Delving into Dance (Andrew Westle)
Explore every episode of Delving into Dance
| Pub. Date | Title | Duration | |
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| 15 Aug 2016 | Michael J Morris | 00:48:12 | |
In this first episode we meet Michael J Morris, who was visiting Australia for the PSI conference. This wide-ranging discussion took place in a corridor at Melbourne University where we discussed ecosexuality, dance research, gender and all in between.
Morris’ dance practices and interests are broad from Butoh to Burlesque, often concerned with destabilising normative gender and sexuality categories.
Their experience in dance reveals there are multiple pathways to making a career in dance. As Morris explained “there are people who are fed from the experience on stage and others find it draining.”
Morris’ PhD explored ecosexuality based partially on interviews with activists/artists Elizabeth Stephens and Annie Sprinkle. Morris is currently an Associate Professor of Dance at Denison University, where they teach Queer, Women’s and Gender Studies.
Morris has an amazing blog full of musings and writing, which you should check out; you can also follow them on twitter
If you have enjoyed this discussion share it with a friend. Stay tuned for another stimulating episode. We will be hitting the web in two weeks time as we continue to explore the world of dance, with interviews from Deborah Jowett, Gideon Obarzanek, Stephanie Lake, Rafael Bonachela and many more.
“Even our most mundane sexual practices have an ecological impact”
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| 30 Aug 2016 | Stephanie Lake | 00:34:30 | |
Those familiar with Melbourne’s independent dance scene will know Stephanie Lake. A dancer and choreographer, Lake’s CV has a long list of credits including Chunky Move and Lucy Guerin Inc. She started dance reasonably late for a woman, and forged a career through her unique physical style. Lake said:
“My hair would never go neatly into a bun … I didn’t know any of the ballet language… I think that it can actually be a positive, because you want individual voices in the arts.”
Lake continues to push expectations of the form and is known for physically demanding choreography.
She was awarded the Australian Dance Award in 2014 for Outstanding Achievement in Choreography, and the Helpmann Award for Best Choreography in Dance or Physical Theatre Work 2014 for A Small Prometheus. Mix Tape (2010) received the Green Room award for Best Choreography.
Her work has toured to Germany, France, Ireland, Denmark, Singapore and Australia with a range of work including : Mix Tape; AORTA; Dual; Double Blind and If I Was.
She now spends the majority of her time as a choreographer and a mother of two children, but is still dancing and continually finding a balancing between all of her passions and the responsibilities of motherhood.
Lake has been commissioned by Sydney Dance Company, Chunky Move, Dance North, Tasdance, Stompin, Sydney Symphony Orchestra and Frontier Danceland (Singapore).
We met in the noisy foyer of the Malthouse early on a cold Melbourne morning, before she was starting a new development, in the pipeline for 2017. Our conversation moved from discussions of process, motivation, goals and children. We started talking about moving from a career primarily dancing to one of choreography.
Stephanie Lake early in to her choreographic career is set to make her mark as a prominent Australian choreographer.
If you have enjoyed this discussion share it with a friend. Stay tuned for another stimulating episode. We will be hitting the web in two weeks time as we continue to explore the world of dance, with interviews from Deborah Jowett, Joshua Pether, Gideon Obarzanek and Rafael Bonachela in the pipeline.
“I get so nervous going in to rehearsal … I have these fantasies about jobs where you are not witnessed”
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| 13 Sep 2016 | Deborah Jowitt | 00:33:20 | |
Deborah Jowitt is one of the most accessible dance critics, spending her life capturing the diversity of dance in her reviews, particularly in New York City. Jowitt’s work focuses equally on ballet and modern dance with a love for both styles.
I believe Jowitt’s experience as a dancer and choreographer helps in her translation of what is seen in the theatre to what is seen on the page. Jowitt wrote for the Village Voice between 1967 and 2011, has written for The New York Times, Dance Research Journal, and Ballet Review among others. Her reviews form a powerful set of literature, with a sense of poetry and movement that is captured in her writing. Jowitt continues to review for the pure love and joy of the practice of criticism. Her work can be found here.
Jowitt has written a series of four books, with her latest which focuses on the life and work of Jerome Robbins; Jerome Robbins: His Life, His Theater, His Dance published in August of 2004 by Simon and Schuster. In the interview Jowitt discusses her latest book projects, documenting the life of Martha Graham. She said of her husband: “He is worried I won’t finish the book before I die”.
Jowitt remains one of the most influential voice of dance, with a legacy that will continue for generations to come. Jowitt taught in the Tisch School of the Arts from 1975-2015.
Jowitt was brought over to Australia, by Dancehouse, Melbourne as part of the Keir Choreographic Awards. I took the opportunity to speak to Jowitt in her hotel room, right next to a noisy construction site. Totally in awe of Jowitt and the impact that she has made on dance, I was speechless for most of the interview, but we talked about everything from the importance of criticism, the changes in dance in New York, the impact of the AIDS epidemic on dance, the gentrification of New York, Bangarra Dance Theatre, Pina Bausch’s influence on dance, gender equity and a whole range of other topics.
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| 11 Nov 2016 | Rafael Bonachela | 00:44:58 | |
Rafael Bonachela moved to Australia in 2009 to be the Artistic Director at Sydney Dance Company. He followed Graeme Murphy, who had been at the helm for decades, and took up the role after the tragic death of Tanja Liedtke, who was named as Murphy’s successor. Since his appointment, Rafael has brought the works of a diverse range of leading choreographers to Australia including Alexander Ekman, Adam Linder, William Forsythe, Jacopo Godani and Kenneth Kvarnstrom. While programing the works of Australian choreographers including Larissa McGowan, Stephanie Lake and Gideon Obarzanek.
Rafael works with a range of collaborators including with Toni Maticevski, Sarah Blasko, Nick Wales and Katie Noonan. His works includeg 360° C (2008), We Unfold (2009), 6 Breaths (2010), Shared Frequencies (2011), 2 One Another (2012), Les Illuminations (2013), and Lux Tenebris (2016).
Rafael has helped instigate a Pre-Professional Year for early-career dancers, as well as focusing on school students to help to develop the next generation of contemporary dance audiences.
Before moving to Sydney he ran his own company, the Bonachela Dance Company. Rafael danced for the Rambert Dance Company in 1992, where he developed a strong interest in choreography. This work lead to him choreographing for Kylie Minogue, on the Fever and Showgirl tours.
In this conversation we discussed Kylie, dance, leadership, inspiration and arts funding.
More information on Sydney Dance Company can be found at www.sydneydancecompany.com Rafael is his own social media celebrity and can be found on Twitter and Instagram.
Stay tuned for upcoming episodes including interviews with Gideon Obarzanek and Alexandre Hamel from Le Patin Libre. | |||
| 06 Dec 2016 | Gideon Obarzanek | 00:46:28 | |
Gideon Obarzanek is best known for establishing Chunky Move in 1995 in Sydney, subsequently moving to Melbourne in 1997 after winning a tender from the Kennett State Government. Obarzanek hoped that Chunky Move would last at least a year in Melbourne, “so it wouldn’t be so embarrassing”. His desire was to create a space for dancers and choreographers to apply for funding and make work at a time when independent dance was very fringe.
“I didn’t have a great interest in having a dance company or directing a dance company, it came out of necessity. […] My interest has always been about making work.”
Obarzanek remained the artistic director of Chunky Move until 2012.
Obarzanek’s work is diverse, with a focus on collaborations, technology, large-scale events, film and site specific works. His work has toured Europe, Asia, U.K., USA and South America. He has been presented at the Joyce Theatre, BAM Next Wave Festival NY, Dance Theatre Workshop, Venice Biennale, Territoria Festival Moscow as well as all of Australia’s major performing arts festivals. Obarzanek has choreographed works for Australian Ballet, Sydney Dance Company, Dance North, Queensland Ballet, Netherlands Dance Theatre and Opera Australia.
Obarzanek has a long list of awards to his name, including winning the prestigious Bessie Award with Lucy Guerin and Michael Kantor for Tense Dave (2005) and Helpmann Awards for Glow and Mortal Engine (2008),
Since leaving Chunky Move Obarzanek wrote and directed his first play ‘I Want to Dance Better at Parties’ for Sydney Theatre Company, followed by the screen version in 2013. Obarzanek is currently the Chair of the Melbourne Fringe Festival and an Artistic Associate for Melbourne Festival.
In this conversation we discussed dance leadership, gender, inspiration, arts funding, the future of festivals and the vision of Melbourne for being a creative hub.
Stay tuned for upcoming episodes including interviews with Alexandre Hamel from Le Patin Libre.
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| 20 Dec 2016 | Alexandre Hamel | 00:38:36 | |
Alexandre Hamel established the world’s first contemporary ice-skating collective, Montreal-based Le Patin Libre, in 2005. Attracting rebel skaters that turn their back on the world of figure skating or more conventional opportunities for skate performance, Le Patin Libre seeks to reinvent what is possible on ice.
Using the skates to create brand new movements which are explained as “grounded flight”, the gliding motion as well as the sound of the skates opens new possibilities for movement and dance. But can Le Patin Libre be described as a dance company? It is Hamel’s view that:
“Branding it as contemporary dance is bad for marketing. Contemporary dance is often seen as elitist, boring […] for snobs by a very large section of the public.”
This is a company that defies traditional categories. Conventions do not dictate Le Patin Libre, who have established and fostered their own audiences and styles of movements. They explain their work as contemporary skating. The sound of the ice, the feel of the ice, the setting of performance as well as the different capacity that skating provides the company, are all captured in their work.
Alexandre’s passion for his work and company is incredible and is captured throughout the interview. His advice for young dancers is: “get out of universities, just dance.” This is an artistic leader that has passion to pursue his own path and make his own rules. A rebel with a cause!
Our conversation covered everything from gender and ice skating, adrenalin, aspects of glide, engaging audiences, what is next and what it has taken to get the company off the ground and out into the world. Apologies for the potential mispronunciation of Le Patin Libre, French is not my strong point 🙂
You can follow Hamel on twitter @Alexandre_Hamel and the company @lepatinlibre. Like on Facebook. Watch some of there amazing work for yourself, join their newsletter and check out Le Patin Libre website.
This is the last episode of season one. What started as a pilot has actually gone pretty crazy, with the previous episodes reaching thousands of people. Planning for season two has already commenced, where I will be investing more money to improve the quality of the recordings and make a few other changes. Until then stay tuned on twitter and revisit all the other episodes with: Gideon Obarzanek, Deborah Jowitt, Michael J Morris, Rafael Bonachela and Stephanie Lake.
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| 06 Mar 2017 | Anouk van Dijk | 00:50:59 | |
In this first episode of season two, we get acquainted with Anouk van Dijk, the Artistic Director of Melbourne based Chunky Move. Anouk originates from Holland, where she started to seriously pursue dance in her late teens, after watching a dancer called Ian- a man she has never met or seen since. Watching Ian move across the space was captivating:
“I will never forget…Ian filled the room. He filled the room with energy, with his passion, with his power. That was it. I was sold […] I wanted to be a dancer”.
As a dancer, Anouk danced for Werkcentrum Dans, the Nieuwe Dansgroep, the Rotterdance Dance Company and Amanda Miller’s Pretty Ugly Dance Company.
In 1998, Anouk formed her own company, anoukvandijk dc, based in Amsterdam. The company toured extensively including performing at Festival d’Avignon, MASS MoCA, Dance Triennale Tokyo, American Dance Festival and Festival TransAmériques. It also toured to Australia, performing at Adelaide Festival, Sydney Opera House and Perth International Arts Festival, but never to Melbourne, a place Anouk would later call home.
After Chunky Move founder Gideon Obarzanek (interviewed in season one) stepped down in 2012, Anouk was offered the job of taking Chunky Move into their next chapter. Anouk certainly had no small task ahead of her, replacing someone held in such high regard. However, since her appointment, Anouk has done just that, creating her own diverse range of works for the company, with themes around identity and place and has solidified her place in landscape of Australian dance. Australia has become home!
Works Anouk has created for Chunky Move
• An Act of Now
• 247 Days
• Embodiment 1:1:1
• gentle is the power
• Complexity of Belonging
• Depth of Field
• Rule of Thirds
• L U C I D
Anouk was rehearsing for the upcoming show ANTI—GRAVITY when we recorded this interview. ANTI—GRAVITY is an Asia TOPA Commission that will be premiered as part of Dance Massive 2017. A collaboration with multimedia artist Ho Tzu Nyen, ANTI—GRAVITY is an exploration of clouds:
“the yearning for this lightness….not being earth bound, completely”.
The conversation covered everything from: the process of making a work, collaborations, clouds, home, inspiration and Countertechnique (a system that helps dancers throughout their careers).
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| 20 Mar 2017 | Lucy Guerin | 00:38:18 | |
Lucy Guerin is one of the powerhouses of Australian Contemporary dance, known for her work in Australia and abroad. An Adelaide native, Lucy fell in love with contemporary dance and pursued this love to New York in 1989, dancing there for seven years. During this time, she worked with leading dance mentors including Bebe Miller, Tere O’Connor and Sara Rudner.
In 2002, Lucy Guerin Inc was established in Melbourne, providing a space for exploring and expanding upon ideas about contemporary dance. Through its noted Pieces for Small Spaces & First Run programs, the company have provided a platform for emerging choreographers to experiment and explore choreographic approaches.
Lucy has increasingly been working across forms, working in the UK with Carrie Cracknell first on Medea (2014) and then Macbeth (2015). Following the success of Macbeth, Lucy was commissioned by Rambert to make the work Tomorrow.
“I like working with the dancers, I like working on the detail of the choreography and the structure of the work.”
In terms of acclaim across her career, Lucy won the prestigious Bessie Award for her work Two Lies in 1996 and later in 2005, for outstanding choreography and creation for Chunky Move’s production of Tense Dave, with Gideon Obarzanek and Michael Kantor.
