Seeing [Parson] and [Nhussi] playfully improvise just a few moves at this point was almost painful. We're so starved for testosterone on Winnipeg contemporary-dance stages (Nhussi lamented in an interview this past week that he can't find a single man for his company) that to see these virtuoso movers groove made one desperate to see them perform.

Nhussi's Kipepeo ("Butterfly") is a lovely, sensual tribute to the dignified beauty of African village women. It can't be called original in its use of coloured scarves that are made to float, whirl and ripple, as well as cloak and comfort. But it is beautifully lit and sensitively performed to a recorded song by Ivory Coast world-music artist Dobet Gnahoré.

There's a stunning section in which the dancers lie on the floor shrouded in darkness, as light coming from the wings illuminates first one vertical arm, then an arm plus a leg, slowly raised by each. Like plants arising from primordial muck, these luminous organic forms express hope and life's continuance in a breathtaking way. Parson has a real gift for creating visuals with body parts that don't necessarily look human.