Contreras’ Ballets Embrace Conflict

The ballets of Gloria Contreras form a kind of alternative universe in 20th century classicism. Complex in rhythm, rich in gestural imagery and powerful in group body sculpture, they can also seem curiously limited in their use of steps, compared to the work of contemporary Euro-American choreographers. And for all their focus on Balanchine-influenced music visualization, they’re seldom completely abstract. Instead, Contreras’ sense of the violent social conflicts and vibrant pulse of her native Mexico informs much of her work--even structuralist pieces to scores composed far away.

In two different, exciting programs at Cal State L.A. over the weekend, Contreras’ hard-working and exuberant Mexico City-based chamber ensemble, Taller Coreografico de la UNAM, danced 13 of her carefully crafted, boldly emotional creations: pieces ranging in length from a two-minute solo to a 32-minute dance drama and dating from 1965 to 1998. As it happened, the two-night sampling fell into several overlapping thematic categories.

Imperiled Individuals Versus Dangerous Masses: Whether retelling a story of trapped lovers in “Romeo and Juliet,” setting a supernatural serpent against a venomous crowd in “Sensemaya” or creating an Aztec “Rite of Spring” in which the chosen one is beaten into sacrificial submission, Contreras sees the herd mentality leading to just one fate for outsiders: a fatal stab to the heart.

Sometimes she shows murder causing societal hostilities to slacken, as in “Redes,” but only her earliest works, such as the buoyant 1971 “Huapango” and her religious pieces (not in the touring rep) discover any positive social agenda in group energy. A vision of defenseless women trapped between phalanxes of marching males, her recent “Allegro Energico” seems particularly chilling in its portrait of sweeping militarism.

The Sculptural Showpiece: With defiant gestures in “Revolutionary Study” or with pinioned arms in “Solo for a Contemporary Angel,” the male soloist reflects a specific emotional andeven social stance in Contreras’ dances--while the female soloist is likely to portray a more generalized vivacity, as in “Siciliana,” the solo passages for women in “Huapango” and the sections of the duet “Brioso” (The Blue Bird) dominated by its ballerina. Moreover, Contreras’ emphasis on upper-body expression gives her men a potent advantage, while her characteristic avoidance of sustained pointe-work in the women’s choreography can leave their performances looking technically retro and interpretively sketchy.

Sweet, Lyrical and Gymnastic Love: In “Romeo and Juliet,” “Rasumovsky 2 (Duet),” “Adagio K 622” and the central section of “Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments,” Contreras experiments with concepts of dreamlike flow and intricate partnering rapport, making the teamwork between dancers into a metaphor for serene spiritual union. Here the woman does execute extended balances on pointe whenever she’s not being swept into ever-more-precarious lifts by her tireless cavalier. And in this kind of challenge, the tender poetic intensity and extraordinary physical control of Taller partnering virtuoso Domingo Rubio again proves just as world-class fabulous as it did in the company’s 1997 performances at the same venue.

If Rubio represents the extreme of soulful Apollonian nobility in the Taller company, Fidel Garcia exemplifies dramatic dionysiac abandon at full bent. Besides other major assignments at Cal State L.A., they each danced Romeo brilliantly, the former involving you deeply in the ballet’s emotional sweep on Friday and the latter making you marvel at interpretive specifics on Saturday. Garcia’s Romeo died in heartbreaking isolation, as if overwhelmed by pain, Rubio’s with an unforgettable smile as if already united with Juliet forever.

Along with showcasing the two Juliets--the forceful, womanly Alejandra Llorente on Friday, the vulnerable, birdlike Mariana Cobo on Saturday--the Taller repertory provided major opportunities for such capable artists as Maite Diz, Marcela Correa and Mireya Rodriguez among the women, Humberto Becerra and Angel Mayren among the men. In addition, excellent company members, including Olga Rodriguez and Sergio Hernandez, shone in lesser roles. If nobody remotely outclassed Rubio and Garcia--the bright and dark angels of Contreras’ classicism--the company made a persuasive case for her as an important artistic voice that should be better known to international audiences.