About

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Kathakaats image

Established in 2002 and joining the Arts Council’s National Portfolio in 2012, Sonia Sabri Company (SSCo) is led by Artistic Director, Sonia Sabri and Musical Director, Sarvar Sabri. We are a Birmingham Hippodrome associate company and partner with many organisations across the West Midlands.

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Our award-winning productions are rooted in Kathak and Indian classical music but draw on contemporary influences to create distinctive, relevant and accessible artistic experiences for audiences of all ages and backgrounds. We tour internationally to theatres, arts centres and festivals, as well as unconventional spaces, including schools, libraries, parks and museums. We are committed to presenting energetic work with live music wherever possible with high quality percussion, instrumental, and vocals as well as soundscapes.

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Sonia Sabri Company also provides enjoyable, informative and meaningful learning and participatory opportunities for people of all ages, abilities and levels of experience, spanning dance, music, storytelling and visual arts to explore South Asian culture. SSCo offer a range of exciting classes, workshops, and training programmes for schools, community groups, HE/FE establishments and emerging dancers and musicians.

  We love to collaborate and work with partner organisations and individuals to create bespoke performances and events. Sonia has choreographed and directed dance for film and music videos, ‘flash mob’ performances, mass participatory shows, festivals and cross-artform projects.

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Sonia Sabri - Artistic Director

Sonia Sabri is a multi-award-winning dance artist, choreographer and movement director and Artistic Director of Sonia Sabri Company. She is one of the world’s leading Kathak dance artists, creating work that spans from the presentation of classical roots of Kathak to explorations of contemporary approaches, her productions reflect an appreciation of Western and Eastern cultures.
 
In 2022, Sonia was the associate choreographer for Wondrous Stories to launch Birmingham Festival Commonwealth Games, and for The Opening Ceremony of the Commonwealth Games. Sonia Sabri Company is an Associate Artist at Birmingham Hippodrome and Sonia is Creative Resident at The Curve.
Sarvar Sabri image
Sarvar Sabri - Musical Director

Sarvar Sabri is an internationally renowned tabla player and composer whose versatility and passion for rich diversity of the world’s musical traditions has spurred him to experiment with other worlds-class musicians, composers and dancers. A top-grade awardee of All India Radio, he has worked with the world’s leading vocalists, musicians and dancers. He is involved with collaborative, hybrid work, composing music for theatre, storytelling, dance companies’ radio and television. He is a recipient of Arts Council Composer for Dance Award.
Claire Birch
Claire Birch - Producer

Claire looks after SSCo’s productions from research and development through to tour booking.
Mary Ryder
Mary Ryder - Programme Manager

Mary is responsible for overseeing and developing a range of strategic projects across the Company’s programme, including touring productions, learning and participation activities, schools’ workshops and partnerships and collaborations.
Linda Saunders
Linda Saunders - Business Development Manager

Linda responsible for fundraising and identifying business development opportunities for the company. She is also leads on the Company’s evaluation and reporting.
Hayley Izzard
Hayley Izzard - Marketing Managerager

Hayley oversees the Company’s marketing, communication and audience development activities.
Irina Mackie
Irina Mackie - Digital Content Creator

Irina creates photo and video content for our online presence and marketing campaigns as well as managing our social media platforms.

Gulfam Sabri
Gulfam Sabri - Music Teacher & Performer

Gulfam works across our regular class programme as well as delivering school and community workshops, including Global Music Youth Ensemble. Also performs in the company’s touring productions and performance projects.

Divya Sharma
Divya Sharma - Kathak Teacher

Divya is part of SSCo’s teaching faculty and leads the Kathak class programme in Newcastle. 

Aakaanksha Rawat
Aakanksha Rawat - Admin & Class Coordinator

Aakanksha is responsible for the class programme and day-to-day company administration. She also supports the Programme Manager and Producer in the coordination of tours and events.
Simron Sabri - Creative Designer

Simron designs and creates the costumes for our touring productions as well as our range of class uniforms and merchandise. She is responsible for company's branding and also creates content for our TikTok account.
Sonia Sabri
Sonia Sabri - Artistic Director
Sarvar Sabri
Sarvar Sabri - Musical Director
Claire Birch
Claire Birch - Producer
Mary Ryder
Mary Ryder - Programme Manager
Linda Saunders
Linda Saunders - Busniness Development Manager
HAyley Izzard
Hayley Izzard - Marketing Manager
Irina Mackie
Irina Mackie - Digital Content Creator
Gulfam Sabri
Gulfam Sabri - Music Teacher & Performer
Divya Sharma
Divya Sharma - Kathak Teacher
Aakanksha Rawat
Akaanksha Rawat - Admin & Class Corodinator
Simron Sabri
Simron Sabri - Creative Designer
Dr Stacey Prickett- chair

Stacey is an Honorary Research Fellow and PhD supervisor in Dance at the University of Roehampton. Her teaching, research and published writings have focused on diverse themes in dance history, politics and sociological perspectives, including South Asian dance, modern and contemporary dance in the US and the UK, and dance and cultural diplomacy during the Cold War.
Rachel Harris - board member

Rachel is Senior Producer at London Borough of Culture 2022 (Lewisham) following her role as Head of Public Programming at UCL, working with academics, artists and the public to animate and make accessible the world-class research taking place at the University.
Prior to this, Rachel was Creative Producer, Festival Development and Head of Participation at Southbank Centre, London.tic ambition with social impact to develop local, national and international connections.
Alok Kapoor - board member

Sarvesh Saini - board member

A practising Solicitor by profession, Sarvesh Saini is an amateur self-taught painter inspired primarily by the magic and mystique of mythological subjects and characters. Has been exhibiting since 2002 in Solo and group shows in India and the UK, working on canvas with oil as a favoured medium.
He is an active member of Stratford Upon Avon Arts Society and regular contributor to the Annual Exhibition of the society.

The underlying belief in the mystique of mythology finds expression in pa
intings as a manifestation of faith in the sublime and divine associated with mythology and nature.
Ushma Mistry - board member

Ushma is a business marketing professional in the dental sector, implementing marketing campaigns to help practices grow their business, attract more patients and increase monthly revenue. Previously Ushma worked for 14 years at the University of Wolverhampton in project management, marketing, outreach & recruitment across a number of schools but more recently the Faculty of Arts. nthly revenue. Outside of work Ushma has a passion for travel, arts and dance.
Kaneeka Kapur- board member

Kaneeka Kapur is a founder and community organiser. She founded Pardesi, a global community with over 15,000 followers and members in 2020 with Shikha Gianchandani and has since gone on to give a TEDx talk about representation, consult media houses and be named the youngest of 50 women leaders chosen by Estee Lauder for their Vital Voices fellowship. She holds degrees from the University of Warwick and Cornell University.
Dr Stacey Pricket
Alok Kapoor - board member
Rachel Harris - board member
Sarvesh Saini - board member
Ushma Mistry- board member
Kaneeka Kapur- board member

Environmental Sustainability

We are aware that through our activities, we influence the environment and contribute to climate change, and we believe that we have a responsibility to work to reduce this impact and minimise our contribution.

There are challenges for us in addressing these issues which will require us to tackle our patterns of creativity, consumption, and travel;
however, we will continually seek ways to take positive action.

  • • Being lean (use less), being clean (service systems), and being green (renewables)
  • • Making ‘working sustainably’ at the heart of our planning for everything we do
  • • Managing and reviewing our emissions (direct and indirect)
  • • Measuring outcomes, recording results, and sharing best practise and lessons learnt with our peer group