A Robbins/Sondheim/Bernstein jewel dances into downtown; trio of LA cutting-edge dance troupes at USC; Butoh goes seasonal in Venice Beach; late summer dance festival in San Pedro; legacy modern dance in Irvine; contemporary dance in Santa Monica, Glendale, downtown, and in a cornfield; plus more SoCal dance this week, and a peek at next week.
Live This Week
Dance gangs
The singular Broadway magic of Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim, and Jerome Robbins captured in the musical West Side Story, launches the LA Opera season. This new production sets a more than 30 dancers soaring to an opera orchestra of a size that even Broadway theaters cannot match. Robbins’ drew on his New York City Ballet as well as his Broadway jazz chops creating dances that mesh with Bernstein’s melodies and Sondheim’s lyrics in a close-knit weave seldom matched before or since. Production choreographer Joshua Bergasse has set Robbins original choreography, as sharp as the finger snap that ignites this iconic, still contemporary street retelling of Romeo and Juliet. Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, 135 N. Grand Ave., downtown; Sat., Sept. 20, 6 pm, Sun., Sept. 21 & 28, 2 pm, Thurs., Sept. 25, 7:30 pm, Sat., Sept. 28 & Oct. 4, 7:30 pm, $32.50-$350. LA Opera.
Triple whammy
For 20 years USC’s Visions and Voices has presented visiting and L.A.-based dance troupes. This year also marks the ten-year anniversary of the USC Kaufman School of Dance. Both milestones are marked with a triple bill of LA-based dance companies, all with ties to USC. JA Collective, aka Jordan Johnson and Aidan Carberry, are alums of the 2019 inaugural class at USC Kaufman Dance and have drawn national attention for what one reviewer described as how they “take the finite combination of four limbs each and weave it into thousands of beautiful, complicated connections.” LA’s preeminent street dance company Versa-Style Dance Company, a frequent USC visitor, is also on the program organized by Ana María Alvarez, artistic director of CONTRA-TIEMPO Activist Dance Theater, the third company dancing. Each company alone is worth a visit. All three together is quite an anniversary gift. USC Bovard Auditorium, 3551 Trousdale Parkway, University Park; Thurs., Sept. 18, 7 pm, free w/reservation at USC Decades of Dance.
Seasonal shifts
Oguri, Roxanne Steinberg, Mao, and Andres Corchero are the dancers responding to nine prepared images, titles, or concepts. Alex Cline, Jia Ma, and Aaron Shaw provide live music in Sky, this improvisational episode, the latest Flower of the Season from Bodyweather Laboratory. Electric Lodge, 1416 Electric Ave., Venice; Fri.-Sat., Sept. 19-20, 8 pm, Sun., Sept. 21, 3 pm, $20. Body Weather Laboratory.
Two to share
Choreographer/dancers Megan Paradowski and Rosalynde LeBlanc share the stage as LA Dance Project presents 2025 LAUNCH:LA. The series showcases LA-based artists, emphasizing emphasis on experimentation, collaboration, and the creation of bold new work. A Q&A follows the Sat. show. LA Dance Project Studios, 2245 E. Washington Blvd., Downtown Arts District; Fri-Sat., Sept. 19-20, 8 pm, Sun., Sept. 21, 2 & 6 pm, $25, $20 students/senior. LAUNCH:LA.
Legendary legacies
Founded by modern dance legends José Limón and Doris Humphrey, the legacy dance company Limon Dance Company brings a program showcasing dances that made them legends. Limón’s Orfeo retells the story of Orpheus and Eurydice, his Moor’s Pavane captures the Shakespeare tragedy in a succinct pas de quatre, and his A Suite of A Choreographic Offering pays tribute to Humphrey, while Humphrey is represented by her early masterpiece Two Ecstatic Themes. Irvine Barclay Theatre, UC Irvine, 4242 Campus Dr., Irvine; Thurs., Sept. 25, 8 pm, $34-$140. Irvine Barclay.
