LEWISTON – The Bates Dance Festival will present Zoe Scofield & Juniper Shuey, Seattle-based conceptual artists who’ll perform the Maine premiere of “the devil you know is better than the devil you don’t” Friday and Saturday, Aug. 1-2.

Danced with mesmerizing intensity and technical precision, Scofield and Shuey’s latest collaboration is part of a long-term project exploring adolescent group dynamics: how and why people fall into or push each other into the roles of “Leader,” “Follower” and “Outcast.”

Scofield dances with a predatory determination.

Combining the poise of ballet with the distortions of butoh, the dancing juxtaposes restrained wildness and delicate fury. “The devil…” creates a world of strange beauty with seductive visual imagery and a haunting, post-minimalist score by Morgan Henderson.

Scofield studied ballet and choreography at Walnut Hill School of Arts and Boston Conservatory before joining Prometheus Dance and Bill James Atlas Dance Company. Since moving to Seattle, her work has been shown at On the Boards, Jacob’s Pillow Inside/Out, Bumbershoot, MOVE!, Ten Tiny Dances, The Southern Theater, ODC Theater and Velocity Theater. Scofield and Shuey recently received a commission from the Frye Art Museum and Spectrum Dance Theater. They received a prestigious 2007 National Dance Project award for the creation of “the devil…”

Shuey is a video installation and sculptural performance artist based in Seattle. Since 1999, he has been exhibiting his work both locally and abroad. His work has been featured in solo exhibitions at the Howard House (2005), Tacoma Art Museum’s Northwest Biennial (2004, 2006) and “Fashion is Art,” curated by Thread (2003). He came to the visual arts from a theater background. He spent three years at Emerson College in Boston studying theatrical set design.

Henderson is a member of the Seattle-based bands The Blood Brothers, YKK, Sharks Keep Moving, Ghost Wars and As O, Hunter. With the Blood Brothers, Henderson has released seven albums and toured internationally. He has been collaborating with Scofield and Shuey since 2005. Their last work, “there ain’t no easy way out,” premiered at On the Boards as part of their Northwest Artist Series in 2006 and, subsequently, toured to Jacob’s Pillow.

The performance will begin at 8 p.m. in Schaeffer Theatre, 365 College St. Tickets are $20, $12 for students and seniors. They may be purchased by calling 786-6161. For more information, log on to www.batesdancefestival.org.