle East for the PD community. Working with specialty hospitals, medical professionals and support groups, Movement Mantra builds public awareness of PD across the Gulf, India and the world. Through interactive talks and workshops, Dr Singh advocates movement for patients. Her work has made a positive difference for hundreds of patients and their families. She brought awareness at conferences in Kuwait and India and became faculty at the International Parkinson’s and Movement Disorder Society. In 2023, she was invited to speak at NYU’s Abu Dhabi campus about her experiences as a movement practitioner. She inspired the award-winning documentary, ‘Ranapakhara’ by Arab Film Studio (which won several international awards including Best Documentary in the Mosaic World Film Festival 2018), received the ‘Splash Heart of Gold’ award in 2015 and the ‘1000 Faces of Asia’ award in 2020. Her work continued during the pandemic as Movement Mantra moved its sessions online to expand reach
Launched in 2012 Third Half Theatre began with the hilarious Noises Off, and pioneered original theatre in Dubai. Its productions were presented at the Emirates Litfest Fringe, The Sikka Art Fair, and across Dubai. Winners of Dubai’s Short+Sweet festival, Third Half has performed their original plays in India and in Hollywood.