The most radical new work that DTH has commissioned since it’s rebirth is Donald Byrd’s Contested Space. There’s a hard, gotta-have-it edge to it that plunges these young innocents into a darker, more obsessive side of themselves. They rise to the challenge beautifully—and it’s good to see the Byrd intelligence on this coast again. (Catch a glimpse of him being his devastatingly honest self in this “Choreography in Focus.”) 

Sam Wilson and Alexandra Jacob in Contested Space. Photo on homepage is Ashley Murphy & Wilson. Photos by Rachel Neville.

We’ll also learn a bit of history, with past-carry-forward 
by Thaddeus Davis and Tanya Wideman Davis. It’s based on the Great Migration of African-Americans from the South to the North, where they worked as porters, entertainers, and soldiers. One of the interesting things about this piece is that it lists a dramaturge, the scholar Thomas DeFrantz. American choreographers tend to shy away from dramaturges, while in Europe they are quite popular.

To honor the purely classical side of DTH, the company also performs Frederic Franklin’s version of the “Pas de Dix” from Petipa’s Raymonda. Franklin, who originally staged it for DTH in 1984, had served as a mentor to this company for years. (Read Sascha Radetsky’s wonderful memory of Franklin here.)

Completing the season are resident choreographer Robert Garland’s very nifty New Bach (1999), in which the dancers shuttle between ballet steps and the Harlem Shake; and Ulysses Dove’s Dancing on the Front Porch of Heaven (1993), possibly the least serene choreography you will ever see to Arvo Pärt.

April 23–27, Jazz at Lincoln Center, click here for tickets.

Artistic director Eduardo Vilaro continues to expand what “Hispanic ballet” may mean. In his new Hogar (home), he explores the immigrant identity, using live music by Russian composer Ljova. His Asuka, the piece that celebrates Celia Cruz from 2011, appears on Program C. (In this “Choreography in Focus,”  he talks about how Celia Cruz embodied the Latino experience). Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s irrepressible Sombrerísimo appears on Program A, and her madcap Mad’moiselle is on Program B, along with Hogar. Also on the season are works by Edwaard Liang, Nacho Duato, Edgar Zendejas, and a world premiere by Gustavo Ramírez Sansano. April 15–27 at the Joyce. Click here for tickets.

Rehearsal of Sombrerisimo, photo by Paula Lobo

Rehearsal of Hogar, photo by Paula Lobo

Larissa Saveliev has a special genius for combining new talent with hallowed artistry in a single program. This year the “Stars of Today Meet the Stars of Tomorrow” gala on April 10 brings us Misty Copeland, Sara Lane, Lucia Lacarra, and Matthias Heymann as well as recent winners of this worldwide competition. (And I can tell you, as a YAGP judge in three cities this year, that there was plenty of extraordinary young talent.) It also brings the U.S. debut of Evan McKie, whom I’ve been hankering to see dance ever since he wrote this beautiful “Why I Dance” in 2008. He’ll be partnering Olga Smirnova, touted as the hottest, purest new principal at the Bolshoi.

Olga Smirnova and Semyon Chudin in Diamonds, photo by Marc Haegemon © Balanchine Trust.

Also from the Bolshoi will be Segei Filin—yes, the artistic director who was nearly blinded when his face was splashed with acid in January 2013. He’ll be interviewed at the Koch Theater at 6:00 on Friday, April 11—by yours truly—right before the 15th-anniversary program. It will certainly be a moment of gravitas to hear him speak out.

The Friday gala presents another cascade of ballet stars including Sara Mearns, Herman Cornejo, Brooklyn Mack, and Daniel Ulbricht, plus two special events. The first is that Ailey’s Alicia Graf Mack and ABT’s Daniil Simkin team up to perform Pas de Duke (1976), the star vehicle that Alvin Ailey created for Baryshnikov and Judith Jamison soon after Baryshnikov defected. The second is a premiere by Justin Peck in which he cast dancers from NYCB as well as from ABT. For tickets click here or the YAGP site.

Daniil Simkin & Alicia Graf Mack in Pas de Duke, photo by Jade Young. Homepage photo: Sara Lane & Joseph Phillips, photo by Gene Schiavone. 

Son of Gone Fishin’ photo by Stephanie Berger

Now that Trisha Brown is no longer making new work, every opportunity to see her past pieces is to be cherished. For the company’s engagement at New York Live Arts, they have reconstructed Son of Gone Fishin’ (1981) with new costumes by the original costume designer, Judith Shea. This work is so complex that it’s hard to glean any sort of structure on first viewing. My advice is to just follow the dancing—and the hypnotic music by the late Robert Ashley.

The program also includes one of Trisha’s most beautiful and haunting works: Opal Loop/Cloud Installation #72503 (1980). The cloud of vapor (it’s not dry ice but a water sculpture by artist Fugiko Nakaya), underscores the dissolution of all things; you never know what part of the dance you will see. The costumes are the best because each of the four dancers looks like they are from a different movie.

The company is also bringing back Solo Olos, which I danced as part of Line Up in the 70s. We learned it forward, backward, and with “Spill” —a nicely messy little detour. We were able to reverse the phrase on a dime, or rather on the impromptu instructions of the “caller.” It keeps your brain on its toes, as it were.

April 8–13, 2014, with various workshops offered. Click here for tickets.

Barrington Hinds and Joshua Tuason, photo by Sarah Silver

Tearing through space—backward and in a circle—is how Petronio’s new Locomotor begins. Made up of moves from his 30 years of repertoire, the dance challenges his 10 fierce dancers with devouring space without crashing into each other. Embedded in this elastic group work are some gorgeously tangled duets. Music is by the dee-jay Clams Casino (aka Michael Volpe), who happens to be Petronio’s second cousin. We’ll also be treated to Stripped, a new solo for Stephen himself set to a piano étude by Philip Glass, in a slower tempo and more minor key. A revival of Part I of Strange Attractors (1999) completes the program, which is April 8–13 at the Joyce. To see Stephen talking about this 30th-anniversary concert, go to www.dancemagazine.com and find the just-posted “Choreography in Focus.” For tickets click here.

Stephen Petronio