Aspen Santa Fe Ballet has been nimbly bucking the trend among America's smaller dance companies, many of which have seen audiences dwindle and touring money dry up.

But this troupe is thriving, as witnessed by its current 30-city tour that included a return to Gates Concert Hall on Saturday.

Through a series of smartly spaced visits to Denver, the company has developed a loyal and enthusiastic fan base here.

Watching the 10 expert dancers present a delightful three-part program, it's clear that company directors Tom Mossbrucker and Jean-Philippe Malaty know how to please an audience.

Not that the offerings were cheery and cheeky. In fact, the evening opened with a dense, challenging, often disturbing piece, sans detour, by Canadian choreographer Dominique Dumais.

Darkly lit and danced to a bizarre montage of Pergolesi, Bach, Glass and Guillaume Coté, sans detour in fact made numerous detours through all manner of solos and duets that seemed to flirt with the concept of madness in a series of manic segments that pulled the viewer in, even though the meaning remained enigmatic.

Without warning, bodies became boneless, slumping down, just as the recorded music would momentarily slow to a stop. A dancer repeatedly slid off a chair, despite her partner's intention to keep her seated. Quirky stuff, but brilliantly constructed and wonderfully danced.

The concluding Pointeoff by Jorma Elo (commissioned by the company) wasn't nearly as involving but effectively displayed the solid technique and effortless speed of the five dancers, as they interacted in perpetual motion to Busoni's muscular piano settings of Bach organ music.

More enjoyable was Twyla Tharp's homage to the American hymnal, Sweet Fields, performed with lovely precision by the full company. A smoky mist helped bring a sense of heavenly atmosphere to this light-footed journey through a set of hymns by William Billings and a couple of Shaker shape-note tunes.

Garbed in white, with open jackets, the 10 dancers captured to perfection Tharp's fluid energy. Though the number of segments was overly generous, momentum and interest never flagged. Whether in celebration of faith or in somber reflection of mortality, the steps remained fresh and varied.

The Gates proved an ideal setting, offering intimacy and ideal sight lines for a crowd that would no doubt welcome this handsome company back each year.

shulgoldm@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5296