BalletX

Wed.-Sat., March 26-29, 8 p.m., Sun., March 30, 2 p.m., $25, Wilma Theater, 265 S. Broad St., 215-546-7824, wilmatheater.org.

by Deni Kasrel

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Published: Mar 18, 2008

dance

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Matthew Neenan admits that his latest work for BalletX starts off cold, but that's because he's aiming to symbolize winter, the opening season represented in Right to Spring. FYI, despite the similarity in name, this piece is not a takeoff on The Rite of Spring. In fact, that was Neenan's original idea, but he found that Stravinsky's score "was not really me," so he kept the title but went off in his own direction. Neenan's work here was aided and abetted by classical minimalist/American folk/ambient composer Matthew Pierce, set designer Steven Earl Weber (who previously worked with Neenan on Le Travail, a tribute to Degas) and lighting designer Shelley Hicklin. This full-length work, featuring live musicians, is "very experimental. ... I'm working with improv, which I haven't done in a while," Neenan says. "I'm allowing the piece to grow on its own. It doesn't have to be picture-perfect." The overall theme — rebirth and reinvention — will have a special twist, too, what with company co-director/dancer Christine Cox sporting a noticeably pregnant belly. Talk about rebirth.

Wed.-Sat., March 26-29, 8 p.m., Sun., March 30, 2 p.m., $25, Wilma Theater, 265 S. Broad St., 215-546-7824, wilmatheater.org.

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