Imagine Ballet Theatre artistic director Raymond Van Mason wanted to give his company an experience with two world-renowned ballet dancers. That's why he asked Molly Smolen and her husband, Tiit Helimet to perform during the company's Spring Gala.
Smolen, former principal dancer with the Birmingham Royal Ballet England, is now a freelance dancer, and Helimet is a member of the San Francisco Ballet.
"I met Molly when I was dancing 'The Nutcracker' last year in Georgia," Van Mason said during an interview before rehearsals. "We bonded as dancers and I told her about my company. I asked if she would be interested in coming for the spring show, and she accepted."
Smolen asked if there was any way her husband could also perform, said Van Mason. "I told her that would be great. So Tiit asked S.F. Ballet artistic director Helgi Tomasson if there was any way he could make it to Utah.
"Although the ballet is in full season right now, Tiit was not scheduled to dance on the weekend we're holding our performance. So he is able to come."
Smolen and Helimets will perform Frederic Ashton's "Five Brahms Waltzes in the Manner of Isadora Duncan" and the balcony pas de deux from Keneth McMillan's "Romeo & Juliet." "These two selections were made possible by the Ashton Foundation and the Keneth McMillan Trust," said Van Mason. "We're excited to see these performances. I'm excited to have my kids see these performances."
In addition to those two pieces, IBT will perform and Aki Sato's "Tribal Instincts" from "Mushi," Joshua Millsap's "Twisted Infatuation," Van Mason's "Requiem" and "Masquerade."
"Aki is from Sapporo, Japan," said Van Mason. "She was one of my students at Weber State. And I asked her to be a part of the program. Josh is one of the company dancers. His work is set on two boys and two girls."
Van Mason's "Requiem" is a restaging of a 1990 piece, he said. "I originally did it for the Madeleine Festival for the Arts. To do it with the company, I had to add quite a few more dancers and redo it for the stage. When it was first performed it was done in the Cathedral of the Madeleine. The other work I'm doing is new. I'm looking forward to this production. It's got an international flair.
"And the company has worked its tail off to put this program together. I'm proud of them."
If you go
What: "Spring Gala," Imagine Ballet Theatre
Where: Peery's Egyptian Theatre, 2415 Washington Blvd., Ogden
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, 2 p.m.
How much: $9-$20
Phone: 801-395-3227
Web: www.peerysegyptiantheater.com
E-mail: scott@desnews.com