News just in is that Melanie Lane will take on the leadership of the Melbourne-based contemporary dance company, Lucy Guerin Inc, beginning in 2027. Guerin recently announced that she is retiring from the artistic directorship of the company she has led for 25 years. The company will take on a new name once Lane takes on the role.
The appointment promises much if Lane’s work as an independent choreographer is anything to go by. The news is a particular thrill for the Canberra dance community given that Lane grew up in Canberra and received intensive dance training at the National Capital Ballet School under the direction of Janet Karin. Lane has brought her work to Canberra on several occasions, including for Canberra’s youth company Quantum Leap.
I spoke to Lane for this website a few years ago when she recalled with pleasure her years as a student in Canberra, especially her training with Karin.‘Janet was so supportive of new choreography,’ Lane says. ‘I really got connected with contemporary movement as a result.’ Read the full post at this link.
Lane has made some truly remarkable works over the past years including for some of Australia’s leading contemporary dance companies. They include the much celebrated WOOF for Sydney Dance Company in 2019. Read my thoughts on WOOF in this review (It’s at the end of the review of a triple bill program!).
Her recent production, MOUNTAIN, with an electronic soundscape from CLARK and design by Akira Isogawa, will have one performance on 17 October 2026 at the Canberra Theatre Centre.
Follow Lane’s work as reviewed on this website at this link.
Michelle Potter, 1 October 2026
Featured image: Melanie Lane (left) with Lucy Guerin, Melbourne 2026. Photo: © Gianna Rizzo
