PEI’s ballet mentor
Memorial: Kati Mason

With the founding of Charlottetown Ballet Theatre and the leading of a dance school for many years, Kati Mason had much influence on classical dance development in Prince Edward Island.

Kati Mason was born in Berlin in 1930 to a Russian mother and a Hungarian Father. She received her first training in gymnastics in Hungary, then classical dance in Belgium and Montreal. In 1970 she moved to PEI from Montreal with her family.

Her dance approach centered around an inquiry into the “true gesture,” classical principles and beauty. She believed in vigorous training and discipline. A deep love for classical music guided her—she was looking for a living expression of the soul through dance. As a dancer and teacher she brought these principles to the students and the audience. Two of her former students went on to form their own schools in Charlottetown, Dance Umbrella and Island Dance Academy.

Kati Mason became a mentor to me when I moved here. “Dance, inspite of appearing as a physical phenomenon is rooted in poetry,” she noted in her school program.

Kati Mason passed away on July 30th, 2008.

—Judith Scherer