An ancient Indian dance form speaks to modern audiences.

Photo: Homage to Tradition: Chitresh Das builds cultural bridges with classic Kathak dance.

''Ethnic dance'' is about as meaningful a tag as Asian food or African music. The label says that it is neither ballet nor post-modern, but what is it? Imported? Traditional? Classical? Ritualistic?

Take the case of Kathak, the North Indian "ethnic" dance form, which is all of the above. Kathak is improvised, percussive, innovative and rhythmically among the most complex of dance expressions. Its distinct characteristic is the verticality of its posture and the fact that it is performed on a completely flat foot, the slapping sound complemented by the heavy ankle bells (up to 125 per foot) the dancer wears. Virtuoso dancers are said to be able to activate individual bells at will.

Originall, a popular storytelling format, Kathak ("katha" means story) was practiced for the peasantry by wandering musicians and dancers in front of the temples in the Punjab and Uttar Pradesh regions of modern India. The art form moved inside the temples and into the courts when in the 13th century, the area came under the dominance of Arab rulers. Later Kathak entered a long decline, only to enter its second era of vitality in the early part of the 20th century when Indians, as part of their struggle for liberation from colonialism, again began to appreciate this extraordinary indigenous dance tradition.

Tonight the Chitresh Das company, for the last 20 years Northern California''s foremost exponent of Kathak dance, will make its debut at CSUMB''s World Theater.

In its purest form, Kathak is performed as a solo art--one piece can take up to three hours--in which the dancer "converses" with the music in a give-and-take that is at once highly structured and yet allows for improvisational interaction between music and dance. These fluid variations, which company director Das calls "taking off on a rhythm," are both free and mathematically precise, not unlike what jazz, tap and Flamenco artists try to achieve in their dance forms. (Some historians think that one of Flamenco''s source inspirations was Kathak).

Kathak solos often tell mythological stories in which the dancer assumes several characters. In "Draupadi''s Hastra Haran," one of the dances performed tonight, Das will tell a story from the classic Indian Mahabharata epic in which Prince Yuhishthira gambles away everything, including his (and his brothers'') wife Draupadi. Her virtue is saved only by the intervention of the Lord Krishna.

But not all of Kathak needs to reference the distant past. "In the Train," another dance on tonight''s program, is inspired by the steam engine.

Das learned "The Train" from his guru, Pandit Ram Narayan Misra. Das'' relationship with his guru goes back to his childhood in Calcutta when his mother chose Misra for him at the age of 9. "She wanted me to have a male guru who could teach me both male and female roles," he says. From Misra, Das learned not only two Kathak traditions--one lyrical, the other dynamic--but he also learned how "to treat women with respect," he says, and to develop his inner male and female aspects.

An ebullient performer who often plays the tabla during performances and calls out the syllabic recitations that accompany the dancing, Das knows that his audiences are rarely familiar with Kathak. Therefore he has expanded Kathak''s potential appeal by adding such dramatic works as "Impressions of the California Gold Rush," in which his dancers perform in cowboy hats and ankle bells, and, in collaboration San Jose''s Abhinaya Dance Company, created "Ghandi," a dance drama about the founder of modern India.

For his Monterey audience, Das is bringing a dance drama that looks back to Kathak''s first flowering under the Moghul rulers when the indigenous dance came in contact with artists from Persia and Arab lands. "Moghul Court" highlights the lyrical Lucknow dance style, once practiced by Moghul court courtesans. As a young boy, Das remembers accompanying his guru to visit and learn from their descendants. The piece is both an homage to a tradition, and to his teacher.

Chitresh Das performs May 1 at 7:30pm at the CSUMB World Theater. 582-4580.