A moving tribute

Last weekend, celebrated Taiwanese choreographer and dancer Lin Hwai-min thrilled Beijing with his signature piece Cursive. Now comes Lin's "mentor" Jose Limon.

In 1961, the Mexican pioneering choreographer and dancer of modern dance Jose Limon (1908-72) and his company toured Taiwan. In the audience was an excited 14-year-old Lin who had just started to study dancing.

"I saw Jose Limon doing Moor's Pavane, and I said, 'My God. I witnessed God dancing'. And that was the beginning," recalls Lin.

Jose Limon died in 1972. But the Limon Dance Company he founded in 1946, will present the maestro's timeless choreography, beside other impressive works by its current artistic director Carla Maxwell and other talented young choreographers.

"The Limon Dance Company perpetuates Limon's legacy and his humanistic approach to movement and theater. Our repertory balances the classic works with commissions from contemporary choreographers, and we try to extend Limon's vision to the future, through performances, preservation and education," says Maxwell, who joined the company in 1965 and worked closely with Limon before becoming its artistic director in 1978.

At tonight's and tomorrow's performances, audiences will see Etude, choreographed by Maxwell in 2002. Featuring music by Schubert, the work will draw upon some movements from Limon's trademark works, such as Psalm, Dances for Isadora and A Choreographic Offering.

"This is a choreographic tribute to Limon, distilling his craft, style and passion for movement into a short solo," says Maxwell, a brilliant dancer in his own right. He has anchored many major roles in Limon's ballet and also choreographed several works for this and other companies in the US.

The last dance of the night will be Limon's Missa Brevis. The Hungarian composer Zoltan Kodaly wrote the music for Missa Brevis at the end of World War II while Limon created the dance after a tour to Europe in 1958. His stirring choreography depicts an indomitable humanity rising after near destruction. The piece is a memento to cities destroyed during World War II and to those qualities in human beings that compel the spirit to rise in hope and survive.

7:30 pm, Dec 5, 6. National Center for the Performing Arts, west of Tian'anmen Square. 6655-0000.

国家大剧院