The countdown begins!
Beautiful Paradox premiers Today,
Friday the 13th at 6:30 PM EST!
Watch Beautiful Paradox by clicking the video below!
Join us on friday, november 13th
Explore cultural and spiritual identity with a free virtual variety show!
Through music, dance, song, comedy, spoken word, and story-telling, you are invited to celebrate the richness of the American mosaic as creatives gifts us with a glimpse into what it means to hold multiple cultural and spiritual identities.
Featured presenters include the Natyalaya School of Arts, Hoza Dance Troupe, Kayla Behforouz, Sunny Atwal, and Manon Voice.
Collaborator Bios
The Line-Up
Sunny Atwal
Sunny Atwal is a comedian based out of New York City and has a decade's worth of public speaking experience. Most recently he wrote, produced, directed, and starred in a 45 minute one-man show, Taxi Cab Driver. Additionally, he produces and performs in an all South Asian casted comedy show for the People's Improv Theater, where he teaches improv and public speaking classes. He originates from Indianapolis where he was an incredibly active citizen of the city: hosting the International Marketplace Coalition banquet, hosting the Indy Visitor's Channel (promoting local businesses), and co-writing/starring in several Indy Fringe productions. Much of Sunny's art is inspired by the rifts he felt growing up with parents who migrated from India while juggling what it meant to be an American. Ultimately, the two identities merged to create an unforgettable performer and a beautiful paradox.
Manon Voice
Manon Voice, is a native of Indianapolis, Indiana and is a poet and writer, spoken word artist, hip-hop emcee, educator, social justice advocate and practicing contemplative. She has performed on diverse stages across the country in the power of word and song and has taught and facilitated art and poetry workshops widely. Her poetry has appeared in The Flying Island, The Indianapolis Review, The House Life Project: People + Property Series, Sidepiece Magazine and The World We Live(d) In anthology.
Manon Voice is a proud board member of the Fair Housing Center of Central Indiana, a private, non for profit organization whose mission is to ensure equal housing opportunities by eliminating housing discrimination through advocacy, enforcement, education, and outreach. She is also co-founder of the Kindred Collective, LLC., an organization that gives voice to equity through workshops and consulting, along with colleagues, Ben Tapper and Joshua Riddick. In 2018, Manon received a nomination for the Pushcart Prize in Poetry. She is also a recipient of the 2020 Robert D. Beckmann Jr., Emerging Artist Fellowship from the Arts Council of Indianapolis.
For more info on her work, go to manonvoice.com
Vrinda Sunil, Natyalaya School of Arts
Vrinda Sunil is an accomplished Indian Classical dancer who specializes in Bharatanatyam and Mohiniyattam dance forms and is passionate about teaching these pure art forms to future generations. Vrinda has learned Bharatanatyam and Mohiniyattam from the age of 4 and has learned both for more than 20 years. Vrinda has choreographed and coordinated many dance performances and dramas in several mid-western states. In 2006, she founded the Natyalaya School of Arts in Carmel, Indiana, containing students of all ages and levels.
Hoza Dance Troupe
Hoza began as a part of the Sports for Peace Project within the Peace Center for Forgiveness and Reconciliation. It is comprised of young women who use dance to keep their home cultures alive. Hoza performs at weddings and other celebrations around the city of Indianapolis, state, and Midwest region.
Kayla Behforouz
Kayla is a native of Indianapolis India, Kayla Behforouz is a composer, singer-songwriter, pianist, and vocalist. She began her musical studies at Interlochen Arts Academy, where she studied music composition and piano performance. Behforouz then continued her education at the University of Southern California (USC), studying music composition under Sean Friar.
Behforouz is currently finishing her undergraduate degree at Indiana University, studying International Studies. She continues to perform as a solo artist, vocalist at IU Soul Revue band, and member of the funk, soul, and R&B band Down to Funk. She is especially passionate about engaging cross-cultural and feminist perspectives with her music, hoping to utilize music's inherent empathetic power to share stories and motivate social change.
For Beautiful Paradox, she will be performing an original piece inspired by her grandfather from Iran.
A Huge thank you to our co-host:
