The name Nautch comes from the Hindi verb naachna, meaning “to dance.” The Nautch girls were a group of dancers in India who took devotional dance out of the temples in order to perform them for the pleasure of human beings.
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Creative Director, Amy Sigil, teaches classes in Sacramento, California at Hot Pot Studio. Members of the troupe include Amy Sigil, Shelly DeCant, Kari Vanderzwag, Sarah Stinson, and April Rose
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but there are winters when we lose the bloodflow and freeze
to icy shells; our icicle selves.
When the heat is gone from our veins
and we’ve lost all feeling
we pine for patience not to set a wildfire;
to hibernate until we melt and return to the warm current.
Choreographed by April Rose for WACSmash!, the undergraduate produced show in the World Arts and Cultures/Dance department at UCLA. This work was an exploration of yoga and bellydance and was inspired by patience, icicles, emotional winters, and meditation. Performed in March 2009.
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Secrets - ranging from hilarious to heartbreaking - are revealed in the Wet Spots' orgasmic portraits. Nine women, ranging in age from 19 to 51, share their stories of faking it, fear of frigidity, unspoken unhappiness with a sexual partner, and an accidental orgasm at a rave.
Conceived and directed by Christine Suarez, with choreography by Suarez in collaboration with the performers. Performed as a roaming art instillation in 3 vacation cottages in Venice Beach, LA.
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In this colorfully dark work, choreographer Krenly Guzman explores concepts of gender fluidity with a cast of male and female dancers.
Guzman deconstructs gender through a series of body codes to explore the position of women and homosexuals in Afro-Cuban Voodoo Santeria culture.
This mutlimedia work included video projections by CariAnn Shim Sham and was performed in November 2008 in Glorya Kaufman Hall at UCLA.
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In 2008 the theme of the Halloween season show was Disease 101. Each performer in the show portrayed either a specific disease or an aspect of disease. Some works included addiction, mono, obsessive compulsive disorder, lice, & anorexia nervosa.
April Rose performed an original choreography inspired by the gastointestinal parasite cryptosperidium.
Audience member review:
"weird, strange, unwholesome, bendy, creepy, mesmerizing, fitting, and fitted gold outfit, creative, simple, effective, did I say strange?"
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In 2007 the theme of the show was The Zoo. Each performer in the show portrayed either a Zoo animal or a Zoo-goer. Some works included elephants, flamingos, the zoo staff and Suhaila Salimpour as the lion. April Rose and Sina peformed as the Lemurs in a choreographic collaboration.
In this piece, the lemurs, in their peaceful repose, are interrupted by a group of bored zoo-going kids who begin to shout and throw popcorn at the lemurs, prompting the terrified monkeys to "perform".
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