Dancers

The 22nd annual Towson State University Dance Company performance opened Friday night with a generous program of dances designed to showcase the diverse talents of Towson students. TSU's dance program is obviously a popular one, judging from the number of student participants who demonstrated their capabilities in modern, classical ballet, jazz and tap dancing as well as choreography.Three of 11 dances choreographed by guest artists, students and faculty members were strictly classical ballet offerings.

Kinetics Dance Theatre, under the artistic direction of Alvin Mayes, premiered three works during the company's spirited performance last weekend at the Howard County Center for the Arts.Mr. Mayes, new to this job, closed the evening of seven dances with his latest, "Zooming," an abstract and buoyant work for nine dancers to the fanciful saxophone of Lenny Pickett. With its erratic and whimsical walks and stop-and-go dynamics, "Zooming" gave the company the chance to show just how well it is shaping up -- technically as well as choreographically.

Kinetics, a dance troupe based in Howard County, has had its share of artistic ups and downs in its first 10 years. At a gala performance last Friday celebrating its 10th anniversary, the attractive and talented company proved it is on the upswing.Under the artistic and executive direction of Ken Skrzesz, Kinetics is auspiciously poised for the future.Friday's performance at Howard Community College's Smith Theatre featured Kinetics' professional and apprentice troupes. Four dances were choreographed by Mr. Skrzesz and one by company member Amanda Thom-Woodson.

The Dancer's Company from Brigham Young University in Utah is one of America's most widely toured collegiate dance ensembles.The 13-member group, whose repertoire covers a variety of genres including classical, abstract and jazz, will be appearing in concert at 7:30 p.m. today and tomorrow at the Pascal Center for the Performing Arts of Anne Arundel Community College.The company will appear under the auspices of the Chesapeake Dance Theater, which received a grant of $1,000 from the Maryland State Arts Council to help pay for the performances.

THE ALVIN AILEY American Dance Theater performed before a sellout crowd at the Mechanic Theater last night in what appeared to be the perfect kickoff to a three-year residency in Maryland.After an enthusiastic audience gave the dancers a five-minute standing ovation, nearly 500 of the company's staunchest supporters, who had paid from $100 to $250 a ticket for the evening, retired to the Omni Hotel for some dining, dancing and all-around celebrating.The Valentine's Day party marked the beginning of a fund-raising campaign by the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater Foundation of Maryland, the local group that hopes to raise $2.5 million to support the company's many workshops and performances in the state during the next three years.

Washington Part "Cinderella," part "Beauty and the Beast" and part "Nutcracker," the Royal Ballet's lavish production of "The Prince of the Pagoda" is a muddle of well-meaning but misplaced intent. The work opened the British company's two-week engagement at the Kennedy Center Tuesday evening.With sibling rivalry, a beautiful princess, an enchanted prince, a herd of suitors, a fool that is wise, a mysterious journey and a happy ending, the dance has all the elements of a classic fairy tale.

Maryland composers and their music for dance formed the backbone for the University of Maryland Baltimore County's Phoenix Repertory Company's concert that opened last night.Musical compositions by local composers William-John Tudor, McGregor Boyle, Ferdinand Maisel and Scott Pinder were featured in new and old dances by UMBC faculty members Elizabeth Walton, Carol Hess and Douglas Hamby.Rounding out this substantial exhibition were dances by guest artists Stephanie Skura and Lisa de Ribere, "Ghost Story" and "Trespasses," respectively.

Dorothy Fried, co-founder and artistic director of the Kinetics Dance Theatre, has announced she will resign her position in July, citing professional and personal considerations.Ms. Fried, who helped found the Ellicott City-based modern dance troupe seven years ago, said late Monday that she is frustrated at the inability of the small company of part-time dancers to "take a step up" and "become more professional" in the present recessionary economic environment and at what she described as two years of negative reviews in The Sun.She also said she needed a "bigger income" than the $20,000 she earns now and is weary after a nearly yearlong bout with breast cancer.

It's one thing to have a talent, be it musical, dramatic, literary or in the visual arts, but it is quite another to be able to showcase that talent to its best advantage.To address this, at least for those whose talent is vocal, J. Ernest Green, music director of the Annapolis Chorale, is holding a series of workshops to develop the skills for a successful audition.Mr. Green's classes will help participants learn how to sing and identify intervals, grasp the basics of sight reading, and work on a specific piece to audition for the chorale.

In an effort to connect with each other, Pilobolus dancers pile on top of one another, transforming themselves into a human sculpture before moving as one, huge clump. Or they lift a fellow dancer off the floor before flinging him across the room.Such choreography -- the trademark of Pilobolus Dance Theatre -- will be presented at the Columbia Festival of the Arts in two sold-out performances tonight and tomorrow at the auditorium of Wilde Lake High School at River Hill in Clarksville.Because of the innovative dance company's reputation for originality and fun, all 1,460 tickets to both performances sold out more than two weeks ago. But a free lecture demonstration explaining the company's creative process will be presented at 2 p.m. today at Wilde Lake High.