"Katja Vidmar. In today's society, everything is viewed through money, but we donate money and that is why we are different from others, we have different motivations, different goals!"

Barbra Drnač - Parada plesa, Ljubljana, Kreta

Katja Vidmar is the driving force behind Katja Dance Company. The start of the season was successful, in October she announces a workshop with a fantastic ballerina, the soloist of the Rijeka Ballet, Maria Matarranz.

Dear Katja, greetings. You started the season by hosting the play Why me in Ormož. You're off to a pretty good start, aren't you? Did the audience, traditionally, receive your performance perfectly?

Hello Barbra, yes, we started with the show Why me in Ormož, where they really made an effort and prepared a very nice feast for us with goodies from local artisans after the show. The performance was again well received, some viewers came to see it already on the second Saturday from Murska Sobota, some told us after the performance that they would still come to Grosuplje, so we are happy that it has such an effect. We also prepared a surprise for Tadeja in Ormož, and the hist was her husband Marko, who performed his role perfectly. But I can also say for myself that after the summer break I danced it with such energy that I surprised even myself, and Tadeja told me after the performance that it showed in my facial expressions and movements that I gave my all. Dancers Sara Brčvak and Peter Capuder danced perfectly and together we are looking forward to the next one, which will take place on October 12 in Grosuplje.

And you are announcing a mini-tour of Slovenia, not only with Why Me, but also with Life is a Value. Who suggests what would be attractive for spectators to see - you or the organizer?

It's true, the next months will be busy and varied, but that's why we do shows, so that we can dance them as many times as possible. Thus, we will dance the performance Why me four more times by the end of the year (Grosuplje, Dol pri Ljubljani, Postojna, Ljubljana), and the performance Life is a value in Cukrarna now in September, when it is also cancer awareness month at an event within the framework of the PanCare Congress and organized by The establishment of the Little Knights, which is a great honor for us and we are really looking forward to it, especially because it will be the 41st time (otherwise this time there are two shortened mixes of several choreographies together), but I am really happy that as many as eight dancers responded and a dancer who have been dancing this show for many years and will also dance the choreography from our most performed show this time. In addition, the premiere of the new dance fairy tale Mouse school is approaching, so there are a lot of trainings and rehearsals, we are jumping from one show to another in our heads and preparing for the performances. Which of the performances we dance depends on the demand or the event, sometimes also on the purpose, so we negotiate with all the organizers on the fly, and it often happens that when we perform somewhere with one performance, we also agree on another.

In parallel with creation, you and the group's producer and your partner Albert Podrekar also organize pedagogical training. Maria Matarranz, the ballet soloist of the Rijeka Ballet, is coming to you again. Her performance in the role of Juliet in the ballet Romeo and Juliet at the recent guest appearance at the Ballet Nights in Cankarjev dom impressed. I am sure that it will also impress everyone who will attend her Saturday active workshop. You divided Saturday into two parts, classics and contemporary works. So you want to cover all dance genres, well, almost?

When we're not performing, we do dance training, yes, because we think it's extremely important for a dancer to progress, have a new experience, learn a new technique, encounter a new genre, and the cooperation with Maria last year impressed everyone who took part in the workshop, but especially she impressed us with her friendliness and energy, so we went to Reka to see their show, we were also in Cankarjev dom for the performance of Romeo and Juliet and we can really only say WOW - what a diverse, superb, technically skilled and extremely friendly dancer Maria is and her way of learning is unique, so we can't wait for her to come again to the October workshop. It is divided into two parts - ballet and modern - and most dancers take part in both parts. We want as many dancers as possible to join and have this unique experience with such an artist. Such a beautiful friendship has developed between us and we really value it very much. We are also making arrangements with two other ballet dancers from this ballet company to come to us and hold a workshop with us.

Who is the workshop intended for?

The workshop is intended for all dancers who have some prior knowledge of ballet, jazz ballet, modern, contemporary dance, so we hope that professional dancers or those who study dance will also recognize the opportunity to start a new season with this workshop and experience the work with the prima ballerina and choreographer of the Rijeka Ballet Company, which has exceptional dancers and performances.

What do you think the participants gain from these workshops besides Marie's clear, excellent technical knowledge?

Maria is truly exceptional in terms of technique and her teaching is precise, she sees everything and tries to find ways in each participant to become even more consistent in their performance, how to understand what is happening in the body and what we need to feel when we perform a certain movement - for her, the body is really a tool where everything is connected and logical. In addition, her classes are fun, relaxed, and the choreography includes elements from all other genres, so it's really impressive. Of course, he also enchants us with his smile, modesty, kindness and encouragement. He knows how to make you feel that you can do it and that you are making progress.

Katja Dance Company is a very open group that spreads positivity in the Slovenian dance space. But I have a feeling that sometimes it is also a one-way vibration. How 'closed' is the Slovenian dance space?

We are trying to attract dancers who understand and feel what our mission is, but of course it is difficult, because everyone has their own life, their own obligations, and above all, in today's society, everything is about money, and we donate money and that is why we are different from others, we have different motivations, different goals. And this is sometimes also the reason why it is so difficult to get the opportunity to perform or participate. Recently, new ways of cooperation have been opening up and we are very happy about it, because otherwise we work hard for every performance and are very grateful to everyone who participates, helps, dances - in short, they see and understand the advantage of creating for others, thereby helping and payment is the feeling that you have done something extraordinary for society. We are often asked why we do this and we answer that we decided to do so at the beginning, we set fundamental goals, and those who see this as an opportunity that many of the dancers would not otherwise have, dance and participate in our performances . Otherwise, the Slovenian dance scene is too closed, there is not much cooperation, we have tried several times and only a few people are ready to cooperate, which makes us very sad, because it is quite different abroad.

Regardless of everything, you are also preparing a new show, a dance fairy tale. We don't know anything about her yet, what can you tell us? Why a fairy tale at all?

For several years now, every year I also prepare a dance fairy tale for children, which we then perform in theaters, schools and cultural centers, and this is really a great joy and fun for me. When we create a dance fairy tale, the atmosphere is much more relaxed, we laugh to the point of tears, we discover the child in us again and put on costumes (mostly animal ones) and we raise children with dance fairy tales - each time they have a strong message. Over the years, we have made thousands of children, educators, teachers and parents happy and smile, and we also help the Ljubljana Animal Shelter with fairy tales with the proceeds from tickets, with last year's fairy tale. The new fairy tale is called The Mouse School, and with it we teach that if we help each other, everything is easier, and we also show children that learning can be fun. This fairy tale is also special in that we chose classical music, and we also invited the young illustration creator Luka Jurše to participate, who animates the background for the projection, and we connected with the students and mentors of the Ljubljana Vocational Education Center, who will make the costumes. The premiere will take place on November 9, 2024 in Sežana, followed by numerous repetitions throughout Slovenia. Mice will dance and delight everywhere.

In the end, I always touch on the numbers that you diligently record, because, as I always like to emphasize, you are the record holders of the Slovenian dance scene in terms of the number of repetitions and audience visits. So which performance comes out on top and how many reps count?

At the top is and remains the performance Life is a value, we had forty repetitions and we will 'almost' even dance for the forty-first time in the Sugar House, which is absolutely incredible and we are very proud of it.

I wish you all a good and successful season.

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