{"id":31854,"date":"2019-02-15T03:59:55","date_gmt":"2019-02-15T11:59:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/?p=31854"},"modified":"2019-02-13T15:29:04","modified_gmt":"2019-02-13T23:29:04","slug":"ballet-bc-creates-with-salant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/2019\/02\/15\/ballet-bc-creates-with-salant\/","title":{"rendered":"Ballet BC creates with Salant"},"content":{"rendered":"

Israeli choreographer Adi Salant will be at the Ballet BC premi\u00e8re of her work Feb. 28-March 2 at Queen Elizabeth Theatre. (photo \u00a9 Michael Slobodian)<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI could not let it go on without being there to see the outcome,\u201d Adi Salant told the Independent<\/em> in a phone interview from Israel about the new work she is creating with Ballet BC. The piece will have its premi\u00e8re Feb. 28-March 2 at Queen Elizabeth Theatre.<\/p>\n

Salant was in Vancouver last August to work with the company and she was scheduled to return here earlier this week to help prepare for the performances.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe [creative] process was split into two periods,\u201d she explained, \u201cand I was there for three weeks [in the summer], building the major part of the piece. Now I\u2019m coming, it\u2019s more the last adjustments, refining, rethinking, being open to the suggestions that will happen, but most of it is ready and they are working on it now, preparing it for my arrival. I\u2019m very excited to meet them and meet the piece again because it\u2019s been awhile.\u201d<\/p>\n

Salant knows Ballet BC artistic director Emily Molnar from the world of dance in general, but the two really connected just over two years ago, when Salant was invited to be one of the choreographers taking part in the inaugural Creative Gesture, a residency program led by Molnar and program head Stephen Laks at the Banff Centre. For the program, Salant had to create a short piece for the young dancers, who attended the residency from several countries, \u201cto see how it is to work professionally.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI really enjoyed the energy there and the way I worked with the dancers. And she [Molnar] believed in me and gave me the opportunity to come and work with her company.\u201d<\/p>\n

Creating something in two time periods is interesting, said Salant. \u201cIt gives you time to reflect and to visit it with videos, or in my mind or afterthoughts of what happened. Even though I\u2019m not there [in Vancouver], it\u2019s like I stayed with the dancers. I got to know them.\u201d<\/p>\n

The limited amount of time made the work more intense, she said, \u201cbecause both the dancers and I know, OK, we have now three weeks. There\u2019s engagement and we\u2019re just going for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The piece involves many dancers. \u201cI knew I wanted a feeling of a big group,\u201d said Salant. \u201cI think there will be 17 people, if I\u2019m not mistaken. I fell in love with all of them and we want to use everybody\u2026. I enjoyed so much and appreciated so much the energy and open hearts, and diving in with me to the unknown.\u201d<\/p>\n

In considering the piece about to be performed, as well as her previous works, Salant said, \u201cI am just so fascinated by life \u2013 the everyday kind of life and the demands of life and the struggles. Some people, they create from what they dream about; I\u2019m more about what I\u2019m experiencing every day, so that\u2019s the energy [of the new piece]. It\u2019s about how, in life, you can plan and plan, but you can meet someone \u2026 if it\u2019s a job interview or, for our profession, if it\u2019s an audition, so he chooses, yes you are in, no you are out, and how [that concept] applies to the rest of your life. Or where you\u2019re born \u2026 if you\u2019re born into this kind of society or this kind of place, it\u2019s also affecting you\u2026. You can aim, but, in the end, we divide: you go there, you go there, you yes, you no, you up, you stay there, you down.\u201d<\/p>\n

Salant has been dancing since she was a young girl. \u201cI started to dance in Bat-Dor dance group in Tel Aviv when I was 6…. When I graduated high school, I went for an audition \u2026 and, lucky for me, I was the one that got the yes.\u201d<\/p>\n

