by MARITES CARINO

Without further ado, here's a sampling of the motion that will propel you through these dreary winter months.

First up, prepare for an east-meets-west encounter in Social Studies/Sciences sociales, which makes its premiere at Agora de la Danse from Jan. 26–Feb. 5. Local choreographers Paul-André Fortier, Benoît Lachambre, Dominique Porte and David Pressault combine their talents and styles in animating a trio of dancers from the West Coast. Also premiering the same weekend, but downstairs at Tangente, two long-time collaborators, choreographer Suzanne Miller and composer-musician Alan Paivio, present a new duo for dancers Karsten Kroll and Magali Stoll. It experiments with the concepts of speed and movement and is aptly entitled Speed, running from Jan. 27–30.

The Montreal Highlights Festival takes over various venues, both indoors and out, during the month of February. At this year's fest, dance is ubiquitous. For starters, bringing circus movement into a contemporary dance context, choreographer Pierre-Paul Savoie offers Danses Circassiennes, a sextet that mixes up circus arts, theatre and dance at Agora de la Danse from Feb. 16–26).

Fans of ex-Lalalaer dread-head Louise Lecavalier will be glad to know that she's back on stage at the Théâtre Outremont in a quartet called Cobalt by choreographer Tedd Robinson, joined by dancers Marc Boivin and Masaharu Imazu (Feb. 24–26). And finally, after spending most of last year touring, O Vertigo is finally back in town to perform Ginette Laurin's Passare for its Montreal premiere. In this full-length work, Laurin examines the trails and traces of human movement and memory (Feb. 25–26).

Onto works from abroad, two companies from Chicago will soon make the trip to our city. The first, the Mad Shak Dance Company - founded by Canadian choreographer Molly Shanahan - presents Eye Cycle, a quartet that tinkers with light and movement at Tangente from Feb. 17–27. If you're in the mood for jazz, head to the Théâtre Outrement for another taste of the Windy City in the Jump Rhythm Dance Project, running Feb. 15–18.

Ballerina boys

Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo should be an interesting treat. Just imagine hairy men in drag - mostly tutus - tiptoeing about on super-sized pointe shoes in parodies of classic and modern pas-de-deux. With their over-the-top stage names like Ida Nevasayneva and Fifi Barkovam, this could be a recipe for a ghastly nightmare, but it has certainly piqued my curiosity. The New York-based boys strut their stuff at Place des Arts Feb. 22 and 23.

From parodies to genesis, Virginia Preston directs The Hope Machine, which takes elements from theatre, visual arts and dance in this recounting of the tales of Eden and creation at an unusual venue, Le Musée des maîtres et artisans du Québec, from Feb. 17–26.

Opening the same night, but in celebration of Black History Month, Montreal choreographer Zab Maboungou shares her latest work Lwáza at the MAI. It uses words and language, along with movement, in a five-person show running from Feb. 17–26.

Kicking off March, choreographer Estelle Clareton compares and contrasts men and women in her work Messieurs, Dame (March 8–12) in a video piece for 13 men and a solo for dancer Anne Plamondon, who explores the different facets of femininity. The theme of relationships comes together in March when Les Grands Ballets Canadiens unleash their first performance of 2005. In this mixed program, works by popular Belgian choreographer Stijn Celis and Dutch choreographer Didy Veldman revolve around the idea of marriage, March 10–19.

Lastly, to transport us out of the winter doldrums and into spring, watch out for Les Printemps de la danse at your local Maison de la Culture. The annual series, which features local dance talent on the rise, runs from March 31 to the end of April. On this year's tour are Sarah Bild, Deborah Dunn and Marie-Soleil Pilette.