Jacob’s Pillow Dance concludes its season this weekend with a look back to its roots and a forward-looking performance representative of the genre’s future. Although its founder is long gone, the Martha Graham Dance Company carries on the legacy of that modern dance pathfinder. In honor of the 100th anniversary of Stravinsky’s iconoclastic ballet Rite of Spring, the company is reviving Graham’s intense, elemental interpretation, along with a program of new Graham-inspired works. The weekend also features abraham.in.motion, with Kyle Abraham’s street-smart contemporary troupe “focused on investigating the state of Black America.” Pavement (pictured) is a reimagining of the 1991 film Boyz n the Hood, relocated to Abraham’s hometown of Pittsburgh, whose black neighborhoods contain “a culture conflicted with a history plagued by discrimination, genocide and a constant quest for a lottery ticket weighted in freedom. ”The gala Festival Finale on Saturday, which includes performances, parties and a chance to mingle with the dancers, will no doubt kick off with the invitation artistic director Ella Baff extends in every curtain speech throughout the season: “Let’s dance!”
Aug. 21-24, Jacob’s Pillow Dance, 358 George Carter Rd., Becket, (413) 243-0745, www.jacobspillow.org.
