Hubbard Street Dance Company Performs in L.A. Area – October 6th, 2003

Hubbard Street Dance Company Performs in L.A. Area

Hubbard Street Dance, a contemporary dance company based in Chicago, offers a unique and inspiring experience. The company is comprised of twenty diverse dancers with different backgrounds in dance. The company was founded in 1977 by Lou Conte, a dancer and choreagrapher. Their latest tour out to the west coast in March 2002 went very smoothly. Their performances took place at the beautiful Irvine Barklay Theater in Orange County and then the grand Alex Theater in Glendale, just outside of L.A.

Their latest program consisted of four unique routines. "Counter/Part" (a new work in preview) was the first segment of four by choreographer and new Artistic Director, Jim Vincent and set to the music of Bach’s Brandenberg Concerti. "Passomezzo" was the next routine which was a romantic duet by Israeli choreographer Ohad Naharin and backed by the music of the folk song Greensleeves. This was followed by "Split", with young, American choreographer Trey McIntyre setting this up to the music of jazz percussionist Art Blakey. This piece featured 6 dancers wearing hip jeans and t-shirts and moving freely and fluidly to the music. The last piece was called "Minus 16", by Naharin again and was by far the most entertaining piece. This exciting improvisational dance included the Hubbard Street Dancers selecting audience members to come up on stage and dance together individually with each member that selected the audience member. This was a very creative and hillarious piece, and featured a diverse set of music from Dean Martin to cha-cha, mambo, techno, and others.

A number of techniques including theatrical jazz, modern and classical ballet, sets Hubbard Street apart with its own creative and artistic style. Hubbard Street has worked with numerous well-reknowned choreographers including Nacho Duato, Kevin O’Day, Lynne Taylor-Corbett, Twyla Tharp and many others. The company regularly collaborates with emerging choreographers on new dance works. They have appeared in 42 states and 15 countries. From the music selection: classical to modern tunes including Bach, Art Blakey, and other unknown artists; to the costume design by Mari Kajiwara, Sandra Woodall, and Ohad Naharin; to the choreography by Ohad Naharin and Trey Mcintyre, the collaboration of talents worked together and made this last show in Orange County and Los Angeles a very enjoyable and exciting show to watch. I highly recommend checking out Hubbard Street Dance next time they preform.