The 10 most notable Twin Cities area dance events of 2024

It’s been a rough year for dance with the Cowles Center closing, Minnesota Dance Theatre pausing its performance company and James Sewell Ballet announcing it will sunset in March of 2025. Yet the dance community persevered, offering inspiring, thought-provoking works throughout the year and showing that dance is as vital as ever.

Here’s a list of 10 terrific performances.

1. “Antaranga: Between You and Me” by Ananya Dance Theatre at the O’Shaughnessy: Artistic director Ananya Chatterjea served up a feast for the senses in this science-fiction-influenced epic dance production, with a captivating musical score by Greg Schutte and an all-star lineup of vocalists. The piece was connected and riveting, and offered a hopeful vision amid dark times.

2. “In C” by Hatch Dance/HoneyWorks on the Minneapolis Club parking ramp: Performed as the sun set in downtown Minneapolis, this open-air performance found inspiration from jazz composer Terry Riley’s monumental composition of the same name. Choreographers Helen Hatch and Berit Ahlgren created an improvised dance structure that carried the spirit of Riley’s brilliant score and allowed for fascinating discoveries by the dancers.

3. “10,000 Dreams: A Celebration of Asian Choreography” at Northrop: Top ballet companies from around the country overturned stereotypes, laid down new visions and revealed vital, glorious dancing.

4. “Pointed Humor” by James Sewell Ballet at the O’Shaughnessy: Dancers Javan Mngrezzo and Connor Simone sizzled in an emotionally driven duet choreographed by Michael Walters as part of an evening of several strong works.

5. “Merges in March,” Arena Dances and Taja Will at the Cowles Center: This last presentation of the Cowles Center doubled as a send-off for the venue, bringing together two choreographers — Mathew Janczewski and Will — who each presented their own works and joined forces for a wildly celebratory group piece. Especially beautiful was Will’s solo piece, where not only her dancing but her gorgeous operatic voice was enjoyed by the audience.

6. “Solo,” presented by the McKnight Dancer Fellowship Program at the O’Shaughnessy: This year’s presentation of solo dance performances by the McKnight Dancer Fellows made for a stunning evening of virtuosity. The dancers in the show, who got to pick a choreographer to create a piece for them, offered a mix of styles and modalities. What they had in common was dancing that showcased artistry as dancers and artists themselves.

7. “Star Keeper” by Emily Michaels King at Red Eye Theater. Solo performer Michaels King delivered her most personal work yet, a brutal look at childhood trauma through the lens of nostalgia. A gifted dancer, Michaels King’s work was visceral and raw, and she skillfully brought the audience along on a journey through painful memories with piercing storytelling and vulnerability.

8. “The Mood Room” by Big Dance Theater at the Walker Art Center. Choreographer Annie-B Parson unpacked the secret language of siblings in this adaptation of “Five Sisters” by French-born conceptual artist Guy de Cointet, based on Anton Chekov’s “Three Sisters.” Wonderfully ironic and precisely performed, the piece gripped the audience with its edgy humor and cold beauty.

9. “Spring” by Minnesota Dance Theatre at the Southern Theater: The final performance by Minnesota Dance Theatre’s company served as a foray into unusual angles and rhythms, illustrating the versatility of contemporary ballet. Zachary Tuazon made a splash with “Animi de Gaia,” a work that animated the forces of nature and carried an environmental message. Another highlight was Nia-Amina Minor’s 2021 piece, “And Yet, Here We Are,” a jazzy, industrial number.

10. “Indigo” by Contempo Physical Dance at the O’Shaughnessy: Vibrant, athletic and connected, the dancers in Contempo Physical Dance’s production served up a stirring evening of dance in a work by Jaruam Xavier.