Tribhangi Dance Theatre’s lively dance presentation, ‘Essence of Rhythm’ consisted of an assortment of international sounds. The Indian music by Vinayakaram, was complemented by African rhythm and Afro-American music (jazz set to an African beat). Rhythm dominated and movement patterns changed without a pause in between; the dancers had to per force be alert. African Pansula movements, shoulder hip movements, interspersed with traditional Bharatanatyam ‘adavus', lead to an exciting unpredictability. If there were awkward pauses in between, the graceful dancers glossed over them with well-rehearsed freezes.

The dancers: Seema Lala, Linda Mhlongo, Theshni Govender, Priyadarshini Naidoo, along with their director are on a cultural study tour in South India. Except for Mhlongo, who assisted in choreography, the others are trained Bharatanatyam dancers who had to relearn their body language to adjust to the sensuous style of the Africans, and vice versa with the former who had to train within the rigid geometry of the Indian art form.

Moopen lost no opportunity to further this cross-cultural exercise. Besides the music and dance, the stage décor too reflected the theme. Colourful African borders highlighted wall hangings of voluptuous Indian women. Universal themes of Mother Earth and rain were explored to find a commonality between the ancient societies and the simple idea of a group of people playing basic games with stones and sand was used.

The twenty-minute show reiterated a universal truth about dance in that the only factors that matter are posture, grace and rhythm, whatever be the ethnicity. Though lauded for its entertainment value, ‘Rhythm of Essence’ impressed with its earnestness of purpose and execution too.