September dance fest
The end of summer welcomes an exuberant outpouring of local dance at the free, al fresco San Pedro Festival of the Arts. Directed and curated by choreographer Louise Reichlin, this year’s fest brings 18 dance companies (complete list at the website). In addition to the performances, audiences can join the interactive 2 Moves, where dance troupes teach two steps from their dance. Reminder: hats, sunblock, and comfortable shoes advised. Peck Park (upper lawn next to the Community Center), 560 N. Western Ave., San Pedro; Sat., Sept. 20, 1-4:15 pm, free. San Pedro Festival of the Arts.
Immersive trouble
Born in what was then Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, Nora Chipaumrie grew up in colonial Africa. She confronts colonial legacies in Dambudzo, which translates as “trouble.” The immersive work blends dance, sound, and visual art to conjure up the type of informal bar inside private residences where politics was discussed and community action planned. REDCAT, Disney Hall, 631 W. 2nd. St., Downtown; Thurs.-Sat., Sept. 25-27, 8 pm, $27, $22 students. REDCAT.
A dust up
Subtitled “a play by Oscar Falcon,” Dust Dance from TWIG Group experiments with stamina, grief, violence and love. Highways Performance Space, 1651 18th St., Fri.-Sat., Sept. 19-20, 8 pm, $25. Highways.
What’s forever?
A cornfield provides the setting for interdisciplinary artist 011668 who draws on Butoh dance, tokusatsu and film noir. The event is part of LACE Forever. Cornfield at Metabolic Studio, 1745 N. Spring St., Chinatown; Thurs., Sept. 25, 8:30 pm, $55-$108.55, $28.52 students (w/fees). Eventbrite.
New edition
With a significant list of commercial credits and a weekly class, Hannah Gallagher has gathered about 100 dancers, ranging from professional to aspirational, for her HMG The Company. After a successful show last year, the dancers return with Continuum at The Alex Theater, 216 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale; Fri., Sept. 19, 7 pm, $29-$79. The Alex Theater.
A Peek at Next Week — Sept. 26 to Oct. 2 (Yikes! October already?)
Yolanda Arroyo, Susana Elena & Albertossy Espinoza with Paco Arroyo — Ecos De España at West Hollywood Library, 625 N. San Vicente Blvd., West Hollywood; Sat., Sept. 27, 4 pm, free. WeHo.
Dare to Dance in Public Film Festival — 10th Anniversary at LA Dance Project, 2245 E. Washington Blvd., Downtown Arts District; Sat., Sept. 27, 7:30 pm, Sun., Sept. 28, 5:30 pm, $25, $20 students, $40 festival pass for both days. Tickets.
LA Opera — West Side Story (simulcast) at two locations on Sat., Sept. 27, free w/reservations strongly advised. At Santa Monica Pier, 200 Santa Monica Pier, Santa Monica; LA Opera at The Beach; also at Alta Loma Park, 3330 N. Lincoln Ave., Altadena, LA Opera at The Park.
Backhausdance — Orange County Center for Contemporary Art, 117 N. Sycamore, Santa Ana; Sat., Sept. 27, 2 pm, free. Backhausdance.
Dream Screen at Stomping Ground LA, 5453 Alhambra Ave., El Sereno; Fri., Sept 26, 7-9 pm, $28.25. Tickets.
Folklorico Revolución — Tributo a Los Grandes: José José, Juan Gabriel & Vicente Fernández at the Ford Theatre, 2850 Cahuenga Blvd. East, Hollywood; Sun., Sept. 28, 7:30 pm, $44-$67. Folklorico Revolucion.
Max Cauthorn and Wei Wang. Photo by Erik Tomasson
San Francisco Ballet and the Pacific Symphony — Frankenstein at Segerstrom Center for the Arts, 600 Town Center Dr., Costa Mesa; Thurs.-Fri., Oct. 2-3, 7:30 pm, Sat., Oct. 4, 2 & 7:30 pm, Sun., Oct. 5, 1 pm, $59-$179. SCFTA.
Soledad Barrio Noche Flamenca — Searching for Goya at Smothers Theater, Pepperdine University, 24255 Pacific Coast Hwy., Malibu; Thurs., Oct. 2, 7:30 pm, $30.50-$58. Pepperdine University. Also at Carpenter Performing Arts Center, Cal State University Long Beach, 6200 Atherton St., Long Beach; Sat., Oct. 4, 8 pm, $38.75-$78.75. Tickets.