A selection of works:
Two Lies (1996)
Heavy (1998)
The Ends of Things (2000)
Living with Surfaces (2001)
Melt (2002)
Tell Me (2003) with Michael Lenz
Tense Dave (2003) with Gideon Obarzanek and Michael Kantor
The Firebird (2003)
Baroque Masterworks for the Australian Opera (2004)
Aether (2005)
Structure and Sadness (2006)
Corridor (2008)
Untrained (2009)
Human Interest Story (2010)
Conversation Piece (2012)
Weather (2012)
Motion Picture (2015)
Macbeth with Carrie Cracknell for Young Vic (2016)
Tomorrow (2016)
Dark Chorus (2016)
Attractor (2017) with Gideon Obarzanek & music duo Senyawa for Dance North
Split (2017)
I spoke with Lucy before going into rehearsal for Split, recently opened as part of Dance Massive, and in the same week Lucy travelled to her hometown Adelaide with Attractor. This conversation covers everything from current works, working with actors, dance and gender, Australian dance identity, and Lucy’s journey in contemporary dance.
“It’s very exposing when you first have an audience.”
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| 04 Apr 2017 | Daniel Jaber | 00:46:14 | |
Daniel Jaber started ballet when he was aged four, when he attended dance classes with his sister. He recounts seeing In The Middle, Somewhat Elevated, a work by William Forsythe, as a child and it was in this moment that he knew he wanted to become a professional dancer. At 15, Daniel started studying at Queensland University of Technology, obsessed with movement and dance:
“Movement gave me a greater sense of freedom and expression.”
Daniel recounts Australian Dance Theatre (ADT) work Bird Brain and being blown away by the performance of Tanja Liedtke. He loved the work of ADT’s artistic director Garry Stewart due to his ballistic choreography and “savage use of classicism”. In 2003, Daniel started working full time for ADT. He ended up dancing Liedtke part:
“I still consider that one of my life’s blessings.”
Daniel has danced throughout Australia, Asia, US, Europe and the UK. He has worked with Phillip Adams BalletLab, Joachim Schloemer, Frances d’Ath, Philip Fabre, Clint Lutes, Alison Currie, Gabrielle Nankivell and Ross Ganf.
In 2014, Daniel was appointed the Artistic Director of Leigh Warren and Dancers (LWD). A position he only held for a year, before leaving to pursuing more lucrative opportunities overseas. Since then, he has been working extensively in LA, working on the hit television show Dance Moms as Ballet Master and Choreographer. He also created a work called StarDancer for the largest water screen in the world, in Dubai.
Daniel is also devoted to teaching the next generation of dancers. He runs classes and workshops at different studios, including Transit Dance in Melbourne. His aim is to give young dancers the confidence and skills to pursue a careers in dance. His advice to young dancers being:
“Complacency will kill the opportunity to make it in this industry.”
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| 18 Apr 2017 | Noel Tovey | 00:47:36 | |
I first came across the incredible Noel Tovey in 2009 a friend and I saw Little Black Bastard, his solo show. It was such a brave performance and Noel exuded such grace and humility. But what we were blown away by was his story of survival. His life started in neglect and poverty, he endured frightening amounts of sexual abuse and now had an incredibly successful career as a dancer, choreographer, actor and director.
Noel Tovey’s life has been utterly extraordinary. Living as a street kid and rent boy in Melbourne during the 1940 and 50s, he was sent to Pentridge Gaol in 1951, when he was 17, after pleading not guilty to the crime of buggery. It was only in 2016 that the Victoria State Government apologised to men like Noel, men who were incarcerated and persecuted as a result of unjust laws that marked homosexuality as criminal. Noel was an important advocate in the campaign that lead to the apology, and he was present for the apology.
Noel’s interest and passion in the performing arts took him from Melbourne to London and across Europe to New York. He started ballet classes with the famous Madame Borovansky, where he cleaned the studios in exchange for classes. He started his professional dance career in 1954 with Paint Your Wagon at Her Majesty’s Theatre, Melbourne. Replacing a boy who broke his leg in rehearsal, Noel become the first Indigenous male ballet dancer in Australia.
After several years working in Australia, Noel left for the footlights of London. Noel made his acting debut in the West End production Oh Dad Poor Dad with legendary American actress Stella Adler in 1961. He became a principal dancer with The Sadler’s Wells Company. His choreographic career started in 1966 with a production of Sandy Wilson’s The Boyfriend.
During the premier season of Oh! Calcutta, Noel met his long term partner David (Dave) Sarel. Together they opened L’Odeon, an art gallery specialising in 20th century decorative art. Noel lost Dave to AIDS in February 1986. After which time Noel devoted himself to fighting against the myths related to HIV/AIDS and to helping increase education about the disease by working with AIDS Trust in London.
Noel moved back to Australia in 1991and continued working in the performing arts including directing A Midsummer Night’s Dream with an all Indigenous cast for the first Olympic Festival at Sydney Theatre Company; Spirit Time and Place, Adelaide Festival; Sky Light, Darwin Festival; The Aboriginal Protesters, Sydney, Munich and The Weimar festivals; The Stars Come Out, Sydney Mardi Gras Festival. His one man play Little Black Bastard based on his autobiography of the same title, has been performed around the world including La Mama Melbourne, Darwin Arts Festival, Belvoir Street Sydney, Perth International Arts Festival, The Herald Theatre Auckland, Edinburgh Fringe Festival and Origins Festival London.
In 2010, Noel received the ALSO Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2014, he was awarded the Uncle Bob Maza Memorial Lifetime Achievement Award for outstanding contribution to Victorian Indigenous theatre. And in 2015, he was made a member of the Order of Australia.
Noel has set up scholarships for two recipients from socially disadvantaged backgrounds to attend the Flying Fruit Fly Circus School.
Noel is a man of many talents and I can strongly recommended his two books, Little Black Bastard, published in 2004 & And Then I Found Me, published in March 2017.
This interviews covers a look at Melbourne in 1940 and 50s, Noel’s professional career, his latest book, the AIDS epidemic and his being at the Stonewall Riots. This wide-ranging conversation contains adult content, listener discretion advised.
If you enjoyed this interview, please share Noel’s incredible story on social media. Stay tuned for another stimulating episode, hitting the web in two weeks. Check out previous interviews from Deborah Jowett, Gideon Obarzanek, Rafael Bonachela, Lucy Guerin & Anouk van Dijk. You can now find Delving into Dance on Facebook, as well as Twitter and iTunes.
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| 04 May 2017 | Sue Healey | 00:50:51 | |
New Zealand-born Sue Healey, left Auckland to study dance at the Victorian College of the Arts. Sue is a performer, choreographer and educator. She has particular expertise in making dance for film. Sue’s practice extends beyond traditional performance venues, with her projects appearing in galleries, outdoors and most recently in a film work presented at train station.
“A sense of place is critical to all my works”
Her work has toured throughout USA, UK, Australia, New Zealand and Asia.
Sue went back to study, completing a Masters Degree in Choreography (2000) from Melbourne University. Sue was the recipient of the Choreographic Fellowship from the Australia Council in 1999/2000 and the Creative Fellowship in 2013-14 from the Australia Council. Sue’s is an Honorary Fellow of the Victorian College of the Arts, University of Melbourne.
Sue has made a number of films including Virtuosi a feature-length documentary that details the experiences of New Zealand dancers and choreographers that left New Zealand to pursue opportunities around the globe. The film has screened in New York, Montreal, Amsterdam, Prague, Portugal, Berlin, Hobart, Auckland and Wellington. Virtuosi won the Australian Dance Award for Outstanding Achievement in Dance on Film in 2013. For Sue editing film is a form of choreography. Another fascinating documentary Sue has created is The Golds, which features a dance company of over 60 year old’s. Sue’s work En Route was recently presented on a 23 meter wide screen at Wynyard train station (Sydney), 30 000 people passed the screen everyday. The film captured a wide diversity of individuals and ages, including 102 year old Eileen Kramer and Elizabeth Cameron Dalman aged 82, recognised as the founder of Modern Dance in Australia and the founder of the Australian Dance Theatre.
Sue is passionate about dance believing that movement is central to human expression.
“I find myself saying to someone who knows nothing about dance that the value of dance is that it is utterly human, it is vital human research, that we undertake through movement. Without movement we are nothing, we are dead. Life is movement and our species communicates through movement.”
Find out more:
• The Niche Series | 2002 – 2004
• In Time series | 2005-07
• The Curiosities Series | 2008-12
• On View series | 2013 – present
Further reading:
• Scanline details and links
• RealTime Arts
In this conversation we discussed: making dance for film, the value of dance, life as a freelance artist, dance education and dance being accessible.
If you enjoyed this interview, please share Sue’s interview on social media (there is zero budget for this podcast so your support is incredibly valuable). Stay tuned for another stimulating episode, hitting the web in two weeks. Check out previous interviews from Deborah Jowett, Gideon Obarzanek, Rafael Bonachela, Lucy Guerin & Anouk van Dijk. You can now find Delving into Dance on Facebook, as well as Twitter and iTunes. Stay tuned for the next episode with phenomenal Meryl Tankard.
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| 25 May 2017 | Meryl Tankard | 00:47:06 | |
Meryl Tankard is a powerhouse of Australian dance. She learnt ballet the 1960s and 70s when training was grueling with the discipline expected of the teachers was close to torture. She remembers seeing a teacher pushing a little girl’s head in to a bucket of water until she was forced smiled.
She compares dance discipline to that of the military – her father served in air force in the Second World War.
Born in Darwin, she lived in Melbourne, Newcastle and Penang and her childhood has inspired many of her works, including Two Feet.
Meryl’s professional dancing career started with The Australian Ballet in 1975, but her time in the world of ballet was short lived. In 1978 Meryl moved to Germany to work with Pina Bausch at Tanztheater Wuppertal . Meryl says she blew in from Australia “red lips, red nails”, it was the 70s after all, employed on a soloist contact to the surprise of many. Soon after, she was performing in one of Bausch’s most revered works Café Müller and became one of Pina Bausch’s most recognised dancers. Bausch described her style:
“There was a tension between her fragility and her courage. Meryl had and understanding of measure, of boundaries; this instinct and experience gave her that edge.”
When starting at the company, audiences didn’t understand Bausch’s style. “People were booing, we sometimes only had 30 people in the audiences”. Bausch “wanted everything” Meryl explains: “She was stubborn and very vague”.
Meryl came back to Australia in 1984 because she was home sick and missed the sky. During the 1980s she started to make her mark on the Australian dance scene. In 1989, she took on a small company in Canberra and called it the Meryl Tankard Company. Her work was almost a hybrid between dance and theatre a style that divided audience and critics. They were truly incredible shows.
In 1993, Meryl took on the artistic directorship of the Australian Dance Theatre (ADT), in Adelaide. Her period at the company helped to put Australian contemporary dance on the world stage. Robyn Archer has described this as an amazing time for Adelaide: “It was new and exciting, it was risky and it was courageous”.
Meryl time at ADT was cut short with the board terminating her contract in 1999. The industry was in shock; how could the board be so short sighted when ADT was at the height of such phenomenal success. Where there elements of sexism involved? Meryl explains in regards to gender and dance:
“We have this fake idea that dance is a very feminine art form, it is only because we see the women busting their guts on the stage.”
Meryl continued choreographing and her worked ranged from the Sydney Olympic Opening Ceremony to Disney’s Tarzan. And her work The Oracle, set to Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring”, with dancer Paul White was a triumph.
Meryl re-defines the boundaries and is increasingly turning to film. Her film Michelle’s Story is a moving portrait of her friend Michelle Ryan, who was a dance for Meryl Tankard’s Australian Dance Theatre and was later diagnosed with MS.
This was an interview where I was left constantly saying “wow”. Because WOW what an amazing creative woman. Meryl Tankard is truly incredible! This conversation covers includes managing boards, gender and dance; Pina Bausch; making dance for film; and so much else in between. It was recorded on Anzac Day in a quiet spot in the park (until all the children came to play around us).
“People say to me, ‘are you still dancing’, and I go ‘well what is dancing? What does dancing mean, I go in to the studio and put music on?’ Maybe I dance when I play with my niece. […] we are sort of dancing every day aren’t we?”
This is the last episode of season two. I am overwhelmed by the reception of this podcast with absolutely zero budget; there are thousands of people listening. Season three is already in production with three episodes already recorded. Stay tuned. If you want to help spread the word, please share these episodes with your networks. Thanks for listening.
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| 01 Aug 2017 | Thomas Fonua | 00:41:15 | |
Thomas Fonua is a proud man of Samoan/Tongan descent. Born in New Zealand, Thomas started to dance at the age of seven. His mum saw that he loved to move but showed no interest in sport, so she enrolled him in dance instead.
“My work is influenced by my heritage”
At the young age of 16, Thomas was offered a two-year apprenticeship with Black Grace, based in Auckland. There are few professional dance opportunities in New Zealand, so gaining full-time employment was a true honour and was the start of a solid, successful career for the young dancer.
Thomas was the youngest dancer in the company, with a 10-year age gap between him and the next youngest dancers. This was a significant period of growth and cemented his passion for dance. During this time Thomas toured numerous works through Europe, Asia, North America and Canada as one of the company’s leading dancers.
In 2010, Thomas was invited to participate in The Banff Centre’s Indigenous Dance Residency. Thomas participated in the program for many years before being invited to take up a position as a faculty member. As a faculty member, he helps by working with and mentoring Indigenous dancers from all over the world.
Thomas has since worked for Red Sky Performance in Canada, where he is an associate artist. He has worked on productions including Migration (2011) and inSIGNia (2013). Thomas has also worked with artists including Sandra Laronde, Neil Ieremia, Rafael Bonachela, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Jock Soto, Douglas Wright, Raewyn Hill, Ross McCormack and Garry Stewart.
Thomas joined Australian Dance Theatre (ADT) in 2015. Subsequently, he has performed in works including Proximity, Be Your Self, Doppelganger and Habitus. He has also had his work MALAGA programmed as part of ADT’s Ignition program, which seeks to foster the next generation of choreographers.
His work MALAGA explored the dark past of human zoos or ‘Volkershau’, in which individuals were brought in from colonial frontiers, for European audiences. This work drew upon ideas of exhibition, captivity and exoticism.
I spoke to Thomas, in the lead up for a performance of Be Your Self, soon to open in Melbourne, the first time it will be performed in the Victorian capital.
Be Your Self is a significant work for Thomas, being the first work he danced in for ADT as a guest artist during the work’s 2014 tour of Indonesia. Be Your Self is also one of his favourite pieces to perform: “Because it is so much fun”
Be Your Self was created by Garry Stewart, and examines how the body is central to our identity and that our notion of the ‘self’ is indeed located in our bodies.
