‘Shadhona – A Centre for the Advancement of South Asian Culture’, together with the ‘Nrittoshilpi Foundation Bangladesh’, inaugurated a six-month-long workshop titled ‘Embodied Concepts of Prakriti’ at the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy on Friday.

Samina Lutfa, sociology professor at Dhaka University and activist, inaugurated the workshop. Other speakers at the ceremony included Maarya Rehman, deputy director of the British Council in Bangladesh; Shireen Huq, founder of Naripokkho; Dipa Khandakar, general secretary of the Nrittoshilpi Foundation Bangladesh, and Lubna Marium, artistic director of Shadhona.

The workshop, which includes 35 dancers, theatre activists, and researchers, is supported financially by the British Council and the WOW Foundation. It aims to create dance dramas that depict the struggles of women.

Samina Lutfa noted that the performing arts and marginalised groups are currently at risk. Consequently, this workshop will focus on uncovering micro-narratives to create performance-based protests.

Shireen Huq added that this six-month initiative involves research-based performance creation centred on the systemic struggles faced by women.

On the opening day, Imtiaz Ahmed, executive director of the Centre for Alternatives, conducted a session titled ‘The Method Matters: An Introduction to Micro-Narratives.’

The workshop aims to create dance productions for the forthcoming WOW Bangladesh Chapter, which will be held on September 25.