Press Releases 2008

U.S. Consulate General Hosts Unique Kathak-Tap Dance Blend

January 18, 2008

Mumbai – The U.S. Consulate General in Mumbai has brought to Mumbai two U.S.-based dance specialists-- Kathak maestro Pandit Chitresh Das and Emmy Award Winning Tap Dancer Jason Samuels- Smith, who form the India Jazz Suites—for a unique collaborative presentation of their art. The duo will render this creative blend of the East and the West in a joint dance program at the Gateway of India on January 18 at 7 p.m. as a part of the Mumbai Festival. Another public performance of the two artistes is organized at the NCPA on January 20. The American artists will also perform at the special anniversary function that marks the completion of 50 years of the U.S. Consulate General in its current premises in Breach Candy area in Mumbai on January 23.

Often described as the “meeting of the fastest feet of the East with the fastest feet of the West,” this Kathak-Tap dance blend symbolizes the coherent nature of the bilateral co-operation between India and the U.S. As opposed to other fusion experiments, the 62-year-old Pandit Chitresh Das and 26-year-old Tap dancer Jason Samuels- Smith dance in their own forms and use the common ground of footwork, rhythm, and improvisation to explore and shed new light on the Kathak and Tap traditions. That gives ample room for the collaborators’ individual interpretations of their dancing art. Portions of the performance focuses entirely on rhythms, with varying combinations of footwork, recitation of North Indian classical rhythmic language, and percussion on Tabla and Jazz drums.