Thomas is a fascinating and passionate dancer who will continue to bring more to the world of contemporary dance. This interview is a wide ranging discussion, which includes everything from RuPaul – “the unsung hero” – to studying business, performing in drag and what it means to be an Indigenous dancer, to preparing for performances and how Thomas aims for the future.
You can find out more about Thomas Fonua on the ADT website.
Check out the fabulous archive of dance makers and leaders including: Meryl Tankard, Daniel Jaber & Gideon Obarzanek
And stay tuned for future episodes in this season, focussing on the experience of those currently who are dancing. This season will capture a true diversity of experiences, including Samantha Hines (ex ADT dancer, subsequently working with Dancenorth and Stephanie Lake), Melanie Lane (choreographer and performer based between Berlin and Melbourne) and Gareth Chambers (Cardiff-based Visual Dance artist recently in Australia for YIRRAMBOI festival)
If you have enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a donation. Contributions keep this little project going strong, and are the only source of funding for this project. A big thank you to Stephanie Lake whose donation helped fund this episode! You can listen to the wonderful Stephanie Lake’s interview from Season One. | |||
| 13 Aug 2017 | Melanie Lane | 00:33:47 | |
Melanie Lane is emerging as a powerhouse of contemporary dance. Based between Melbourne and Berlin, Melanie’s work is diverse and exciting.
After studying at Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts in 1999, Melanie moved to Germany as there were increased performance opportunities available in Australia.
Melanie has performed with a range of companies and artists worldwide, including Lucy Guerin Inc (interviewed in season two), Kobalt Works, Arco Renz (B), Club Guy and Roni (N), Tino Seghal (G), Antony Hamilton (AUS) and Chunky Move (Aus).
Melanie was appointed as resident director at Lucy Guerin Inc, in 2015. In 2016, she was commissioned to develop Re-make at Chunky Move part of their Next Move program and has just been announced as one of the commissioned artists for Sydney Dance Company’s New Breed program.
I met Melanie after a long day in the rehearsal room, in the lead up to her premiere of Nightdance which explores the night economy; from exotic dance, lap-dancing and club dancing, to examining how complicit the audiences are as voyeurs and consumers.
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| 25 Aug 2017 | Gareth Chambers | 00:56:39 | |
Gareth Chambers is a proud Welshman based in Cardiff. He works as a choreographer, dancer and writer. His work is visceral, with a strong queer aesthetic that questions the ways in which bodies function in society, intersecting with gender, sexuality and class. Gareth calls his work ‘Visual Dance’. His work often sits neatly in a live art category, sitting well outside of a traditional theatre space, like in nightclubs and warehouses.
Gareth studied at Laban Centre, London. He has worked with Doris Ulrich, Tactile Bosch, Eddie Ladd, Marc Rees, Luke Pell, Cai Tomos, Ema Jayne Park, Siriol Joyner, Joon Dance and Wendy Houstoun. Work has been shown in Cardiff, Swansea, London and Berlin.
Gareth was awarded DanceWeb Scholarship to attend ImpluzTanz in Vienna. He recently concluded this intensive where he studied under Doris Ulrich, Ivo Dimchev Keith Hennessy, Eroca Nichols, Libby Farr, Risa Steinberg ,Salim Gauwloos and Guy Cools.
This year he was also one of the international artists at YIRRAMBOI First Nations Arts Festival in Melbourne. Gareth presented his work, Llaeth, which (is one difficult for an Australian to pronouns- see podcast). This work explores the idea of taboo around mother’s milk, ideas of masculine and feminine, alongside identity and self. Gareth also writes and edits for online dance magazine BELLYFLOP.
This was a warm and authentic interview, which covered so much territory, from Queer art politics, dance and desire, goals and ambitions, through to ways of making dance work.
If you have enjoyed this episode and you want to continue to hear a diversity of dancers and dance makers experiences, leave a contribution. With arts journalism around the world in decline, now more than ever, platforms like Delving into Dance are critical in providing artists a space to talk about their work to a dedicated audience, while also archiving their experiences.
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| 30 Aug 2017 | Samantha Hines | 00:40:26 | |
Samantha Hines studied at New Zealand School of Dance in 2010, before landing her dream job at the Australian Dance Theatre (ADT) in 2012: “It was my dream”. She travelled extensively with ADT with works including G, Proximity, Multiverse and Be Your Self. She was part of the company’s ensemble when they won the Green Room Award for Best Performance by an Ensemble for Proximity in 2013. Samantha was part of the world premiere season of Naught in 2013, choreographed by Daniel Jaber.
Since leaving ADT Samantha has had a busy time as a freelancer working on a range of projects including with Stephanie Lake on Pile of Bones. Samantha started 2017 with an amazing performance in Attractor choreographed by Lucy Guerin & Gideon Obarzanek with Dancenorth. For Attractor, Samantha was nominated for the Helpmann award for the ‘Best Female Dancer in a Ballet, Dance or Physical Theatre Production’. Attractor took out the Helpmann award for ‘Best Choreography in a Ballet, Dance or Physical Theatre Production.’
She has recently joined the Dancenorth ensemble, she is loving Townsville and being a part of Dancenorth: “It’s a really nice environment”. She is currently working on a range of works including the upcoming Brisbane Festival season of Attractor.
Samantha has a warm and attractive personality that complements her unique and fabulous dance style. She explains: “the weirder you are the more unique you move, the more you are going to get hired for that role”
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| 08 Sep 2017 | Joshua Pether | 00:57:03 | |
Joshua Pether is a Perth based dancer, who frequently travels to the East Coast to perform and develop performances.
A descendant of the Kalkadoon people, Joshua grew up in in Mt Isa, spending many years living on an enormous cattle station. He started dance at a young age but gave it up as a teenager, shifting gears and training as a pharmacist. However, like any passion, eventually Joshua rediscovered and reconnected with dance later.
Joshua also identifies as a dancer with a disability. This has led him to reconsider dance and the ways in which the form can be more inclusive of differences. Increasingly becoming an activist, challenging others preconceptions and proving opportunities for those that are often excluded.
I spoke to Joshua after the premiere season of his fascinating solo work Monster, programed as part of Yirramboi Festival. Part dance part live art, this was a dark work that moved between a deeply personal mental state, something that sits below the surface, to an exorcism and release. There is always something refreshing about seeing dance that is prepared to move into the unknown, and deal with dark subject matter.
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| 17 Sep 2017 | Cheryl Stock | 01:21:23 | |
Cheryl Stock PhD AM, has had a diverse and influential career with the common theme of dance running throughout. Cheryl has worked as a dancer, choreographer, academic, teacher and advocate.
Cheryl has created over 50 dance works and has been a pioneer in collaborative exchanges with Asia, of particular note is her work in Vietnam. This resulted in her PhD, Making intercultural dance in Vietnam.
Cheryl has choreographed for Australian Dance Theatre, Australian Opera, Vietnam Opera Ballet Theatre, Footnote Dance Theatre (New Zealand), Dancenorth, along with many other independent projects nationally and internationally.
In 1985, Cheryl became the inaugural Artistic Director of Dance North (now written Dancenorth). Cheryl helped put the Townsville based company on the map. This legacy can be seen through incredible dancers like Samantha Hines, who was recently profiled on Delving into Dance.
As a researcher Cheryl has made an enormous contribution to academic and sector wide discourse. She has presented at endless conferences around the globe, published extensively and has nurtured many students. Between 2000–2014 Cheryl was Associate Professor in the Creative Industries Faculty of QUT. In 2016, she was appointed the Head of Cultural Leadership at NIDA and Director, Graduate Studies.
Cheryl was National President of Ausdance between 1996-2000 and was elected as Secretary General of the World Dance Alliance (WDA), in 2009.
Cheryl’s long list of achievements include being a recipient of the Australian Dance Lifetime Achievement Award (2003) and Order of Australia (2014). She was honored by the Vietnamese government for Services to Dance in Vietnam and the other for Services to the Women’s Movement (1995).
Read more about female leadership in dance from Jordon Beth Vincent.
This episode is part of a special season Ancestors & Anecdotes, in partnership with Ausdance Victoria. | |||
| 17 Sep 2017 | Elizabeth Cameron Dalman | 00:41:53 | |
Elizabeth Cameron Dalman has frequently been described as the high priestess of Australian dance. Elizabeth trained in both classical ballet and modern dance with Nora Stewart, later obtaining a Masters of Creative Arts degree from University of Wollongong.
Elizabeth left Australia in 1957, continuing her studies in Europe, London and New York. She studied with Martha Graham, James Truitte, Murray Louis and Alwin Nikilais.
In 1965, Elizabeth founded the Australian Dance Theatre. As the artistic director she introduced Australian audiences to a diverse range of works including: Hallucinations (1966), This Train (1966), Landscape (1967), Sundown (1967), Sun and Moon (1968), Homage to Boticelli (1969), Creation (1969), and Release of an Oath (1972). The company toured internationally, including to Italy, Switzerland and Holland (1968), through South East Asia, India and Papua New Guinea (1971), and to New Zealand (1972).
Her works were innovative and often controversial, introducing her dancers to visual artists, composers, writers and a range of other artistic disciplines. These types of collaborations were unique for their time, challenging preconceptions about dance as an art form and what was possible into the future.
In 1975, Elizabeth’s career changed sudden change in ADT restructuring and became an independent artist throughout Europe for 10 years.
Elizabeth has continued dancing and challenging ideas that dance is just for the young. Elizabeth is a central feature in Sue Healey’s incredible film En Route. Elizabeth is currently Director of Mirramu Creative Arts Centre and also the Artistic Director of Mirramu Dance Company and WEEREEWA – a Festival of Lake George Inc.
Elizabeth completed her doctorate at the University of Western Sydney in 2012 with a thesis entitled The Quest for an Australian Dance Theatre.
Elizabeth was awarded an OAM in 1995 for her contribution to contemporary dance in Australia and received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Australian Dance Awards in 1997.
Activist, visionary and all-round inspiration. | |||
| 17 Sep 2017 | Shirley McKechnie | 01:00:22 | |
Shirley McKechnie’s influence on Australian Dance is extraordinary. Shirley trained with Daisy Purnitzer, a former member of Gertrude Bodenweiser's Company. In 1963, Shirley founded the Contemporary Dance Theatre of Melbourne.
After traveling abroad on a trip funded by the Theatre Board of the Australia Council, Shirley returned, founded and directed the first degree course for dance studies at Rusden College (now Deakin University), in 1975.
She co-founded the Australian Association for Dance Education (A.A.D.E) with Dr. Warren Lett, Dame Peggy van Praagh and Donna Greaves, in 1977. The association was later renamed Ausdance. Ausdance became the peak national body for dance advocacy.
Shirley has been at the forefront of many incredible initiatives that have helped to establish the Australian Dance sector. Including:
Helping found Tasdance in 1981; being the founding chairperson of the Tertiary Dance Council of Australia (1985–86); as a researcher for the National Library of Australia (1980s–90s); National President, Ausdance (1992 – 94); founder of Green Mill Dance Project (1993 – 97); being awarded the first Australian Research Council grant for choreographic research (Unspoken Knowledges, 1998–2000);
Shirley has had a much celebrated career receiving numerous awards including Order of Australia (1987), the Kenneth Myer Medallion for the Performing Arts (1993), the Ausdance 21 Award for outstanding and distinguished service, and two Australian Dance Awards, including that for Outstanding Achievement in Dance Education (2001). Shirley was also elected an honorary fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities in 1998. | |||
| 17 Sep 2017 | Shelley Lasica about Margaret Lasica | 00:56:42 | |
This interview is with Shelley Lasica, daughter of pioneering Melbourne dance choreographer and teacher, Margaret Lasica (1926-1993). Shelley herself is an amazing contributor to the performing arts scene as a successful choreographer and performer.
Born in Vienna, Margret migrated to Australia with her family in 1939. During the 1940s, Margaret studied with Ruth Bergner. Bergner’s work had a political and social undercurrent, drawing upon European and Jewish dance traditions to create modern dance performances. Margret drew influence from Bergner’s work.
In 1967, she founded the Modern Dance Ensemble (MDE). MDE performed up until 1981 and then intermittently until 1990. Margret is noted in history as a dancer, choreographer and teacher. Her teaching was exceptional and she fostered a range of incredible talent. Margret was a significant influence on Lloyd Newson, who went on to establish DV8 in the UK.
During her life Margret sought to document the history of Modern Dance in Australia. This is collated in the National Library of Australia’s manuscript collection: Margaret Lasica Papers. The University of Melbourne also holds The Margaret Lasica Collection; a collection of books, journals and ephemera relating to her life.
Margret died in 1993, leaving behind an amazing legacy.
This is a warm and detailed interview covering Margret’s career and ongoing legacy through the recollections of Shelley. Interview conducted by: Jonathan Homsey from Ausdance Victoria. | |||
| 17 Sep 2017 | Carole Johnson | 01:11:21 | |
Carole Johnsons legacy is incredible. Carole grew up in Philadelphia, USA where she discovered her love for dance. She trained in ballet under Sydney Gibson King and later with British choreographer Antony Tudor. Carole graduated from the Juilliard School in New York in 1963.
In 1966, Carole joined the Eleo Pomare Dance Company, as a dancer and an important advocate for African-American dance. Carole has danced in works including: The Angels Are Watching Over Me, Construction in Green, From the Soul, as Bessie Smith in Gin, Woman, Distress and as Angela Davis in Jailhouse Blues.
Carole first visited Australia in an important time for the fight for rights and recognition of Australia’s First Nations people. It was in 1972, when the Eleo Pomare Dance Company performed for Adelaide Festival, that Carole was exposed the huge inequities in Australia between First Nation Australians and the rest of the population. While in Adelaide Carole was asked by the Australia Council for the Arts' Indigenous Officer, Jennifer Isaacs, to teach some dance workshops in the significant urban centre for Indigenous Australians, Redfern, Sydney. Carole’s advocacy and activism started in earnest, developing a deep appreciation and respect for Indigenous Australians.
Carole was the founding director of the National Aboriginal and Islander Skills Development Council (NAISDA). Through a deepening relationship formed over a decade Carole worked with Yirrkala people from the Northern Territory and the Lardil people from Mornington Island (Kunhanha). In 1989, Carole founded the now world renowned Bangarra Dance Theatre.
