BWW Interviews: BalletMet's INNOVATIONS Pushes the Boundaries of Dance

Featuring three barrier-breaking, never-before-seen contemporary dance pieces, BalletMet's "Innovations" encourages choreographers, dancers and audience members alike to think outside the box--the black box theater, that is.

"Innovations," which is set to be presented in BalletMet's Performance Space, tests the boundaries of performance art in an intimate venue where audience members are mere feet from the dancers.

"It really magnifies the relationship between the dancers and the audience and the artists," said BalletMet Artistic Director Edwaard Liang. "It is about really showing these incredible, innovative, modern and contemporary choreographers coming in and pushing the boundaries of dance."

The program will feature three choreographed pieces showcasing visiting choreographers' distinct interpretations of contemporary dance, Liang said.

"(With the incorporation of) each choreographer's voice and how they approach movement and how they approach music and what dancers they use, ('Innovations') has become a very well rounded program," he said.

"Innovations" will showcase the choreography of Gustavo Ramirez Sansano, an award-winning Spanish choreographer who has previously assisted BalletMet with a performance of "18+1," a piece featured in the company's 2014 show, "New Directions/New Works."

Brian Enos, a choreographer from San Francisco who has worked with The Houston Ballet, Nashville Ballet, DanceWorks Chicago, as well as with BalletMet, has also returned to Columbus to present his own take on "Innovations."

Finally, the program will include a piece choreographed by BalletX co-founder Matthew Neenan. In the past, Neenan has worked with a wide range of companies, including The Washington Ballet, Colorado Ballet and Julliard Dance.

Although each choreographer's piece will bring with it its own message and style, Liang said he hopes that audiences will leave the show having experienced a new way of viewing dance.

He said he feels that the show's title is a fitting description of BalletMet's growth as an "innovator for dance."

"I just love the word 'innovation' because it means fearlessness and risk taking, and that is what I believe makes good art," he said. "We want to challenge what people think of ballet and dance... We want to be something that grows creativity and nurtures choreographers and dancers."

With 10 performances and three different casts, Liang said he thinks "Innovations" will inspire and amaze audiences, no matter how many times they attend the show.

"It is really geared toward the edgier side of dance... You can see how different artists interpret the pieces on their own," he said "I would really love to challenge the audience to come see it a couple of times to see how the artists develop and how each performance is really different."

"Innovations" is set to run from Oct. 24 - Nov. 8.

Tickets may be purchased through the Ticketmaster website.

BalletMet's Performance Space is located at 322 Mt. Vernon Ave.

Photo Credit: Zaire Kacz