Ahilan Ratnamohan brings solo to Melbourne

Creator, performer and former soccer player Ahilan Ratnamohan draws from the sweaty, skilled physicality of “the beautiful game” in a startling, solo dance-inspired work – SDS1. Described by Ratnamohan as a kind of “football dance theatre” with and without a soccer ball, SDS1 immerses audiences in the surreal, visceral, momentous and poetic experience of the match.

His third football-related performance piece, SDS1 will have its Melbourne premiere on August 19-22 at Arts House. It explores a language not only physical, but theatrical and psychological as well. Drawing on his personal experiences as a player, Ratnamohan delves into the psyche of the vulnerable warrior of the pitch – loved, hated, worshipped, scorned or triumphant.

Through sheer athletic prowess, both with and without the ball, he extracts the essences, emotions and gestures of the game to create a work that sees the player caught in the performance, rather than in control of it.

With the audience seated in the round, SDS1 is soccer as theatre: physically charged, stripped back, extracted, frozen, repeated and abstracted – beautiful and ugly at once.

Having performed through Australia, South Africa and Europe, Ratnamohan creates physical performance inspired by sport, film, language and unorthodox forms, and since 2012 has been based in Antwerp, Belgium, where he has developed his working methodology.

After graduating from Film Studies at the University of Technology Sydney in 2005, Ratnamohan attempted a professional football (soccer) career in the Netherlands, Sweden and Germany – his experience as a footballer deeply informs the style of work he creates.

In Australia, Ratnamohan has worked with a diverse range of companies and artists including Urban Theatre Projects, Branch Nebula, Legs on the Wall, PACT, Powerhouse Youth Theatre, Theatre Kantanka, Martin del Amo and Campbelltown Arts Centre.

Prior to the Arts House presentation of SDS1, Ratnamohan will present several workshops for soccer players within the North Melbourne community, from local sports groups, high schools and the asylum seeker community.

To see the trailer for Ahilan Ratnamohan’s SDS1, or to book tickets to a show, visit www.melbourne.vic.gov.au.

Photo: Arts House will present SDS1 by Ahilan Ratnamohan. Photo by Olympe Tits.