The Scen3

A review by Betsy Schwarm Production photographs by David Andrews New productions of standard ballets are not unknown.  Especially this time of year, many choreographers dream of putting their own touch on an old classic.  However, Ballet Ariel’s fall production features two works based upon compositions not originally intended for dance.  Carnaval was conceived in […]

A review by Gwen Gray, with photos by Heather Gray/Gray Area Dance Over the years, 3rd Law Dance/Theater has become known for navigating on-stage obstacles. They’ve glided across a stage filled with bouncing ping-pong balls, held handstands atop typewriters, and woven themselves in and out of a collection of cardboard boxes and towers of metal cubes. But those were self-imposed creative challenges.  This year, 3rd Law, like virtually all performing arts groups, had to face the impossibilities imposed upon them by the pandemic. Yet in characteristic […]

A review by Gwen Gray To hear it told by 3rd Law Dance/Theater’s artistic co-directors Katie Elliott and Paul Fowler, the company’s latest production, “Singularity,” was inherited. That’s because 3rd Law’s late cofounder Jimmy LaVita had already begun to assemble the research for the troupe’s next creation before his death — examining artificial intelligence (AI) […]

A review by Gwen Gray As last Saturday evening’s performance of “Lost in Place” by 3rd Law Dance/Theater got underway, the sound of trains chugging along and boats sloshing into harbor filled the Arvada Center for Arts and Humanities, and old black-and-white scenes evoking 20th century European immigration were projected on the backdrop. Ten dancers […]

A preview by Betsy Schwarm At first glance, still-life imagery and dance might seem contradictory ideas. After all, the essence of dance is motion, not stillness. However, a still-life image is essentially a moment in time: what about the next moment? What colors and textures might emerge from further consideration of that bowl of fruit, […]

A preview by Barbara Hamilton 3rd Law Dance Theater’s upcoming performances of Lost in Place this coming weekend at the Dairy Center will be a tribute to the beloved co-founder of the company: Jim LaVita. Jim is survived by his wife and artistic partner Katie Elliott, who helped to choreograph Lost in Place. The work […]

Fine dance is more than tutus and pirouettes. In the world of 3rd Law Dance/Theater, it’s a vibrantly collaborative art of today.

A review by Marc Shulgold  In their spoken introduction, Tom Morgan and Nancy Smith welcomed their audience to the Dairy Arts Center by cutely alternating words and phrases in explaining the collaboration of his Ars Nova Singers and her all-women Frequent Flyers aerial dance troupe. Most of what they actually said became lost in the […]

A review by Gwen Gray The crowd at the Dairy Arts Center quiets. A young man appears on stage, barefooted, a headset microphone at his lips and a smartphone in his hand. He begins a monosyllabic a cappella chant, which expands into a rich, rhythmic hymn as he digitally loops and chains his own vocals […]

A preview by Josh Primus This holiday season, many parents are wondering about finding cool events for their picky teenagers. This overview of the December holiday arts scene should answer that question. Many events are surprisingly affordable, and should get your teen in the holiday spirit! Shrek the Musical,  performed at the Town Hall Arts […]