http://icmcdfw.org/

Admission:
ICMC Members: Free
UTD Staff & Students: Free
General: $30
Student: $20

Featuring:
Prashant Shah
Yogini Gandhi
Rupal Patel
Dancers from Arya Dance Academy, New Jersey

Presented by the Indian Classical Music Circle, the Kathak Dance Festival will present several fine dance performances by some of the leading artists featuring Kathak style. Kathak, the dance style from north India, has the charm and subtlety associated with miniature paintings. Nurtured in the holy precincts of the Hindu temples, Kathak was further enhanced with Persian influence during the Mogul reign in India. Over the centuries, it has attained refinement and enriched itself by the establishment of distinct styles and gharanas.

Prashant Shah is one of the most promising male Kathak dancers of India. For the last two decades, Prashant has been training under the tutelage of Padmashree Kumudini Lakhia, a world renowned Kathak exponent, choreographer and founder of the Kadamb Centre for Dance and Music in Ahmedabad, India. Prashant’s virtuosity in Kathak technique, especially ‘takkaar’ (rhythmic footwork) and ‘chakkar’ (pirouettes) and his excellent understanding of ‘taal’ and ‘laya’ (rhythm and meter respectively) make him a versatile dancer and enable him to perform with masculine grace without flowery affectations. Prashant has toured extensively in India and other countries like Russia, UK, US, France, Holland, Brazil, Italy, Switzerland, China, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and others as a solo dance artist as well as a leading dancer of Kadamb performing unit. He has also been part of various dance compositions choreographed by Sitar maestro Pandit Ravi Shankar and Pandit Birju Maharaj. A few of the prestigious organizations based in India -- like Kathak Kendra, New Delhi, Indian Council for Cultural Relations and Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi -- have  invited Prashant to perform in their prestigious festivals.

A rare combination of talent, intellect and beauty, Yogini Gandhi is among the very few dancers who perform two Indian classical dance styles -- Kathak & Odissi -- with equal dexterity and virtuosity. She has received guidance from India’s legendary dance maestros Pt. Birju Maharaj and Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra. Yogini has performed at some of the most prestigious festivals in India like the Sawai Gandharva Mahotsav, Ellora Festival and Kathak Kendra Mahotsav. Through the years her performances have received critical acclaim and appreciation from audiences in India and abroad. She has presented dance concerts and lecture demonstrations in the US, Australia, Sweden, Denmark and many other countries. Yogini has a unique command over both the rhythmic as well as emotive aspects of dance. She has been bestowed with a number of awards and honors such as The Rotary Vocational Excellence award, The Shingaar Mani and Outstanding Young Person Award. She is also empanelled with the Indian Council for Cultural Relations, A Govt. of India organization in New Delhi and is a member of the International Dance Council – UNESCO. To share her love and joy of dance, Yogini established ‘Kalanidhi’, an institute where she imparts training in Kathak & Odissi. She is also a visiting faculty member at the Centre of Performing Arts at Pune University.

Purchase tickets through ICMC (http://www.icmcdfw.org/ or 214-336-3459)

Please Note: Guests are advised to visit our campus disruption log for updated route, construction, and parking information.

Tagged as Arts and Performances