DANCE REVIEW : Lounsbury Gives San Diegans First Glimpse of her True Talent

Will the real Kate Lounsbury please stand up?

Lounsbury showed several sides of her dance persona last weekend in her first solo concert. After a stunning opening performance at Sushi on Friday night, a lot of die-hard dance buffs were left wondering why it has taken more than a decade to discover this Kate Lounsbury--the one with star quality.

Modern dancers have used the solo format as a means of self-expression ever since the first maverick shed her shoes and re-wrote the rulebook almost a century ago. What made Lounsbury’s coming out concert atypical was that it featured choreography by five different dance makers.

Humor, love, celebration, isolation and grief were among the emotional paths Lounsbury traveled in the taxing seven-piece program. And she skipped from one mood swing to the next in a seamless flow of concentrated energy and consummate style.

Three’s Company choreographer Nancy McCaleb put her through the wringer with “Sister of the Plague,” a new work that picks up on one of McCaleb’s favorite themes. Lounsbury gave it a heart-wrenching performance worthy of this strong drama. Driven by an equally assertive score (composed by the choreographer), “Sister of the Plague” proved to be an excellent vehicle for the dancer--and a fine contribution to local dance.

There were several other memorable newcomers on this jam-packed program. Cate Bell created a cross-cultural dance with ritualistic overtones that showcased the droll side of the dancer. Debi Toth took rock music in tow to create “Moth in My Ear,” a hard-driving dance of independence. And George Willis went way over the wall with his tongue-in-cheek “Introductions.”

Perhaps it was the fact that Lounsbury has never focused on her funny side before, but she seemed to relish the zany aspects of “Introductions” most of all. And the sly spoof gave her an opportunity to deliver a spoken text as she moved through its cockeyed motional demands.

Carl Yamamoto’s choreographic voice has been silent for some time, but with “Myss of Thithiphuth,” he showed some of the quirky configurations that have become his trademarks over the years. Lounsbury etched the sinewy shapes and sensuous curves of its opening segment, then zipped through its tricky acrobatics without missing a beat.

Patricia Sandback was represented twice on the program--first with “Red Dress,” an evocative study of isolation, and then with “Toward Stillness,” the powerful finale. Both of these highly polished pieces have been seen before, but they were no less welcome on the program.

Lounsbury threw herself into the angst-filled movements of “Red Dress,” echoing the eccentricities of the spoken text with quivering gestures and frenzied lunges.

“Toward Stillness” is an unrelenting exercise in grief, and Lounsbury’s face was a portrait of pain and mental anguish as she carved out its designs. The diaphanous white gown designed by Wendy Biegelsen contributed to her look of vulnerability.

It has taken 12 years to discover the full range of Lounsbury’s gifts, but her maiden solo concert at Sushi put them all together with style.