East meets West in song and dance

The music, dance and culture of the East will meet and mingle with that of the West at a concert at the weekend.
East Meets West is the brainchild of Kutu Mukherjee, a student of Rabindrasangeet, the music and poetry of Rabindranath Tagore.
Kutu returned to India earlier this year to record her second CD, and also spent time studying with the masters at Shantiniketan, Visha Varati University.
"It (a concert) is something that has been in my mind for a long time, that I can do something that is Indian and Western mixed," she says.
Returning to India in April and May turned out to be one of the pieces of the puzzle, so Kutu decided to make her idea reality.
"When I came back I wanted to showcase something of what I had done over there - but I decided it needed to be something broader - with wider appeal - than just me singing."
Her daughter Anahita has been taking ballet lessons since she was two-and-a-half and Kutu felt that, now 13, she was old enough to help with the choreography and, with other students from Dance Institute in Welcome Bay, could also take part in the production.
"She was born and brought up here but I don't want her to lose our cultural identity."
But there was still one more piece that needed to be found.
"You need some support to do things on stage - and while it had been in my mind to do it, I didn't really know where to go to ask for things (support)," she says.
That support came from Creative Tauranga and once in place, the programme began to take shape.
The first part of the programme will feature music and dance that will be a fusion of classical Indian dance and classical and traditional ballet.
There will be a strong influence from the music of Nobel Laureate poet and composer Rabindranath Tagore - a dominant figure in the culture of Bengal and Bangladesh, thus celebrating his 150th birth anniversary.
One dance will also be to music composed by the late Anand Shanker - nephew of renowned sitarist Ravi Shanker - who is well known for his fusion of Eastern and Western musical styles
"What I really enjoy is teaching the Kiwi girls who are in the ballet group with my daughter the Indian style - we have a lot of movement you don't have in ballet - that kind of thing is very challenging, but it's also a very nice feeling. It is fascinating to watch these girls taking up the challenge of learning a completely new style of dancing and enjoying it."
Kutu will also sing as part of the first half of the concert - no mean feat for the person who is also the producer, director and who has choreographed the Indian dance elements.
"I am going to sing a couple of songs - I love singing, it gives me immense satisfaction."
The second part will feature Indian classical music with Indian classical violinist Acharya Dr Chintamani Rath accompanied by Robbie Laven on sitar and tabla player Basant Madhur from Auckland, who will also perform a solo.
Kutu says she hopes the concert will prove to be bringing something new to New Zealand audiences.
"I feel confident that people will enjoy this kind of programme - it is very new to New Zealand not just to Tauranga."
What: East Meets West
Where: Baycourt Theatre Exhibition Hall
When: Saturday November 6, 6.30pm
Cost: Adult $20, child $15.