Some old dance friends and some new ones are in the lineup for the newly announced 2014-2015 season of DANCECleveland, a Knight Arts grantee. First-timers for DC are an innovative ensemble led by French-Algerian choreographer Mourad Merzouki called Compagnie Kafig, and the newly-launched “Wendy Phelan – Restless Creature,” featuring the world-renowned ballerina in dance league with four contemporary male choreographers.

But first up, which will be good news to Akron area residents, is the Aspen Santa Fe Ballet. This company will open the season on Sunday, October 5 with a one-day only performance in E.J. Thomas Performing Arts Hall.

According to DC officials, this troupe is known for its bold vision, top global choreographers, distinctive groundbreaking works and virtuoso dancers. DC must have liked the group well enough when they appeared five years ago that the dance presenter organization is bringing them back.

Maybe that’s because, as DC says, the company’s distinctive style blends contemporary athleticism with classical ballet refinement, so that audiences get a European aesthetic charged with American vigor.

Aspen Santa Fe Ballet. Photo by Sharen Bradford

On Saturday-Sunday, November 8-9, DC will bring back the Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company, an Israeli group of dancers – indeed, Israel’s most innovative and prominent dance ensemble, according to DC. Officials say that the company is imbued with gorgeous technique, sophisticated choreography and stunning dancers. Led by Rami Be’er, one of Israel’s most esteemed choreographers, the world-renowned troupe combines dramatic high-energy moves in mesmerizing unison patterns with free-flowing solos and duets. DC notes that KCDC characterizes Israeli dance at its best. DANCECleveland last presented KCDC in 1998.

Beginning in 2015 on January 31 will be the long beloved and renowned Pilobolus, a group named after a sun-loving fungus that grows in barnyards and pastures.

Pilobolus is renowned worldwide for its witty and gravity-defying works, as DC notes. Using the human body as a medium of expression, the company focuses on how people, working together, can create form and movement to breathtaking effect.

More than 40 years after its founding, DC notes that Pilobolus continues to wear its revolutionary stripes on its sleeves and to redefine the world’s understanding of dance through constant evolution, transformation and collaboration.

New to DC is Compagnie Kafig, which will appear at the Ohio Theatre on Saturday, March 7. As with many groups DC presents, this one is also described as an innovative ensemble led by French-Algerian choreographer Mourad Merzouki, who, after being inspired by the stories of eleven young dancers from the shantytowns of Brazil, created “Correria” and “Agwa” – two heart-stopping works that showcase a sensational combination of athletic samba, hip-hop and capoeira dance styles. The all-male company, DC says, exhibits theatrical intelligence and is gifted with irresistible personality and astonishing dancing.

Last on the season’s list is Wendy Whelan’s “Restless Creature” on Saturday, April 5. Wendy Whelan, hailed by the New York Times as “America’s most celebrated ballerina,” joins forces with four of America’s top contemporary male choreographers – Kyle Abraham, Josh Beamish, Brian Brooks and Alejandro Cerrudo – for an evening of dance that has garnered critical raves since its debut in 2013.

After leaving New York City Ballet, Whelan has embarked on a new dance adventure with this vibrant suite of four contemporary duets, each with its own distinct style and performed by the choreographers who created them.

It sounds like quite a year that DC has lined up for dance lovers in our area.