Miscellaneous

Anniversary

MIR Compagnie and miniMIR

For a child with a working-class family background, ballet and a pink tutu were unthinkable in the early 1960s. And so, Béatrice Goetz, growing up in a rural community near Basel, passionately played football and basketball. She completed a degree in sports science and simultaneously began taking intensive dance lessons. Eventually, she landed in Cologne with the legendary Maja Lex dance company. Back in Basel, Goetz applied to the dance ensemble of Cathy Sharp, a former prima ballerina during Heinz Spoerli's Basel era. Sharp initially declined, saying Goetz lacked sufficient classical training. But then a stroke of luck intervened: The aspiring dancer was able to fill in for another dancer and stayed until she was 39.

The now 66-year-old has lost none of her youthful enthusiasm. Whatever Goetz tackles, she does with 100 percent commitment. In the mid-1990s, she completed a directing course at the Theater Basel: "A whole new world opened up for me in the combination of dance and theater," she recounts. At the same time, she trained sports students in dance at the University of Basel and there first came into contact with breakdancers. With them, she directed a play that became a resounding success. Finally, in 2001, Goetz founded the MIR Compagnie (Motion In Relation). It was the first company in German-speaking Switzerland to blend urban and contemporary dance and create a unique style. In 2015, she received the Swiss Dance Prize for her current work. This year, MIR Cie. celebrates its 25th anniversary. But the celebrations will take place elsewhere first. Twenty years ago, the Basel-based choreographer launched another project: mini-MIR, which she now leads with a team. In May, the anniversary will be celebrated with the production Rocketship, frei sein, Girlanden…. Goetz beams: "We're celebrating, we're jubilant!" miniMIR is a labor of love for her. She has gradually built up the education project together with her dancers.

Initially intended primarily for children from less privileged families, it is now open to all children interested in dance between the second and fourth grades of primary school. Between 90 and 120 children take advantage of the program each year, which offers everything from contemporary Afrodance and hip-hop to ballet and drama—all free of charge. Those who wish to continue after fourth grade can do so at maxiMIR. What began small with great pioneering spirit is now a firmly established dance education project in Basel.

Maya Künzler

Rocketship, …, workshops, performances, Kaserne Basel, 9, 10 May; www.mircompagnie.ch