Despite Technique, ‘Promise’ Is Unfulfilled

Ah, pity the pining romantic. In today’s whirring and detached society, where love is like a commodity that’s bought and sold, lost and found, what’s a person to do? Samuel Donlavy is that romantic, and, with his Donlavy Dance Company, he poses and attempts to answer that question in “Promise,” a theatrical dance work-in-progress (only Act 1 was presented), that was seen Thursday at Highways Performance Space. Written by Donlavy (he also choreographed and directed), Jaime Paglia and Kristen Greer-Paglia, the bad news is that the ambitious but disjointed work, comprised of many vignettes, does not live up to its name.

The good news is that the dancers are radiant, sharp and, in Donlavy’s case, also winsome.

A pair of male lovers (Donlavy and the self-conscious Christopher Morgan, a guest artist), exchange vows in open shirts and thongs. A quartet (Greer-Paglia, Andrew Connor, Maria Gillespie and Traci Time) then spasmodically rise, fall and recline on four chairs to a collage tape of self-help homilies injected with sexual references.

We next see the lovers as they first met in a nightclub. This is cute, coy stuff, but nothing inventive. Donlavy’s “Clouds Nine,” a “let it rip” joyous solo set to Irving Berlin’s “Blue Skies,” displays his technical prowess, but, like much of the evening, it choreographically repeats itself rather than uplifts.

The second half of the act features more abstract dance and some wonderfully gymnastic turns by Greer-Paglia and crisp footwork by Beverly Durand. “Bent/Together,” a scene with Donlavy and Morgan standing apart to turn each other on--with words--is like phone sex sans phone and is tastelessly voyeuristic.

Vicky Deger’s body-hugging costumes work well, as does Barbara Kellam’s lighting. What needs focus is the ability to flesh out movement depth and valid emotion in this age-old quest for connection and love.

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“Promise,” Donlavy Dance Company, tonight and Sunday, 8:30 p.m., Highways Performance Space, 1651 18th St., Santa Monica. $18. (213) 660-8587