
DATE: Tuesday, April 29, 1997               TAG: 9704290045

SECTION: DAILY BREAK             PAGE: E1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY SUE VANHECKE, CORRESPONDENT

                                            LENGTH:   76 lines

VERSATILE CHOREOGRAPHER CONTINUES TO SURPRISE, DELIGHT AUDIENCES

THE ANGRY YOUNG MAN of modern dance. A long-haired, opinionated rebel unafraid to break some rules.

That's the Mark Morris who rose to international prominence in the 1980s. Today, the choreographer is still hailed for his commitment to originality and unwavering personal vision.

But he draws the line at being called a neo-classicist, as some critics have done. He'll have nothing to do with any label.

``Nobody's one thing, I hope,'' Morris said. ``If you're one thing, then that's it - one would only need to see my show once. The fact is, it's different every time.''

From its inception 17 years ago, the Mark Morris Dance Group was unlike any other company. Its members did not look or move like traditional dancers: They came in assorted shapes and sizes; writhed on the stage - and on each other; and turned and jumped without conventional grace, usually to traditionally beautiful, typically Baroque music.

Some regarded Morris' blending of new and old, awkward and refined, contemporary and classic, as a long overdue demystification of arcane cultural relics. Others perceived it as impudent nose-thumbing of cherished cultural institutions.

Regardless, Morris' risk-taking won him critical kudos and legions of new fans, including Mikhail Baryshnikov, the famed ballet danseur with whom Morris founded the White Oak Dance Project.

By the late `80s, Morris' choreographic courage had come to the attention of Belgium's national lyric theater, the Theatre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels, where his company became the resident dance troupe. It was a unique opportunity for an American artist to live and work in a country where the arts are state-supported.

Morris found it a fulfilling creative environment ``in that I had studios and fabulous theaters and whatever musical forces I wanted anytime I wanted.''

``I did shows that I would not have been able to up in in the States, that we still do,'' he said recently from Palm Desert, Calif., where his company was performing. ``But it wasn't my favorite place to live. Belgium, being a country, is varied; Brussels is quite gray. It's very conservative. We got a lot of work done. It was excellent for my company and I wouldn't want to live there anymore.''

Now, back in the States for several years, Morris has been accepted as a new kind of traditionalist, reworking classic literature - ``The Hard Nut'' retells ``The Nutcracker'' tale in a freakish, `60s setting; he cast himself as Dido, the suicidal queen of Carthage, in ``Dido and Aeneas''; his elegant ``L'Allegro, il Penseroso ed il moderator'' is set to the Handel oratorio inspired by the poetry of Milton.

He also utilizes contrapuntal classical music almost exclusively, and for a good reason.

``I use old music because I like it better,'' Morris said. ``It's my choice. I like Baroque music particularly, so I do a lot of that. I listen to music all the time because I love music, that's my pleasure. And I occasionally find a piece that I think will make a good dance so I work on that.''

Morris is unique among modern dance choreographers in that he's exceptionally musical, even able to read music. He learned from his father during his childhood in Seattle.

``I figure if you're working with music, shouldn't you know about it?'' he said. ``It's what I enjoy. One doesn't have to, as a choreographer, know anything about music, I suppose, but I think that would be frustrating.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by Mark Morris Group

Graphic

WANT TO GO?

What: Mark Morris Dance Group, presented by the Virginia

Symphony; part of the Virginia Waterfront International Arts

Festival

When: 8 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday

Where: Harrison Opera House, 160 Virginia Beach Blvd., Norfolk

Tickets: $10 to $45 plus service charge; order at 671-8100

Information: 664-6492 KEYWORDS: VIRGINIA WATERFRONT INTERNATIONAL ARTS FESTIVAL