A Pulsating Light From Brazil

Viewers expecting frothy headpieces or the sweaty, writhing bodies associated with Carnaval may be surprised when they encounter Quasar, Brazil's most celebrated modern-dance troupe. The 15-year-old company, which arrives in Austin next week to launch the inaugural season of ArtesAméricas, a new UT Performing Arts Center initiative focusing on artists of Latin America, has astonished audiences around the world with its ferocious athleticism and sense of play in the spirit of modern-dance pioneers Merce Cunningham and Wim Vandekeybus.

Driving Quasar's creativity is the vision of Artistic Director Henrique Rodovalho, who wanted to explore how music and movement could work beyond already prescribed forms. In 1986, after studying martial arts and physical education at the Federal University of Goiás, Rodovalho moved to Rio de Janeiro, where he worked with choreographers such as Vandekeybus and Rainer and Angel Vianna, performed in theatre and film, and became intrigued with cinema. These experiences led Rodovalho to conclude that "dance was far beyond what I imagined."

"Beyond imagination" may best describe Quasar's work. In Lend Me Your Eyes, the performance the troupe will present here Sept. 12, video, music, sound, and capoeira -- broadly described as an Afro-Brazilian art form that blends martial arts, rhythmic instruments, and dance -- combine to create an intriguing visual and aural vocabulary. Through the use of public "interferences" (similar to approaches by Brazilian theatre pioneer Augusto Boal), company members become the focus of a public spectacle captured on video along with spectators' reactions. For example, a company member lies on the street near a street person, creating a small uproar around the healthy dancer -- while remaining oblivious to the street person in greater need of help. In another segment, a male member of the company walks in an undecided manner in the aisle of a bus while other passengers ponder his intentions. On stage, Quasar dancers move in response or contrast to, and even in sync with, the projected video images, creating a unique and riveting commentary.

In addition to performing here, Quasar will lead a workshop with UT and area high school students and meet with members of the Brazilian Center. The face-to-face interaction with local residents is part of the outreach that the PAC and the Teresa Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies have built into the ArtesAméricas program, which seeks to create cultural understanding across the Americas through the touring of Latin American and U.S. Latino performing artists. Other upcoming ArtesAméricas events include cellist Carlos Prieto Sept. 21, singer Tania Libertad Oct. 10, and Ballet Folklórico de México Nov. 28-30. For more information, call 471-1444 or visit www.utpac.org.