Leela Dance Collective to Perform World Premiere of ENCOUNTERS at the Bankhead Theater

Leela Dance Collective, the Los Angeles-based, internationally-touring kathak dance company, will perform the world premiere of Encounters with Beauty at the Bankhead Theater on April 19, 2025. Presented by Livermore Valley Arts, Encounters with Beauty pairs traditional kathak dance with live classical Hindustani music and a contemporary score, curated by composer Reena Esmail.

Encounters with Beauty is a collaborative work in which Indian classical dance meets Western contemporary chamber music. Conceived of and choreographed by kathak artists and Co-Artistic Directors of Leela Dance Collective, Rukhmani Mehta and Seibi Lee, this work weaves together Hindustani classical vocals, the percussive footwork and dramatic movement of kathak dance, and the evocative sounds of a contemporary string quartet. Music for Encounters with Beauty is curated by Indian-American composer Reena Esmail, who has worked with and created work for the Los Angeles Master Chorale, Seattle Symphony, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Kronos Quartet, Conspirare, Brooklyn Rider, and many others. The Encounters with Beauty score will include songs that feature traditional Indian mystical poetry along with contemporary offerings from the Beyond album to explore the possibilities when such distinct art forms come into conversation with traditional kathak dance.

Encounters With Beauty crosses genres, cultures, and communities. Joanne DiVito of the LA Dance Chronicle describes Encounters with Beauty as an "exquisite evening of brilliant dance and music" and "a dance of intense devotion and joy."

Performance Details

Encounters With Beauty

Leela Dance Collective

Saturday, April 19 at 8pm

Livermore Valley Performing Arts Center

2400 First Street, Livermore, CA 94550

Ticket prices are $25-$75, with student and military discounts available by calling the box office. Special discounts of 20% for groups of 10 or more are also available.

To Purchase: https://livermorearts.org/events/leela-dance-collective/ or call 925-373-6800.

Leela Dance Collective artists for this performance include: Seema Barua, Ayanna Kanan, Seibi Lee, Rukhmani Mehta, Joanna Meinl, Ahana Mukherjee, Rachna Nivas, Sasha Savli, Sonali Toppur. Music is curated and directed by Reena Esmail. Musicians for this performance are Saili Oak (Hindustani Vocals) and Satyaprakash Mishra (Tabla, Indian Percussion), and a string quartet led by violinist Sahana Shravan, with Jackie Hager, Dylan Hamme, and Sunjay Jayaram. Lighting design is by Matthew Antaky.

"We are so looking forward to the world premiere of Encounters With Beauty," shared Rukhmani Mehta, Co-Artistic Director of Leela Dance Collective. "The creative process has pushed us outside of our comfort zone and fueled experimentation and innovation within our form of kathak dance. This production combines and celebrates contemporary and classical genres of dance and music, bringing together artists and audiences across cultures and communities. My hope is that together we create a transcendent experience that demonstrates the universality of music and dance."

This type of interdisciplinary performance is representative of Leela Dance Collective's mission and artistry. Through traditional works and cross-genre collaborations, the Collective brings the richness and depth of Indian classical dance to contemporary audiences worldwide. Other notable original works include SPEAK, a kathak-tap dance collaboration featuring Michelle Dorrance and Dormeshia Sumbry-Edwards and Son of the Wind, the story of India's mythological hero, Hanuman, brought to life through dance-drama.

Rukhmani Mehta (previously Rina Mehta) brings a singular voice and vision to the art form of kathak, classical dance of North India. She is a senior disciple of the legendary kathak master, Pt. Chitresh Das, and was a principal dancer in his company, the Chitresh Das Dance Company, for over a decade. As Co-Founder and Co-Artistic Director of Leela Dance Collective, Mehta has created numerous original works that bring kathak dance to contemporary audiences. These works include SPEAK, a kathak-tap collaboration; Son of the Wind, a dance drama based on India's epic, the Ramayana; and Encounters with Beauty, a collaboration between kathak and contemporary chamber music. She has performed as a soloist and company member at prestigious venues across the United States and India such as NC State Live, The Broad Stage, Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, Green Music Center, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, National Centre for Performing Arts Mumbai, and more. Her artistic works have been funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, New Music USA, California Arts Council, Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation, Zellerbach Family Foundation, and more. She has received the Fulbright Award, the ACTA Apprenticeship Grant and been twice nominated for an Isadora Duncan Dance Award. Mehta is also a passionate and dedicated educator and the Artistic Director of Leela Youth Dance Company, a pre-professional performing group that empowers young women to develop their voices and be artists and leaders.

