Spring has been flirting with us all winter, but it finally feels like it's here to stay. OK, yesterday it might not have, but today it's sunny. And let's focus on today, shall we? Stepping outside into the sunny 75-degree weather is enough to put a spring in the step of any cube-dweller. But let's leave the dancing to the professionals. With that in mind, we over here at Mixmaster have put together a round-up of the dance shows you won't want to miss this season. Sure, you can't watch them while drinking on the patio, but it won't be long before you're craving the air conditioning at City Performance Hall.
Dallas Black Dance Theatre's Beyond Borders, March 21, 7:30 p.m. Why aren't there more lovers of dance performance? Is it because they associate dance with the rigid, abide-by-the-rules genre of classical ballet, reinforced by school-days lessons? Even modern dance--what may seem more natural and free--has a core study of form, and is inherently athletic. But this is why to see dance, to experience it live, is to witness actual magic. When performed perfectly, all of those constructs seem broken down by the human form and fluidity of motion. Gravity defied, bones stretched. That's why even on the very surface, the Dallas Black Dance Theatre's Dancing Beyond Borders seems so appropriately named. The production breaks the mold even more by featuring choreography by company dancers (Katricia Eaglin, Richard A. Freeman, Jr., and Nycole Ray). Change your perception of dance, or if you're already a fan, expand your love. Tickets are $30, available at attpac.org. --Merritt Martin
Meadows Spring Dance Concert, March 26-30 Southern Methodist University's dance department has earned a national reputation by giving its students an opportunity to study some of the world's best choreographers, but also by bringing in artists in residence like Adam Hougland, a world renowned, award-winning choreographer and dancer (who also happens to be a Dallas native). His work, Cold Virtues, will be featured in the Spring Dance Concert, alongside the work of the legendary Bill T. Jones and a new piece by Jawole Jo Zollar, entitled Chalabati, which was inspired by the music and culture of the Gnawa people of Morocco. Tickets are $13 and available through the Meadows Web site.
| Texas Ballet Theater |
Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, April 4-5 Theater and dance aren't so far removed. The physicality in comedy and clowning spills over into performances by Les Ballets Trockadero (fondly referred to as the Trocks), which has earned them a following throughout the world. This all-male company dons tutus and buns, dancing their way through stories of swans, princesses and Victorian ladies. Tickets for the Trocks' performances at City Performance Hall start at $55 and are available at attpac.org.
Motionhouse, April 12-13 Motionhouse fuses visual art and choreography into one show that promises a combustible energy. The company's integration of film into its live performance is meant to create a unique world for the production to inhabit, as the dancers move through the projected images. TITAS brings the company to Dallas for the first time with this show and are labeling it a "must see." If Motionhouse's YouTube videos are anything like this performance, it's bound to be wicked cool. Motionhouse's stop at the City Performance Hall is selling out quickly, tickets start at $25 and are available at attpac.org.
