Emily Molnar, artistic director of Ballet BC, chats with us about the company’s upcoming triple-bill program, Trace. This evening of works includes the Canadian premiere of William Forsythe’s workwithinwork, a world premiere by Walter Matteini, and the return of audience favourite Petite Cérémonie by Medhi Walerski. Trace plays at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre from March 26 to 28.
SAD Mag: How does the term “Trace” relate to each of the three pieces?
Emily Molnar: Every time I’m given the beautiful problem of solving how to put three very distinct pieces together on a program and give them a title, I try to find an overarching theme. Most of the time the works that are on a program are related in the sense that they come from very distinct choreographers in the world of contemporary ballet, but they are very unique pieces in that they don’t look the same—they’re not necessarily working with the same theme. Sometimes our full-length evenings do have a thematic concept, but in most cases I try to keep it very diverse.
Trace came up in the sense that there are many different lineages, many different choreographers who have worked with various companies. On this evening there is an enormous amount of lineage between the history of dance, the future of dance, the styles of dance within contemporary ballet—so I thought of the idea of tracing or making a trace of these different time periods.
SM: We know world-renowned choreographer William Forsythe has a special place in your heart from your own time as a performer. What do you hope your dancers will learn from working with him on his piece for Trace?
EM: I think the most important thing is probably the idea of individuality, of courage, of daringness, of taking the classical idiom and really pushing the boundaries and limits of how one interprets and investigates that. Bill’s work—it’s such a sophisticated score—you feel like you’re getting smarter and developing each moment you dance his work. I love watching the dancers take more and more risks and accomplishments through each run-through and each day. The work is just so rich, and there’s so much attachment to musicality and the use of space. It’s just a really beautiful score to challenge the intelligence of an artist.
SM: The arts climate is difficult in B.C.; funding is low despite a thriving local scene. That said, Ballet BC has overcome some substantial financial hardships. How do you keep going?
EM: I think we keep our eye very closely geared toward the making of the art and the creation of an experience for our audience. Through that we try to bring people in who believe in what we do and try not to make the lack of money a means for lowering our standards. We try to do something with everything that we have and to make the most of it. That doesn’t mean we don’t wish we had more, but we’re also very aware that there are many artists in this country. Another way we deal with it is that we make sure that we speak about what it means to be an artist and to be a company that is making art—to make sure that we are educating our local and our national community about dance. We do this by supporting a number of different choreographers and by creating a global conversation about the making of dance and why dance is important.
SM: What does dance mean to you?
EM: It’s an art form that requires every part of you as a human being; it requires your physical body, your emotional body, and your spiritual sensibility. It really calls all of that into action. The moment you are dancing, you cannot lie. When you dance, everything about you is exposed, but there is something very beautiful about that because it challenges you to the deepest part of your being to put all of those things into alignment and to speak with them. As an art form, as a form of expression, it is so fully encompassing that I feel it really is one of the most beautiful journeys that we can make as human beings.
SM: How do you make dance accessible for an audience?
EM: We talk about the fact that all of us are dancers, even if it’s in our living room with a piece of music while we’re doing your dishes or brushing our teeth. It is an innate form for us as human beings. It is a form of expression that we can all touch on. What a lot of people don’t know is that a great dancer is like a great athlete and a great artist all put into one—like a painter and a soccer player. And it’s those two worlds that come together that I think makes dance so appealing. You see these physical impossibilities taking place, but then you have this form of expression, you have emotions being described and a narrative about what it means to be alive inside of the body.
SM: If you had to describe what it’s like to be a dancer, what would you say?
EM: It’s the hardest thing you could do and the most wonderful thing you could do. The life of a dancer is one that requires an enormous amount of dedication and commitment, and for that alone it’s a wonderful career. I’ve traveled the world, I’ve learned about the world by doing it. It’s not a career that many people get to do, so it’s a precious and very special thing to be able to say that you are a dancer.
SM: You were nominated as a YWCA Woman of Distinction. What does it mean for you to be a female leader in the arts?
EM: It’s something I take very seriously and try to honour. I feel very grateful for the nomination. There are many wonderful women of distinction around me who have been nominated as well, so I feel a bit out of place. I don’t see myself belonging to that group, but I take it with a huge amount of gratitude and gratefulness. I think that leadership is a very important thing for us to look at…for females as well as for males.
One of the things that interests me most in this world is human potential, and I just happen to be using dance as a vehicle to discuss that. But I think that leadership—people feeling empowered to speak and to be who they are—is the most beautiful thing, and the thing that we need to give a lot of attention to in this world. If I can be in a position of leadership where I get to create an environment that empowers people to excel and be the most that they can be, then that is a huge gift.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
Showtimes and ticket information available on Ballet BC’s website.