Tuning Game is one of those pieces that I can only describe as abrasive. Repeated viewings of it have not improved my impression. At so many levels I wonder, "Why?" Why choose this John Corigliano score, which is irritating in the extreme and proves to be uncountable for the most musical of dancers. In the larger group sections, they clearly cannot discern the counts and are not moving in unison, or canon or with any perceptible order. Why choose these costumes? And then why make your lead dancer have to completely change everything right down to her pointe shoes? If there was a point to this, I certainly did not appreciate it.

The lead I saw both days was Lorena Feijoo, who deserves a medal for tenacity and bravery in the first movement. Partnered shakily by seven men, who are given unhappy manipulations to put her through, she perseveres, all the while inventing her own musicality to cover for the lack of it in the steps.

The Scherzo trio, with Katita Waldo, Parrish Maynard and Vadim Solomakha was probably the best section because they are given the kind of music that allows the dancer to move quirkily and thus gloss over some of the more awkward pieces of choreography. Waldo is among the few principals who can take enormously difficult steps and toss them off lightly without any fuss or bother. One is never worried that she might fall off of pointe or trip herself up in a complicated combination. Yuan Yuan Tan, dancing the same role on Friday night, was much more delicate, and though no less able, she gave much more of an impression of fragility. Tan was partnered by Gonzalo Garcia and Vadim Solomakha, and their pirouette contest in this movement was much more compelling and fun to watch than it had been at the Sunday performance. One had the sense of the playfulness, almost, but not quite recalling the branle simple from Balanchine's Agon, which may have been in Tomasson's mind.

I saw this program after Ballet Preljocaj and Netherlands Dans Theatre had come through town. These two companies brought dance that represented everything that one hoped for from the art form. Beautiful dancers doing choreography with commitment and intensity, always with a sense of generosity and awareness of the audience. It was fascinating too, to see how many dancers from San Francisco Ballet turned up to watch those compelling performances of Jiri Kylian's work for NDT.

After Tuning Game, my hopes for the state of American dance were dimming, but then San Francisco Ballet turned in two spectacular performances of Nacho Duato's beautifully contemplative Without Words. It seemed like this was choreography that the dancers were born to perform. In fact, it seems that this sentiment has been echoed by those who have seen other companies perform this work from all around the country. America breeds dancers of strength, intelligence and depth, and in acquiring pieces such as Duato's for their companies, I believe that artistic directors demonstrate a respect for the abilities of their artists.

In Without Words, as with many of Duato's pieces, the dancers are asked to convey ranges of emotion not so much with the face, although Joanna Berman's eyes and Catherine Baker's serenity add dimension to the work, but rather through the expressiveness of the entire body. Being a new piece for the company this year, it has obviously received careful attention and rehearsal. The partnering and transitions were as seamless as those of the finest Kylian dancer, and the calmness and security of technique in the midst of heartbreaking movement lent the kind of emotional impact that audiences hope for, and yet so rarely see. Both of the casts I saw were lovely. I would hesitate to single out any dancers in this work, because it really is an ensemble piece in the best sense. The dancers are so finely tuned into each other throughout and thus the focus of any single individual is surpassed by the cohesiveness of the whole group.

Celts rounded out this program. A rousing piece set to Irish and Irish-inspired music it is what it is: a fine program-closer. The ballet was heavily criticized by some last year as facile and showy, but I find it inoffensive. It is at the very least musical choreography and shows the dancers well, even if it demands only technique and energy and nothing further. The goddess figure was performed by Joanna Berman on Sunday, who stepped in for Muriel Maffre. This role seems quite out of place with the rest of the ballet: very moody. Both Berman and Maffre (who did perform on Friday) invest it with a dignity, and manage the sometimes awkward steps with grace. It seems a pity that Benjamin Pierce, who partnered both, is essentially wasted, as his only dancing moments seem to happen out of the light on the fringes of the group. Christopher Stowell, usually so charming in such roles, was oddly unappealing in the performance which I saw. Michael Eaton, who I had paid less attention to last year, quite surprised me by propelling his length like a bullet through steps designed for a much smaller person. It was a pleasure to watch the amplitude of his movement even as he maintained a compact technique to fit the music. And in the end, Celts served to rouse the audience into toe-tapping mode, which befits a good closing piece.

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This review initially appeared on Voiceofdance.com, March 25, 2001.

For questions or comments, please contact maryellenhunt@yahoo.com.