Heading along to the Queensland Ballet’s Vis-à-Vis series – the mix and match sessions held at their home in West End – is usually a good move.

For the right price, audiences literally come face to face with the company as they rehearse and perform a grab bag of dances from their repertoire linked by a simple theme.

Perfect Partners kicks off the 2009 season with an easy and elegant piece from The Sleeping Beauty and although there’s a few missteps in the next piece from Paquita, Yu Hui lets off some fireworks in the jumps and turns department that are hard to ignore.

Later on there’s a flurry of feet in the pas de deux from Genzano, with Alex Wagner and Claire Phipps making it through without a slip. Both dancers perform with a lightness and sense of fun, and being so close to the action you can appreciate how hard it is to make the impossible seem effortless.

There’s a few impromptu dance demonstrations throughout that raise a laugh without illustrating much else, although artistic director François Klaus leaves the strongest numbers of both acts till last which is wise. Clare Morehen and new principal Christian Tátchev take part in a tribute to the music of Mahler and their matching long lines and strength allows for some daring lifts and awesome assisted pirouettes. The jive scene from Cloudland which ends the night couldn’t provide a bigger contrast, and impresses with its energy and musical awareness even if you’ve seen it before.

One added bonus of the studio approach is that it gives company members a chance to try their hand at choreography. Gareth Belling’s Transference sees Morehen and Nathan Scicluna bounce off each other in unexpected and entertaining ways – nicely matching the spontaneity of Anthony Garcia’s music with assistance from Noelene Hill’s costumes.

After ten years the Vis-à-Vis format is still a winner, even if all the dances don’t neatly fit into the theme at hand. So while you might not learn much about the intricacies of partnering with this production, you should have fun nevertheless.

Catch the Vis-à-Vis performances, Fri 13 February 2009 – Sat 18 July 2009. All performances at 7.30pm, with 2pm performances also on 21 Feb, 2 May & 18 July.

For further information please check the website at www.queenslandballet.com.au