On first appearance, California-born Jessica Catherine Albrent appears very much nescient about Indian epics and mythology, but that has done nothing to dampen her love for traditional Indian dance forms.
It was this passion which led Jessica to seek a teacher who would enlighten her about the nuances and grace of Bharatanatyam, and brought her to the doorstep of Bharatanatyam exponent s Aswathi Sreekanth and her husband N Sreekanth, in the east African country of Tanzania.
Her lessons culminated in a scintillating ‘arangettam’ (professional dance debut) before an august gathering in Kozhikode on Wednesday.
In the city of her ‘gurus,’ Jessica was thrilled with the entire experience.
This is Jessica’s second visit to India.
She said that her mother and her Egyptian husband were both very excited about her ‘arangettam’, which was organised under the aegis of the Nrityalaya School of Classical Dance and Music.
“Admittedly, my lack of knowledge about Indian epics and mythology are hindrances which I have to cope with.
But because both my teachers, Aswathi and Sreekanth, are well-versed in English and explain everything in detail, I hardly face any problems while performing,” said the budding bharatanatyam artist.
Jessica further said that she would come to India during every vacation to continue her dance practice and would pursue bharatanatyam with all vigour.
“I have performed the basic presentations, including the ‘Alarippu’, a ‘Ganesha keerthanam’ and ‘Jathi swaram,’ for the ‘arangettam,” Jessica said.