icchā
Culture Lab LIC5-25 46th Avenue, New York 11101
icchā arrives at Culture Lab LIC as a contemporary kathak work that weaves original music, set design and garba, a communal Gujarati folk form. The piece follows Barkha, visited in a dream by maternal ancestors who choose her to express, release and fulfill their desires. Its concerns include survival, loss, intimacy, violence, the denial of dance and embodied selfhood. No individual performers are named in the listing, which presents this as a staged work rather than a conventional band bill.
The work takes its title and central idea from Hindu philosophy: vasanas are described as unfulfilled longings that survive physical death and pass through bloodlines as living desire, or icchā. The listing frames the piece around matrilineages often left unnamed, interrupted or absorbed into patriarchal histories, asking who we carry within us and what unfinished reaching may remain in the body. It calls icchā a “somatic shraadh,” an ancestral reverence for secret tragedies dissolved by time. Beyond those ideas and its use of kathak, original music and garba, the available information gives no background on the artists behind the work or their prior projects.
Culture Lab LIC occupies a spacious converted warehouse that blends art and performance in a uniquely versatile setting. The venue features two fine art galleries and an 80-seat theater, creating a diverse cultural environment where visual and live arts intersect. Events range from jazz evenings to immersive theater and community gatherings, often held in the large outdoor space that adds an open-air dimension to the experience. The audience can expect a focused listening environment with ticketed shows that support local and international artists, fostering a strong sense of community and inclusion. The venue’s commitment to equity and diversity is reflected in its programming and welcoming atmosphere, making an evening here both engaging and enriching beyond just the music or performance.