Mudra Dance Studio takes flight on “ILLhaam… Cycles… ILLumination”

It seems every time Mudra Dance Studio mounts one of its big productions -- it's been every two years for the last three shows -- it's worth the wait because the troupe's founder, Namita Khanna Nariani, adds something new and incredible to the mix. We've seen the Mudra troupe perform at all but one Colorado Dragon Boat Festival, so we're not strangers to the talent of this remarkable South Asian organization, and to Nariani's determination to stretch the artistic limits of traditional, classical Indian dance with contemporary aesthetics that rise above ripping off the hipness factor of Bollywood musicals with some shallow syncopated moves. but to see the Mudras dance a 30-minute set is one thing. The three-hour artistic tour-de-force that is their big blowout performances is something else entirely.