Carole Johnson was inducted into The Australian Dance Awards the Hall of Fame in 1999 for her work with NAISDA Dance College, AIDT and Bangarra Dance Theatre. Carole was also awarded an Australian Government Centenary medal recognising her contribution to Australia’s Indigenous community in 2003.
This season produced in partnership with Ausdance Victoria. Delving into Dance is completely self-funded. If you have enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a donation. Contributions keep this little project going strong, and are the only source of funding for this project. | |||
| 11 Jan 2018 | Hillel Kogan | 00:37:37 | |
Hillel Kogan is a dancer, choreographer and dramaturge based in Israel. His diverse range of works have been performed all around the world. Of particular acclaim is his piece We Love Arabs. This duet explores the dynamic relationship between an Israeli choreographer and an Arab dancer. The piece is political, funny and at times difficult to watch, as the Israeli choreographer repeatedly trips himself up on his own assumptions. This is a piece that resonates strongly with a diverse range of audiences as it continues to tour 5 years after its creation.
We Love Arabs is performed in Hebrew, French and English. We Love Arabs was the winner of the Outstanding Creator of the 2013 Israeli Dance Critics Circle Awards.
Other full length works include The Rite of Spring created for Tmuna Theater’s Intimadance Festival, Tel Aviv in 2011.
As a dancer Kogan has performed with Batsheva Dance Company, Nomades Dance Company of Switzerland and the Gulbenkian Ballet of Portugal. Kogan has worked as Assistant Choreographer to Ohad Naharin of Batsheva Ensemble. He has created works for National Ballet of Portugal, Muza Dance Company, and the Shades of Dance Festival at the Suzanne Dellal Center. Kogan has worked as a dramaturg with Renana Raz, Dana Ruttenberg, Yossi Berg, and Oded Graf.
Kogan won the prestigious Israeli ‘Landau Prize for the Arts’ in 2015.
This episode was recorded at Malthouse Theatre during Melbourne Festival 2017. Stay tuned for episodes in this season that will cast an eye to the 2018 Perth Festival.
If you have enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a contribution. Currently looking to raise $500 for new recording equipment. Better recording equipment means a better sounding podcast for your listening ears.
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| 25 Jan 2018 | Damien Jalet | 00:28:50 | |
Damien Jalet is a freelance choreographer and performer from Belgium. Starting in theatre, Damien was originally interested in becoming a director, until he discovered dance.
“What I was looking for in theatre, didn’t have anything to do with words, it was much more about the physical presence and how the body could convey”
After finding dance Damien became obsessed, “it became an overwhelming obsession”. He explained, “it makes you see the world differently”.
Damien went on to work with a range of companies as both a dancer and choreographer including with Marina Abramovic, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui/Eastman, Icelandic Dance Company, Chunky Move, Sasha Waltz and Guests, Les ballets C. de la B, Akram Khan and Scottish Dance Theatre.
Damien’s work frequently explores myths, religions, and rituals and how dance can capture some of these traditions: “the body is the conveyor”.
His work is diverse and has won a number of significant Awards. Babel(words) won two Olivier awards in 2011 for Best New Dance Production and Outstanding Achievement in Dance for the set design of Antony Gormley. Babel (Words) also won a prix Benois de la danse for best choreography at Bolshoi, Moscow.
Damien is well known for his collaborative approach to dance, connecting dance to a range of other artistic disciplines. He has worked with visual artists Antony Gormley, Nawa Kohei, fashion makers Jean-Paul Lespagnard, Hussein Chalayan, Riccardo Tisci and Bernhard Willhelm and with musicians including Loscil, Olof Arnalds and Florence + the Machine.
In this interview, we talk about his collaboration with Japanese visual artist Kohei Nawa. Damien created the work Vessel with Kohei Nawa. Vessel first premiered in 2016 and has been described as a lovely meeting point between dance and sculpture. Vessel will have its Australian Premiere at Perth Festival in March.
A selection of works.
THR(O)UGH, (2015, in collaboration with Jim Hodges)
BABEL (Words) (2016, at the Festival d'Avignon).
les méduses (2013)
Black Marrow (with Erna Omarsdottir for Chunky Move at the Melbourne international festival 2009).
This interview covers a range of topics including collaborations and Damien’s process from making work. | |||
| 09 Feb 2018 | Wendy Martin | 00:30:57 | |
Delving into Dance more often than not focuses on the experiences of dancers, choreographers and dance makers. But it is time to shake it up. The arts ecology is intricate and integrated and there are so many people involved in bringing arts and culture to audiences and communities.
This episode is with Perth Festival Artistic Director, Wendy Martin. Wendy’s career has included everything from television production and producing to dance programing.
Wendy was Head of Performance & Dance at Southbank Centre, London, where she helped establish the disability arts festival Unlimited, as part of London Olympics, Cultural Olympiad. Before moving to London, Wendy worked at the Sydney Opera House in a range of roles including as the Head of Theatre and Dance. Wendy has been responsible for a range of incredible commissions including the Oracle with Meryl Tankard. She was the catalyst for a range of programs including the Spring Dance, a festival of dance at the Opera House. The first festival was curated by Rafael Bonachela and saw a wide range of incredible works. Sadly Spring Dance had such a short life, and there remain few large prominent platforms for Contemporary Dance in Sydney.
This is a wide-ranging interview that reveals Wendy’s deep passion for dance and making dance accessible to audiences. Wendy discusses the importance of dance and many of the highlights of the 2018 Perth Festival.
“The biggest role of being a curator is to be a storyteller, because ultimately you want to invite people in and share something that you think is wonderful with an audience.”
Wendy mentioned a range of wonderful people, who have been interviewed for Delving into Dance, including Meryl Tankard, Damien Jalet, Rafael Bonachela and Lucy Guerin.
Perth Festival is on from the 9 Feb- 4 Mar and features a wide range of dance. | |||
| 23 Feb 2018 | Bec Reid | 00:35:00 | |
“I don’t dance” is music to the ears of Bec Reid. It’s a provocation and an invitation. For those who are not dancers, the dance floor can seem incredibly overwhelming – the idea of moving a body in a way that is outside of the ‘normal’ is frightening. But what are we afraid of? Bec’s advice to these wall flowers is: “Back yourself, you will be alright.” Inspirational artist Bec Reid works across social divides, between rural and urban communities and across all demographics and backgrounds. She brings people closer through dance. Bec started dance in her mid teens, changing her direction from either going to save the whales or becoming a journalist. Dance grabbed her! Growing up in Tasmania, she moved away to study at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA). Upon finishing study along with Luke George (who is profiled in an upcoming episode), Bec became the Co-Artistic Director of Stompin Youth Dance Company in Tasmania from 2002 to 2008. “I have committed to rest of my dancing life, to making dance as inclusive as possible because my experience was very welcoming.” She is passionate about making dance available to everyone. Her list of achievements, collaborations, projects and commissions is immense. Even those who know Bec best, struggle to keep up with her number of projects and touring schedules. Despite this, “busy” is not a word you will ever hear her utter. Bec is the co-artistic director of All The Queens Men, a company that champions social equality by providing creative opportunities for diverse members of society. Bec’s dance and creative talent shines through so many of their projects including, Fun Run, The Coming Back Out Ball and LGBTI Elders Dance Club. Bec also works with Every Body NOW! a company that creates participatory and large-scale experiences that engage communities. Every Body NOW! is soon to open Yes, We Dance! for Bleach* Festival, which coincides with the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. “For me dance says literally everything, I will watch someone dancing long before I say hello to them of start talking.” | |||
| 08 Mar 2018 | David McAllister | 00:45:00 | |
David McAllister’s life in ballet started with a wish upon a star. What sounds like a scene of a movie, set up a remarkable career, that continues to shape the essence of Australian dance, particularly ballet.
David has been associated with the Australian Ballet for 35 years, celebrated this year. Starting as a dancer at in 1983, making his way up through the ranks, promoted to Senior Artist in 1986 and Principal Dancer in 1989. David had many career highlights including dancing for Princess Diana, in Coppélia.
David danced his final performance in Giselle at the Sydney Opera House in 2001, less than 5 months later he became the seventh Artistic Director of the Australian Ballet.
The Australian Ballet is over 50 years old and is held in high regard around the world, for the strength and athleticism of the dancers. The company is also known for its first class medical team that runs an Injury Management and Prevention Program. A critical component for one of the busiest dance companies in the world with upwards of 250 performances programed a year.
As Artistic Director David has programmed a range of choreographers including Meryl Tankard, Gideon Obarzanek , Stephen Page, Graham Murphy and many other fabulous Australian and international choreographers. David directed his first ballet, The Sleeping Beauty in 2015.
This is a generous and wide-ranging interview, which covers everything from the Marriage Equity Debate of 2017, gender fluidity, leadership to the changing face of ballet and what David is looking forward to in 2018.
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| 26 Apr 2018 | Mirjam Sögner & Renae Shadler | 00:35:16 | |
| 28 May 2018 | Judith Mackrell | 00:52:46 | |
Judith Mackrell has had an incredible career as a dance critic and as a writer. When it comes to dance, particularly in the UK, Judith’s expertise, knowledge and commentary is cherished.
Judith studied a degree in English Literature at University, and was exploring life as an academic when things started to shift. Dance has since become an incredible passion. Judith started writing for The Observer and now writes for the Guardian UK. She has authored the books 'Bloomsbury Ballerina', ' Flappers: Six Women of a Dangerous Generation’ and 'The Unfinished Palazzo: Life, Love and Art in Venice'.
I met Judith on a day where there was a good 20cm of snow on the ground outside as it fell steadily throughout the interview. It was the week of the Beast from the East, that left the people of the UK shivering through their coldest week in over 8 years.
In this interview we covered a range of territory, primarily centered on gender equality and dance. We discussed the structures of dance, looking at the numbers of men being given choreographic opportunities over women, the #METOO movement and ways in which we might think and agitate for change.
Judith has some great advice for female dancers:
“Sounds like a Hallmark Card, but focus on what your gift is, what your talent is, what you are. Know that if someone’s offered you a job it is because they have seen something individual in you and try and cherish that. […] Don’t try and be someone else. […] There is nothing more exciting than seeing a dancer who is completely individual. They don’t need to be perfect, but to have that flame inside.”
For male dancers or men in the industry Judith suggests that change will come from men, “simply by being aware”. Also, that it is the responsibility for men to speak up for women and “recognise when a woman’s confidence is failing a little bit.”
There is something wonderful about speaking to thinkers and writers about dance. Their perspectives and insights add so much colour the world of dance. If you enjoyed this episode, you will also enjoy this one from Deborah Jowitt from New York. | |||
| 28 May 2018 | Cathy Marston | 00:35:45 | |
Cathy Marston is a choreographer, artistic director and Clore Cultural Leadership Fellow. Educated in Cambridge, Cathy spent two years at the Royal Ballet School, London, before launching a successful international career now spanning over twenty years. As a student her ballet teacher told her parents; “the problem with Cathy is that she thinks for herself” – something that foreshadowed an individual and remarkable career thus far. Passionate about opening original ideas to new audiences, Cathy crafts the unexpected between classical and contemporary art forms. Cathy has choreographed around the world for a range of different companies including for: The Royal Ballet; the Royal Opera House; Royal Opera, Northern Ballet; English National Ballet; George Piper Dances (Ballet Boyz); David Hughes Dance; The Ensemble Group; Central Ballet; Images of Dance; Encore Dance Company; Royal Ballet School; London Children’s Ballet; Grange Park Opera, Sonia Friedman productions, Ballett des Theater St Gallen, Ballett im Revier; Finnish National Ballet; Danish Royal Ballet; Washington Ballet; Danza Contemporanea de Cuba; Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts and Opera Australia To her further credit, Cathy held the role of Artistic Director of Bern Ballett, in Switzerland between 2007-2013 and as an Associate Artist Royal Opera House, London between 2002-2006. | |||
| 28 May 2018 | Ilse Ghekiere | 00:43:38 | |
“Problem comes when there is no transparency in the hierarchy” Ilse Ghekiere is a Belgian artist, writer, researcher, teacher and historian. As a dancer she has worked with choreographers Michèle Anne De Mey, Mette Ingvartsen and Jan Martens. I came to know Ilse’s work through an article that was published last year about #METOO moments in dance. The article was captivating and revealed a side of dance that is seldom talked about. The article sparked many conversations and has sparked a range of actions, including: ENGAGEMENT. Launched on International Women's Day, ENGAGEMENT is an artist-led platform that seeks to tackle sexual harassment, sexism and the abuse of power in arts. The website provides practical advice to all sectors of the creative arts. This was a great conversation and one that has so many different focuses. One of the things we do discuss is how to critique a field that you dearly love. We also discussed the particular structures in dance that have left women and young dancers too often disempowered. “What is very specific about dance is that our profession is directly linked to our body and that invites a blurring of the private and the professional, that can often be sort of liberating, but it deviates away from a certain norm of how we think about our bodies. But I think it can also be very confusing and problematic, especially because, we have been trained in education to push our boundaries - so to talk about boundaries is a very interesting conversation”. “We are expected in certain contexts to be sexualized objects.” | |||
| 19 Jun 2018 | Justin Shoulder | 00:41:37 | |
Justin Shoulder is a performance-based artist, whose work cuts across performance, sculpture, dance and video. His performance work was born in the queer club scene, and has found a home in theatres and gallery spaces. Justin cites his experiences at Club Kooky and Club 77 as incredibly influential. The clubs became an escape from his job at the time, which involved editing photos.
Justin’s work explores queer narratives that often connect with intercultural, migrant and spiritual experiences. His work is aesthetically beautiful with stunning costuming, mask and prosthesis that are used to create mythical type creatures that are activated through his body. His main body of work is known as the Phasmahammer, which is based upon queered ancestral myth.
Justin is a founding member of queer artist collective The Glitter Militia and Club Ate, a gang of Asia-pacific sissies. Collaborating with a range of individuals that includes the likes of Bhenji Ra and partner Matthew Stegh, his work has been performed and exhibited internationally, including at AsiaTOPA, First Sight at Museum Macan, Shanghai Museum of Glass, Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, Performance Space, DARK MOFO, GOMA, National Gallery of Australia and Next Wave.
Justin was recently announced as a nominee for the 2018 Helpmann Awards for Best Visual or Physical Theatre Production, for Carrion.
