West Australian Ballet (WAB) announced earlier this month that Greg Horsman, having left Queensland Ballet (QB) late last year, had joined WAB as rehearsal director. Horsman brings to WAB decades of world-wide experience in performing, teaching, leadership roles, and choreographing. Horsman’s time with QB, which began when Li Cunxin was appointed director, saw the staging of several of his ballets,
25 February 2026. St James Theatre, Wellington Alice Topp’s version of Macbeth begins, as does the Shakespearean play itself, with three characters interacting with each other. They are witches in Shakespeare’s play, but called influencers in Topp’s ballet and, while Shakespeare’s witches are ‘serious’ individuals, the influencers are hilarious and somewhat crazy persons with phones that they frequently use. They
An obituary from Jennifer Shennan Matz Skoog was instrumental in strengthening and developing the art and profession of dance in New Zealand during his term as Artistic Director of Royal New Zealand Ballet (1996–2001). His wife, New Zealander Amanda Skoog, was General Manager (2006–2015) and Matz was at times ballet master or rehearsal director during that term as well. There
What a pleasure it is to post the news that Bangarra Dance Theatre has been awarded the prestigious Gold Lion for Lifetime Achievement in Dance by the Venice Biennale 2026. The award has been given previously to choreographers and dancers with Bangarra being the first company to receive it. It is also a first for Australian dance in any Golden
As Australia ponders, across a number of areas and from a number of points of view, the multicultural nature of the country, it was quite fascinating to read of the dancers who have joined Sydney Dance Company (SDC) for the 2026 season. The new appointments, which media information says will contribute to the dynamic physicality of the company, are Caití
Just recently I was alerted to a presentation, Deborah Beck: Revealing the lives of three Sydney artists’ models, in which Beck, currently a lecturer, archivist and collections manager at the National Art School in Sydney, discussed three women who had worked as artists’ models at various stages in their careers. One was Moira Claux, who danced for a number of
While the list of dance productions to be staged in 2026 offers dance-goers a wide range of productions to anticipate, there are two new works that I am especially looking forward to seeing. The first is Alice Topp’s production of Macbeth. It will premiere in February in New Zealand with Royal New Zealand Ballet before going on to Perth in
It is never an easy job to choose a few favourites from among the productions one was fortunate to have seen in any one year, but what follows is my attempt to do just that. I have arranged my five favourites chronologically according to the month in which I saw each production. As a result of a generous birthday gift
My review of the Emerging Choreographers Project was published online by Canberra CityNews on 14 December 2025. The review below is a slightly enlarged version of the CityNews post. Here is a link to the CityNews review. Emerging Choreographers Project. Quantum Leap Australia. A Block Theatre, Gorman Arts Centre, Canberra. 13 December 2025 The Emerging Choreographers Project (ECP) has been an annual Canberra-based
3 December 2025. Carriageworks, Eveleigh (Sydney) This 12th New Breed program was the last we will see. The series of New Breed, produced with a principal partnership from the Balnaves Foundation, has been a terrific initiative. Let’s hope the new arrangement, where the Balnaves Foundation will generously support an artist in residence program with Sydney Dance Company, will be as