Smuin returns to Sunset and honors Monterey Pop.

Celebratory nods to the Summer of Love’s 50th anniversary abound these days, as many parts of the art and music worlds revisit the culture-transforming event that was that moment. One of the least expected genres to jump in would be ballet, but Smuin is out to challenge that assumption in Carmel this weekend. “It is rather uncanny for a concert to begin with Tchaikovsky and end with the Jefferson Airplane,” Smuin artistic director Celia Fushille says, “but that’s exactly what this program does.”

The program offers two world premieres, the first of which is Smuin company dancer and budding choreographer Nicole Haskins’ The Poetry of Being, set to music by Tchaikovsky and by far the most classical offering scheduled. The music is replete with Russian folk melodies and rhythms, with dances driven by trills and other nuances from the score itself. “It’s a lyrical and very visual representation of the music,” Fushille says.

Choreographer Amy Seiwert is a former Smuin dancer who retired in 2008, then became choreographer-in-residence. The company will dance Seiwert’s Broken Open, which premiered to much acclaim in 2015. The piece utilizes all 16 Smuin dancers, and is set to the music of contemporary composer Julia Kent, who uses electronic cello tape loops and found sounds recorded in the field.

“Amy’s piece is both angular and rounded,” Fushille says. “It’s sculptural, and was inspired by graffiti she viewed while traveling in Berlin.”

The second world premiere is Trey McIntyre’s Be Here Now, a nod to the seminal spiritual manifesto Ram Dass penned in 1971. A wide-ranging tribute to the pivotal summer that has shaped San Francisco culture ever since, this is an energetic exploration of dance. In addition to the Airplane, it features music by Janis Joplin, The Mamas and the Papas and other hippie music icons.

Founded more than 20 years ago by renegade eclectic genius Michael Smuin, the dance company was built upon his singular vision of injecting the emotionality and athleticism of modern dance into traditional ballet, creating something the company now calls contemporary American ballet. Smuin passed in 2007, and Fushille grabbed the reins; she has curated Smuin’s philosophy ever since.

“The three pieces on this program are so different,” Fushille says, “it is as if there are three different dance companies performing at this concert. I think Michael would be really proud of what we have accomplished here.”

SMUIN CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN BALLET 8pm Friday, June 2, 2pm Saturday, June 3. $57; $73. Sunset Center, San Carlos at Ninth, Carmel. 620-2048, sunsetcenter.org