For Dance/Theatre at Diversionary, choreographers create dances drawn from 25 years of Diversionary productions. For the third edition, five choreographers ably reinterpret stage works through movement about loving and volatile relationships, lust and hell, patriotism and betrayal.

On view through Saturday, January 29, the program is a fast and engaging journey that condenses deep emotion, imagery and themes into an hour show.

It's a potent formula, conceived by Peter G. Kalivas and The PGK Project, in conjunction with Diversionary's Artistic Director, Dan Kirsch. In the wrong hands, the production could be a mess, or feel like artistic meddling, but Kalivas and the other four choreographers take the essence of the plays and offer work that is imaginative and genuine.

Kalivas' Beginning to End is inspired by an opera piece in Sextet, by composer Nicholas Reveles. Two women and two men contrast the giddiness of a new relationship with the tiring and sad nature of one that is ending. The two dances are performed in parallel yet woven together. The fascination is seeing the relationships grow and die at the same time.

Lavina Rich interprets the play The Twilight of the Golds, by Jonathan Tolins, with expressive gestures in the realm of a contemporary ballet. A young woman runs backwards, her brother taps her shoulders, and they break into horseplay. Sequences with windmill arms and bobble head wiggles further their carefree lives. But the woman soon reveals a secret. Her fingers tremble over her belly, and she flails wildly when her brother rejects her. Still, their gaze is solid, suggesting they will stick together through the tough times ahead.

Red.White.Blue, choreographed and danced by jhon r. stronks, explores the feelings of betrayal and fortitude spurred by "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," themes within Marc Wolf's play, Another American: Asking and Telling. With his back to the audience, he shakes and convulses. Even his fingers flop. Eerie tones combine with his exhaustive breath. He rises from his back into a human bridge. That process begins to drag, but ultimately, he stands tall and swirls smoothly into a proud salute, and you can't miss that "eyes-on-you" gesture often seen in war movies.

Michael Mizerany, artistic director of Malashock Dance, is known for his athletic and sensuous style, and his duet Let Me Into Your Skin, is an exciting yet tender exploration of romance between two men.

Program notes say the dance is inspired by two plays, Beautiful Thing, by Jonathan Harvey and Far From Eden, a work about the sexually violent relationship of Leopold and Loeb. But Mizerany goes in another direction. He understands nuance and crafts his dance with a universal appeal. While sections of his dance are vaguely homoerotic, everyone can relate to that awkward first glance. That first touch of skin on skin, and of course the electric zing of desire. Dancers Nicholas Strasburg and John Fulgham are superb in lifts, and they can act. One is more experienced, and the other is reluctant - you know the story - but their expressions and timing build tension, and their interactions never feel hokey. Regardless of your sexual orientation, under Mizerany's direction, their experience feels humanly real and loving.

As a launching point, Anjanette Maraya-Ramey selected Jean Paul Sartre's play, No Exit, about the arrival to hell for three characters. In her dance, Freedom and Confinement, a man and two women step through a doorway and become trapped in a vicious love triangle, but there's no real love here. Costuming is black and edgy, and dancers Viviana Alcazar, Katie Griffin, and Julio Velazquez are a naughty and very twisted trio. They slither over a settee and glare at each other with disdain. They seem to enjoy the torture and attention. It's all very sexy and wrong, a train wreck that you can't get enough of. Fire-red lighting illuminates sets by ion theatre and Bret Young in this lustful and polished dance theater work.

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