Poised, confident, attractive young Watanabe captivated with her grip over the rhythmic, laya sections as well as the emotive aspects. More so in the former than in the latter. She impressed in the main item of the evening, the Tarangam, a keerthana by Uthukaddu Venkata Subbiah in ragamalika set in Adi talam. Describing the beauty of Krishna, the dancer displayed perfect synchronization of footwork with the mridangam and the Nattuvangam, both of which deserve mention. It was a crisp presentation with no untidy threads hanging. The sancharis were brief, the lines describing Krishna’s beautiful eyes ‘vanaja nayana’ and the subduing of the snake, Kaliya in ‘Kalinga nardhana’ depicted fleetingly. The nritta patterns on the brass plate were executed with a discernible control over rhythm. Watanabe has a grace that seems so natural and unpretentious. This came through despite the pace of some of the theermanams in the Tarangam.

Commencing with a Ganesha Kauthuvam in Arabhi ragam, Adi talam, a composition of Dr.Balamurali Krishna, she went on to do a sensitive Annamacharya keerthana in Atana ragam, Adi talam, ‘Kulu kaga.’ The poet is beseeching the women carrying goddess Padmavathi in a palanquin to go slowly and gracefully so as to leave undisturbed the goddess’ sari and flowers. She is so graceful he adds; take her that way...

An ashtapadi ‘Radhika Krishna’ in ragamalika, Adi talam, describes Radha reminiscing about her times with Krishna. Her sakhi or friend rushes to Krishna persuading him to ease the pain of Radha’s longing. Fluidity marked Watanabe’s expressions, once the sakhi with Krishna, once Radha in pain, once Radha reliving her happy moments with Krishna,... the dancer moved or rather flitted from one to the other effortlessly.

One who brought the final word in melody was the vocalist, Radha Badri. She was a treat to listen to. Her fluent switching of ragas, and her adherence to sruthi was captivating. Her accompanists Sigamani on the violoin and Muthukumar on the flute were also worthy of praise. The mridangist, Nellai D.Kannan and Sailaja, who conducted the recital were precise in their rhythm.

The dancer concluded with a lilting and fast paced Brindavana Saranga thillana in Adi talam by Dr.Balamurali Krishna and choreographed by Sailaja. Music, dance, rhythm all held hands in presenting a memorable show.