I’M always glad when the Savannah Music Festival brings dance performances to town. That art form simply doesn’t get nearly enough support outside major metropolitan areas.

For most Savannahians, their exposure to anything close to high-level dance is limited to a couple of annual Nutcracker performances, as well as the stellar work that Tybee Ballet Theatre is doing these days.

While the SMF doesn’t have to bring dance to town – it’s the Savannah Music Festival, after all – I have long admired their dedication to bringing the best available dance performances to local stages, for decades now.

One such performance was last night's Festival-opening show, courtesy of BalletCollective at the Lucas Theatre.

As the name implies, this New York-based ensemble is built around a rotating core group of dancers who cycle in and out. A main goal of BalletCollective – as we experienced at the show – is to only use new, original, specially commissioned music for all of their performances.

This has the effect not only of reinforcing the bond between music and dance, but also cuts down on the usual distractions of hearing disconnected vocals singing something that may or may not have anything at all to do with the theme of the dance itself.

But what I enjoy most about BalletCollective is that their dancers are indeed, when all’s said and done, ballet dancers. In other words, their technical skill and physical discipline operate at very high levels.

This extraordinary command of technique allows them to more finely interpret the all-original choreography in their shows beyond what your typical modern/contemporary dance troupe is usually capable of doing.

While much modern/contemporary dance leaves a lot to be desired in terms of what dancers call port de bras (literally "carriage of the arms") – i.e., the artistic use of arms, neck, and shoulders – BalletCollective’s dancers utilize the full line of the body to interpret the choreography. And it shows.

The loose organizing theme of last night’s performance was technology, and the first segment was the most clearly technology-themed one. Live EDM music by Phong Tran was the accompaniment for “The World We Left Behind,” a work by BalletCollective Artistic Director Troy Schumacher inspired by a custom tabletop role-playing game, featuring a panoply of athletic moves by dancers in futuristic-looking costume.

The second segment, the favorite of my wife and I, was an original work choreographed by Savannah native Gabrielle Lamb. Called "Orange,” the dance was accompanied by live chamber music by the Manhattan Chamber Players.

While “Orange” was inspired by an AI image of the fruit of the same name, the dance itself was anything but cold or disconnected – it was a warm, compelling dance that echoed the richness of the live strings being played in the Lucas pit.

The final and longest segment was the most challenging. Called “Translation,” this was more Schumacher choreography, this time inspired by a sci-fi work by author Ken Liu.

While the Blade Runner-style lighting effects were impressive, the dancing was difficult to follow. I found myself distracted by the enveloping and ethereal live, computer-assisted vocals of Eliza Bragg.

While dance shows at the Savannah Music Festival almost never sell out – another reason I admire the Festival so much for booking these shows – the crowd size last night at the Lucas was decently impressive, especially considering that Festival favorites DakhaBrakha were playing simultaneously at Ships of the Sea.