Fresh "Lake" in Chelsea

Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet, headed by Benoit-Swan Pouffer, is a mighty instrument, sharper than ever in this Winter 2009 season. I will underscore fierce, standout performances by Jon Bond and Jubal Battisti in Luca Veggetti's premiere, memory/measure, and Crystal Pite's Ten Duets on A Theme of Rescue (from 2008), and by Jason Kittelberger, who gives Didy Veldman's premiere, frame of view, two of its few compelling passages of dancing. Unlike the Veggetti and Pite works, the Veldman piece--despite its inspired visual and sonic wonders--seems disconnected from these dancers or, perhaps, bluntly applied to their bodies. Even so, they step up with full attention and strength. As we've come to expect, the technical capability, crisp timing, sensitive coordination with one another and willingness to push through challenges makes CLCB dancers consistently rewarding to watch, even if not every meeting of dancer and dance clicks.

The run, at the company's headquarters in Chelsea, concludes on January 18. Click here for program details and ticketing.