Arts & Entertainment

Boyz N the Tights

Ballet Boyz are a hot package

By Paul Friswold  ,  Regina Popper ,  and  John Goddard

The guys of ballet take center stage for a change in a night of edgy dance with a twist of humor -- and a camcorder. See the award-winning, hot international choreography of the Ballet Boyz interspersed with roving-eye film footage of the dancers and their pre-recorded video diaries. (Okay, at times, a gal or two joins the mix.) Officially named George Piper Dances/Ballet Boyz, the three-year-old troupe was founded by British mates and Royal Ballet alums Michael Nunn and William Trevitt, who named the company after their macho middle names. (Beats "Nunn Trevitt" or "Trevitt Nunn" -- tea party, anyone?) A trio of dancers from South Africa, Spain and Russia joined them to create one of the most innovative contemporary ballet companies currently touring.

Dances to be performed include Torsion, a male duet for the two founders that features striking lifts; star choreographer William Forsythe's Steptext; and Christopher Wheeldon's Mesmerics, which features a sequence of sensual duets set to the music of Philip Glass. Catch the performance at Washington University's Edison Theatre (Forsyth and Skinker boulevards) on Friday, February 20, and Saturday, February 21, at 8 p.m. and Sunday, February 22, at 2 p.m. Tickets are $23 to $28 and are available through Dance St. Louis at 314-534-6622 or through MetroTix at 314-534-1111. -- Regina Popper

Mama Mia!
Moms strut their stuff

SAT 2/21

All right, let's stop this before you start: There is to be no utterance of the word "milf," okay? The Mrs. Webster Groves Beauty Pageant isn't about your prurient lust for the mature woman. Rather, it's about women north of age 40 who wish to have a little fun with their families. Pageant contestants, who must hail from Webster Groves, don't have to be married, but they must be willing to be judged in the areas of personality, animated reading, sportswear and eveningwear. There is no prize other than strutting the runway while your family and neighbors cheer you on. The pageant runs from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Webster Groves Recreation Center (33 East Glendale Avenue, 314-963-5600), and admission is $2. You better work, mama! -- Paul Friswold

Out of Africa

Trippin' the light phathisi

WED 2/18

Americans have done the hokey-pokey and turned ourselves around for generations, so we're aware of the beauty and deep cultural value of traditional dance. Not surprisingly, the roots of Africa's dance tradition are older and deeper than our own. To prove it, the members of the Moeding Dance & Cultural Troupe perform the energetic music and tightly choreographed dances of their native Botswana tonight at the Sheldon Concert Hall (3648 Washington Boulevard, 314-533-9900). On this, its first tour outside Africa, the group promises the frenzied footwork of phathisi, tsutsube and other Botswanan dance forms in full native dress. Tickets are $20 and $15, and the stomping begins at 7:30 p.m. Moeding's performance kicks off a two-week residency with the St. Louis African Chorus, during which the dancers will give workshops in various African dance disciplines, including a special master class taught by the troupe's world-renowned leader, Bogadi Sefhako. For more information about the concert or the class schedule, call the St. Louis African Chorus at 314-652-6800. -- John Goddard

Serial (Music) Killers

FRI 2/20

Despite what VH1 wants you to believe, the music of the '80s was not just synth pop; plenty of great American composers, such as Terry Reilly and Philip Glass, were crafting excellent music throughout the '80s. The Gallery of Art and Department of Music at Washington University perform a free program of this American music at 7 p.m. in the Steinberg Gallery (Forsyth and Skinker boulevards, 314-935-7282), in conjunction with the gallery's current show, American Art of the 1980s; is it too much to ask that they tackle a little Branca while they're at it? -- Paul Friswold