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Comparatively fresh from from its early July Montpelier Triumph with the Shaolin Monks and Long River, High Sky and earlier appearance at the Venice Biannale, Alonzo King’s Lines Contemporary Ballet made its afternoon Stern Grove debut July 20. San Francisco Ballet was too involved in preparing for its fall tour.

Nine dancers,trained to stretch and expand their horizons particularly within, were joined by guest artists Muriel Maffre and Prince Credell in a pas de deux apparently premiered at the Venice Biennale. Like the Caminos Flamencos performance in the evening, the offering gave special musicianship and well-honed, gutsy renditions of stated themes. Pharoah Sanders and his saxophone was the featured musician along with the Moroccan Ensemble, Hamideen.

The ensemble’s two works, first, Migrations: The Hierarchal Migration of Birds and Mammals, with the Maffre-Credell pas de deux, a break, the joint presentation by the musicians in between, and the second, the Moroccan Project brought the end to nearly five in the afternoon. It provided ballet goers a chance to see how the company looked en plein air; the answer: very strong, quite confident and more than just once, just dazzling.

King has spent lengthy time watching birds and mammals fly and perambulate; he approximates their movements in varying ensemble movements where the arms, akimbo, look like seagulls rising and falling against the invisible wind pressure. He has his dancers stick their buttocks out and move on stiffened knees, a giraffe perhaps, or an overweighted rhino. Hard to approximate, but definitely evocative. He does wonderful interpretations of flight as when Corey Scott-Gilbert takes on a double attitude turn, his length adding to a sure placement of supporting leg. Brett Conway and Meredith Webster execute a pas de deux where her supported developpe swings around him to come to rest between Conway’s legs, like a hesitant hen wanting both independence and protected nesting. Caroline Rocher conveys the excitement and freedom in flight with a “watch me” air. The men join attacking their assignment like a flock of eagles preparing to land on cited prey. The work, a trifle long, conveys King’s view of creature life, the dancers’ phrasing and accents adding a shimmering glow to the phrases.

Less happy for me was the Maffre-Credell pas de deux, receiving its North American premiere. It was reported to have debuted at the Venice Biennale. Both dancers were excellent, of course, but the continued use of Maffre’s capacity for angularity may make for astonishment with the faithful completion of her execution, but, hey, this woman is also a lyricist. Credell’s assignment was mostly that of a porteur, although he was given some turns which were crisp and an excellent contrast. Everyone thought they were both wonderful; yes, they were indeed. I simply wanted the choreography a little different; dommage.

Pharoah Sanders is not a young man; Steely-colored hair,medium height, wearing a loose tunic, he came out in a semi-shuffle, saxophone securely in his grasp. First it was a long, rich melody before he began to improvise, in various pitches and tempos. Man and instrument commented on the human condition; blues never sounded so good to my uneducated ear.

Hamideen is an ensemble of seven musicians, five men, two women. Only two rated a paragraph in the program. After the ensemble’s musical interlude, their Moroccan music with all its wonderful melismas gave the dancers permission to spin off individually and collectively in great style, their high energy level giving the afternoon’s conclusion a great send off.