Dance Card: Indian kathak dance and American tap will meet as equals in ‘Speak’ at Z Space

When kathak dance master Pandit Chitresh Das and tap maestro Jason Samuels Smith first came together in 2005 for the unprecedented collaboration “India Jazz Suites,” it seemed as if they had flung open a new door between East and West.

But over the ensuing decade, precious few followed in their footsteps. Their 2007 project “India Jazz Progressions” made a point of showcasing women dancers. But the production didn’t travel much, and the potent creative synergy so evident in bringing these two rhythmic art forms together remained unrealized.

Until now.

Making its West Coast premiere at San Francisco’s Z Space Dec. 18-19, “Speak” features Das disciples Rina Mehta and Rachna Nivas and tap stars Dormeshia Sumbry-Edwards and Michelle Dorrance (who was recently awarded a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship and appeared on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert”).

The production features both a classical Hindustani ensemble led by sitar master and longtime Chitresh Das Dance Company music director Jayanta Banerjee and a jazz trio led by New York drum star Allison Miller.

“It’s bittersweet that Guruji isn’t here to see it, but he did know about this show,” says Nivas, referring to Das, who died suddenly in January at the age of 70. “He had this smile, this smirk on his face that he’d get when he was proud of his students. When I told Jason, he was over the moon.”

In many ways, the project flows from the previous kathak/tap encounters. While best known for her lead work in the international tour of “Bring in Da’Noise, Bring in Da’Funk,” Bessie Award-winner Sumbry-Edwards was one of the principals in 2007’s “India Jazz Progressions.”

Smith invited Nivas and Mehta to teach at the Los Angeles Tap Festival, which deepened their relationships with their tap colleagues.

“The whole tap dance community has been incredible and embracing,” Nivas says. “One of the ideas behind ‘India Jazz Progressions’ was to bring some of the women in. But with more people involved, it became more difficult to tour and didn’t go anywhere. The idea behind this is to take that thought to the next level. This is the next chapter.”

Designed to spotlight female dancers, who are often relegated to the background in tap, “Speak” is an entirely new production that builds on the original Das/Smith concept. In other words, it’s a meeting of equals, rather than a melding of forms.

“This is a collaboration and not a fusion,” Nivas says. “I’m not putting on tap shoes, and they’re not putting on ghungroos, the brass bells we wear on our ankles. The common ground we find is in the rhythms.”

Torch-passing at abhinaya: One of the greatest challenges faced by dance companies, aside from staying in business, is managing the transition when a charismatic founder relinquishes control.

San Jose’s Abhinaya Dance Company is handling this evolution with unusual grace. Dancer and choreographer Mythili Kumar founded the organization, and she still serves as artistic director, but the company’s 35th anniversary also marks a torch passing to her daughters — Rasika Kumar, associate artistic director, dancer and choreographer, and Malavika Kumar, a senior dancer and musician.

Abhinaya presents “Nritya Dhaara — Flow of Dance” at Santa Clara University’s Mayer Theater this weekend. Earlier this year, the company marked its milestone by restaging its powerful collaboration with San Jose Taiko. Now “Nritya Dhaara” captures the way the South Indian classical style of Bharatanatyam has evolved from its temple roots to Abhinaya’s embrace of contemporary themes.

Instead of focusing on solo recitals based on Hindu epics, Mythili Kumar created group choreography that offered more roles for dancers while exploring movement patterns.

“The idea is to show how, starting in India, the dance has been transmitted to the next generation,” Mythili Kumar says. “Now it’s the next generation’s turn. It’s a journey not just of what we have done, but how we continue to propagate classical Indian dance, and how it can be used to portray any kind of story.”

Contact Andrew Gilbert at jazzscribe@aol.com.