Carrion is a work that has taken place in a range of settings from clubs to theatres. Carrion blurs the boundaries between animal, human and machine; drawing upon queer and ancestral mythologies and evoking a post-apocalyptic landscape rife with decay, where the human and the android have merged for survival.
This season will include interviews with a range of performers and choreographers that disrupt the “normal” through their artistry including Luke George, Mette Ingvartsen, Philip Adams and Chase Johnsey. If you enjoy Delving into Dance please leave a contribution, currently raising funds to transcribe all the episodes to increase the accessibility of the podcast, particularly to deaf individuals.
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| 11 Jul 2018 | Phillip Adams | 00:54:28 | |
Phillip Adams began his dancing career as a back-up dancer for a variety show on Channel 9. In the 1980’s Phillip hitch-hiked to Melbourne, with a red mohawk, to study dance at the Victorian Collage of the Arts (VCA). After being awarded the ANZ International Fellowship Award in 1988, Phillip left Australia to spend 10 years in New York. Phillip recalls “opening The Village Voice and seeing the dance section and reviews from Deborah Jowitt”. New York in the late 1980’s early 1990’s was sexier and dirtier according to Phillip. It was a time in which the AIDS epidemic was having a huge impact on the creative community and in this interview Phillip recalls the loss of his partner and the scores of his friends that lost their life to the disease. These years are described by Phillip as the most informative years of his life. “New York was my mentor” The time in New York was shared with Australian dancers Lucy…. And Bek….. Phillip worked with several leading dance companies and worked with many independent choreographers including BeBe Miller, Trisha Brown, Irene Hultman, Sarah Rudner, Amanda Miller, Donna Uchizono and Nina Wiener. Upon returning to Melbourne in 1998, Phillip founded BalletLab. BalletLab is a company known for pushing the boundaries of dance, incorporating a range of other disciplines, including fashion, performance, cinema, architecture and visual arts. Often unorthodox and Queer in style, BalletLab has created work that takes place in galleries, theatres and other unconventional performance spaces. BalletLab has toured and performed at venues in Australia, North and South America, Asia and Europe. In 2017, Temperance Hall, in South Melbourne, was opened as the new home of Balletlab, and is becoming a home for experimental and contemporary performance work. Temperance Hall has an office space, a rehearsal/performance space and an artist residence space that is used as an Airbnb when artists are not in residence. Phillip’s ambition is that Temperance Hall becomes the site of innovation for the next generation of queer and experimental artists. Phillip won the Australia Council Award for Dance earlier this year. This interview took place in Temperance Hall, with the tap dancing of Phillips gorgeous Dachshunds heard at times walking across the wooden floors. We discuss Phillips journey into dance, his time in New York, his process and his vision for Temperance Hall. | |||
| 25 Jul 2018 | Chase Johnsey | 00:43:02 | |
Chase Johnsey is a gender-queer dancer that is making his mark on the ballet world. Dancing professionally for Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo for 14 years, Chase was known for his expertise, speed and grace. In 2017 he won one of the UK’s top dance prices for the Best Male Dancer in the National Dance awards.
“ballerinas are my superheroes”
His time at Trockadero’s ended in January 2018, after Chase resigned from what he described as his dream job. In a powerful YouTube video he outlined allegations of harassment from a company that he said did not appreciate his gender expression and that of other dancers. Trockadero is known for sending up gender, with the all-male company dancing on pointe in drag. This gender expression was said to be something sent up on stage and trans issues or gender fluidity was discouraged. Chase made a big sacrifice and thought he would never dance professionally again.
Upon leaving Trockadero’s, a significant opportunity opened up to Chase, with
English National Ballet’s Artistic Director, Tamara Rojo, offering Chase the chance to joining the female corps de ballet for the company’s production of The Sleeping Beauty. The casting was not done as a publicity stunt, but as a genuine attempt for the company to include Chase in the ensemble. This historic move was said to be the first, for a classical dance company to cast a gender queer man in the female ensemble. The casting certainly got conversations started about the capacity of ballet to reimagine traditional gender roles and gender more broadly.
Chase found that there was more freedom at the English National Ballet to be himself than at Trockadero’s. He hopes that he has taken an important step that will make it easier for gender queer and trans dancers in the future to get jobs in these companies.
“the possibility for anybody in any ballet company, for anybody who is talented enough to be there”
This is an extensive interview that covers Chase’s journey in to dance, including his vision for the future of dance.
This episode is part of a season that profiles performers and choreographers that disrupt the “normal” through their artistry including Luke George, Mette Ingvartsen, Philip Adams, Bruno Isakovic and Justin Shoulder.
If you enjoy Delving into Dance please leave a contribution. We are currently raising funds to transcribe all the episodes to increase the accessibility of the podcast, particularly to deaf individuals.
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| 02 Aug 2018 | Luke George | 00:41:38 | |
Luke George is a dancer and choreographer. His work often explores connection between the audience and the performers, creating a space in which the audience is a part of the event, not just a passive watcher.
“Dance is an embodied space, it is a visual space, it’s a sensual space and I just have such a strong desire for the audience to be in their bodies as well as the performers and for them not to be sitting in a black box as if they are watching television, in their heads thinking about things, analysing.”
Luke hails from Tasmania, coming to Victoria to study at the Victorian College of the Arts. Upon graduating Luke became the co-artistic director of Stompin Youth Dance Company in Tasmania, a role he shared with Bec Reid. Stompin was the company that introduced both Luke and Bec to dance as teenagers.
Luke often collaborates across disciplines including theatre, film, TV, music, visual and live art. Collaborations can at time shift the performances into new realms as is the case with Bunny, created in collaboration with Daniel Kok. Bunny uses Kinbaku (rope bondage) to explore consent, collective responsibility, and the relationship between audience and artists. | |||
| 17 Aug 2018 | Bruno Isaković | 00:39:27 | |
Bruno Isaković is a performer, teacher and choreographer based in Zagreb, Croatia. Bruno’s dancing emerged from rave parties. "I loved it, a wave took me away from all the things I couldn’t connect with in Croatia” Dance lead Bruno to studying contemporary dance at the Amsterdam School of the Arts, graduating in 2009. Bruno’s work often explores the "body as a reflection of society." I spoke to Bruno while he was in Australia, with his work Denuded being presented at Philip Adams Ballet Lab, Temperance Hall as part of Midsumma Festival. Created in 2013, Denuded has toured to New York, Tokyo, London, Sao Paulo, Melbourne and Hobart, posing question about how performance might read differently depending on context. Starting as a solo show, and also developed into a group show, Denuded becomes a site for investigating the way the body communicates to an audience. The work is driven by the breath of the performer. His partner, NAME, lovingly describes Bruno as a “stage breather”. In the work Denuded, the gaze is returned to the audience, averting the potential for a more voyeuristic gaze: "I am observing them, observing me." He received the Jury Award and Best Solo Dance at Solo Dance International Festival in Budapest and Croatian national award 2016 as a best choreographer for Denuded (ensemble version). Bruno regularly teaches workshops and dance classes, in places such as Bilgi University of Performing Arts – Istanbul, contemporary dance department at The Academy of Dramatic Art – Zagreb – , TSEKH Summer School – Moscow. | |||
| 05 Sep 2018 | Mette Ingvartsen | 00:42:36 | |
Mette Ingvartsen is a Danish choreographer and dancer based in Brussels. Mette’s work also crosses over in to writing and research, holding a PhD in choreography from UNIARTS, Lunds University in Sweden. Mette established her company in 2003 and has since toured throughout Europe, US, Canada and Australia
Mette’s work often combines choreographic practices with theoretical backgrounds related to human interaction and perception. As a result her work is a combination of dance movement and other disciplines including visual art, technology and theoretical frameworks. This interview particularly focuses on The Red Pieces; a body of work that explore the history of sexuality, ideas of nudity, pornography and privacy. In these works the body becomes a site of exploration and inquiry. The works that make up this series include 69 positions (2014) 7 Pleasures (2015), to come (extended) and 21 pornographies (2017).
69 positions questions the boundaries between private and public. Placing the naked body amongst the audience. 7 pleasures examines seven notions of pleasure. The third piece to come (extended) is based on to come (2005), an early work for five dancers. to come (extended) is revisited with 15 dancers, and explores the relationship between the private and public space. 21 pornographies looks at the ways in which pornography is thought about in society, including in structures of power beyond sex.
This interview covers a range of topics including the role of sexuality in society, #MeToo, relationship between dancer and audience, nudity and desire, power and ways in which dance can be used to question common narratives and systems (including heteronormativity and the patriarchy).
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| 18 Sep 2018 | Harper Watters | 00:43:31 | |
Harper Watters is a Soloist for the Houston Ballet, where he has been dancing since 2011, starting at age 18.
Harper’s success on stage has taken place alongside an incredibly vast reach on social media, with hundreds of thousands of followers across Instagram, YouTube, Facebook. This reach has allowed Harper to reach new audiences and provided a platform where he has documented and shared the experience of being a professional ballet dancer as well as the behind the scenes of an elite dance company.
“I try to make the ballet world a lot more colourful, diverse, a lot more inclusive.”
Harper is known for being proudly and unapologetically himself, this is captured so clearly in an incredible fun video that went viral, capturing Harper in heels on a treadmill.
“I share my gayness, I share my sassiness, I share my love for things and I show other people working in my company through my YouTube series in the hope that the next generation says ‘I like that too and I also want to be a dancer.’”
This openness off the stage has also informed his dancing, with Harper explaining:
“My career has been really elevated through self acceptance and owning my own truth.”
This level of openness has come with its critics with a few critiquing Harper’s gender expression and if it is appropriate for male dancers. These critiques are indeed problematic, and Harper responds to anyone who thinks he is a bad representation of male ballet dancers: “Bad representation means I am not playing to your rules. But you are just not willing to see mine.”
Harper makes the point in the interview that men in dance are required to make choices, completely unrelated to how they move, related to emotion, and self understanding, with the belief that they are only “going to be able to do it if they are accepted and in an environment that is compassionate, understanding and vulnerable.”
In this interview we talk about a range of issues from gender, sexuality, social media, self-acceptance, the changing space of dance and what the future holds. The episode itself sits within a season that explores the different ways people understand and use dance to challenge normative assumptions and ideas. A great sister interview to this one is the one with Chase Johnsey who danced in the female ensemble of the English National Ballet in early 2018.
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| 06 Oct 2018 | Jane Desmond | 00:49:08 | |
Professor Jane Desmond is one of those people who you would want on a trivia team. Starting as a dancer and choreographer, Jane’s work has moved into academia and has covered a range of fascinating areas. This interview reveals just how much dance, as a practice, has informed Jane’s work in other fields and on other topics. Jane is now a professor in Anthropology and Gender and Women's Studies, and Co-founder, and current Director, of the International Forum for U.S. Studies, a center in International Programs.
Her research covers topics including embodiment, display, and social identity, as well as the transnational dimensions of U.S. Studies. Her work includes research on human and animal relations and gender and sexuality, which feature in this interview.
I was interested in talking to Jane as a result of her work looking at the role of dance in society and the ways in which dance can be used to question the status quo. Before the interview, we exchanged a number of emails about the topic of our conversation and the below text comes from one of our exchanges. It is included as an extension of our conversation. | |||
| 12 Oct 2018 | Bridget Fiske | 00:41:53 | |
Bridget Fiske is a dancer, choreographer and dance facilitator. Originating from Australia and now based in Manchester, UK, her work takes place across different locations and spaces. Studying at WAAPA, Bridget went on to dance with Buzz Dance Theatre.
Bridget has worked with Belarus Free Theatre on a range of projects as choreographic, movement and rehearsal director including Burning Doors (winner ‘Best Ensemble’ Off West End Awards and listed in the New York Times Best Theatre of 2017), Trash Cuisine (winner 2013 Impacto Totale Award) and Red Forest.
Bridget has just finished working as Movement Director on Trustees, a Malthouse Theatre and Melbourne International Arts Festival production by the directors of Belarus Free Theatre.
Bridget facilitates works at the Lowry Centre for Advanced Training in Dance, giving young people an opportunity to develop their own voice in dance.
This interview covers so much territory exploring three strands of Bridget’s practice. | |||
| 07 Nov 2018 | Lauren Langlois | 00:25:56 | |
Lauren Langlois is a dancer, actor and choreographer based in Melbourne. Starting dance at a young age Lauren went on to train classical ballet at the Marie Walton-Mahon Dance Academy and also studied contemporary dance at the New Zealand School of Dance.
Upon graduating Lauren danced for Australian Dance Theatre from 2008. In 2011, Lauren joined Sydney Dance Company, performing in LANDforms, 6 Breaths, We Unfold, The Land of Yes and The Land of No choreographed by Rafael Bonachela. She also collaborated with Jacopo Godani, performing in his work Raw Models.
In 2012 she joined Chunky Move to collaborate with choreographer Antony Hamilton on his work Keep Everything (receiving nominations for Helpmann, Green Room and Australian Dance Awards), before performing in Anouk van Dijk’s An Act of Now (2012), 247 Days (2013), Complexity of Belonging (2014) and Lucid (2016). For Complexity of Belonging she won the 2015 Green Room Award for Best Female Dancer. Lauren was also the recipient of the 2017 Tanja Liedtke Fellowship.
She has worked with Lina Limosani on The Tighter you Squeeze, Antony Hamilton on RGB and NYX, Larissa McGowan on Slack, Zero-Sum, Skeleton and Scrap, Prue Lang on SPACEPROJECT and YONI, Stephanie Lake on A Small Prometheus.
In 2017, Lauren toured throughout Europe with Lucy Guerin Inc. performing in Motion Picture. In January, she performed in the world premiere of Force Majeure’s You Animal, You which premiered at Sydney Festival.
