About DANCE THEATRE MIMI FORTUNAE BRNO (II.)

The text by Hana Smičková-Látalová

MIMI FORTUNAE
A private dance theatre of Hana Smičková-Látalová
MIMI FORTUNAE Dance Theatre was founded in 1985 by Mrs. Hana Smičková-Látalová as a historical dances ensemble. First performances included adaptations of Central Europe town and court dances of the Gothic and Renaissance period, stylised by Mrs. Hana, the choreographer, dance teacher and dance soloist. The turning point in the MIMI FORTUNAE´s production came in 1987 - 1988, when the contemporary ballet started to return to former Czechoslovakia and a number of world-famous pedagogues and artists visited the ensemble to teach the techniques of modern dance (Bruno Genty from France, from the U.S.A.: David Appel, Tonia Shimin and Sandi Combest were the teachers of Mrs. Hana and her dancers). At present the artistic profile of Hana Smičková-Látalová and so also of MIMI FORTUNAE Dance Theatre consists mainly of contemporary dance (both expressing intimite feelings of men and women in smaller pieces and trying to put questions while looking for solutions of the „Technic Age“ od mankind) and also of an own connection of scenic dance and compact historical dance, accompanied by historical music and based on folk roots of the Czech Nation (although it is not any folklore dance at all!). Famous dance techniques of Limon and Graham have been applied, while, above all, Mrs. Hana created its own choreographic profile.
Hana Smičková-Látalová as a choreographer is listed in the Directory „Who is Who“ in the Czech Republic among significant personalities of the Czech Republic since 2000 and since 2006 in „The Directory of Czech Personalities and Companies“. For her specific choreographic expression she was awarded several prizes, namely „The Prize For Choreography“ in the professional Reviews of choreographers of the Czech and Slovak Republic 1991 and 1995. In the International Choreographic Competition PRIX VOLININE 1995 her choreography „The Words“ was a part of the Gala Programme for Paris, France. In 1998 her “Carmina burana” was selected for Opening of the Season in the National Theatre in Utrecht. In 1999 her full-length ballet „The Ballads of The Death“ were proclaimed one of the 10 best theatre performances of all the Czech Republic. In 2003 her choreographies were selected for te Czech representation in England. In 2005 the dance project “To be or not to be” was selected for the International dance Festival “Languages of Love” held in Punjab, India. In 2008 the modern dance choreography „Me, Myself“ won the choreographic competition ARTAMA in CZ and later on it was also awarded by The Third Prize of the International Jazz Dance Open competition in Pardubice, CZ. Also, in 2008, Mrs. Hana created a unique choreography of Maurice Ravel´s world famous BOLERO – both unique for its topic and for the musical accompaniment – Ravel´s music continuously penetrating an original music of Jiri Hradil, a well-known Czech composer, who composed this music just according both to Mrs. Hana´s dance demands and Mr. Ravel´s brilliant music.

MIMI FORTUNAE is a dance company that employs a combination of dance and dramatics to evoke a wide range of emotions as portrayd like stories-in-motion. Therefore its production is accessible to all types of audiences - to the professional and the layman, to children as well as adults, to those who are interested in classical dance as well as to those who prefer contemporary scenic dance, in some pieces influenced by folk dance of the old times history of a nation or just to those who would love to discover the history of Central Europe. The repertoire of MIMI FORTUNAE includes mainly contemporary scenic dance as well as historic scenic dance of Central Europe of 15th – 17th centuries. The name "Dance Theatre" has its own reason: the ensemble members endeavour to tell stories and evoke deep moods by using their bodies for dance, stylized movements and mimics.

MIMI FORTUNAE has gained a good reputation during the period of its activity: the ensemble has performed on a number of stages in the Czech Republic and in the world (for example: France, Germany, Lithuania, Italy, Austria, India,The Netherlands, Great Britain, USA, Slovakia, Jordan etc.), and, of course, have become equally known at the Czech art scene. The group is used to perform both on the formal dance stages in official opera and ballet houses and on alternative indoor stages, outdoor summer open air stages and international festival stages. In 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2007 MIMI FORTUNAE was invited for great artistic tours with its performances „The Mirror of the Ages“ and „To Be or Not to Be“ to Texas, U.S.A. (Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin, etc.) and repeatedly to Northern India (states of Punjab, Haryana, cities like New Delhi, Amritzar), Festival „Languages of Love“. In 2009 MIMI FORTUNAE presented its choreographies during „Kingdom of Peace International Festival“ in The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.

At present MIMI FORTUNAE engages 20 dancers, both men and women, and its perfomances are presented by at least 12 dancers. There are also techniciens necessary for creating sounding and lighting of a performance and so at least 2 are to tour with the group.