Ballet BC Dancers in Twenty Eight Thousand Waves, Racheal Prince and Darren Devaney. Photo by Michael Slobodian
By Brittany Tiplady
@yellowbird888
Emily Molnar believes in taking risks.
Since taking the reign as Ballet BC’s artistic director in 2009, Molnar has driven the company with motivation for change, and innovation.
This year is Ballet BC’s 30th anniversary season. A milestone for a company that has overcome a tumultuous history.
“[When I got to Ballet BC] I said ‘we are not small, and we are not incapable. We are actually capable of doing a lot, we just have to set the standards from there.’ It’s not about having more money it’s about the quality of the way we do the work,” said Molnar.
“And so that’s where I started from and that’s where I started with the dancers. Because we didn’t have big budgets, and we still don’t have a big budget compared to some companies around the world. But we have commitment, we have intelligence, we have creativity, and we have dedication.”
The brilliant and edgy 2014/2015 season received rave reviews with it’s diverse, and riveting programs, and combined with a new generation of dancers, the chemistry onstage was unparalleled.
“We still have a lot of really exciting things that we are working towards, but with a little bit of experience and breadth of knowledge behind us. That in itself just launches us into a turning point for the year,” said Molnar.
Ballet BC is a creation based company that has taken the root of ballet, evolving the movement and technique to create work that is par with companies on the upper echelon of contemporary dance.
“We want to be a company that is having a conversation about what you can do with ballet today,” she said. “I think our foundation is strong because it came from a place of integrity.”
On Thursday November 5th, Ballet BC will kick off their 2015/2016 season with a program that features resident choreographer Cayetano Soto, and former Ballet BC member Crystal Pite.
The program opener is a world premier piece, choreographed by Stijn Celis in a collaboration with Chor Leoni that will bring together 50 male singers to the Queen Elizabeth stage.
“Chor Leoni are local but they are internationally known and it’s going to be all acapela. So it will be a beautiful kind of marriage bringing an international component to the introduction of two Canadian companies, Chor Leoni, and Ballet BC,” she said.
Later on in the season, the company is featuring work done by Sharon Eyal, the Former Resident Choreographer of the Batsheva Dance Company and now Artistic Director of her own company, L-E-V.
“It’s very distinct work. Her work does not look like any body else’s, and the fact that she is also female choreographer, is huge,” said Molnar.
After the May program this season, Pite, Molnar, and Eyal, are taking their pieces on an all female program tour to the United States and Europe.
“Getting into the European market is something we have always wanted to do, and haven’t in 30 years, and now we finally are. So this is a tremendous moment for us. So there is lots of really good things, but what I really love about this year is that there is a very strong local element, but also international,” said Molnar.
“I love what I do, and I learn so much and I get to develop as a human being everyday trying to show up and do this job better.”
Ballet BC’s 30th anniversary 2015/2016 season opens November 5th- November 7th at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre.
Tickets are available through Ticketmaster here: http://www.ticketmaster.ca/Ballet-BC-tickets/artist/54683
Brittany Tiplady is a part-time poet, and a full-time goat cheese enthusiast. She loves the indoors, fast wifi, collecting maps, and a generous glass of red wine.