Lauren is about to open Nether, a work that she has choregraphed with James Vu Anh Pham. Opening as part of Chunky Move’s Next Move Season, Nether is an absurd vision of a future that is hurtling towards us. | |||
| 12 Nov 2018 | Joel Bray | 00:25:19 | |
Joel Bray has established himself as a contemporary dancer and choreographer both nationally and internationally. The Melbourne-based artist and proud Wiradjuri man began dancing at age 20, leaving a Law Degree to start training in traditional Aboriginal and Contemporary dance forms at NAISDA Dance College. Explaining: “It wasn’t so much dance I was interested in, it was being in a community of Black people, for the first time, being surrounded by other Aboriginal people for the first time and learning about my roots.” Joel then went to Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) graduating in 2005. In creating and choreographing, Joel is inspired by his Wiradjuri cultural heritage allowing this to inform a new method of creation, rather than recreate a supposed Indigenous ‘form’. Alongside explorations of the experience for fair-skinned Aboriginal people and the racism they can face, Joel navigates the experience for gay men in a world of digital isolation. Often his works are intimate encounters, an experience between the performer and audience member where each party have a role to play in the storytelling and performance. For example, his recent work Biladurang, set in a hotel room, which was programmed as part of Brisbane Festival 2018 and will next appear as part of Sydney Festival 2019. In conversation Joel talked about his twelve year career, spanning France, Portugal, Israel and Australia with Chunky Move, Jean-Claude Gallotta, Company CeDeCe , Kolben Dance, Machol Shalem Dance House, Yoram Karmi’s FRESCO Dance Company, Niv Sheinfeld & Oren Laor and Roy Assaf. He is a grantee of the 2018 Australia Council’s Indigenous Signature Works funding and is currently co-commissioned by the Performance Space and Yirramboi Festival to make a new work entitled Candy from Strangers for 2019. Joel was nominated for Best Performer in 2017 at the Australian Dance Awards and is a member of the Melbourne Greenroom Awards Dance Jury. “Dance has the ability to take the moment and to expand that out, so you can almost, you can take one or a few things, and really pull them apart and really understand them. […] Dance allows the possibility for authentic human to human encounters; that I think are becoming more and more precious in this digital world.” | |||
| 18 Jan 2019 | Thomas Bradley | 00:39:37 | |
Thomas Bradley is an Australian dancer based between Brussels and Sydney. Growing up in Cootamundra, in regional NSW, Thomas discovery of dance came through choreographing a Jennifer Lopez routine. Thomas went to study at New Zealand School of Dance before joining Sydney Dance Company (SDC) in 2012. He received a professional development fellowship from the Tanja Liedtke Foundation and was nominated for Outstanding Male Dancer at the Australian Dance Awards in 2015. During his time at SDC Thomas performed in the world premiere of Rafael Bonachela’s 2 One Another, Larissa McGowan’s Fanatic, Alexander Ekman’s Cacti and Rafael Bonachela’s Project Rameau with the Australian Chamber Orchestra, alongside the works of a range of other choreographers. Upon leaving SDC, Thomas has worked for a range of companies and choreographers including Australian Dance Theatre and Larissa McGowan. Thomas is currently a company dancer with Emanuel Gat Dance. Increasingly, Thomas has been interested in costume and design and has made costumes for Story Water (white costumes for Emanuel Gat Dance) and is currently in the design phase for costumes for i have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night (Rachel Arianne Ogle, Dance Massive 2019), Emanuel Gat new commission with Scottish Dance Theatre and Sunny for Emanuel Gat Dance for Staats Ballett Berlin). Thomas recently completed an international and collaborative work CLAY, with Butoh dancer Dai Matsuoka from the University of Butoh Company at Higashi Nakano RAFT. Butoh has forced Thomas to rethink the way he works with his body and has expanded the way he wants to make work. He is currently developing a work with Dai Matsuoka (Company Sankaijuku) based upon a personal essay that he has been writing about gender and sexuality. This interview explores Thomas’ journey into dance and his broad set of interests. Thomas is a passionate and creative soul, who will no doubt continue to make a space in dance and in every other creative pursuit he puts his mind to. | |||
| 25 Jan 2019 | Amrita Hepi | 00:43:46 | |
Amrita Hepi is a first nations choreographer and dancer from Bundjulung (Aus) and Ngapuhi (NZ) territories. Amrita trained at the National Aboriginal Islander Skills Development Association (NAISDA) dance college and Alvin Ailey American Dance School, New York. As an artist she pushes the barriers of intersectionality and makes work that garners multiple access points through allegories. Her practice at present is interested in probing ideas of authenticity, the perpetuation of culture, tradition, and a ‘decolonial imagination’ - questioning where this now resides. Her reach expands beyond the stage and includes public spaces, night clubs and various other forms and mediums including film, installation, text, sculpture and lecture. Her social media reach is also extensive, using those spaces to profile important conversations and her dance practice. Amrita has worked with Victoria Chiu, Marrugeku, Melanie Lane & Amos Gerbrahnt, Bhenji Ra and Force Majeure. In 2018 she was the recipient of the People's Choice Award for the Keir Choreographic award and was named one of Forbes Asia's 30 under 30. Amrita has also worked in various commercial capacities, having been commissioned by ASOS global to create and choreograph film works and has be featured globally in Vogue USA, TeenVogue USA, Instyle, Harpers Bazar and PAPER US. Amrita can now be seen at Sydney Festival , in Cement Fondu's second annual pairing of an esteemed International artist with an Australian early career artist. This exhibition presents a new video installation by Amrita, with a selection of video works by Adrian Piper. Amrita Hepi’s video installation The Pace (2018) proposes skipping as a new choreographic tool to draw upon the powerful connections between the skilful command of the body and rope with other social and cultural practices, particularly the First Nations art of weaving. You can find out more here. In this interview we discuss Amrita’s practice and where dancing originated, we discuss the role of dance in society and how to have difficult conversations, alongside a range of other topics. Summary of Amrita’s busy 2019 schedule: JAN - Sydney Festival, The Ropes: Amrita Hepi X Adrian Piper (at Cement Fondu) January 11 to February 24 Arts Centre Melbourne, presenting A Call to Dance FEB/MARCH - The National 2019, new work The Tender - A performance installation commissioned by AGNSW Womadelaide - presenting Power Moves for Perilous times Dance Massive - Le Dernier Appel with Marrgeku Castlemaine Festival – presenting Deep Soulful Sweats MAY P.I.C.A (Perth Institute of Contemporary Art), presenting A Call to Dance JUNE The National 2019 new work, The Tender, a performance installation commissioned by AGNSW (Performance 3) Theater Formen Festival Braushweig Germany, presenting A Call to Dance Origins Festival London Southbank Centre, presenting A Call to Dance AUGUST Tour of Le Denier Appel with Marrugeku: - Tanz Im August - Berlin Germany - Theatre Challoit Festival - Paris France - TanzZurich Festival - Zurich Switzerland - Grec Festival de Barcelona - Barcelona Spain OCT Nelson Arts Festival New Zealand + Tauranga Arts Festival, presenting A Call to Dance You can find Amrita on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. This is the last episode of season 8. The next season will present the voices of First Nations Australian dance arts in a partnership with BlakDance. This season will focus on the important First Nations Dialogues that occurred in New York in early January. | |||
| 07 Mar 2019 | Jo Lloyd | 00:43:40 | |
Jo Lloyd is Melbourne based dance maker and choreographer. Jo started dance at a young age before going on to further study at the Victorian College of the Arts. Jo has worked with a range of companies as a dancer and choreographer including Lucy Guerin Inc, Chunky Move, Back to Back Theatre Company and worked with artists Deanne Butterworth, Shian Law, Nicola Gunn, Gideon Obarzanek, Shelley Lasica, Sandra Parker, Prue Lang, Rebecca Jensen and many others. Jo has presented work in New York, Japan, Hong Kong and locally in Dance Massive, Next Wave, the Biennale of Sydney, Liveworks and Dark MOFO. She has taught for Akram Khan, Bangarra, Dancenorth, ADT, the Australian Ballet and teaches dance and Yoga regularly at Chunky Move, VCA and Lucy Guerin Inc. In 2016, Jo was Resident Director of Lucy Guerin Inc. where she started developing her work OVERTURE. The work premiered in 2018 at Arts House Melbourne, with dancers reconstruct and invoke lost heroes in order to play out impossible scenarios. As part of Dance Massive OVERTURE, we presented in a new way, with an onscreen version, proposing a new way of experiencing the work. Filmed on special cameras by James Wright (NON Studio), this onscreen version will give a different insight into the work. | |||
| 09 Mar 2019 | Danielle Micich | 00:31:04 | |
“I want us to all be held responsible for watching what is happening on
stage, as opposed to 'I can't see the person next to me. And so therefore,
it doesn't matter'. Actually, I want us to all take part in what I'm
putting on stage and be responsible and have thoughts about that. If we do
that, then we're having a bigger conversation about what has actually on
our stage today.” | |||
| 12 Mar 2019 | Paul White | 00:37:56 | |
Paul White is an Australian born dancer and choreographer, based in Berlin, with an international reputation. After starting as a dancer at Jupiters Casino in Queensland, Paul went on to do a pre-professional year at Queensland Ballet, before moving in to a career as a contemporary dancer. One of Australia’s highest regarded dancers Paul has worked as a performer and artistic collaborator around the world. Including working with companies and directors; Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch, Lloyd Newson (DV8 Physical Theatre), Chunky Move, Tanja Liedtke, Nigel Jamieson and Garry Stewart (Australian Dance Theatre), Narelle Benjamin, Kristina Chan, Martin Del Amo, Danzahoy and Meryl Tankard. Paul was the first dancer to join Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch, after the death of Pina Bausch in 2009. He was an ensemble member from 2013-2017, and still dances as a guest artist for the company. Paul’s list of awards is extensive and include Dancer of the Year German, Critics’ Circle UK Award for Outstanding Modern Performance, Helpmann Award’s for Best Male Dancer, Australian Dance Award’s for Most Outstanding Performance by a Male Dancer. Paul is the Honorary Patron of Tanzrauschen Wuppertal, a dance-on-film society founded in Wuppertal and a founding member of the Free Arts Scene Society, Germany. In July 2017, Narelle Benjamin & Paul White premiered a new work Cella at Colours International Festival, Stuttgart and later presented at the Sydney Festival, in 2018. Several years in the making, this intimate work explores the cells on the human body. | |||
| 02 May 2019 | Vicki Van Hout | 00:43:11 | |
Vicki Van Hout is an Indigenous independent choreographer with Wiradjuri, Dutch, Scottish, and Afghan heritage. Originally desiring a career in theatre, she was encouraged to join NAISDA Dance College (National Aboriginal Islander Skills Development Association Dance College). Before entering she was not interested in learning the traditional dances and was more interested in contemporary techniques, this soon changed as she realised both the significant and performative elements of the more traditional dance styles. After studying at NAISDA, Vicki left for New York on a scholarship to study at the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance. During these formative years Vicki’s life intersected with the punk scene, she lived as a squatter at the Woolloomooloo Gunnery, and also worked for Tish and Snooky's Manic Panic a punk and hair dye store. Upon returning to Australia Vicki danced for a range of dance companies including Bangarra Dance Theatre, and the Aboriginal Islander Dance Theatre, before working with Marilyn Miller with Fresh Dancers. With the support of friends she developed her own choreographic voice, and her show Briwyant, became the first performance by an independent First Nations choreographer to tour nationally, while also being nominated for an Australian Dance Award for Achievement in Independent Dance. Vicki recently won The Australia Council Award for Dance, recognising her significant contribution to dance and her career that has spanned over 20 years. She was also awarded the 2014 NSW Dance Fellowship for established and mid-career artists – the first Indigenous winner of the Fellowship. Finally, Vicki is studying for her PhD but admits that she needs to spend more time writing it. She currently writes for Form Dance Projects. This interview covers so much of Vicki’s work. She speaks particularly about Long Grass, a powerful work that explores the lives of Aboriginal people living on the fringes of Darwin; on the fringes of society, yet in the middle of a city. Vicki then speaks of her work plenty serious TALK TALK, which uses humour to break down and explore barriers and issues related to the representations of First Nations people within dance and society more broadly. plenty serious TALK TALK will be presented as part of YIRRAMBOI Festival. | |||
| 06 Jun 2019 | Adam Wheeler | 00:29:19 | |
Adam Wheeler is a Tasmanian born contemporary dance artist. He is an alumni of Stompin and Victorian College of the Arts whose practice is interested in diversifying how dance can be experienced both as a performer and audaicne member. He has invested the better part of his 20-year career developing programs and projects in the pursuit of enhancing how young people connect with dance and enter the professional dance industry in Australia. Adam has been commissioned to make work across the country and has choreographed for Lucy Guerin Inc (Pieces for Small Spaces), Stompin, QL2, Steps Youth Dance Company, fLing Physical Theatre, Tasdance and was a Next Move choreographer for Chunky Move in 2011, creating It Sounds Silly. The success of It Sounds Silly, became the launching pad for Adam to create Yellow Wheel and has only recently stepped down as the Artistic Director. Adam has recently been appointed Artistic Director of Tasdance. Adam is a kind hearted, funny and warm welcoming person to anyone who he doesn’t personally know. He creates an environment in dance that allows any dancer or any artist to feel comfortable in their own skin and also allows them to push their limits by making them laugh and do occasionally silly warm-ups. For myself as the interviewer, my favourite moments were when Adam talked about his experiences in dance and how they helped him become the person he is today. His answers were very eye-opening for me as a hopeful dancer and allowed me to take a glimpse into the work space of contemporary dance. | |||
| 13 Jun 2019 | Daniel Riley | 00:29:38 | |
Daniel Riley, from the Wiradjuri nation of Western NSW, first began his training in tap dance before joining QL2 Dance in Canberra. Daniel has danced with companies both in Australia and in the UK, most notably dancing with Bangarra Dance Theatre for twelve years. He has choreographic credits with Bangarra, Sydney Dance Company, Queensland University of Technology, and Third Row Dance Company in the UK, amongst many others. He is currently an Associate Producer at ILBIJERRI Theatre Company. In this episode, Daniel looks back at his time at QL2, and discusses his passion for youth dance, black storytelling, and choreography. | |||
| 21 Jun 2019 | Isabella Stone | 00:38:09 | |
Isabella Stone is a contemporary dance performer, choreographer, and teacher. Isabella believes in the power of movement and performance to connect, communicate, transform and inspire people and communities through performance experiences. Based in Perth, Isabella is a graduate of the West Australian Academy of Performing Arts (2009) and LINK Dance Company (2010). As a performer, Isabella has worked for Maxima Circus Catch!, Thomas ES Kelly Junjeiri Ballun – Gurul Gaureima, Paul Blackman and Christine Gouzelis (Jukstapoz) Fragile Matter, and many more. Isabella participated in extensive research residencies in Tasmania (T.R.I.P Tasdance), Finland (JoJo Dance Festival), Bilbao (ACTFestival) and Bundanon, as well as workshops nationally and internationally. Teaching has become an integral part of Isabella’s development as an artist, with a strong focus on working with youth. Isabella cherishes the role young people have played, in her ambition to remain curious and always learning while teaching. In 2019, Isabella became a member of Tasdance, performing in MONA FOMA and creating new solo work for Junction Arts Festival, and performed with Maxima Circus in the season Catch! Isabella is a very kind and hopeful person. She trusts that by the time she is 50, she will be at the peak of her creative and physical abilities. This was quite an eye-opener for me as I have never really thought about my life at that age. As a young dancer, it was a pleasure to interview her as it made me realise what keeps drawing me towards dance. | |||
| 28 Jun 2019 | Anna Kenrick | 00:31:35 | |
"In term of my career, I've spent most of it - if not all of it - in youth dance." And she has. Anna Kenrick, from her beginnings training at the Northern Contemporary School of Dance through to her current position as Artistic Director of YDance in Scotland, has forged a career pushing for the voice of young people. Over her career as a dancer, teacher, and choreographer, Anna's passion for social issues drives her work. From working in prisons, rural areas, with mothers, disabled people, and young dancers who wish to continue professionally, Anna opens the doors of dance to as many people as she can. In this episode, Anna talks about her experience with not only youth dance, but also teaching collaboration, choreography, and touring. | |||
| 08 Jul 2019 | Aparna Nagesh | 01:17:38 | |
Aparna was born in Chennai, India, into a very musical family. Formal training started “quite late at 15” but the joy of moving started long before then, and she remembers dancing around to ABBA music. She would run home from school, to catch the two hours of Western music on a radio station, kick her sister out of the room and just enjoying moving.
