Kruti Dance
Academy’s 10th Annual Dance Bonanza on a “Flight to Fantasy”
at The Fabulous Fox Theatre
By Dr. Yusuf Ahmed
Photo : Vinod Devlia
The annual
recital of the Kruti Dance Academy is an eagerly awaited event
in the cultural calendar of Atlanta and this year’s was even
more so. Not only was it Kruti’s 10th Annual recital but it was
held in the most appropriate and venerable of venues. What other
honor for anyone involved in the performing arts to show off
their talents than at Atlanta’s prestigious and historical
Fabulous Fox Theater. This magical theatre in downtown Atlanta
presented a custom-built venue for this auspicious recital – the
very first time for an Indian dance performance choreographed in
Atlanta and involving local talent (most of them second
generation Indian-American children). Sunday 8th May, 2005, and
the weather was bright and balmy. Proud parents, relatives,
friends, and supporters of dance milled in the foyer waiting in
anticipation and excitement. If there was an occasion to put on
a wonderful sari or dazzling outfit, this was it. Already
inside, decked out in their colorful dance costumes were over
300 boys and girls waiting to put on their show. This was an
event they had trained for many months and it was finally there.
Maybe they had too much adrenalin to absorb the rich interior of
the Fox Theater with its eastern ambience and the unique ceiling
mimicking an evening sky with twinkling stars, but we the
audience certainly reveled in it.
Respectfully, the invocation prayers started the event.
The
prayers were solemnly offered by 4 delightful young members -
all in the early stages of their career at Kruti as they set out
to learn classical Bharat Natyam and other traditional Indian
and modern fusion dance. We were then taken along on a journey
into the ‘Flight to Fantasy’ - the theme of the show. Through
search, passion, transcendence and legacy, this represents the
symbolic four phase journey that the students take as part of
the Kruti family led by their guru Dina Sheth or ‘Dina Auntie’
as she is affectionately called. The students search enables
them to awaken to the rich Indian heritage. Soon they develop
the passion for the art of dance and go on to achieve
transcendence by incorporating the learning into their
lifestyle. The fourth phase of the journey links with the first
as academy graduates leave a legacy by orienting the younger
dancers.
For this afternoon and evening the audience joined the members
of the academy in their ‘search’. The extravagance of the set
became alive with one group after another of the younger members
of the academy, as they gracefully came onto the stage and
performed their dances. Yes, after 11 dances of different
styles, with both boys and girls, it could be seen that learning
steps can indeed become dance! If there was any doubt that
learning the steps could be translated into dance we were
treated to another 9 dances demonstrating the ‘passion’ the
dancers put into their routines. If we were still unconvinced,
the first 2 phases of ‘search’ and ‘passion’ concluded with a
masterful choreography that led to nearly 150 dancers weaving on
and off the stage in their own groups to the music of Chale
Jaise Hawaein, the hit song from the movie Main Hoon Na. Here
was the fusion of classical Bharat Natyam and Bollywood at its
best. Dancers at different levels showed the ‘search’ had taken
them to a ‘passion’ that translated into wonderful dance. By the
way, this only took us to the intermission – there was more to
come as the students were to lead us on their path of
‘transcendence’ and ‘legacy’.
The
tempo changed. If you had failed to notice the poise and grace
of the dancers in the earlier stages, you could not do so now –
it was even more apparent. Even in speed, the steps were surer,
the confidence more obvious. Whether as a solo routine or as
part of group choreography the dancers began to gel even more as
one. You could see where this was taking them as in the ‘legacy’
part of the show the more senior students masterfully performed
a series of dance that took us from Bollywood to numerous Indian
folk dances. By now the younger dancers were sitting in the
audience and were as enraptured by the spectacle as the rest of
us. These younger dancers could see where they were going – this
is what was achievable! The most senior dancers, some who have
already graduated and some soon to appear in their own solo
‘graduating’ Arangetram were all divine. Their grace and poise
and beauty of spirit were palpable. Together with other dancers
they provided a perfect backdrop for their guru to join with
them in dance. An emotional but joyous dance with the teacher
and the senior students with other dancers. Now they were
onstage after having spent the past year and many previous years
of training and practice in the studio. This was indeed a full
circle of sharing, learning and teaching the art of dance. For
them all - a ‘Flight to Fantasy’.

In the foyer of the Fox Theatre were displayed the scrolled,
parchment certificates obtained all the way from Jaipur in India
that each student, volunteer and teaching assistants was to
receive. We had admired these and the lit trophy, showing a
three-dimensional image of a Kruti dancer embedded in glass.
Dina Auntie gratefully acknowledged all the generous sponsors,
tireless volunteers, costume designers who outdid themselves
this year,
the
technical staff and all her dancers and, of course her family.
This had been a recital that could have matched any of the
professional shows that ever comes to the Fox.
There was no trophy for the parents but they do not seem to have
needed one – their support and love of their children and that
of other family members was amply rewarded by seeing their sons
and daughters and friends participating in this recital. How
difficult for Dina Auntie to choose the student of the year for
2005. In the end the award went to two students, Elysse Mahepal
and Pooja Sampat, who exemplified the values of dedication,
excellence in dance technique, leadership and selfless community
spirit in the academy. As Pooja Sampat respectfully gestured to
touch Dina Auntie’s feet, she must have been acknowledging the
love and respect of all students in the academy.
Now that Kruti Dance Academy has performed at the Fox Theatre
where next? The Lincoln Center in New York City, perhaps? No
matter. Wherever the dancers of Kruti Dance Academy put on their
annual recital the students will dance their heart out - it is
not to be missed.
|