After two years at Batsheva Dance Company, she was invited to join the main company, with which she danced for five years. \u201cThen I left, but I stayed in a very close relationship professionally with Ohad Naharin [then-artistic director of Batsheva], staging his works all over the world \u2026 and setting his repertoire for different companies \u2013 this is actually where I met Stephen, who I mentioned before. He was dancing in Les Grands Ballets Canadiens. It\u2019s very nice and very exciting for me to look back and to realize, on this journey, I have met so many people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Members of her generation of dancers are now leading companies, choreographing and teaching, she said. \u201cIt\u2019s really nice to see, and I enjoy very good and close relationships with my colleagues and we continue to share our passion in that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Salant returned to Batsheva in 2009, but, she said, \u201cthis time, Ohad invited me as the co-artistic director.\u201d She held that position until October 2017, when she struck out on her own.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s part of my journey \u2013 all the tools that I collected until now and the experiences, and having actually more time now that I\u2019m not directing a very busy company and dealing with the schedule of the company,\u201d she said. \u201cNow I have my schedule, and [am] owning my time in a way. I put the focus on choreographing and teaching workshops around the globe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Salant said she has created a motto of sorts for work, \u201cAdi \u2013 Life is Moving,\u201d \u201cbecause I really enjoy meeting with people and, [while] it\u2019s true that I\u2019m coming to teach dance to them, I really connect it to life, and their life and how their emotions and, again, like I said about my work, this piece, it\u2019s the same when I\u2019m teaching or when I\u2019m working now with the dancers of Ballet BC. Yes, I\u2019m giving them the movements but I\u2019m all the time connecting it to life, to the everyday behaviour. That\u2019s what I\u2019m aiming for.\u201d<\/p>\n

Salant teaches in various places around the world. This April, for example, she will be in Los Angeles for a week. \u201cIt\u2019s called the Gypsy Project\u2026. It\u2019s the second time that I am involved there,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019m looking forward to go, and to share and to learn and to deepen my knowledge and understanding.\u201d<\/p>\n

Salant reiterated her appreciation for Molnar. \u201cAs I said, I left my job as the co-artistic director and it\u2019s, of course, a demanding job and you\u2019re recognized with this position and with this place\u2026. When I left and wanted to now continue to choreograph, because I did choreograph before, but I put it on hold because it was too intensive with the company life and, of course, I have three kids, something had to wait \u2026 Emily really was the first to open her door and believe fully. It\u2019s not something that you see so often, that you feel that someone believes in you and takes a chance and appreciates who you are, knows your strengths and believes in your strength, no matter your title.\u201d<\/p>\n

Salant has enjoyed working with Ballet BC. \u201cI had an amazing meeting with the dancers,\u201d she said. \u201cThey inspired me and moved me a lot, so I really can\u2019t wait to come back on Monday [Feb. 11], even though I miss my family. I have to leave three kids behind, and that\u2019s the hardest part, but I\u2019m happy that we can share again our time together and bring it on stage and to the audience what we did.\u201d<\/p>\n

Salant and her husband, Jesper Thirup Hansen, have two daughters, 10 and 8, and a 5-and-a-half-year-old son. Thirup Hansen is a physiotherapist. \u201cI met him in Batsheva, he was a dancer, he is Danish,\u201d said Salant. \u201cActually, they joined me in the summer in Vancouver; the whole family came. They had such a great time. I came to their place from work, and they told me all the fabulous things they did that day.\u201d<\/p>\n

For tickets to Ballet BC\u2019s Program 2, visit balletbc.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Israeli choreographer Adi Salant will be at the Ballet BC premi\u00e8re of her work Feb. 28-March 2 at Queen Elizabeth Theatre. (photo \u00a9 Michael Slobodian) \u201cI could not let it go on without being there to see the outcome,\u201d Adi Salant told the Independent in a phone interview from Israel about the new work she […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":31855,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[785],"tags":[8702,5002,2282,8703,6769,3119,2284,4330],"class_list":["post-31854","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-performing-arts","tag-adi-salant","tag-ballet","tag-ballet-bc","tag-batsheva","tag-choreography","tag-dance","tag-emily-molnar","tag-israel"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31854","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31854"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31854\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31855"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31854"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31854"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31854"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}