Bhubaneswar, Feb. 7: Renowned Kathak maestro Pandit Chitresh Das and Emmy Award winning tap dancer Jason Samuels Smith are all set to cast their spell on the crowd with the jugalbandi of the two dance forms.

Ever since the duo came together at the American Dance Festival in 2004, it has been an unusual journey of creativity, feel both the artistes.

“I was performing with Spanish Flamenco dancer Antonio and Jason had a separate performance of his troupe later. But, he just came up on the stage and without any conversation started collaborating spontaneously on the stage. Jason and me is energy and energy is divine and pure,” said Das.

Jason believes that it is the legacy of the gurus that both artistes carry forward. It lets them create something authentic in their respective dance forms even in their collaboration and that is what the audience loves.

“We are both connected to a legacy of great dancers. So, we think alike on the stage. I may not understand the steps of Kathak, but I understand its rhythm,” smiled Jason.

However, both dancers ensure to keep away from the term “fusion”.

“Fusion is confusion. We do not need to interfere or insert each other’s dance style or technique. These are ancient art forms and do not need to be changed. We are only adding to it by coming together and performing together,” said Das.

“We establish each dance form individually even while performing together,” said Jason.

Though Kathak and tap dance have been collaborated earlier, the style and energy level of the duo are different and have earned them great following over the years. The response has been extraordinary in the cities they have performed during this tour conducted by the US consulate.

“We performed in Guwahati and Bhopal and it was a crowd of thousands in each city. We received tremendous response,” said Jason.

The duo along with Jazz musician Theodore Hill also conducted workshops in Cuttack and Bhubaneswar to introduce Jazz music, tap dance and Kathak yoga to youngsters here.

“The energy and enthusiasm of the youngsters are amazing here. They showed us some tribal and folk dance moves and picked up tap dance steps immediately,” said Jason.

Theodore said even in the US, the younger generation had become oblivious of legendary musicians and artistes.

The artistes will perform at Rajarani temple on Friday evening.