Last Thursday Moving with the Times, at the Pegasus Theatre, showed works by six Oxfordshire-based choreographers. The Kathak dancer Anuradha Chaturvedi looked forward to the arrival of spring. Fast turning, and stamping with ankle-bells are typical of this dance style. Anuradha and her two dancers started slowly and formally. After a livelier section, Anurhada went into and long lyrical solo of great beauty, accompanied by birdsong.

In Josephine Lott’s Peripeteia, four dancers run the gamut of emotions from anger to love in a complex piece that bears witness to her skill as a choreographer. There is some fine dancing, particularly from Anja Meinhardt. Despite storm, rain, and a growling sound-track, all indicating some sort of mutual angst, the cast arrive at a feeling of hopefulness, although each individual still appears to be isolated.

Times of our Lives is by Naomi Morris. The piece, she tells us, is about good times that have faded away, hard times that seem never-ending. On stage we had the powerful, gritty rock-band Smilex. The dancers did well to hold their own. They and the band combined well in a finale, which conveyed the feeling of people desperately trying to have fun when all the odds are against them.

Paulette Mae’s matter-of-heart is in gentle contrast to what had just gone before. It concerns the loss of a dress, a metaphor for humanity’s need for companionship. There is a long and striking solo.

Ana Barbour performed in her own work My Time. The theme is “where old dancing body meets new technology”. Ana is not that old, but old enough to know the pain of keeping going. This is an original and humorous look at the physical difficulties that come to all dancers sooner or later.

To end the evening came Hannah de Cancho’s Step in Time, danced with panache by her new company, Sole Rebel Tap. They performed an exuberant medley of tap numbers, pausing for a classy flamenco solo from Amarita Vargas.

On Saturday, Bawren Tavaziva brought his African contemporary company to Oxford with his latest work Double Take. The first part is a reflection on his life in Zimbabwe; the second shows the influence of his arrival in the UK, and also his influence on our own contemporary dance scene. In a lengthy work, with many effective moments, the highlights were undoubtedly the emotional force of singer Tsungai Tsikirai, and the dancing of Lisa Rowley. Tomorrow, The Pegasus’s contribution to Dancin’ Oxford continues with the renowned contemporary company Phoenix Dance Theatre.