“untamed passion” Giordano Dance Chicago reviewed by Julia W. Rath

***** Dance can keep you far more than entertained: It can energize and invigorate you. It can transform you. Friday night’s ipower-packed performance by Giordano Dance Chicago (GDC) was more than just terrific: It was amazing; it was breathtaking! Entitled “untamed passion”, this repertoire is one of the best productions I have seen all year. Presented at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts, in Skokie, six dances were featured on the program—three in the first half and three in the second—with each one better than the next!

The highlight of the evening was the last dance called “Dumb Luck!”, which featured the full company. This is a rework of a composition by resident choreographer Al Blackstone that debuted earlier in 2026. Unlike a number of the more visceral and experimental dances that preceded it, this dance is a return to the mid-20th century, with its conglomeration of ragtime from the 1920s and big band jazz instrumentation from the mid-1930s through the 1940s, including solo trumpet riffs and crooning vocals. With its creatively choreographed swing-style dances, the Swing Era has become alive and kicking again!

Here we see a revival of the past: The costumes are roughly taken from 1940 patterns, with the performers dressed in Navy uniforms: the women with yellow skirts and horizontal striped tops and the men also with horizontal stripes plus sailor caps. Of all the segments, this one is the closest to what you might find in musical theatre, as there is a bit of a storyline combined with a simple set design, largely made up of the sails of a boat; this grounds the presentation and is suggestive enough to be interesting. I especially liked the lighting design featuring lightning and pouring rain plus the appropriate sounds to match thunder. Inasmuch as the entire evening’s performance was exceptional, this segment was a special wow that deserves six stars!

Another highlight was “namuH”, choreographed by Jon Rua, also in 2026, which, at some level, is almost the opposite of “Dumb Luck!” This too is a full-company piece that features a more raw structure as opposed to a more elegant one. “namuH” is basically a concatenation of diverse funk-style dances and jazz. This dance’s heavy beat provides an indescribable thrill within the audience with all of its commutations and permutations in its dance moves.

Yet another highlight is “commonthread”, choreographed by the previous resident choreographer Autumn Eckman in 2009. This eclectic and original musical composition seems to combine Turkish, Indian, Middle Eastern, and Native American influences. As the dancers step to the beat of a variety of different cultures rolled into one, live accompaniment by instrumentalist Dan Myers makes this selection unique.

The evening started out with “EXit 4” choreographed by Ronen Koresh in 2013. This segment reminded me of Bollywood, with its musical drone characteristic of Indian music. The melding of Bollywood, jazz, and hip-hop, with the dancers wearing variations of black and white costumes throughout, represents the merging of East and West.

“Sabroso” (2011), choreographed by Dei Dominguez and Laura Flores was reminiscent of salsa dancing. As the advance piece states, “This sizzling full company ballroom work embraces elements of Cha-cha, Latin Swing and Mambo.” It can be sweet and flowing but has a sharp, staccato feel in many places.

“Gravity”, choreographed by former GDC company member Lindsey Leduc in 2009), is an impactful pas de deux with hard motions and smooth flow, with sensual costuming.

We also learned that Giordano Dance Chicago is America’s original jazz dance company and that “GDC is proud to be one of the longest-running dance companies in the world.” The dance troupe is in its 64th season and has traveled to 28 countries to perform. But just as importantly, they are invested in local institutions such as the Chicago Public Schools. Not only is their mission to get students interested in dance but, more generally, they want to get children to move their bodies for the purpose of overall health and wellness.

“untamed passion” was performed for two nights only, during the weekend of November 6 and 7, 2026, at the George Van Dusen Theatre, inside the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts, 9501 N. Skokie Boulevard, in Skokie. Both performances took place at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets ranged from $35-$70. Fees for purchase applied over the phone and online, but there were no additional fees for tickets purchased in person at the box office.

Note that the same program will be repeated on April 2 and 3, 2027, at the Harris Theater, 205 E. Randolph Street, in Chicago.

For further information about this program, additional offerings by Giordano Dance Chicago, and to learn about GDC’s mission, visit https://www.giordanodance.org/.

To see a calendar of events, turn to https://www.giordanodance.org/performances-tickets.

For a list of upcoming events at the North Shore Center, visit https://www.northshorecenter.org/ or call 847-673-6300.