Contemporary Baroque (Dominic Walsh Dance Theater), January 8, 2005, Hobby Center's Zilkha Hall

This collaboration by Dominic Walsh Dance Theater and Mercury Baroque was phenomenal and really raised the bar for contemporary dance in Houston. The program consisted of four new works by four separate choreographers set to the music of Vivaldi, Handel, and Bach, which was performed on period instruments and in a musical style contemporary to the composers. In that sense, the name of the program is a double entendre, because while the music was performed a la 17th and 18th centuries, the goal of the program was, in the words of Dominic Walsh, "[to stimulate] these up-and-coming choreographers to take a fresh look at baroque music." Disclaimer: the rest of this review has become a victim of my crazy life/work schedule. Here are some abbreviated thoughts on the individual dances: Bacchus's Cup (choreography by Lauri Stallings) This was may favorite piece of the night, perhaps because it had the clearest structure. Seven dancers (4 men, 3 women) performed four energetic sections to music by Vivaldi. The two lasting visions of this piece are a lame duck turn ending with an extension to arabesque performed flawlessly not once but twice by Lindsey McGill, and several moments in the final section where the entire cast jumped up at the same time - simple, but amazingly powerful. I loved the costumes, which were dusty rose tops and pants occasionally covered with what looked like petticoats (on men and women alike!). One might think that the fast movement from Summer (Four Seasons) was overused, but Mercury Baroque's performance of it combined with my own jumbled feelings that evening made it fresh and pertinent. Kudos also to the lighting designer, Nicholas Phillips, for turning the stage into a space. Quartett Letters (choreography by Mario Zambrano, music by Jo. Seb. Bach) Touching dancing between Dominic Walsh and Paola Georgudis, supported by four "ghosts" in white costumes. Some of the dancing was accompanied by spoken words from "the world's greatest letters." Note to costume designer: don't put white satin pajama bottoms on anyone less slim than these dancers. First Try Second Chance (choreography by Ayman Aaron Harper, music by Vivaldi) Not really my thing, although I enjoyed parts of it. I can't remember enough now to say what, though. Bello (choreography by Dominic Walsh, music by Handel) Sara Webb is my favorite dancer with Houston Ballet, and I love to watch anything she does, but in this concert she looked curiously out of place. The preceding pieces were performed by dancers who clearly had strong ballet training but also had developed a contemporary line. Ms. Webb, while gorgeous, looked a bit the bunhead by comparison. If this piece had come first on the program, I doubt it would have struck me that way. This piece bore curious resemblance to Stanton Welch's offering in the Cullen Contemporary Series last fall, Blindness. Partly it was the costumes (the dancers resembled dressmaker's dummies) and partly the same atmosphere of intimacy between couples. Overall I liked this piece better, although I would need to see it again to discern a theme; the sections seemed somewhat disconnected. I thoroughly enjoyed the placement of the counter tenor Gerrod Pagenkopf on stage, as I could hear his lovely voice directly, rather than echoing out of the pit. Yes, I finally broke the Zilkha Hall curse!