Dance

Utah Arts Festival at 50: Making its 4th festival appearance, BANDALOOP set to thrill audiences with vertical dance performance touching on ecological themes close to hearts and souls of Utahns

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EDITOR’S NOTE: For preview coverage of the 50th Utah Arts Festival, which runs June 18-21, The Utah Review is presenting individual or group profiles of artists, performers, entertainers and some newcomers to the event. The curtain raiser highlights the history of the Festival which is marking its golden anniversary. BANDALOOP, among the most prominent pioneers … Read more

Spring Dance Roundup: Ballet West’s Choreographic Fest VII: Spotlight Utah, Repertory Dance Theatre’s Anthology, Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company’s Vantage Point, RDT Link Series’ Of Each OtHER, Nitya Nritya Foundation

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This spring produced an overflowing bounty of great programs in dance, which enjoys imperial status among the performing arts in Utah. The following five exemplify this distinction. Ballet West: Choregraphic Fest VII: Spotlight Utah  Donald Byrd’s Processional world premiere capped a distinguished choreographic valedictory in the history-making closing production of Ballet West’s 2025-26 season. The … Read more

Putting the spotlight on the Utah dance ecosystem, Ballet West’s Choreographic Fest VII set for Donald Byrd world premiere, works by guests Repertory Dance Theatre, Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company, SALT Contemporary Dance

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In Utah, dance wears the empress crown in the performing arts. Choreographers and guest dance artists from around the world know well just how broad and deep the dance ecosystem in Utah is, as evidenced by the numerous commissions that have been set on local companies in ballet and contemporary dance over many decades. For … Read more

Two excellent dance productions: Repertory Dance Theatre’s Link Series, Thayer Jonutz, Out of the Ashes; Samba Fogo’s Chama Do Coração (The Burning Call Of The Heart) 

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The first part of spring has brought numerous dance productions of note. The Utah Review features two recent examples. REPERTORY DANCE THEATRE’S LINK SERIES: THAYER JONUTZ, OUT OF THE ASHES It always is an audacious enterprise for modern dance artists to perform truly as their authentic selves in works choreographed by others, but that sense … Read more

Capping a blockbuster 60th anniversary season, Repertory Dance Theatre’s Anthology set to be dramatic tribute to history, farewell to dancers Ursula Perry, Caleb Daly

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Capping a blockbuster 60th anniversary season, Repertory Dance Theatre’s Anthology takes on the challenge of curating a handful of works from a catalog approaching 450 in number to emphasize the historical significance of modern dance that is more than 125 years old. With 40% percent of works of historical significance that have been restaged on … Read more

A ravishing evening filled with heart-bursting emotion and endless adrenaline in West Side Story: Broadway and Beyond, Ballet West’s quadruple bill of Utah premieres

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For the ravishing opening night of Ballet West’s quadruple bill connecting the Broadway stage to classical ballet, one could not have launched this unforgettable evening of Utah premieres better than with Alison Olsen playing the last ten bars of Debussy’s Syrinx for solo flute as the prelude for Jerome Robbins’ Antique Epigraphs.  Intimate, delicate and … Read more

Set to close Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company Season, Vantage Point will feature world premiere by Leslie Kraus, along with outstanding repertoire works by Keerati Jinakunwhiphat, Tzveta Kassabova

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Vantage Point, the forthcoming season closer for Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company, will feature works by three women choreographers, including a world premiere by Leslie Kraus, the company’s artistic director, which will feature live sound design by Harrison Lind, a local musician-actor, and an avant-garde floral sculpture and costuming by Galore Floral artist Meagan Bertelsen. Vantage Point … Read more

Material Art Gallery’s Grief Work is most ambitious exhibition in its young history: a paragon of collaborative multidisciplinary excellence

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In her 2015 master of fine arts’ thesis, Molly Heller wrote about her formative development as a dancer. performer, choreographer and teacher. “It is in the act of being witnessed and witnessing that I feel my existence. I believe that we are all part of the same mystery and collectively we search for meaning. On … Read more

UtahPresents invites audiences to go down the rabbit hole with MOMIX’s Alice on March 26

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One of the greatest hallmarks in 20th century choreography was a broad movement of multi-media dance compositions performed by the Blue Man Group, Cirque du Soleil, Pilobolus and MOMIX. Influenced in part by the legendary choreographer Alwin Nikolais, these groups have honed elements including multimedia, costumes, music and lighting techniques. One example was Physalia, a … Read more

Always revolutionary: Repertory Dance Theatre at 60– Special anniversary feature

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EDITOR’S NOTE: Repertory Dance Theatre’s 60th anniversary season is in full swing. This includes the 60 Years In Motion: RDT’s Archival Exhibition, on view March 2–7, 2026, at the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center in the West Studio. On March 6 at 7:30 p.m, audiences are invited to a special guided experience through the exhibition … Read more