Aparna explored classical Indian styles of dance as well as Western, joining a school that offered a wide variety of classes. She acknowledges this as a strength of her early years of dance, explaining that dance is “vast for me”, describing her style as a “global fusion”.
After 12 years of dancing in the company in India, she travelled to New York at the age of 27 supported by a scholarship. Aparna remembers a period in New York, three weeks into the company of wanting “to pack it in” and return home. It was one of the many times of self reflection and growth, her relationship to dance being tested. Acknowledging that while they are highly uncomfortable, she recognises the value and strength in reflecting and checking in. “I treat dance is like a relationship” and sees it as a time to “to be by myself and with myself”.
High Kicks is a youth ensemble founded, in 2011, with a focus on empowerment, challenging boundaries and the diversity of dance. The company has recently shifted from being an all girls collective, to being inclusive of anyone who identifies as female, as well people who gender-diverse or gender fluid. Aparna acknowledged the need for this shift to ensure that everyone feel included and able to dance in a safe space. She imparts the importance of everyone’s individual journey, and states the important truth of “just because they know something you don’t , doesn’t mean that you don’t know anything.”
Aparna is a generous, enthusiastic and reflective person who was an absolute pleasure to interview. Her honesty and genuineness was infectious and the way she talked about dancing was highly inspiring. Aparna’s commitment to dance and the significance of moving and being with other people is affirming. Being able to talk with someone liked minded and excited about dance, just reinforces why we do what we do.
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| 14 Jul 2019 | Adam Rutherford | 00:21:58 | |
Adam Rutherford an independent creative practitioner, performer, choreographer, Rehearsal Director and Artistic Director of both Rutherford Dance Company (RDC) and multi-award-winning Rutherford Dance Company Youth (RDC Youth). He explores Global Equality through choreographic projects spanning Europe. In 2018, he was awarded a Dance Hub Birmingham Artistic Commission and was appointed dance lead for the 2022 Commonwealth Games Handover from Australia to Birmingham. Adam was awarded a Lisa Ullman Travel Scholarship Fund (LUTSF) award in 2019 to visit Palucca ‘Hochschule für Tanz’ in Dresden, Germany.
Adam’s career in the performing arts spans over 15 years and has a successful track record in choreography, education, outreach, youth dance, and professional dance. Adam is a very intelligent and focused Director. He works very closely with his youth company dancers to create an experience for them that is hard to find in any other parts of England.
This interview with Adam focuses on his vision for his Youth Company. Adam provides the opportunity to his young dancers to help with his decisions in their process of creating works, which captures an exclusive experience in contemporary dance at a young age. | |||
| 06 Aug 2019 | Cadi McCarthy | 01:04:04 | |
Dance started for Cadi McCarthy at the youthful age of four, having been taken along to a ballet class by her parents. At the age of 17, she was accepted into the Western Australian Academy for Performing Arts (WAAPA). At WAAPA and the world of what dance was opened up for Cadi, sparking what has become a life-long commitment and investment into the potential and possibility of choreography and movement. Cadi was exposed to different ways of engaging with dance and the practise of dance-making, improvisation and tasking, “not just the performing aspect of dance”. Cadi’s interest and dedication in the art of dance-making and its power is found in the body; “every human has a body and bodies tell stories”. Cadi’s career has taken her all over the world - and spent time working with dance companies in Denmark, UK, Germany, USA, and Canada. The interest was always in meeting new people and seeing the way the different ways of engaging with life and dance, not just about learning new techniques: “it’s about making our world smaller and richer” as well as “connecting with like-minded people”. In 2012, Cadi moved to Newcastle, and noticed the lack of engagement with dance-making and practice. She was inspired to create an artistic hub of sorts, providing a space for artists to have the liberty to just play and investigate - to see what they could come up with. Catapult Dance Choreographic Hub was born, a space that exists to nurture emerging and professional choreographers and artists and to “strengthen the presence of contemporary dance/art in the Newcastle community”. The Hub provides multiple residencies and support - for people to consolidate practise as well as to take personal and artistic risk. This lack of a youth cultural, was the catalyst for the Flip-Side project. She sees this as an opportunity to nurture the individual voice that everyone possesses and the way in which dance can build foundational skills that transcend into everyday life. Cadi comments that “youth dance didn’t really exist” when she was younger and that this would have been a formative experience. Cadi is a generous and open-person, with so much enthusiasm and insight into dance-making and the body. I really appreciated the way she views choreography and highlights the importance of nurturing and providing space for people to play and explore. | |||
| 15 Jan 2020 | Dan Daw | 00:58:36 | |
Dan Daw is an Australian dance artist based in Birmingham. Dan grew up in Whyalla, in country South Australia. Starting dance at a young age, his grandmother was a callisthenics teacher, so was surrounded by dance and movement from a young age. "It gave me an outlet and a way to express myself, and to be in a space where I could see myself represented."
Dan started dancing with Restless Dance Theatre in 2002, before dancing with a range of different companies including; Australian Dance Theatre, and Force Majeure (Australia), FRONTLINEdance, Scottish Dance Theatre, balletLORENT, Candoco Dance Company (UK), and with Skånes Dansteater (Sweden).Throughout his performance career Dan has worked with Kat Worth, Garry Stewart, Kate Champion, Janet Smith, Adam Benjamin, Wendy Houstoun, Sarah Michelson, Rachid Ouramdane, Nigel Charnock, Matthias Sperling, Marc Brew, Claire Cunningham, Martin Forsberg, Carl Olof Berg and Javier de Frutos.Dan left Australia to work with Candoco Dance Company, finding a lack of opportunities in Australia, depressed at the prospect of needing to go on the dole after significant performance opportunities. There are bigger conversations that need to be had about who can be considered a dancer within an Australian context and who is missing out on professional opportunities.
Dan's work often blurs the lines between dance and theatre and can have a common theme related to time.
Dan has created solo works – ‘Beast’ by Martin Forsberg and ‘On One Condition’ by Graham Adey, the latter receiving the Adelaide Fringe Best Theatre Award 2017. In 2020 Dan will premiere his new work The Dan Daw Show, which explores inspiration, porn and audiences expectations of disabled artists.
Dan was interviewed during a successful run of Thank You Very Much by Claire Cunningham during Manchester International Festival.
This is the first episode in a season looking at Australian dance artists working and living overseas. | |||
| 27 Jan 2020 | James Vu Anh Pham | 00:37:00 | |
James Vu Anh Pham is from Perth, Western Australia, and was the first generation of his Vietnamese family to be raised in a Western society. James loved music as a child, playing piano, clarinet and saxophone, he planned on becoming a musician. Struggling with stage-fright a friend suggested he tried dance classes as a way to connect to his body. Starting hip-hop, he loved what he could express through his body. Subsequently, he switched his planned career in music to a career in dance, going on to study at New Zealand School of Dance.
His first professional contact was with Chunky Move, shortly after Anouk van Dijk started, performing in An Act of Now, in 2012. James continued to dance extensively for Chunky Move in a range of works including Rule of Thirds (2016), Depth of Field (2015), Complexity of Belonging (2014), 247 Days (2013) and AORTA (2013) – a Next Move production choreographed by Stephanie Lake.
He learnt Countertechnique for Anouk van Dijk and has since become an instructor.
James received the ‘Best Male Dancer in a Dance or Physical Theatre Work’ (2014) Helpmann Award for his performance in 247 Days and the ‘Outstanding Performance by a Male Dancer’ (2014) Australian Dance Award for AORTA.
In 2016, James relocated to Belgium to work at Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui's Eastman, where he performed in works including Babel 7.16 in the Palais Des Papes for the Festival d'Avignon, guesting in Ravel with Ballet Flanders and ICON with the Göteborg Opera Dance Company. He also performed with Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui in Les Indes galantes, a production by the Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich.
In 2019, James moved to London, where he now works as a company dancer with Akram Khan Company. He was involved in the creation of Outwitting the Devil, which had its world première in 2019. James has so much to offer the world of dance and continues to bring his own style and personality wherever he goes.
This is the second episode in a season looking at Australian dance artists working and living overseas. The next interview is with Juliet Burnett who dances with Belgium's premier dance company, Ballet Vlaanderen. | |||
| 04 Mar 2020 | Juliet Burnett part one | 00:41:50 | |
Juliet Burnett grew up in Sydney, while spending considerable time in Indonesia. Dancing was in Juilet’s blood; her grandmother, was the Sultan’s star dancer at his court in Jogjakarta. At the age of 5 her parents enrolled her in ballet school to see if she took after her grandmother.
Later Juliet studied at The Australian Ballet School, before joining the company in 2003. Juliet has worked in creations by Wayne McGregor, Stanton Welch, Alexei Ratmansky, Krysztof Pastor, Nicolo Fonte, Maina Gielgud, Rudolf Nureyev, Peggy van Praagh, Matjash Mrozewski, Stephen Baynes, Gideon Obarzanek, Graeme Murphy and Stephen Page.
In mid-2015 Juliet left The Australian Ballet after her final show as Giselle. She left to become a freelance dancer performing in Australia and Indonesia, working with a range of people including Melanie Lane, a childhood friend.
In 2016 Juliet made the move to Europe to join Ballet Vlaanderen, Belgium's premier dance company, under the directorship of renowned choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui.
Since 2016 Juliet has been a First Soloist with Ballet Vlaanderen, where she has had new creations made for her by Édouard Lock in The Heart of August and The Heart of August ... continued and Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui in his Requiem. Other roles include the title role in Akram Khan’s Giselle, in William Forsythe's Approximate Sonata and Workwithinwork, Pina Bausch's Café Müller, in Benjamin Millepied’s Bach Studies, as Marguerite in Jean-Christophe Maillot's Faust, as Queen Fabiola in Jeroen Verbruggen's Ma Mére L'Oye, Trisha Brown’s Twelve Ton Rose, in Alexander Ekman’s Joy, in Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui's Firebird, Memento Mori, Exhibition and Fall, and the Snow Queen in Demis Volpi's Nutcracker. In 2017 she danced as Guest Artist with Dutch National Ballet, in Remi Wortmeyer's new creation, Passing Shadows.
Juliet is also a writer, having been a regular contributor for Dance Tabs, MDM Dancewear's website and The Australian Ballet's blog Behind Ballet. She has written for other publications including Vogue Australia, Dance International and Gourmet Traveller magazines.
With such an extensive career and so many interesting things to talk about this interview is presented in two parts. | |||
| 04 Mar 2020 | Juliet Burnett part two | 00:24:04 | |
Juliet Burnett grew up in Sydney, while spending considerable time in Indonesia. Dancing was in Juilet’s blood; her grandmother, was the Sultan’s star dancer at his court in Jogjakarta. At the age of five her parents enrolled her in ballet school to see if she took after her grandmother.
Later, Juliet studied at The Australian Ballet School, before joining the company in 2003. Juliet has worked in creations by Wayne McGregor, Stanton Welch, Alexei Ratmansky, Krysztof Pastor, Nicolo Fonte, Maina Gielgud, Rudolf Nureyev, Peggy van Praagh, Matjash Mrozewski, Stephen Baynes, Gideon Obarzanek, Graeme Murphy and Stephen Page.
In mid-2015, Juliet left The Australian Ballet after her final show as Giselle. She left to become a freelance dancer performing in Australia and Indonesia, working with a range of people including Melanie Lane, a childhood friend.
In 2016, Juliet made the move to Europe to join Ballet Vlaanderen, Belgium's premier dance company, under the directorship of renowned choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui.
Since 2016, Juliet has been a First Soloist with Ballet Vlaanderen, where she has had new creations made for her by Édouard Lock in The Heart of August and The Heart of August ... continued and Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui in his Requiem. Other roles include the title role in Akram Khan’s Giselle, in William Forsythe's Approximate Sonata and Workwithinwork, Pina Bausch's Café Müller, in Benjamin Millepied’s Bach Studies, as Marguerite in Jean-Christophe Maillot's Faust, as Queen Fabiola in Jeroen Verbruggen's Ma Mére L'Oye, Trisha Brown’s Twelve Ton Rose, in Alexander Ekman’s Joy, in Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui's Firebird, Memento Mori, Exhibition and Fall, and the Snow Queen in Demis Volpi's Nutcracker. In 2017 she danced as Guest Artist with Dutch National Ballet, in Remi Wortmeyer's new creation, Passing Shadows.
Juliet is also a writer, having been a regular contributor for Dance Tabs, MDM Dancewear's website and The Australian Ballet's blog Behind Ballet. She has written for other publications including Vogue Australia, Dance International and Gourmet Traveller magazines. | |||
| 09 Mar 2020 | Lloyd Newson | 00:51:38 | |
Lloyd Newson is best known as the founder and artistic director of DV8 Physical Theatre, in London.
