TOO rare a visitor to these shores, this programme demonstrates just why the Mark Morris Dance Group has attracted accolades wherever it has appeared.

Something you notice immediately is that the performers' bodies don't shout "dancer" at you. There's something "ordinary" looking about them, a touch of the boy and girl next door, which is curiously reassuring. But just watch them in action! All the traditional classical moves are there, but expressed in a contemporary form, leaving you constantly surprised at what they do next.

The programme opened with Italian Concerto, with Bach's glorious music played on a solo piano. It offered the most classically inflected dance of the evening, each movement clearly differentiated in mood by the performers.

It was followed by Going Away Party, a country and western divertissement, full of hoe down and square dance.

The music consisted of recordings of nine sweet and sour songs by Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys. The songs told stories, to which three couples each pursued a different emotional relationship with their partners. These duos were interrupted by solos for a single man unrelated to the pairs. It was a fine example of how narrative dance can combine with humour, a real toe-tapper that would have made a popular finale to the evening.

After the interval came Excursions, a solo, or rather three very individual yet linked solos, for one man. It is danced to music by Samuel Barber, played once more by the talented pianist. The evenings ends with Grand Duo, in which the pianist is joined by a violinist in a pounding score by Lou Harrison. After a moodily lit, almost static opening. Morris offers an exultant ritual, with 14 dancers energetically performing in unison or sequentially, and frequently incredible acts of balance. A cleverly contrasted programme showcasing the dancers at their impressive best.