Spring still may be six weeks away, but Chicago dance troupes already are picking up speed as if winter was over. Perhaps it's the 'spring' in their steps that does it!
Flamenco 2006—the six-week multi-arts festival of things Spanish—continues with several dance performances. This Friday ( Feb. 10 ) : Paco Pena Flamenco Dance Company—dancers, guitarists, singers—at Pick-Staiger Hall, Northwestern University, 8PM; ( 847 ) 467-4000; $32. This weekend ( Feb. 11-12 ) : Chicago's own Ensemble Espanol in Noche Flamenca; Northeastern University ( 5500 N. St. Louis Avenue ) ; ( 773 ) 442-4636; $25. Thursday, Feb. 16: solo dance recital by young, sexy Israel Galavan—the son of a celebrated Flamenco dancer—who has set fire to the world of Spanish dance with his avant-garde reinventions of the traditional form. Jose Greco he ain't. Feb. 16, 7:30PM, Harold Washington Library; ( 312 ) 335-1996; $20.
Flamenco 2006 is presented by Instituto Cervantes ( the Spanish cultural center in Chicago ) and the city's Department of Cultural Affairs. They do themselves no favors by having a different reservation number and Web site for each event. They need to make it easier for patrons to find information and purchase tickets.
FYI: for most people, perhaps nothing seems more thoroughly Spanish than flamenco music and dance. Would you be surprised to know the roots of flamenco are Jewish? The musical tradition derives from music of the Sephardim, the Spanish Jews who flourished in the Iberian Peninsula for 500 years before they were kicked out of Spain—or forced to become Catholic—in 1492.
British choreographer Richard Alston and his dance company make their Chicago debut Feb. 9-11 at the Dance Center of Columbia College Chicago ( 1306 S. Michigan ) . The program features three Alston pieces performed to exquisite music of three centuries: 19th-century Chopin nocturnes and etudes for Such Longing, 17th-century Monteverdi madrigals for Fever, and 20th-century Balkan gypsy songs remixed by contemporary DJs for Gypsy Mixture. Later in the month, the Dance Center launches its LatinoContempo ( sic ) Festival with Brazilian troupe Quasar Dance Company, Feb. 23-25, performing a full-length work influenced by Brazilian popular music. Tickets for Richard Alston or Quasar Dance: ( 312 ) 344-8300; $20-$24.
Dance Chicago offers a romantic weekend Feb. 11-12 with Valentine Dances, presenting a wide range of new works and highlights from the Dance Chicago 2005 Festival. Troupes and artists from the Joffrey Ballet to champion ballroom dancers will perform, all of them in heartthrob mode. The Feb. 11 show will be followed by a free Valentine's Day reception featuring champagne, chocolate and a lingerie show from G Boutique! Athenaeum Theatre; ( 773 ) -935-6860; $20.
Tony Award-winning hoofer Savion Glover makes an in-your-face Chicago appearance Feb. 14-19. The dazzling, dreadlocked tapping terpsichorean will perform at the intimate, 150-seat Theatre Building Chicago ( 1225 W. Belmont ) . Glover, reg e gaines ( sic ) and Matana Roberts comprise the band If Trane Wuz Here; a reference ( we presume ) to the late, great saxophonist John Coltrane. At this late date, you're probably gonna' hafta' fight to score tickets. ( 773 ) 327-5252; $40.
February and March will see an unusually high number of classical ballets performed in Chicago, although not all will be danced in the classical tradition. One that will be is the Joffrey Ballet's Romeo and Juliet, a romantic and sumptuous interpretation set by John Cranko to the full-length score by Sergei Prokofiev. Romeo and Juliet will be performed Feb. 15-26 at the Auditorium Theatre, with the Chicago Sinfonietta providing the live orchestral accompaniment; ( 312 ) 739-0120; $15-$125.
On the other hand, you may be in for a surprise with Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake, the ballet-as-theater concept that eradicates tutus and tights and dares to add humor to the full-length Tchaikovsky score. Much of it is danced in modern dress ( but elegant modern dress ) , while the traditional corps de ballet of female swans is all-male. Although the work is 10 years old, this one-week engagement is its Chicago premiere; Feb. 21-26, Cadillac Palace, ( 312 ) 902-1400; $15-$72.50.
The Chicago Human Rhythm Project ( CHRP ) starts its 2006 season with a Winter Tap JAMboree, Feb. 24-26 at the Beverly Arts Center ( far south at 2407 W. 111th ) , culminating in a Feb. 26, 4 p.m. performance featuring CHRP founder Lane Alexander, Derick K. Grant, Lady Dianne Walker, Sam Weber and other veteran and youthful tappers; ( 773 ) 445-3838; $25.
The 2006 Ruth Page Dance Series begins Feb. 24-26 with performances by Concert Dance, Inc., the resident troupe of the Ruth Page Foundation ( 1016 N. Dearborn ) . The concerts will honor artistic director Venetia Stifler, marking 25 years as a choreographer. Among the Stifler works will be Fugues ( danced to Bach ) , Etudes ( Villa-Lobos ) , The Day of the Rope ( songs by Irish singer Cathy Cowan ) , and a world premiere for four women, set to a collage for classical voice. ( 312 ) 337-6543; $20. NOTE: The Feb. 24 performance, set for 8 p.m., is part of the City's Winter Delights program and is FREE! However, reservations are necessary.