Seibi Lee is a consummate kathak artist known for her powerful mastery, refined musicality, and dramatic brilliance in character portrayal. A distinguished disciple of Pandit Chitresh Das, she is one of the founders of Leela Dance Collective. Seibi has toured worldwide earning accolades and deep respect for her artistry, including an Isadora Duncan Dance Special Award and two subsequent nominations. As principal dancer of the Chitresh Das Dance Company, Seibi evolved a singular perspective and style through the development of virtuosic character roles in several of Das's critically acclaimed works, including the dual roles of the tormented demon Marich and beloved tribal prince Hanuman in Sita Haran. Her outstanding portrayal of Hanuman became the inspiration for the central character and creation of LDC's Son of the Wind - the full-length dance drama bringing to life Hanuman's rarely told heroic and valorous adventures from the epic Ramayana. In addition to being a renowned performer, Seibi is highly regarded for her teaching, having mentored many generations of dancers and been recognized by The Alliance of California Traditional Arts as Master Artist.

Reena Esmail

Reena Esmail works between the worlds of Indian and Western classical music, and brings communities together through the creation of equitable musical spaces. Esmail divides her attention evenly between orchestral, chamber and choral work. She has written commissions for ensembles including the Los Angeles Master Chorale, Seattle Symphony, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Kronos Quartet, and her music has featured on multiple Grammy-nominated albums, including The Singing Guitar by Conspirare, BRUITS by Imani Winds, and Healing Modes by Brooklyn Rider. Esmail is the Los Angeles Master Chorale's current Swan Family Artist in Residence, and has been in residence with Seattle Symphony, Tanglewood Music Center, and Spoleto Festival, and she holds awards/fellowships from United States Artists, the S&R Foundation, the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and the Kennedy Center. Reena holds degrees in composition from The Juilliard School and The Yale School of Music. Her primary teachers have included Susan Botti, Aaron Jay Kernis, Christopher Theofanidis, Christopher Rouse, Samuel Adler, Srimati Lakshmi Shankar and Gaurav Mazumdar. Reena is currently Artistic Director of Shastra, an organization that promotes cross cultural music connecting music traditions of India and the West. She currently resides in Los Angeles, California.

About Kathak Dance

Kathak is one of India's eight classical dance forms and is said to have originated in Northern India around 400 BCE. The word kathak comes from the Sanskrit word katha, meaning story and a kathak dancer is referred to as kathaka, the one who tells a story.

Modern day kathak is characterized by percussive footwork, swift pirouettes, dynamic movement, crisp stances, and expressive storytelling. Kathak dancers wear ghungroos, or ankle bells, that add musicality and ornamentation to their footwork and movements. While kathak is traditionally a solo art form that is performed along with a live Indian classical music trio or quartet in an intimate setting, today one often sees kathak dance in the context of group choreography and theatrical production. Like all Indian classical dance and music forms, kathak dance in its fullest capacity and potential is a spiritual path towards self-actualization and consciousness.

About Leela Dance Collective

Leela Dance Collective is an internationally touring dance company that advances kathak, classical dance from North India. Through traditional works and cross-genre collaborations, the Collective brings the richness and depth of Indian classical dance to contemporary audiences worldwide. Leela Dance Collective has garnered critical acclaim under the artistic direction of renowned kathak artists Seibi Lee, Rachna Nivas, and Rukhmani Mehta (previously Rina Mehta), and engages some of today's leading dancers and musicians, as well as collaborative artists of other genres. Leela Dance Collective has created groundbreaking productions including SPEAK, Son of the Wind, ReSound, and more. Past highlights include appearances at Ford Theaters, The Broad Stage, Kimmel Center, the Green Music Center, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, National Center for the Performing Arts in Bombay, Maui Arts & Cultural Center, and NC State LIVE.

Photo Credit: Joanna Meinl, Rukhmani Mehta, Rachna Nivas of Leela Dance Collective; photo by Margo Moritz.

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