[NoHo Arts District, CA] – A NoHo Arts 2026 Hollywood Fringe Festival review of SPLIT: Between Two Nervous Systems, written and performed by Dr. Dimple Kaur, produced by Jessica Lynn Johnson of Soaring Solo Studios.
An immigrant’s story is more important and more relevant than ever, given the often terrifying campaigns from the present administration. SPLIT is one immigrant’s story, a documentation of an Indian woman’s experience of moving to the US and trying to maintain her deeply rooted culture in her daily life as well as facing shockingly extreme and surreally casual racism.
Dimple Kaur moved to America with her husband years ago, and while she hoped to assimilate into American life, she was also determined to keep everything that meant the most to her about India. From her sari to her food and her dance. Dimple had studied the art of the ancient ritual language of Bharatanatyam her entire life. Many of the dances have been passed down through generations of performers. All are deeply meaningful and intricate stories told through dance, gesture and expressions.
Woven within this wonderfully honest and heart-rending story of Dimple’s life are a selection of beautiful and astonishingly moving dances, all performed by Dimple with the lightest and gentlest movements possible. Her story of sadness and pressure and struggles and love are really not so different from many others. But it is her way of sharing them with her audiences that makes SPLIT: Between Two Nervous Systems such an impressive and absolutely gorgeous show.
Dimple is just like us. Emotionally and cerebrally, we are just the same. Does our heritage and culture and place of birth make us different from each other? Does our language, our food, the color of our skin? What is it that defines our difference? Our dreams? Our passions? Who we love? How we pray or if we do?
It has always puzzled me, this need to separate and to suspect or fear a person because we perceive them to be not like us. How exactly can the human species ever be anything other than what it has evolved to be? One race. One stock. One common ancestor. So weird to even try to be racist when we are all one.
This is not the only theme of this miraculous and astonishing show. Dimple takes us deep inside her sadness and her depression of discovering that she could feel shame about any part of herself. And the shame of feeling shame. Her tenderness and her softness made it easier for those who hate to hurt her and once hurt her, light dimmed and her heart broke. It took some time, and it’s still a process for her to feel lovable and beautiful and worthy again. But her sacred dances, some far older than any empire or colony or spoken language were what brought her back. When a child is brought up to know they are as beautiful as all of nature and then someone tells them they are not, they crumble, even though a million times against just once seems illogical. But that is humanity. Fragile as well as resilient.
Through SPLIT: Between Two Nervous Systems, Dimple shows us her continuing path to her wholeness and strength and healing from the brutality of casual hate. I loved this show. Unusual and yet familiar. As if the ancient dances are buried within us all just waiting to be awakened so we can all heal together.
Dimple Kaur, with the help of the magical Jessica Lynn Johnson as producer, has shared her soul in the most mythical and perfect way and the result is a meaningful journey with a lovely woman and a phenomenal talent.
No wonder she is a doctor of psychology, using her dance therapy to heal others!
https://www.dimplekaur.com
https://www.soaringsolostudios.com/