A trio of dancers hold long, luminescent rods of white light. The space feels cold and empty. Suddenly, it’s dark. One by one, as each rod turns back on, a trio of dancers are caught static in a forward moving pose, holding poles as walking sticks. It’s like we are driving down a road, and our headlights happen to flash upon sole wanderers in the night.

Winifred Haun and Dancers First Draft on March 1st at Links Hall held space for many Chicago creatives to illustrate the bright future for their dances.

The work presented may be incomplete, or altered in the future, but has a beginning, middle, and end. The evening showcased a variety of modern, contemporary, praise, and west African dance.

“The Fight To Be Found” by choreographer Imani English opens with three dancers and a solo center stage. Elegant violins play over the speakers. Three more enter, all six wearing various shades of earthy brown flowy clothes.

On Feb. 10th, Madrid-based Compañía Nacional de Danza (National Dance Company) made its Chicago debut at the Auditorium Theatre, showcasing a mesmerizing series of performances that explored the intricate layers of human existence. The carefully selected pieces presented the company's choreographic history while guiding the audience through an emotional journey of connection and loss. In an interview with See Chicago Dance, Artistic Director Joaquin De Luz and the company artists provided new insight into the work.

If Alice (from Wonderland, of course), were to create her own world, she says, “Nothing would be what it is because everything would be what it isn’t.” The concepts of nonsense, contradiction and mystery, like dreams or illusions, can be playful and keep us on our toes.

Chicago is home to many dance companies, but none of them are quite like RE|dance group. The close-knit cohort returns with the premiere of Michael Estanich’s “A Delicate Hand” at Hamlin Park Fieldhouse March 7-15, a work that delves into the company’s philosophical process of dance creation.

A quartet threaded in and out of one another as the audience took its seats in Links Hall Friday. Using contact improvisation in a stationary clump downstage, Jeanine Durning’s latest choreographic performance, “Invitation Situation,” shattered our formal introduction expectations by pressing play before spectators entered.   In, out, around and through, four women—Andee Scott, Mary Williford-Shade, Heidi Brewer and Clare Croft—negotiated the same space as a cloak of silence muted the room. Like a mother giving a stern glance to her child, the movement told us what time it was.

New Zealand contemporary dance company Black Grace makes their Chicago debut on March 1st at the Harris Theater at Millenium Park including a family matinee on March 2nd. The group will present “Paradise Rumour” (2023), choreographed by director Neil Ieremia. Both performances will transport audiences to the Pacific Islands in what promises to be a culturally rich and dynamic tour.