Paintings and poetry are the sorts of things that inspire choreographers to make new works of dance. And next week, the Martha Graham Dance Company (at City Center) and the National Ballet of Canada (at BAM) will both debut new dances inspired by other art forms. Coincidentally, both works wind up fairly far away from the original source material – in two very different ways.

For the Martha Graham Dance Company, choreographer and director Martha Clark decided to make a dance based on Francisco Goya’s series of 84 etchings “Los Caprichos.” Published in 1799, the series is full of visual commentaries on war, monarchy, and relations between the sexes. But the final product, to be presented on April 6, isn’t about the etchings after all. Along the way, Ms. Clark ditched the notion for several reasons. First, she found herself too influenced by Herbert Ross’s 1950 ballet “Caprichos.” “His imagery had stayed with me,” she said.

Second, she found the original subject too specific, given the artist’s vast other works and the range of subjects that he depicted. On a recent visit to Spain, Ms. Clark viewed Goya’s “black” paintings, which she was drawn to. Competing for her attention, too, were his “Dreams” drawings, as well as those of war and bullfights.

“His work is epic. It’s like Tolstoy,” she said. “And then you have to take an etching, the source for an idea, and you have to find out how it works three-dimensionally, with music.”

Third, and perhaps most important, was a feeling in the studio with the dancers. During the creative process, Ms. Clark found that ideas took a different shape than what she expected.

“We just didn’t seem to be included as a group to go that way,” she said, adding that the choppy rehearsal schedule also wasn’t helping. “We’d have only a few hours a day to work, and then have a few months with no work. ‘Los Caprichos’ was too subtle to work on, then leave it.”

So what will audiences be seeing, then?

The as-yet-untitled work is still inspired by Goya, but it’s a broader, looser look at the artist’s style and era. Ms. Clark brought in mantillas, lace, and fans for the dancers to work with in order to get into the spirit. “You can’t just come in sweat suits and look like 18th-century Spain,” she said.

She encouraged the dancers to play with the props and improvise with the movement inspired by Goya’s paintings, which she also brought into the studio. “The exciting thing is that the people you work with so deeply influence what the work is,” she said. “I let them emerge as the strong force of the process.”

This process was new for Ms. Clark because typically when creating something new, she works with her own dancers, then brings the work to a company. She has also directed and created choreography for theater, most recently “Belle Epoque” at Lincoln Center. But the commission from the Graham company allowed her to return to her roots. “I was trained in the Graham technique,” she said. “It’s been interesting coming back.”

The night before her work premieres, James Kudelka’s “The Contract (The Pied Piper)” will be presented at BAM. At the heart of this work is the Robert Browning poem “The Pied Piper of Hamelin.”

Though a “pied piper” is a part of our lexicon – as a dazzler who leads people in the direction that he wishes – there is a creepy side to this poem. In case you (like me) need a refresher, here’s the heart of the poem: the town of Hamelin is overrun with rats. The piper says he’ll lead the rats away for a fee, and everybody agrees. He leads the rats into the river, where they drown, but then the town leaders decide not to pay the piper. At which point, the piper plays a tune that makes all the village children follow him away to some location magically sealed off from the town.

Mr. Kudelka has not replicated this story on stage directly, but rather morphed the concept into a more modern tale, told with the vocabulary of contemporary ballet. The story starts with a young man, Will, who has traveled far from home. Upon his return, he discovers a mysterious and contagious illness; every one he touches becomes ill. A faith healer comes along and consents to heal the community. But a sexual relationship develops between the healer and Will; the pair is caught in a compromising position, and the town leaders refuse to honor her contract.

Mr. Kudelka has said that he has been fascinated by the poem since listening to it as a child. His ballet version now provides an excellent example of how a traditional story can be reworked into contemporary terms. The stark setting and modern look may put it far a field from the original, but it is loaded with compelling moral implications and plenty of room for interpretation.

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Food and dance aren’t always the easiest things to combine, but American Ballet Theatre will do it in style on April 4 with its annual Culinary Pas de Deux. The event, held this year at the Copacabana, will allow for some good eating along with lively special performances. The event will feature tasting portions of cuisine from some of the city’s best restaurants, including Gramercy Tavern, Fauchon, Nobu, and Tocqueville.

Before the eats will be the Spanish-themed performances. ABT’s brother-and-sister pair – Herman Cornejo and Erica Cornejo – will perform a tango. Jesus Pastor and Carlos Lopez, both soloists from Spain, will show off their flamenco skills. Also on the program will be the Spanish variation from “Raymonda” and a duet created by Laura Gorenstein Miller, set to a song by Caetano Veloso. (Tickets are $400. For more information, call 212-477-3030, ext. 3239.)

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ABT also has some family news. Married principals Irina Dvorovenko and Maxim Beloserkovsky are proud parents of a baby girl, Emma Galina, born on March 24. Mother and baby are reported to be in fine form. Given the lineage (Ms. Dvorovenko’s mother is also a teacher at ABT), little Emma has a good chance at stardom.