Five who are raising the barre

MARIA GILLESPIE

Her dancing can veer from swift and hummingbird-like to meltingly graceful in a heartbeat. Since relocating from New York to Los Angeles in 1996, the petite, 32-year-old Gillespie has been making a name for herself in modern dance as a performer, choreographer and teacher. Last year, she received two Lester Horton Dance Awards for individual and small ensemble performance for her work in Victoria Marks’ “Against Ending.” As a member of Helios Dance Theater, she electrified audiences at the Ford Amphitheatre last summer in Laura Gorenstein Miller’s “The Quickening.” As choreographer, she often celebrates the body through elongated stretches and sculptural poses. Next month, Gillespie, who teaches modern dance at UCLA, will appear in a faculty festival at the university’s Kinross Building, and in March she’ll present a solo evening at Highways.

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TERRY BEEMAN

In-your-face primal lunges and gravity-defying balances are but a few of the moves this 37-year-old, charismatic dancer-choreographer has in his hyperathletic dance arsenal. Born in Iowa and raised in Kansas City, Mo., Beeman trained in New York before moving west in 1989 to dance backup for entertainer Paula Abdul. In addition to hoofing in TV commercials, music videos and films, Beeman founded his 14-member Terry Beeman Dance Works two years ago. Its first effort, “Atmosphere,” a steamy, yoga-inspired jazz-dance piece, was nominated for five Lester Horton Awards last year. Making use of suspended fabric and spectacular gymnastic prowess, Beeman followed up with the spiritually infused “Bound,” produced by Debbie Allen Dance Academy (where he teaches). His own new opus, “Thunder and Lightning,” a riff on personal and physical power, is scheduled to premiere in the spring.

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ARIANNE MacBEAN

As at home with whimsy as she is with mining the female psyche, this self-proclaimed “dance activist” is artistic director of the modern dance troupe Big Show Co. In addition to performing, chairing the dance department at North Hollywood’s Oakwood School and choreographing work that’s been described as both provocative and deftly physical, this 30-year-old New York transplant also produces a variety of dance events. Among them is the Dance Moving Forward Festival, now in its fifth year. This year’s edition, subtitled “The Architecture of Dance,” will feature eight emerging female choreographers and take place at Valley College’s Mainstay Theater, May 13-15. MacBean is also president of Dance Resource Center, the service organization that produces the Lester Horton Dance Awards. This weekend, MacBean and Stefan Fabry will present a program of new works at Highways, though MacBean, alas, will not be dancing.

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SIMONE FORTI

Part earth goddess, part leprechaun, this Italian-born, Los Angeles-raised icon has been a major force in dance since she began studying improvisation in the 1950s. The next decade found her in New York with the legendary Judson Church Dance Theater, and by 2001, New Yorker magazine had dubbed her the “liveliest of the original mavericks of postmodern dance.” Since returning to L.A. six years ago, Forti, who teaches at UCLA, has continued garnering plaudits with work that often combines movement and spoken word. On March 4, Forti will perform at the Los Angeles Public Library, not only dancing but reading from her recently published book of experimental writings, “Oh, Tongue.” This spring, she’ll appear at the Getty Center and the Geffen Contemporary. Thrilled with what she acknowledges as her “elder” status in the community, Forti will receive a Lester Horton Lifetime Achievement Award on April 18.

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PATRICK DAMON RAGO

Possessed of meticulous technical control, an awesome buoyancy and a potent wit, this rising star in modern dance was born in Sacramento and came to Los Angeles in 1988. After doing graduate work in Utah, Rago hooked up with Stephanie Gilliland in 1998 to dance with the boundary-pushing troupe Tongue/Contemporary Dance. Last year, Rago, 33, stepped out on his own, forming Palindrome Performance Group. In April, he won a Lester Horton Award for his riveting performance of “Native Son,” a solo he commissioned from Bay Area choreographer Joe Goode. Rago also teaches at Loyola Marymount College and commutes one weekend a month to San Francisco, where, in two years, he will receive certification in Laban Movement, a study of the theories and principles of human movement.

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MORE FACES TO WATCH: 1. Gail Matsui, Japanese American cultural and community director, marketing and community outreach. 2. Francisco Martinez, artistic director, Francisco Martine Dancetheatre.

3. Linda Yudin, co-artistic director, Viver Brasil Dance Company. 4. Erwin Washington, executive director, Lula Washington Dance Theatre. 5. Kelly Hargraves and 6. Lynette Kessler, festival directors, Dance Camera West.

7. Genie Benson, executive director, Keshet Chaim Dance Ensemble. 8. Leo Garcia, artistic director, Highways Performance Space. 9. Rudy Perez, choreographer, the Ensemble. 10. Benita Bike, artistic director, Benita Bike’s DanceArt and coordinator, Brand Library Dance Series. 11. Deborah Lawlor, co-artistic director, Fountain Theatre. 12. Laura Gorenstein Miller, artistic director, Helios Dance Theater. 13. Steve Moshier, music director, Hae Kyung Lee and Dancers. 14. Hae Kyung Lee, artistic director, Hae Kyung Lee and Dancers. 15. Alfred Desio, Zapped Taps. 16. Louise Reichlin, artistic director, L.A. Choreographers and Dancers. 17. Arianne MacBean, artistic director, the Big Show Co. 18. Patrick Frantz, artistic director, La Danserie. 19. Mark Murphy, executive director, REDCAT. 20. Heidi Duckler, artistic director, Collage Dance Theatre. 21. Quilet Rarang, choreographer-dancer, Trip Dance Theatre. 22. Zenji Oguri, 11, son, of 23. Oguri, artistic director, Body Weather Laboratory. 24. Simone Forti, choreographer. 25. Gema Sandoval, artistic director, Danza Floricanto/USA.

26. Victoria Marks, holding son Emmett Marks Froot. 27. Karen Schmidt, director of booking and presentations, Music Center. 28. Stephanie Gilliland, artistic director, Tongue/Contemporary Dance. 29. Dean Porter, director of marketing, Grand Performances. 30. Dave Pier, managing director, John Anson Ford Amphitheatre. 31. Regina Klenjoski, artistic director, Regina Klenjoski Dance Company, SOLA Contemporary Dance Festival. 32. Holly Johnston, rehearsal director, Tongue/Contemporary Dance. 33. David King and 34. Cid Pearlman, producers, Max 10 Performance Lab. 35. Jamal, artistic director, Avaz International Dance Theatre. 36. Anthony Shay, founding artistic director, Avaz International Dance Theatre. 37. Laurel Kishi, performing arts manager, Getty Center. 38. Justin Yoffe, cultural arts program supervisor, City of Santa Monica. 39. David Sefton, executive/artistic director, UCLA Live. 40. Michael Alexander, executive/artistic director, Grand Performances 41. Clifford D. Harper, executive director, Luckman Fine Arts Complex. 42. Danielle Brazell, former artistic director, Highways Performance Space. 43. Jordan Peimer, director of public programs, Skirball Cultural Center. 44. Leigh Ann Hahn, director of programming, Grand Performances.