Critic's picks: Dance

Even though the Beijing Dance Theater was founded not quite three years ago, China’s first professional modern troupe already is being hailed as one of the bright new lights of the international performing scene.

Headed by renowned choreographer Wang Yuanyuan, the original repertoire fuses the traditions of classical ballet with modern moves and contemporary concerns.

The company makes its regional debut at the Kennedy Center in October with "Haze," a piece that couldn't be more of the moment because it's meant as a response to economic tumult and to the pervasive pollution that's resulted from human tinkering with the environment.

Five dancers perform on a stage suffused with fog and covered with thick mats that make it difficult for them to keep their footing. They leap, roll and elegantly stumble to a moody score that combines the music of Henryk Gorecki with the electronica of Biosphere.

The result is an athletic, inspiring tour de force. -- Mary Carole McCauley

Beijing Dance Theater performs at 8 p.m. Oct. 26-27 at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 2700 F St. N.W., Washington, D.C. $22-$60. Call 800-444-1324 or go to kennedy-center.org.

August 9, 2011