TAP KATHAK

PANDIT CHITRESH DAS (INDIA / USA) AND JASON SAMUELS SMITH (USA)

“Das has opened so many new avenues to his art form, it’s no wonder he is called a phenomenon.”
Hindustan Times, India

“Jason Samuels Smith…possibly the next greatest.”
US tap dancing legend, Gregory Hines

Tap Kathakis an explosive dance meeting between one of India’s foremost Kathak masters and one of the world’s greatest contemporary tap dancers. The result is an electrifying entertainment experience - a celebration of the exuberant joy of dance. 



While it may be difficult to imagine a gracious, 65 year old North Indian classical dance master getting down with a freewheeling wunderkind from Broadway’s tap sensation Bring In ’Da Noise, Bring In ‘Da Funk, it was the common passion for rhythm that first drew Pandit Chitresh Das and Emmy Award-winning American tapper Jason Samuels Smith to each other when they first met backstage at the 2004 American Dance Festival. Audiences across the United States and India have since been captivated with the sheer fun of witnessing two dance masters at the peak of their powers, and in obvious awe of each other’s virtuosity.

The slouchy, streetwise attitude of American tap would seem to be a world away from the elegance and mathematical precision of Kathak which sees the dancer create complex rhythms with his bare feet and heavy bells worn around the ankles. Exploring rhythms within their own traditions, Das and Smith first give solo performances. Das jams with Smith’s jazz trio of piano, drums and bass, and then it’s Smith’s turn to answer the challenge of the incredible tabla, sitar and saranji musicians. And when they finally dance together, it is an exhilarating conversation which crosses the boundaries of age, race and culture.

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