Under Disney Hall this week, there's more movement afoot with Dance Magazine's one of “25 to Watch” (2007) Holly Johnston, along with Trisha Brown alumnus Lionel Popkin and, in a more theatrical bent, the wild, humorous and nearly chaotic Poor Dog Group.

Johnston, creative force behind Ledges and Bones Dance Project will present a new quartet she calls Politics of Intimacy. Embracing her uniquely powerful movement style—built on muscle, risk and visceral thrill-- the dancers deliver rapid-fire responses and pure dynamic force as they move in and out of contact. Set to an original score by Joseph Harvey, Julie Pusch and Peter Volk, the warriors explore closeness, safety and trust.

Lionel Popkin, making his second NOW appearance, will perform with another beautiful dancer --Noellie Bordele--in Your Hand / My Mouth. The duet invites us to look closely at the implications of seemingly trivial constraints and the awkward and compelling physical explorations that inspire them. Set to an original score by Meredith Monk-bred Robert Een, the dance uses self-imposed restraint and literal interconnection to complicate the movements of these two masterful dancers and reveal the uncomfortable moments of choice.

The new work of the young performance collective Poor Dog Group tramples theatrical expectations to uncover a surprising emotional honesty at the core of its absurdist antics. In Hey. Hey, man. Hey, the group greets its fast-growing cult following with a staged “introduction” that works through biographical monologue and spastic variety show to create a deadpan reflection on the banality of labor.

Consult these youtube snippets and be there to witness!

Holly Johnston

Lionel Popkin

Poor Dog Group

photo of Holly Johnston by Andre Andreev, courtesy of the artist