Ririe-Woodbury mixes up styles in 'Equilibrium'

"EQUILIBRIUM," RIRIE-WOODBURY DANCE COMPANY, Sept. 23, Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center, additional performances Sept. 24-26 (801-355-2787)

The Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company kicked off its 2009-10 season in a special matinee performance for area high school students earlier this week.

The production is chock full of world premieres and one revival, but the overall feel isn't a typical RWDC performance.

In a program of repertoire, performed under the umbrella title of "Equilibrium," the company takes some chances and makes it all look so good.

New York choreographer Karole Amritage's kinetic work, "It's Gonna Get Loud," features the dancers executing her trademark "punk attitude" moves on a stark and exposed stage. While the dancers seem anarchic at times, there is a sense of stylistic control that comes together in the seemingly spontaneous group segments.

Four short premieres follow the Armitage piece — Erik Stern's "Unlikey Ritual," Eric Handman's "Past Life," Doris Hudson de Trujillo's "Carpet Diem" and Kay Anderson's "Flavor of the Day."

Each is a study on the human experience, and they all have bits of humor and draw in the audience. While Stern's is more geared to an adult audience because of some suggestive spoken words and skimpy costuming, it sets the mood for the rest to follow.

Handman's piece looks at a dancer trying to recapture and cherish her past glory through a doll, and Trujillo's physical work has the dancers grabbing, dancing on and stealing carpets.

"Flavor of the Day" was the crowd favorite Wednesday. The three RWDC men — Caine Keenan, T.J. Spaur and Prentice Whitlow all use candy, presents, flowers and smooth moves to woo Erin Lehua Brown in this whimsical and slapstick-laced treasure.

By the way, the audience will get a chance to vote on which of these four pieces will be added permanently to the RWDC repertoire during this weekend's performances.

Closing the program is Carolyn Carlson's epic "Down by the River." The work, which is presented in four segments, had its world premiere in 2001 and was first performed by RWDC in 2004.

And it still is a work to see.

The exciting combination of deliberate, slow movement is juxtaposed to frantic, contorting gestures and flows through each abstract segment in capitvating motion.

"Equilibrium" shows the company's ability to mix up the styles and present them in a sweet visual package. With these works under its belt, the next step for the RWDC is going to Europe next week to tour its Alwin Nikolais repertory.

e-mail: scott@desnews.com