The Forest Remembers
Saturday, 1 Nov 2025, 5:00 PM
Cutting Hall Theater, 150 E Wood St., Palatine IL, 60067
Take the experience further — join our exclusive dance workshop the following day and learn to the soul-stirring soundtracks of Bandish Bandits. Click here for details of workshop.
Get $10 discount on the Show + Workshop combo ticket.
In the heart of every Indian epic, there is a forest. Not just trees and trails — but a living witness.
Where gods walked as mortals.
Where lovers whispered and warriors wept.
Where illusion bloomed and dharma was tested.
It’s the forest that remembers.
The ache in Sita’s silence.
The roar of Ravana’s pride.
The laughter of Krishna echoing by the riverbank.
Through movement and memory, gesture and rhythm — Nov 1st, we dance the forest awake.
Artist Bio:
Deepa Devasena
As a proficient Kathak and BharataNrityam dancer, Deepa Devasena has garnered acclaim for her exceptional artistry and dedication to preserving these time-honored dance traditions.
With over a decade of experience as the founder and artistic director of the esteemed Kathak Dance Collective, Deepa has nurtured and continues to train aspiring dancers across 14 cities in USA, imparting the essence of the dance forms through certification, master classes and long-term courses. Along side graduating with a master degree in computers, Deepa’s passion for Indian aesthetics and literature led her to obtain 3 senior diplomas in Kathak, Bharatanatyam and Natyashastra, which serves as a foundational text for Indian performing arts.
Deepa Devasena has garnered acclaim for her exceptional artistry and as aesthetic choreographer for her dance musical and original productions like Beethoven’s German opera Fidelio, to recently premiered ‘Satrangi Re’ in Houston and solo production ‘Maya’ in North Carolina.
Deepa Devasena is an ardent practitioner of the Lucknow Gharana of Kathak, following the lineage of the legendary Pandit Birju Maharaj Ji— the visionary who gave kathak its modern form. It is both a privilege and a responsibility for her to carry forward this tradition in the USA, training students while continuing her own advanced study. She is among the rare few to have received ongoing guidance from stalwarts of the Gharana — Jai Kishan Maharajji, as well as Saswati Sen, who continue to deepen her understanding of Kathak’s nuances.
Her training has also been shaped by the celebrated dance duo, Nirupama and Rajendra of Bangalore, whose mastery in Abhinaya, choreography, and large-scale productions has inspired her own approach to art-making. From them, she has imbibed not only a profound love for literature and the aesthetics of storytelling but also the craft of envisioning and shaping productions that resonate with audiences across traditions.