Local dance company DEYO DANCES is offering two free performances showcasing the world premiere of Ro-Sham-Beau, and two earlier works, featuring choreography by company founder and director Lisa Deyo, on Saturday, July 18 (7 p.m.) and Sunday, July 19 (2 p.m.) in Cal Poly’s Spanos Theatre. Both performances will be followed by a Q&A with Lisa Deyo and the dancers. Visit https://DEYODANCES2026.eventbrite.com to reserve free tickets.

Lisa Deyo, a San Luis Obispo native, and professional dancer and award-winning choreographer, promises “This production will take its audience on an emotional ride that blends gravity with whimsey. If you’ve never been to a dance show, this is the perfect introduction. We made this production free for all comers—as a gift to the community and an open invitation for families to share a live dance show with children of all ages.”

DEYO DANCES is an eclectic mix of professional dancers, some local, others from Los Angeles, San Diego and New York, brought together to dance these three uniquely human stories: Ro-Sham-Bo examines the current social slide from a benign afternoon to violence, then imagines a different, braver, and more beautiful ending. Two earlier works by Deyo: Non Troppo and What the Hell, Jacques round out the performance.

Deyo trained locally with the SLO Civic Ballet, then achieved worldwide success as a professional dancer with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, LA Chamber Ballet, plus work in NYC and LA ranging from commercial videos and Disney Industrials to Ballet. Her choreography won an Art Inspires! Individual Grant, and has been commissioned in Colorado, Virginia, California and Barcelona. Her ballet, Out of Water, was chosen one of six finalists in the International Competition of Classical Choreography as part of the Nouveau Festival International de Danse de Paris in 1999, and was performed by Oakland Ballet in Paris for the finals.

During one DEYO DANCES tour in Russia a critic wrote, “Why do these Americans think that performance can be so happy…world-class dancers held us in a spell as they passionately spun out a tale of discovery and love…I was at the ballet, no, at a disco, no…I was experiencing American know-how. How to entertain. They have it down.”

Now in its 24th year, the DEYO DANCES have performed in Russia, New York City, and collaborates locally with Opera SLO, The Dia de los Muertos event, and danced with and taught interactive choreography with the Villages Retirement Community. Deyo explains, “Our dance company’s work is not bound by one style of dance, but pulls from a variety of movement resources to reflect the human condition.”