Next in the Dance House series Feb 10 – 11  Wayne McGregor | Random Dance with ENTITY,  a staggering blend of bodies, lights, technology and film that place McGregor at the cutting edge of contemporary culture.  Wayne McGregor is a multi-award winning British choreographer, renowned for his physically testing choreography and groundbreaking collaborations across dance, film, music, visual art, technology, and science.

That said. This weekend Centennial Theatre in North Vancouver presents MOTUS O’s whimsical combination of dance and comedy, which features original music by Canadian composer Ray Luedeke. If you’ve got young dance fans that like a laugh, this one’s for you.  More information at www.centennialtheatre.com Tix $18/16.50

On Tuesday, Guilt & Co. (have you been there for a cocktail? OMG so good) presents Luciterra and Chris Murdoch performing in a full-length show that fuses belly dancing with elements of the circus. More information at www.luciterradance.com/ Admission by donation. This is a bit of a scene, in the best possible way.

Speaking of scnees, the PuSh Festival and MovEnt present the 10th anniversary of Dances for a Small Stage Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.  This 25th installment will be quite the feast for dance fans with micro-choreographies by Serge Bennathan, Cori Caulfield, Josh Beamish and hip hop artist Kim Sato.  At the Grandview Legion on The Drive, $20 cash only (19 + cos you can buy yourself a beer.)

And finally, PuSh Festival and the Dance Centre present  Andrea Bozic in a double bill.  After Trio A pays homage to Yvonne Rainer’s groundbreaking Trio A, and Beginnings is a live discourse between Bozic and artist Julia Willms.  Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Feb 2 – 4, $28/20 at the Dance Centre.

Photos: Entity, by Ravi Deepres
After Trio A by Anna Van Kooij

Get ready for our THIRD Speaking of Dance lecture of  2011/12.  DanceHouse is thrilled to partner with SFU Woodward’s and the School for the Contemporary Arts to present Speaking of Dance, a closer look at upcoming DanceHouse presentations, delivered by Vancouver’s most prominent dance critics.

TIME: 7pm
PLACE: Audain Gallery, Ground floor,  SFU Woodward’s Goldcorp Pavilion
COST: FREE!

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 1 – Wayne McGregor & Random Dance, talk by Janet Smith

JANET SMITH is a Carleton University arts-journalism grad who has been writing about Vancouver’s dance scene for the past two decades. When she’s not interviewing artists or reviewing shows, she’s working as arts editor at the Georgia Straight, the city’s largest urban weekly.

It’s here – Friday again, which means only one more day for the big event :

La La La Human Steps Saturday and Sunday 21 and 22nd!  I am sure you have your tickets by now, but if not there are still some available, with better availability for Sunday.  This is Vancouver dance history in the making – be a part of it!

And in the not so distant future: Feb 1-3, as part of the PuShFestival, Dances for a Small Stage is series of original danceworks designed for a 10-by-13-foot stage!  Works by Serge Bennathan, Cori Caulfield, Josh Beamish amongst others.   Always fun times, sit back and relax with a beer and your friends at the Grandview Legion on the Drive. Tix $20 at the door, cash only. 19+ (no kids, alas.)

Also part of the PuSh Festival, Andrea Božić’ (Croatian choreographer based in Amsterdam) presents her work After Trio A.  The piece pays homage to American choreographer Yvonne Rainer’s 1966 Trio A, a pioneering postmodern dance that was groundbreaking in its defiance of standard conventions of dance and perceptions of the body.  As part of Božić’ work two dancers must learn a portion of  the original Trio A  live in front of the audience, guided only by a video recording .   Feb 2-4  at the Dance Centre.

Photo: La La La Human Steps by Edouard Lock.

Here’s a roundup of previews for you to check out:

Janet Smith of the Georgia Straight

Jessica Barrett of the WestEnder

Kevin Griffin of the Vancouver Sun

Have we missed any? Let us know in the comments.

Still on the fence about coming? Scan our ads in the Sun and Straight today with your smart phone for a special offer for Sunday night!

Of course, you will want to see New Work this weekend to make sure you’re up to date. Looking forward to seeing you there and seeing what this contemporary master has up his sleeve.

At Speaking of Dance, writer Kevin Griffin noted that a lot of Lock’s early work with Louise Lecavalier was very “horizontal”–barrel turns, floor work, duets that pulled apart and flattened out. This ballet-inspired work moves the female dancers to the vertical, adding height and driving the eye up, while grounding it with pointe shoes.  Wait ’til you see what he does with the men in 2007′s Amjad, our next post, happening mid-week. Meanwhile, enjoy.

Friday, you come around with amazing regularity. Once a week, in fact. Two cool things this weekend, and one very cool thing next: only a week to go for  La La La Human Steps .  Tickets are going fast, so  don’t miss the dance event of the year – really, don’t miss it!  January 21st – 22nd at The Centre

Now, what do you need to see this week?  First off, get off of your Facebook and get on over to the Dance Centre to see the last performance of Out Innerspace Dance Theatre in Me So You So Me -with two of Vancouver’s most innovative up and coming dance artists Tiffany Tregarthan and David Raymond.  Too late for advance tickets, but you can pick one up for $25 at the door, 8pm.

Another opportunity to see some of our young talent – the Contingency Plan finishes up their run at the Firehall on Saturday with Adhere and Las Tres Marias.  Tickets $12 – $30

Out Innerspace photo by Wendy D

Something to look forward to for next week’s performance of New Work is that the score (by Gavin Bryars) is performed live by a quartet–making the performance more “in the moment”? Can’t wait to find out.

First up, Speaking of Dance! Free, 7pm, at the Audain Gallery at SFU Woodward’s on Wednesday. Kevin Griffin will talk you through La La La Human Steps, Edouard Lock, and their importance to Canadian dance. No need to rsvp, just show up and learn. Hope to see you there!

Second, tickets are going fast for La La La Human Steps on the 21st and 22nd–get ‘em before they’re gone. Also, do you have a smart phone? Seek out a poster (or next week’s ad in the Straight) and scan the QR code for a delightful surprise.

Finally, next week’s highlight is The TCP show at the Firehall Arts Centre. (TCP stands for tripping.closely.perception–punctuated exactly like that.) The mixed bill features two dance works, the Contingency Plan’s Adhere and Tara Cheyenne Friedenberg’s Las Tres Marías .

More information at www.firehallartscentre.ca/. Tickets $12-$30.

Photo: Courtesy of The Firehall.

Our journey through the La La La oeuvre continues with 1991′s L’Enfant C’est Destroy. More Louise Lecavalier, more relentless energy, more consummate athleticism. Another simply amazing work.