Never one to avoid a challenge, Cheryl Flaharty, artistic director of IONA Contemporary Dance Theatre, takes on the theme of healing the world's oceans as well as its cultural divides in the upcoming premiere of "Electric Blue."

The first in a series of six community public beach performances takes place Saturday in Waikiki and incorporates the sunset, sand and surf as props, setting and subject.

Over the past 16 years, IONA has built a reputation based not only on its versatility and theatricality, but also on its ability to interact with audiences in a wide variety of venues, from large proscenium stages to small galleries and restaurants.

No matter what venue it chooses, one can count on IONA to provide innovative work richly adorned with colorful props, costumes and imagery. IONA's efforts to inspire personal, social and spiritual growth resonate strongly with young audiences as well as other artists and the general public.

"Electric Blue" draws from mythology, incorporating the Scottish tales of selke sirens, mysterious seal creatures who shed their skins on the sand to dance, and the more familiar Homeric account of Ulysses.

For the 12 dancers — sometimes in Victorian costume, sometimes in fur coats — the beach will become a surreal battleground, ringing with the haunting sounds of local singer/songwriter Charlotte-marie, Icelandic musician Mari Boine Persen and This Mortal Coil.

Through the use of simple props and costumes, the dancers convey powerful emotions and relationships. One short section of multiple duets contains images ranging from playful and sensual to violent and confrontational.

After a recent rehearsal on the beach, company members explained tricks they have discovered to overcome the problems of dancing on sand. Said dancer Pono Aweau: "The less contact you have (on the ground), the easier it is to move."

"The difference between performing on sand and on a stage is that everything's that much more difficult," said Darren Miller. Geneva Rivera admitted that, although she can swim, "my biggest fear is the ocean," a fear she is confronting directly through the choreography.

Sand burns are not uncommon, and the problem of sinking into the sand is a real one, particularly when a partner is lifted.

Flaharty said this problem is especially prominent in a section in which the performers mount chairs. As the chairs sink deeper into the sand under the dancers' weight, they become too short and must be repositioned so the process can start again.

As with many of IONA's full-length works, "Electric Blue" is a two-year project, with the community beach performances constituting Part 1. The concept was born four years ago, and Flaharty has been slowly accumulating ideas and material along the way.

Flaharty said the piece, once completed, will be performed at the Hawai'i Theatre in April. While the community beach performances represent about one-third of the whole work, they nevertheless incorporate several major themes, particularly environmental pollution, the need to conserve resources and become more self-sufficient, and the appropriation of one culture by another. The full-length version will also include video by Sergio Goes, aerial work and a considerable amount of humor.