RIRIE-WOODBURY DANCE COMPANY, Capitol Theatre, Friday evening, April 28; final performance tonight (April 29), 7:30 p.m.; tickets through ArtTix outlets or by calling 355-2787.The Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company was in fine form Friday as its dancers flew through a wide variety of dancing styles and music, hardly missing a step and winning their share of laughter and awe.
The first number saw its six dancers and associate artistic director -- Juan Carlos Claudio, Javier De Cordoba, Aaron Draper, Christine Hasegawa, Tammy Metz Starr, Liberty Valentine and Emmy Thomson -- perform a series of dances from days past. Swing, jazz and tango music pervaded "Golden Oldies," lending a light tone to begin the evening.
"Tethered" found Thomson in a performance considerably darker in its nature, adding a certain sense of beauty to an act of desperation.
With the addition of Brandin Steffensen and Catherine Wright, "Invocation" is a thrilling piece quite primal in nature, with dancers moving in time to the pounding drum beats almost effortlessly.
"Stardust" had its world premiere Friday, where the beauty and interest in the number wasn't always found in the dance moves alone, but in the eyes of those performing it. Starr played on the emotions of childhood, and the jumpy, playful piece won laughs from the crowd in spots.
Hasegawa, Starr and Valentine brought a sense of dignity to "Siesta," with its strong accents magnified by its score by Bizet.
"Windows" was particularly interesting as it meshed a series of people involved and/or near windows together, offering brief peeks into the lives of a young couple in a bedroom, an older, disgruntled couple in the kitchen, a breakdancer and window washers. The latter had Claudio, Cordoba and Draper performing while atop a swinging piece of plywood.
The final number, set to music seemingly Oriental in its origin, had the group, joined by Marni B. Rasmussen, Erin Winstead and Catherine Wright, using ribbons to lend an entirely different, intriguing sense to the piece, almost aerodynamic in points.
Cordoba, Draper and Starr will be leaving Ririe-Woodbury after tonight. Catch them and the rest of the talented group while you still can.
You can reach Dainon Moody by e-mail at dmoody@desnews.com