Festival Dance
July 22, 23, 24 at 7:30 p.m. · July 26 at 2 p.m.
Eric Harvie Theatre, The Banff Centre
Tickets: Adult $20 · Student/Senior $15 · Child $9
Box Office: 403.762.6301 or 1.800.413.8368
Presented as part of the 2009 Banff Summer Arts Festival
Widely known as one of the most important European ballets of the late 20th century, Hans Van Manen’s Grosse Fuge is a rarely performed contemporary ballet set to Beethoven. Like much of Van Manen’s work, the ballet is a multifaceted presentation of interpersonal relationships — in spare, fast-paced choreography, four couples gradually come together. This month, The Banff Centre’s Festival Dance ballet series presents Grosse Fuge, along with George Balanchine’s Raymonda Variations, an excerpt from Romeo and Juliette, and the Canadian premiere of Dedications by Heather Myers, winner of the 2009 Clifford E. Lee Award for choreography.
For the Banff performance, Grosse Fuge is set by dancer and ballet teacher Mea Venema, the Centre’s 2009 Arnold Spohr Distinguished Guest Artist. Venema danced in the Netherlands Dans Theatre’s premiere of the work in 1971, and has since become Van Manen’s assistant, helping to stage his works internationally.
“That’s one of the advantages of The Banff Centre,” says Lindsay Fischer, director of the Centre’s Professional Dance program. “The reputation of this place attracts the most talented artists in the world. These dancers will be the stars you see on the international stage in 10 years. If you’re interested in seeing the future, this is it.”
“The quality of the dancers makes it easy for me to invite these incredible choreographers to come here,” he adds. “They recognize that the dancers who come here are on the verge of greatness.”
That commitment inspired Heather Myers’s new work, Dedications. Originally from Calgary and a former participant in the Centre’s Professional Dance program, Myers danced with Alberta Ballet for four years before joining Boston Ballet in 2002, where she is currently a soloist. She created Dedications to celebrate the concept of individuality that she sees as particularly relevant for new professional artists. Fischer has seen the same quality in her. “I sat down with each dancer individually on the first day and told them to watch her,” Fischer says. “She has an extensive background and is a vibrant dancer herself, but has the rare ability to take everything she was given, all the tradition, and filter that through and become a creative force in her own right.” Dedications will feature live music, including Shostakovich’s String Quartet No. 8.
Drawing on a 60-year legacy as one of Canada’s premier sites for creative development in dance, the Professional Dance program brings dancers to Banff for five weeks of intense training, rehearsal, and performance. Dancers are chosen for the program by the artistic directors of many of North America’s top ballet companies: The National Ballet of Canada, Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, The Royal Winnipeg Ballet, Alberta Ballet, Ballet B.C., Ballet Jörgen, and Boston Ballet.
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- More information about Dance at The Banff Centre.
- More information about the 2009 Banff Summer Arts Festival.
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