No upcoming perfomances found for this event.
October 1 and 2 | We’re sorry to share that Thursday and Friday evening’s Akram Khan Company performances have been canceled due to an unexpected federal visa issue affecting the company. Ticket holders have been contacted. If you have any questions, please reach out to the Ticket Office at (843) 242-3099 or ticketing@gaillardcenter.org.
About the Show
Celebrating over 25 years of groundbreaking work, Akram Khan Company brings its latest and final touring production, Thikra: Night of Remembering, to the stage. This powerful work reflects on memory, legacy, and the stories we carry forward—offering a poignant culmination of the company’s extraordinary artistic journey. Blending striking movement, evocative music, and rich cultural influences, Thikra explores connections across time, place, and generations. Both intimate and expansive, it is a deeply moving meditation on remembrance and a fitting tribute to a company that has redefined contemporary dance worldwide.
Developed in response to AlUla—an awe-inspiring yet remote region of Saudi Arabia that once thrived as a crossroads of ancient trade—Khan collaborates with Saudi artist Manal AlDowayan to create a work rooted in ritual and remembrance. The piece centers on a collective of women who call upon an ancestral presence, engaging in a process of confronting shared history, honoring loss, letting go, and moving forward.
Thikra is shaped by AlUla’s striking landscapes, layered histories, and cultural traditions, conveying a central idea: progress is only possible through a deep connection to the past.
Please note: This performance includes loud sound levels and atmospheric smoke and haze effects.
Support for this program is made possible by generous donors who have committed time and resources to the Charleston Gaillard Center’s Dance Initiative.
[Thikra] “pulsates with physical intensity and ancestral rage…Khan’s choreography bypasses thinking mode and goes straight for weighty but intangible worlds of colour and emotion, life and death, animal spirit, magic and witchery.
The Guardian, October 2025
Runtime: 65 minutes (no intermission)
Please note all times are approximate and subject to change without notice.
Director / Choreographer Akram Khan
Visual Director / Costume and Scenography Manal AlDowayan
Narrative Concept Manal AlDowayan & Akram Khan
Associate Artistic Director / Coach Mavin Khoo
Music Composer and Soundscape Designer Aditya Prakash
Sound Designer Gareth Fry
Lighting Designer Zeynep Kepekli
Dramaturge Blue Pieta
Rehearsal Director Chris Tudor
Dancers
Laura Bufano, Amrita Doshi, Ekta Doshi, Shreya Kannan, Madoka Kariya, Aishwarya Raut, Nikita Rao, Rohini Shetty, Elpida Skourou, Mei Fei Soo, Seren Williams
Musicians (in recorded composition)
Aditya Prakash, Ananya Ashok, Loulwa Al Sharif, Melanie Pappenheim, Sohini Alam, Zafer Tawil, Sumesh Narayanan, Layth Sidiq, Megan Shung, Jay Julio, Naseem Alatrash, Guhan Venkataraman, Doyeon Kim, Dimitris Menexopoulos, Isaac Alderson, Sushma Soma, Praveen Sparsh, V. Prakash Ilayaraja, N Deepan, N Vijay, M Rajendran, Chris Votek
Featured music in score
“Gyura Beli Belo Platno” by London Bulgarian Choir
Directed by Dessislava Stefanova
“The Elephant’s Funeral” by Sushma Soma with Aditya Prakash
Producing Director Farooq Chaudhry
Executive Director Isabel Tamen
Production Manager Michael Cunningham
Production of Visual Direction Carla Giachello
Company Manager Emma Cameron
Technical Stage Manager Harry Abbott
Touring Production Manager Anthony Forrester
Sound Engineer Enrico Aurigemma
Lighting Engineer Imogen Clarke
Wardrobe Manager Anne-Marie Bigby
Commissioned by Wadi AlFann, Valley of the Arts, AlUla
Primary Co-producing Partner Bagri Foundation
Indoor adaptation co-produced by Berliner Festspiele, Brown Arts Institute at Brown University, Montpellier Danse Festival, Pina Bausch Zentrum, Sadler’s Wells, Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg, Théâtre de la Ville Paris
Supported by Arts Council England
Please note: This performance includes loud sound levels and atmospheric smoke and haze effects.
Please note that for this performance online purchases have a limit of eight (8) tickets per customer. To purchase additional tickets or to inquire about group sales, please contact the ticket office directly at (843) 242-3099.