ODC/Dance's Season Opens With Bikes in Disguise

The signs couples use to communicate. A rare edition of Euclid's Elements, the most famous mathematical work, about geometrical relationships. The human capacity to endure. A couple on a bike, sharing a coffee. On ODC/Dance's website, the contemporary dance theater talks about its "athleticism, passion and intellectual depth." Those qualities are on display in these works for their 42nd spring season.

Opening night features the world premiere of Lifesaving Maneuvers, an exploration of what we do to survive, from the sensational to the unseen. Opening night also features Transit: Next Stop, a new production based on bikes and pedestrians and the different ways people get around San Francisco. The dance includes Max Chen's custom bicycles -- one is part café table, another is a park bench -- as well as hand-drawn film clips by Barry Steele and a score by Nico Muhly.

"ODC/Dance" starts tonight at 8 p.m. and continues through March 24 at Lam Research Theater at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, 700 Howard Street, S. F. Performances are $15-$75; call 415-978-ARTS (2787) or visit www.odcdance.org.