Dance and Music Reviews : Nikolais Mixes Old and New in UCLA Program

Although his fanciful modern-dance abstractions demand a high degree of technical sophistication from his company, Alwin Nikolais has never exactly been known for choreographing celebrations of prowess.

Never say never. Nikolais’ “Arc en Ciel” is the exception proving the rule: a dancer-as-gladiator showpiece that just may be the thinking person’s “Canto Vital.”

Seen Friday in Royce Hall, UCLA, on a program mixing two examples of Nikolais’ greatest ‘50s hits with three recent works, this year-old quartet stripped its men to revealing net uniforms daubed with metallic blotches. It assigned them dugout and locker-room stances plus macho horseplay--but focused on four spectacular solos.

First up, James Murphy: sensuous undulations with lots of little pulses and gestural filigree. Next, Kay Andersen: big, propulsive kicks and leaps. Third, Alberto Del Saz: smoothly linked turning jumps and forceful semaphoring. Finally, Christopher Strauss: intricate, twitchy upper-torso accents and a strong upward thrust. Then back to the bench for these non-competitive athletes in a thoughtful, downbeat ending.

The Golden Oldies on the program retained their freshness and sense of wonder. A six-minute excerpt from “Kaleidoscope” (1956) found the dancers wearing discs resembling cymbals or garbage-can lids on their right feet. These discs provided both rhythmic accompaniment and unorthodox balancing-platforms.

In “Tensile Involvement” (1953), the dancers filled the stage with elastic ribbons that they wove into giant cat’s cradles. Whizzing between the crisscrossing ribbons, hanging on them or forming individual cubicles within the framework, they managed to seem the carefree masters of Nikolais’ theater-technology--no easy trick.

“Crucible” and “Contact” (both previously reviewed) completed the program.