The Chitresh Das Dance Company presents “Tale of a Kathaka: A Traditional Kathak Solo” by Antara BhardwajBhardwaj began studying with Pandit Chitresh Das in 1989, when Das began his first children’s class in the United States. Since then, Das’ school, the Chhandam School of Kathak, has grown to be the largest classical Indian dance institution in North America, with over 400 students in eight locations in California, and a school in Kolkata, India (Chhandam Nritya Bharati).
Bhardwaj has toured with the Chitresh Das Dance Company, and is a teacher at the Chhandam School of kathak. She is part of a new generation of kathak dancers, trained from childhood by Das.
The traditional kathak solo is the most challenging and exciting forms of kathak. The dancer presents the four elements essential to the dance: tayaari (technique in footwork, pirouettes and movement), layakari (ability to play with the rhythm), khoobsurti (beauty), and nazaakat (delicacy and subtlety). The traditional solo is heavily rooted in upaj, or improvisation—one never knows what will come next! In addition, Bhardwaj will present Pandit Das’ unique innovation of kathak yoga, a technique combining the mind and body, a “meditation in motion,” that presents the multifaceted elements of kathak.
Friday, Oct. 30, 7:30 p.m. Cubberley Auditorium, 4000 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto. $18 general; $15 student. Tickets: www.sulekha.com. (415) 333-9000.www.kathak.org.