Chitresh Das Dance Company Archive
The award-winning Chitresh Das Dance Company, founded by Pandit Chitresh Das in 1980, was the first all-American kathak company that not only annually toured the U.S. and India to critical acclaim, but was the first non-Western dance company to ever receive the coveted Company Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. Over the company’s ensuing 40 year history, Das created some 50 new works, including ground-breaking productions that were evocative and commanding, combining the richness of ancient India with a fiery, contemporary sensibility. CDDC dancers exemplified Das’ emphasis on the technical, graceful, and dramatic aspects of kathak dance.
Cal Performances , Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley [2016]
Conceived and Choreographed by Pandit Chitresh Das
Original Music Score composed by Jayanta Banerjee
Lighting Design by Dave Robertson
Performed by Chitresh Das Dance Company - Charlotte Moraga, Seibi Lee,
Farah Yasmeen Shaikh, Rachna Nivas, Anjali Nath, Antara Bhardwaj, Labonee Mohana,
Cimeron Ahluwalia, Ritu Mathur, Shefali Jain, Poonam Narkar, Preeti Mann
Photo credit: Margo Moritz
Shiva embodies Chitresh Das’ powerful vision of the numinous forces surrounding and pervading the concept of Lord Shiva. In Shiva, Das explored the world of the Shiva-worshipping tantrics, the ascetics who renounce everything in order to seek a connection to the divine through intensive yogic practices and rituals, including chanting and deep meditation. The various techniques practiced, many of which are viewed as extreme by Indian society, enable the tantric to test his or her ability to see the divine in everything, such as meditating while sitting on dead bodies, eating scraps to survive, and eating and drinking out of human skulls. Das grew up in Kolkata, India, a center of tantra. He was fascinated by the tantric sadhus he saw while visiting holy cities and temples as a child with his family. Inspired by his own experience and curiosity, he created this work on tantrics, innovating far beyond traditional kathak subject matter.
Please click on thumbnail image to learn more.
Leela Dance Collective
23650 Community Street
Los Angeles, CA 91304
P: 323.457.4522
E: info@leela.dance