Born in Albury, Australia, Lloyd studied psychology and social work at Melbourne University, becoming interested in dance. This interest continued to deepen when he attended the London Contemporary Dance School on a full scholarship. He started DV8 Physical Theatre in 1986.
DV8 as a company has had a profound impact on shaping perceptions of dance and physical theatre, with performers of a range of backgrounds, and different types of bodies all having a place in different performance works. Lloyd has tackled a range of issues in his works including male violence and homophobia. In 2007, Lloyd placed an increased focus on the role of text alongside movement in his pieces, seeing him make works such as Can We Talk About This? and JOHN.
DV8’s work is highly acclaimed and has won countless international awards. In 2013 Newson was awarded an OBE from the Queen for services to contemporary dance. He has been cited by the Critics Circle as being one of the hundred most influential artists working in Britain during the last one hundred years.
In 2016, after 30 years of running DV8, Lloyd made the decision to step back from the company and to reflect on both the achievements and what he still wanted to say with the company. Running a company for 30 years is no easy task, with a small core team supporting an extensive output.
2020 sees the return of DV8 with the seminal work Enter Achilles, produced by Rambert. The work is touring internationally, starting at Adelaide Festival. This is the first ever remount of a DV8 production, first made in 1995. Enter Achilles set in a British pub, explores themes related to masculinity, stereotypes around men, male violence and men’s insecurities.
Lloyd doubts that he will ever make another full length work, and has found a sense of freedom outside the daily operation of arts company. | |||
| 10 Oct 2020 | Edna Reinhardt | 00:35:38 | |
In this episode, we meet Edna Reinhardt, a passionate creative dance and yoga educator with decades of experience in the field. Edna’s commitment to dance education developed during her foundational training in the 1970’s at the former Managala studios in Carlton under the guidance of Dorethea Mangimele, where yoga, music and dance were married to cultivate this unique discipline. As principal and founder of Over The Moon studios in Castlemaine, we discuss the integration of yoga and dance, education principles and her self-proclaimed life’s mission to develop community and culture through dance in a regional area. Having been a mentor and inspiration for many, Edna’s wisdom and warmth hold valuable insights into a holistic approach to dance education, cultivating artistic, culturally informed and insightful students. Edna embodies how movement training co-exists with philosophy and lifestyle, to create an enriching existence through dance. | |||
| 31 Oct 2020 | Gregory Vuyani Maqoma | 00:48:40 | |
Gregory is the author of the 2020 International Dance Day message – which so poignantly addresses the fragility of the world and humankind. Gregory’s dance journey provides a powerful insight to the dance of dance as a political voice and his voice has carried across the world. His insightful, unflinching, International Dance Day message speaks to his empathy and insight as an activist and artist.
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| 30 Nov 2020 | Lillian Crombie | 01:02:17 | |
Lillian Crombie is a proud woman from the Pitjintjara/Yungkunjara Nation. She is one of Australia’s leading actors and studied acting, dance and drama at the Port Pirie Ballet School, NIDA, NAISDA, the EORA Centre and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, NY. Crombie has trained in classical, modern, jazz ballet and traditional Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island dance. She has had feature roles in numerous films including in Baz Luhrmann’s highly acclaimed Australia. She has extensive credits in television including the “Secret Life of Us” and most recently, 13 episodes of the children’s drama series Double Trouble produced by the Nine Network, Disney and Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association. Crombie has played leading roles in many successful theatre productions including Mereki the Peacemaker, Conversations with The Dead, Black Mary - Festival of Dreaming, Gunjies, Capricornia and recently Rainbow’s End. In this interview Jacob Boehme takes on an extensive journey through Lillian’s life, from when she started dance, through to her journey to Sydney and across to New York. Lillian has worked extensively with community and schools, and has a passion for teaching. She has just opened Lillian Crombie's School of Dance and Drama, to inspire the next generation of dancers and performers. The interview touches on the AIDS epidemic and sexual assault, but simultaneously brings hope, light and optimism for where we find ourselves as a society now.
Film and Television credits include: Double Trouble (2008). TV Series, Milly (13 episodes)
Theatre credits include: Rainbow’s End (2009), Riverside Theatre This interview was conducted by Jacob Boehme. Jacob is a Melbourne born and raised artist of the Narangga and Kaurna Nations, South Australia. He is a multi-disciplinary theatre maker and choreographer, creating work for the stage, screen and festivals.
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| 14 Dec 2020 | Elizabeth Cameron Dalman | 00:30:10 | |
Elizabeth Cameron Dalman, currently Director of Mirramu Creative Arts Centre and Artistic Director of Mirramu Dance Company, founded Australia’s iconic contemporary dance company, Australian Dance Theatre and was its Artistic Director from 1965 - 1975. Elizabeth was awarded an OAM for her contribution to contemporary dance in Australia. Included among her many other awards are an Australian Artists Creative Fellowship, an ACT Creative Arts Fellowship and several Canberra Critics Circle Awards. In 2015 she was inducted into the Australian Dance Hall of Fame and awarded the Canberra Times Artist of the Year. Elizabeth was Head of the Dance Department at the University of Western Sydney from 2004 – end 2006. She has taught at the Taipei National University of the Arts in Taiwan where she has a long association with the Taiwanese dance community, also appearing annually in the Tsai Jui Yueh International Dance Festivals. She has also been a guest teacher at L’Ecole des Sables in Senegal and at Tans Atelier Wien, Austria. Elizabeth’s career in dance spans more than six decades and she continues to explore new avenues in her work. In 2016 Elizabeth joined Teaċ Daṁsa as an actor/dancer in Michael Keegan Dolan’s Swan Lake/Loch na hEala. This award-winning production has been touring the world for four years. In 2018 - 2019 Elizabeth worked with Director, Kenneth Spiteri, on a VR film project, Crone, and is currently working with Jacqui Carroll on a new solo work involving masks. She has recently received a Homefront grant from artsACT to research Dance-in-Nature: Preparing a book, video-tutorial and workshop. During Covid; In my hibernation my creativity turned to writing. I spent hours happily at my computer with my writing, which sometimes feels like choreography. The results of these writing hours are some rough chapters recounting special experiences of my life, and in particular, my life here at Mirramu. This is an ongoing project which perhaps one day will evolve into a book. As well, I have been working subliminally on two solo projects. The first is Crone which I developed with Kenneth Spiteri during 2018 and 2019. I am taking the ideas and choreographed sections that we created and were shot for a VR dance film, as raw material for a solo theatre production. The other project is a new solo program directed by Jacqui Carroll. Here I use masks to create seven different women in various different times and different circumstances. This project is an enormous challenge, but it is opening up a whole new world of performance for me. As soon as the warmer weather comes and the days get longer, I will be working hard on these two works. This is the second interview on Delving into Dance, from the amazing Elizabeth Cameron Dalman. | |||
| 08 Jan 2021 | On a Dancing* | 00:00:28 | |
In this episode Thomas Bradley and Felix Sampson, create an experimental soundscape to accompany the reading of Thomas’ essay ON A DANCING*, first published on Delving into Dance on 27 November 2019. You can read the full essay here, with an extract provided below. The declaration is a precursor to the dancing, akin to preparation rather than a recipe. Ideas must be extradited from consciousness through speech or writing, like a clarification of behaviour, or practice of exorcism. And it is after these literary articulations that his liberation, and Good Dancing, will begin: post-declaration, and its attendant extrapolation. In this space, cliché postures may emerge, like archetypes of meaning and value, yet they remain personal somehow; the politics of the action must not be engaged as a communicative tool.
N.B. It’s important the audience see me not knowing, The distinction he is searching for is that between the personal and political. Though, perhaps there can be some value in flirting with politics just as he flirts with clarity. Generally, that should be encouraged, rather than the rampant fucking of art by ideology and ambition. Do you prefer clarity to nuance? Are clarity and dynamism mutually exclusive?
N.B. In this context, clarity gains its whole value by the creative digression that frames it. What about the becoming of clarity?
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| 23 Dec 2020 | Samuel Gaskin speaks with Yvette Lee and Sophia Laryea | 01:35:58 | |
This interview was conducted by Samual Gaskin, delving into being a person of colour making your mark in the Australian dance and entertainment community featuring Yvette Lee & Sophia Laryea. They talked about inclusion inspiration and appreciation. | |||
| 16 Oct 2022 | Alice Topp | 00:39:50 | |
Alice was born and raised in Bendigo and started dancing at the age of four. After two years with Royal New Zealand Ballet, she joined The Australian Ballet in 2007. Her passion for choreography began when she created her first work, Trace, for the 2010 season of Bodytorque, the company’s choreographic showcase. From 2011 to 2014, she made three further works for the Bodytorque seasons; in 2016 she choreographed Little Atlas, which appeared in the company’s mainstage program Symphony in C in both 2016 and 2017. In 2018 her work Aurum, which was created with the support of a Rudolf Nureyev Prize for New Dance, had its world premiere as part of The Australian Ballet’s Verve program. It appeared at New York’s Joyce Theater in 2019.
In 2019 Alice won the Helpmann Award for Best Ballet for Aurum. She has also been nominated for a Green Room Award (Little Atlas, 2017) and for two Australian Dance Awards (Same Vein, 2014 and Trace, 2010).
She has choreographed music videos for artists including Megan Washington and Ben Folds, and has been invited to create works for Houston Ballet II and Queensland Ballet. She was appointed one of The Australian Ballet’s resident choreographers in 2018. | |||
| 16 Oct 2022 | Daniel Riley | 00:33:30 | |
Daniel is a choreographer, dancer, teacher and creative from the Wiradjuri nation of Western NSW, and is currently Artistic Director of Australian Dance Theatre.
He began his dance training at Quantum Leap, ACT and since graduating from Queensland University of
Technology (QUT) in 2006 has danced for Leigh Warren & Dancers (2005-2006), New Movement Collective UK (2014), Fabulous Beast Dance Theatre UK (2014), Chunky Move (2019) and was a senior artist with Bangarra Dance Theatre (2007-2018).
In 2019 Daniel joined ILBIJERRI Theatre Company as an Associate Producer (2019-2020), and became the
company's Creative Associate (2020-2021). His time with ILBIJERRI allowed him to partake in an Executive Leadership Program where he gained executive level skills to lead and run an arts organisation in the future.
In 2020 he was appointed as a Lecturer in Contemporary Dance at the Victorian College of the Arts, where he launched and led Kummarge, a self-determined mentoring program for First Nations dance students. In 2021 he worked for Moogahlin Performing Arts as Birrabang Miil (outside eye) for the Yellamundie@HOMENaarm Festival and joined the cast of Stephanie Lake Company’s Manifesto for the first major creative development.
He has worked as an independent dancer, director, teacher, advocate, choreographer and sat on the Board of Chunky Move (2019-2022).
Daniel’s choreographic credits include Victorian College of the Arts: WAX (2021), RISE (2020), Louisville Ballet, USA: Tonal (2020), Sacred Shifts (2015), Melbourne International Arts Festival: Tanderrum (2019),
Dancenorth: Communal Table (2019), Bangarra Dance Theatre: Dark Emu (2018), Miyagan (2016), BLAK (2013), Riley (2010), Sydney Dance Company: Reign (2015), QL2 Dance: Hit the Floor Together (2013, 2018), QUT: Twelve Ascensions (2013), Thirteen Ascensions (Twelve Ascension Rework) (2018), Third Row Dance Company UK (2014).
His film credits as Director and Choreographer include: mulunma – Inside Within (2021) for RISING
Melbourne & Yirramboi, and ACT V (2021), for The Australian Ballet’s Bodytorque Digital 2021. As performer: Dan Sultan: Under Your Skin, Stephen Page (Bangarra Dance Theatre): Spear in which he worked as Director’s Attachment.
He has been nominated at the Australian Dance Awards (2010, 2013) and for National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Deadly Awards (2010, 2012 & 2013). Daniel is highly experienced in conducting
masterclasses, facilitating workshops and teaching professional company class for a range of organisations, educational institutions and dance companies across Australia and around the world. | |||
| 16 Oct 2022 | Dalisa Pigram | 00:35:05 | |
Dalisa Pigram is the Co Artistic director Marrugeku. She is a Yawuru/Bardi woman with Malay and Filipino heritage born and raised in Broome, Dalisa studied in Perth after high school to complete an Advanced Certificate in Aboriginal Musical Theatre, a course developed and facilitated by Michael Leslie and accredited by WAAPA (1995). At the end of study Dalisa was invited to join Marrugeku by Michael Leslie for its first project to create Mimi (1996) working closely with Kunwinjku storytellers and dancers of Kunbarlanja community in Arnhem Land with the larger group of Marrugeku artists over 8 years. Dalisa became co artistic director of Marrugeku with Rachael Swain in 2008 after the company began working in her homelands of the Yawuru in Broome (2003). A co-devising performer on all Marrugeku’s productions, touring extensively overseas and throughout Australia, Dalisa’s first solo work Gudirr Gudirr (2013) directed and co choreographed by Koen Augustijnen, earned an Australian Dance Award (Outstanding Achievement in Independent Dance 2014) and a Green Room Award (Best Female Performer 2014). | |||
| 16 Oct 2022 | Antony Hamilton | 00:33:30 | |
Antony Hamilton is Artistic Director and co-CEO of Chunky Move. His work employs a sophisticated melding of choreography, sound and visual design to collaboratively imagine complete worlds in performance.
Antony has been the recipient of major fellowships from Bangarra Dance Theatre (the Russell Page Fellowship), the Tanja Liedtke Foundation, the Australia Council for the Arts and the Sidney Myer Foundation. In 2013, he was Resident Director of Lucy Guerin Inc and in 2014 was guest dance curator at The National Gallery of Victoria. He was also the inaugural International Resident Artist at Dancemakers Toronto from 2016 to 2018. Antony has received four Helpmann Award nominations, winning for Black Project 1 & 2, and Forever and Ever (Sydney Dance Co.). He has won numerous Green Room Awards and has also received a New York Performing Arts Award ‘Bessie’ for Outstanding Production for MEETING.
In his time as Artistic Director at Chunky Move, Antony has premiered Token Armies (2019), Universal Estate (2019), Nocturnal (2020), Yung Lung (2022) and Rewards for the Tribe (2022). He has also championed a range of sector support programs, including the Victorian Regional Artist Residency, commissioning program Activators and the Choreographer in Residence initiative. | |||