By Carol Norris
Enquirer contributor

Local modern dance fans will see a familiar face onstage this weekend when Pittsburgh's Dance Alloy performs at the Aronoff Center. The recognizable red afro is gone - replaced by a near-military buzz - but Mike Walsh's natural athleticism will be abundantly evident.

IF YOU GO

What: Contemporary Dance Theater presents Dance Alloy When: 8:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday Where: Jarson-Kaplan Theater, Aronoff Center, downtown Tickets: $18-$22, $12 students and seniors at Aronoff and Music Hall box offices, Ticketmaster, 241-7469 and Web site Read the review: Saturday at Enquirer.com and Sunday in Tempo

Dubbed "Mike the Pretzel Man" by kids who danced with him here (not for his pliable body but for his snack preference), Walsh was a member of Shawn Womack Dance Projects for three years before that company disbanded in 1999.

He's remembered as an athletic wizard who would "... back-handspring across the floor like a Slinky," says company member Renee McCafferty.

Walsh, 32, updated us on his whereabouts last week by phone.

Where did you go when Dance Projects broke up?

I spent a year in Miami working with the Florida Dance Festival, where you work with teachers and various choreographers. Mark Taylor (Dance Alloy's artistic director) saw me and asked me to do a Dance Alloy summer project - a three-week workshop in Pittsburgh. I'm in my fourth season with them.

There are only five members in that company. Isn't that limiting?

It means we're paid a decent salary. We'll work with other dancers in the community if we need more bodies.

Cincinnati has had no full-time professional modern dance company since Shawn left. What's it like in Pittsburgh?

The dance scene is very active and becoming more so all the time. There are four or five other modern dance companies.

How do they swing it?

The thing is to keep the dancers there after you bring them in. Alloy runs a school with two studio spaces. I'm able to make my way choreographing, teaching and performing.

How did you get started in dance?

I was studying psychology at Ohio State and taking dance classes on the side. I was a cheerleader - we had a great cheerleading squad that won the national championship in 1993.

How did you end up in Cincinnati?

My dance instructor at Ohio State was auditioning for Shawn and I came along. The next summer Shawn called and said "Do you want to make dancing your career?" That's what started it all.

What about the psychology degree?

I always thought I'd go back at some point, but that thought's fading away.

Do you know what you will be dancing in Cincinnati?

We're bringing three works; I'm in two of them. I'm in "Get Out of the House" by New York choreographer Sarah Skaggs. It's high energy.

And the music?

It's by the Chemical Brothers - high energy, too. I'm also in "Nothing Like the Sun" by Mark Taylor. It's five solos, one for each dancer. There's music and poetry.

E-mail norris@one.net