Nordic arts' blunt straightforwardness is apparent in 'The Swan'

The Swan in Lara Stefansdottir's dance of the same name is nobody's arm-flapping patsy. We're talking about the Iceland Dance Company here, and these tall, rangy women are more Viking than victim. That was the indelible impression they left in Wednesday's performance at the Kennedy Center's Terrace Theater, where the nine-member troupe from Reykjavik presented the first dance installment of the center's Nordic Cool 2013 festival.