Dance Doesn’t Nap During S.D. Summer

Pops concerts and outdoor musicals are standard summer fare across the country, but dance events are conspicuous by their absence in the summertime. Not so in San Diego. Although the full-fledged concert dance season takes a holiday after Friday night’s performance by the Frankfurt Ballet, Terpsichore, the Muse of dance, will continue to kick up her heels in a studio setting throughout the summer--compliments of Three’s Company’s Lo-Tec Series.

Jean Isaacs, artistic director of the city’s leading modern dance troupe, has been committed to a summer dance series ever since she set up shop in San Diego more than 15 years ago. But, as she boasted in a recent interview, this summer’s slate is her proudest achievement.

“The quality will be very high,” said Isaacs. “We have only one local performer. All the rest are from New York, the Bay Area and San Francisco.”

“The eight-weekend season will be a little shorter than in the past,” said company manager Tom Corcoran, “but it enabled us to be more selective. We’re barraged with tapes from dancers interested in appearing at the low-tecs, which just indicates how much need there is for this kind of thing.

“Our series is unique in its summertime opportunities and in the number of people we’re drawing from out of town,” he said. “There’s really nothing like it.”

Three’s Company will start the ball rolling this weekend with a concert by Jose Limon Dance Company soloist Nina Watt, at 8:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Watt, described by Dance magazine as “a dancer of star magnitude,” will perform several Limon creations, including the legendary “Chaconne” and “Isadora Dances.”

The series will continue June 24-25 with the Southern California debut of a pair of Bay Area choreographers. Virginia Matthews and Karen Attix, both proteges of Merce Cunningham, will perform their own works.

Also slated for the series are Stephanie Gilliland (July 8-9), Collage Dance Theater (July 22-23), Margaret Wingrove and Dancers (July 29-30), Tina Gerstler (Aug. 19-20) and the annual workshop performance by students of Three’s Company (Aug. 26-27). The popular Dance X-Change concert, with commentary by three dance critics, will be Aug. 12-13.

Although Three’s Company’s studio is short on creature comforts for the audience and technical support for the dancers, the summer series has developed a strong following.

“The series skips around a little bit this time,” said Corcoran, “and we’re afraid people will be confused because we’re not here every single weekend. But we felt we needed to trim with all the company’s activities this year.”

One of the reasons for the curtailed season is Three’s Company’s Swiss tour, which will keep Isaacs and four of her dancers busy abroad until early July. But, Corcoran said, the group’s 15th anniversary season has been full of firsts for the San Diego company.

“We made a number of important strides this year. We had the guts to go to New York, where we received very positive reviews,” he said. “And we brought a number of new supporters to the organization.

“Thanks to the efforts of one of our board members, we received a major grant from Jewels of Charity, and our recommended funding from the city is for nearly $50,000,” said Corcoran. “That will help us put seven dancers on salary for a minimum of 20 weeks a year. That’s a very big step.

“It’s the first time we’ve ever had dancers on contract, and it’s the first time in the history of the city that modern dancers will be on contract,” he noted.

“Our budget increased by 240%, and we’ll be going further into the touring field,” Corcoran said. “That spreads the word that there’s life and art in San Diego, and it takes our productions to other communities. It also helps us here, because they never appreciate you till you go away from home. It’s already helped a lot.”

Three’s Company will skip its annual appearance at the series this summer. But the troupe is ready to expand its horizons for the Fall season.

“We’re initiating another major local venue, in addition to the Mandell Weiss,” said Corcoran. “We have a strong following in La Jolla and North County, but we want to join in on the resurgence of the arts downtown. The Lyceum Theatre is one possibility. We’re finishing a good anniversary season, and we’re still looking ahead to more expansion and artistic achievements.”