Martinez Dancers Can’t Stop the Motion in Exhausting Show

One would be hard-pressed to find a company of dancers who toil more rigorously at their art than those in the Francisco Martinez Dancetheatre. This was in evidence Sunday at the New Performing Arts Center on the campus of Cal State Northridge, when the troupe presented two long works, including a premiere that might have fared better had the notion of stillness come into play.

Martinez’s latest opus, “The Colorado,” a tribute to the river of the same name, was set to an abridged version of Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s Symphony in F. Korngold is probably best known for his movie scores, and this work bristled with cinematic elements: momentous crashing chords, lots of furtive strings and reeds, and ubiquitous propulsive rhythms--all interpreted, perhaps too literally, by Martinez’s often repetitious choreography.

The trio of Bogar Martinez--eminently watchable--Michael Mizerany and Victor Robles embodied power--incorporating handstands, running leaps and frenetic foot-slapping. Their muscular unisons proved simultaneously exuberant and exhausting, offering little room, however, to breathe.

Enter Veronica Caudillo and Lisa Gillespie, and a more playful element: Able partnering and a uniformity of line made for some lovely tableaux, but, again, the nonstop moves, replete with a sea of flapping arms, continued unabated.

When the quintet finally slowed the pace to a languid adagio, it was only momentary, with incessant spinning, some somersaulting and bobbing heads surfacing to resume this study in stamina. Each move was impassioned, but meanings ebbed as movements blurred into one another, the dissipated choreography straining for depth.

Angelica Sotiriou provided a backdrop of painted clouds and a long, horizontal rendering of a river, while Dan Weingarten offered austere, effective lighting. Donna Dickens’ unitards were both sensuous and serviceable.

The afternoon began with the previously reviewed “Dark Corner,” with Veronica Apodaca and M. Lara Ramirez joining the other dancers in this suite set to Ginastera’s Cello Concerto. Martinez explored the world of abusive relationships in this work, which made good use of his dancers’ technical--and seemingly indefatigable--resources.