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The days when choreographers had lofts in SoHo, where they lived, and friends came over and drank wine and watched works in progress, and threw some money into a bowl, and then everyone sat around talking about the dances, are over, no? Apparently not. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Comments on choreographer Paul Taylor, and choreographers trained and influenced by him. Prospect of new crop of choreographers in choreography, `Funny Papers'; Idea behind `Funny Papers'; Role of dancer-choreographers, Mary Cochran, Patrick Corbin, Sandra Stone, Andrew Asnes, David Grenke and Hernando Cortez; Account of Taylor's relationship with the six; Dancer's views on Taylor's approach and style.

It sounded great on paper. For its annual season at the Joyce Theater, which began on Tuesday, Ballet Hispanico commissioned a piece by the celebrated choreographer Ronald K. Brown. The dance would apply Mr. Brown's deep understanding of the African diaspora to the company's Latino heritage, by way of the Peruvian singer and preservationist of Afro-Peruvian culture Susana Baca. Ms. Baca was even on hand at the Joyce, with four fine musicians, to give richly sensual, spiritually subtle renditions of songs from her 2002 recording, ''Espiritu Vivo'' (''Living Spirit''). Mr. Brown's dance, also called ''Espiritu Vivo,'' was a richly sensual, spiritually subtle composition. Subtle, however, is not Ballet Hispanico's strong suit. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Any student of dance knows the historical importance of Jose Limon. His movement language is a bedrock of classical modern dance. But proving an artist's relevance on paper is a very different thing from proving it onstage. And this is the daunting challenge facing the Limon Dance Company, which on Tuesday opened a weeklong stint at the Joyce Theater. Limon was born in 1908 in Mexico. One hundred years is a substantial number, but the more crucial one, perhaps, is 36, the number of years since his death. How does a company built to serve an individual voice continue to evolve once the individual is gone? [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]