Glory Box. Finucane & Smith
…show is much more than the sum of its individual parts and the second half probably contained the strongest moments. Definitely not for the faint-hearted, but certainly an unexpectedly fulfilling evening that was ultimately surprising in its underlying powerful and emotive comment on sexuality, society and theatrical modes of expression. In any case it was worth everything to see the Street Theatre alive during the finale with a dancing ovation f…
Kristian Fredrikson. ‘What’s in a name?’
…and in May of that year, before his first son was born, there is clear evidence that he was unemployed. There is still much to learn about the early life of the man we have come to know as Kristian Fredrikson but he was not born Kristian Adrian Sams and he was not the son of a Danish merchant seaman. All sources, even the web and newspapers, and even Fredrikson’s own oral history interview, are not necessarily accurate. Kristian Fredrikson was in…
Dance diary. April 2024
…role responsible for artistic and educational excellence and student wellbeing. This key role requires deep experience within the art form, an understanding of ballet trends, strong national and international networks and expertise in elite ballet instruction and performance. Connelly’s career to date has been extraordinarily diverse and her qualifications and experience, as set out in the media release from the Australian Ballet School, suggest…
Firestarter. The story of Bangarra
…he lives of David and Russell. Along the way we met others involved in the complex story—Carole Johnson, founder of NAISDA and Bangarra; Frances Rings, currently associate artistic director of Bangarra; cultural consultants Djakapurra Munyarryun and Elma Kris; several current and past dancers of Bangarra; Wesley Enoch, artistic director across a range of theatrical organisations; Hetti Perkins, daughter of Aboriginal activist Charles Perkins; Hunt…
Liz Lea. ACT City News Artist of the Year 2017
…the recipient of an Australian Dance Award for Outstanding Achievement in Community Dance. Her unwavering commitment to, and focus on making, directing and promoting dance has put the spotlight on the ACT and moved the Territory into a position where it can now claim to have a truly vibrant and unique dance culture. Lea is currently working on a new solo show, RED, scheduled for showing in 2018. Michelle Potter, 27 November 2017 Featured image: L…
This Poisoned Sea. Quantum Leap
…ered at the root’ says the poem. Was it a silent scream? Was it making the comment that the destruction of the environment is not being heard? So many thoughts surfaced. Choreographically, too, ‘The poem is within us’ wasn’t full of forceful movement, but focused on changing patterns and on building groupings of dancers. The one jarring element was the use of live speech. A few lines of the poem were quoted by one of the dancers, but this is a tra…
Hilary Trotter (1933–2024)
…sfully lobbied for the establishment of the ACT’s first professional dance company, Human Veins Dance Theatre (HVDT). In the early 1980s she was elected to the Gorman House establishment committee, ensuring that there would be workable and accessible dance spaces there with sprung floors, high ceilings and adequate office and green room spaces. Since then there have been permanent professional dance companies in residence in Gorman House [now Gor…
Out of context—for Pina. Les Ballets C de la B
…r a time at a bare, sparsely lit stage. We listen to the beginnings of a soundscape of animal-like sounds. Eventually, one by one, nine dancers stand up from seats in the auditorium, move to the stage, take their places upstage with their backs to us and begin to strip down to their underwear. They wrap themselves in orange blankets and turn to confront us before beginning to interact with each other. In these initial stages the interaction is min…
Carmen. The Australian Ballet
…wider than repertoire, new directors usually have a personal vision for a company. Two comments from audience members in relation to Inger’s Carmen, had me thinking about Hallberg’s vision for the Australian Ballet. One person was moved to say, ‘The choreography was magnificent’ but I heard another say as she left, ‘Well I won’t be coming to see that again!’. Choreographically this Carmen is indeed magnificent, and it was danced magnificently by…
Paul Knobloch in conversation
…icago. In particular, they have been performing works that grew from a residency for the two companies at the University of California at Irvine. Paul Knobloch and dancers of Alonzo King LINES Ballet. Photos: © Angela Sterling He went on to talk enthusiastically about a collaboration with Grammy Award-winning double bassist Edgar Meyer. The work, called Meyer, has Meyer and two string players performing on stage and Knobloch recalls that at one po…