Boundless by Ballet Kelowna: Johnny Cash and B.C. youth interpreted through ballet

It’s not the world ending from man-made causes that really concerns youth today, but as ballet choreographer Matjash Mrozewski discovered, it’s more the onslaught of technology.

Toronto based ballet choreographer Matjash Mrozewski. Photo: Ida Zenner.

Former National Ballet of Canada dancer Mrozewski, who also has 20 years of choreography experience, was asked by Ballet Kelowna to convey the hopes and struggles of Okanagan youth into a unique and wonderful illustration of their lives, through dance.

What he found was not what he had been expecting.

“They are a lot more plugged into the world, as a world, than I was at that age,” Mrozewski said. “I think they have a greater awareness of what’s going on. There’s also a hell of a lot more distraction.

“I went in thinking that, you know, impending environmental catastrophe was going to be first and foremost on their minds when I asked them about the future. But it’s more about technology and technology taking over. I’m not quite sure what that means to them but it’s just the fact that there’s endless innovation, endless machines.”

Mrozewski’s final product Now, What, Like, When is an expressive blend of classical ballet and contemporary dance (click here to see a video preview). It’s set to a score by revered Canadian composer Owen Belton who incorporated Mrozewski’s audio interviews with the teens.

Mrozewski’s piece is one of four distinct stories in Ballet Kelowna’s Boundless program, which opened this month to rave reviews and standing ovations. Revelstoke will have its chance to enjoy it when Boundless debuts at Revelstoke’s Performing Arts Centre on March 3.

The ballet piece Now, What, Like, When focuses on the lives of Okanagan youth. Photo: Simone Orlando.

Ballet is renowned for its impressive demonstration of athleticism and powerful, fluid, movements. Boundless holds true to this and the show has been described as contemporary ballet, although Ballet Kelowna’s CEO and artistic director Simone Orlando believes the style is what ballet has evolved to today.

Ballet Kelowna CEO and artistic director Simone Orlando curates the company’s high quality program. Photo: Emily Cooper.

“We still use classical ballet as a foundation,” she said. “But when a choreographer comes in to create a piece, they’re not putting things together with the typical arabesque, pas de bourrée, pirouette combination. They’re exploring and pushing that art form to create a whole new style of movement.

“Looking around the world, I would say our stuff is still extremely conservative.”

Boundless will inspire and appeal to more than just those familiar with the art of ballet. Any notion that ballet is highbrow and to be enjoyed by a select few is one that Mrozewski rejects..

“Yes there are fans and there are people who love the art form,” he said. “But there is a huge cross section of people who go see ballet who are just not snobs and the elite. I think we can just stop peddling that myth.”

One piece on the Boundless program that has stunned audiences with its vibrancy is Glas.

“It’s more of a contemporary piece,” Orlando said. “Intricate, fast and complex, I think people are mesmerized by the speed and complexity of it as well as really liking the music.”

Vibrant and fast-paced, Glas is the balletic interpretation of a river. Photo: Simone Orlando.

Glas is set to popular music by American folk singer and songwriter Andrew Bird. The dance piece focuses on the interminable flow of a river and is choreographed by multi-award winner Gabrielle Lamb.

Orlando’s own choreographed piece, Studies of Cash, (click here for a video preview) stylistically probes concepts of entrapment and freedom.

“The piece explores ideas of confinement, for the prison walls that are man-made and those that are self-imposed,” Orlando said.

Simone Orlando’s Studies of Cash incorporates Johnny Cash’s music to create a stirring ballet performance. Photo: Simone Orlando.

Again, moving away from traditional expectations, Orlando uses music and video clips from country rocker Johnny Cash’s recorded concert at Folsom Prison in 1968. There’s some humour in the piece and the unusual pairing of the music with ballet has surprised viewers.

“They said they had a heard [the music] in a whole new way, seeing it juxtaposed with dance,” Orlando said.

Finally, the last and most traditionally balletic piece on the program is a fresh interpretation of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet Balcony Pas de Deux scene.

Kelowna’s-own Joshua Beamish has reinvented the popular scene by taking inspiration directly from Shakespeare’s words.

“I was well versed in how the story had already been told,” he said. “I wanted to go back to the direct source of material and see what else I thought could, not necessarily what was missing, but what else could be used for interpretation”

He chose to literally choreograph the monologues.

“To the audience they won’t look like literal movements, but to me I thought, a rose smells sweet, so I did something with [the dancer’s] hands that makes her look like she’s holding a rose and smelling it.”

The most traditional balletic piece of the Boundless program, choreographer Joshua Beamish takes on the popular Romeo and Juliet balcony seen with new perspective. Photo: Simone Orlando.

Box Office

When: Thursday, March 3 at 7 p.m.

Where: Revelstoke Performing Arts Centre, 1007 Vernon Avenue.

Cost: Adults $15, Child $5

Tickets: Buy tickets online and access online discounts here. Enter promo code revmountaineer for a special online-only 5% discount.

Or purchase your tickets in Downtown Revelstoke at:

• Revelstoke Visitor Centre (cash only): 301 Victoria Rd, Revelstoke, BC. Opening Hours: Monday to Friday 10:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., Saturday 10:30 a.m.–4 p.m.
• ArtFirst (accepts credit cards): #1 113 First Street West, Revelstoke, BC. Opening Hours: Tuesday to Friday 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Saturday 11:00 a.m.–4 p.m.

Programme

Now, What, Like, When : Choreography: Matjash Mrozewski. Music: Owen Belton.

Glas: Choreography: Gabrielle Lamb. Music: Andrew Bird.

Studies of Cash: Choreography: Simone Orlando. Music: Johnny Cash.

Romeo and Juliet, Balcony Pas de Deux: Choreography: Joshua Beamish. Music: Sergei Prokofiev.