ODC preps for Dance Downtown series at Yerba Buena

Things are getting a little talky during a rehearsal in the largest of ODC's broad, airy studios on Shotwell Street. Four of the company's women are dissecting a small problem - how to get a particular movement completely synchronized and match their angles. But as they work on it, choreographer Brenda Way taps Daniel Santos briskly on the shoulder and offers a simple imperative.

"Dance."

Within moments Santos and the guys are running through their paces under Way's watchful eye.

Clearly, there is not a minute to waste as the 10-member troupe preps for its annual ODC/Dance Downtown season, which opens tonight at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.

Over 41 years, under the close guidance of founders Way, KT Nelson and Kimi Okada, ODC has grown from a dance collective run by friends to a veritable institution, with its own school, home and theater. If there's one thing that has served this nimble organization, it is the ability to keep all those parts going.

ODC preps for Dance Downtown series at Yerba Buena