In 1993, Lila York uncovered her Irish roots - literally. And the experience proved unforgettable for the choreographer.

"There I was, with members of my family, and we were all down on our knees in this ancient graveyard in Waterford, pulling away the vines to reveal tombstones. The tombstones of our ancestors."

That trip to southeast Ireland came shortly after York had finished creating Celts, a commission for Boston Ballet. After returning, her memory crowded with visions of Ireland, she came back to the piece and made some major last-minute revisions.

It proved an instant hit, and has since served as a program-closer for several American companies. Which comes as no surprise to York, in town to set the work on Colorado Ballet for the company's three-part program, "Dance Creations," opening Saturday - St. Patrick's Day, wouldn't you know - at the Ellie.

When she first shared her concept of a high-energy piece celebrating Irish history with Boston Ballet's artistic director Bruce Marks, he remarked, "Do you know the demographics of Boston?" Indeed, Boston does have a healthy Irish population. But then, no one could have realized that, within a few years, the whole world had seemingly become Irish.

York smiled at the inevitable mention of Riverdance - noting with a laugh how she was criticized for copying a work that, in fact, was premiered a year after her piece was unveiled.

Apart from a brief segment of step-dancing, York insists there is no comparison. "This is more classical ballet," she said of Celts. "I had studied step dancing, and had gotten the feel of the lines and rhythms, but there's nothing in common with Riverdance. Certainly, none of those tap-dance rhythms and sounds are in my piece."

No, she reiterated, this work is about a subconscious connection to her heritage, reinforced by that dream-come-true visit to Ireland.

"Everything just came together in Celts," York said, during a visit at Colorado Ballet. "I'd been reading up on Irish history at the time, just devouring it - learning how horribly mistreated the Irish were by the English. And I'd been living in Seattle, where all the rain and gray seemed genetically familiar to me.

"Then, we all went on our trip. I was so excited about it. And it turned out to be very emotional for me, very powerful. One evening, I was doing ceili (Irish social) dance for six hours with a woman who looked like my grandmother.

"That music just gets in your blood. I realized I was connected to it.

"I'm convinced that the act of creation for an artist comes out of your unconscious mind. There are always ideas and images rummaging around, and it's just a question of having something trigger it. That's what happened with Celts."

York explained that she originally had come up with two possibilities for the Boston commission, her first from a ballet company. The other idea involved using an electronic score by John Adams.

"I really liked the Irish concept," she said. "I knew I would use traditional music of Ireland. At first, I was drawn to the sadness, because of all that history I'd read, and all those rainy days in Seattle. It was very dark. But I knew this would close an all-pop-music program in Boston, so I put those depressing ideas aside."

What proved not so easy to dismiss was her history as a dancer, particularly the 12 years she spent with Paul Taylor's company.

"When you start choreographing, you try hard to leave it all behind," she said of working with the renowned dance-maker. "The idea is to find your own voice."

York did wrestle with that legacy. "If something felt comfortable and familiar, I had to stop it and cancel it," she said. "In the early years, it became a process of censoring. There's no point in making watered-down Paul Taylor.

"But the essence of (Taylor's) weighted movement is there in Celts." For the most part, however, York's choreography is hers alone.

"I did study Paul's processes, and I engaged in an inner conversation where I'd say to myself, 'I wouldn't do that.' I realized that I loved big spatial patterns, with lots of people."

One of her first works, Rapture, created in response to the AIDS deaths of two dance colleagues, proved an instant hit and is in the repertory of no fewer than six American companies. "Paul saw it and was very encouraging," York said. "He's my dance Dad, and I want him to be proud of me."

The Irish history in Celts stretches back to the warriors who battled the English, but also includes mythical figures such as Eire, the goddess of fertility, who is the personification of Ireland. There's also a pas de deux that recounts a folk tale about a fisherman who's lost at sea. In essence, the dance is about an American choreographer connecting with a heritage that had almost vanished from her psyche.

"The best work you do can seem like it's all being written for you from God," she said. "That seemed to be the case here."

Colorado Ballet

• When and where: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday, 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. March 23-24, 2 p.m. March 24-25 in the Ellie Caulkins Opera House, 14th and Curtis streets.

• Cost: $27 to $143

• Information: 303-837-8888

Three new works

Colorado Ballet's season-closer presents a trio of works new to the Front Range

• De Profundis - a world premiere by Jessica Lang, who's last work for the company, From Foreign Lands and People, was an audience and critical favorite. The music is by Estonian composer Arvo Part.

• Second Exposure - also a world premiere, created by Darrell Grand Moultrie, whose Vital Sensations was premiered by the company in 2005. The work uses a percussive score by Brazilian-born composer Ricardo Romaneiro.

• Celts - the Colorado premiere of Lila York's tribute to Irish history. First danced by Boston Ballet in 1994, the piece uses music by the Chieftains, Celtic Thunder and other traditional Irish groups.

Marc Shulgold is the music and dance writer. Shulgoldm@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5296

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