Dance Australia - October - November 2016

ISSUE 206 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 16
SUPERSTARS
OF THE STAGE
Celebrating top
male dancers
SEWING A BALLET
A wardrobe in photos
ASK EMMA
How to shine on stage
SYDNEY
EISTEDDFOD
SPOTLIGHTS
YOUNG TALENT
CAREERS
SPECIAL
Be inspired by the
possibilities.
DANCEAUSTRALIA.COM.AU
CONTENTS
10
SUPERSTARS
OF THE STAGE
Celebrating the
beauty and
athleticism of the male dancer.
20
CAREERS SPECIAL
32
Inspiring ideas for dance

related careers
BALLET
Step into the wardrobe
of West Australian
Ballets Nutcracker.
34
PUT IT ON ICE
What happens when you
combine contemporary
dance with ice-skating?
60
THE
COMPETITION
WAS FIERCE AT
THIS YEARS
SYDNEY EISTEDDFOD.
Regulars
06 IN STEP
39 SHOWTIME
Sally Clark talks to young tapper
Jonah Ende
52 AUSTRALIA BOUND
The Youth America Grand Prix is
coming to Australia
44 DANCERS WITHOUT BORDERS

Danielle Muir and Stacey Kenealy
60 CLASS
54 REVIEWS
66 SUMMER SCHOOL GIVEAWAY

COVER: Image from Sydney
Dance Companys Untamed.
Dancers: Todd Sutherland. &
Josephine Weise. See In Step for
info. SDCs Zena Morellini also
appears in our Careers Special.
IMAGE: Peter Greig
47 ASK EMMA
Making your performance as good
as the rehearsal
74 LIMELIGHT
Photographer Chris Herzfeld
48 DANCING WITH MY BETTER HALF

When your stage partner is your
real life partner.
OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2016 | WWW.DANCEAUSTRALIA.COM.AU
4 / OPENING NUMBER
Editor Karen van Ulzen

Email: dance@yaffa.com.au.
Contributors
Susan Bendall
Alan Brissenden,
Sally Clark
Michelle Dursun,
Geraldine Higginson,
Irina Kuzminsky
Matthew Lawrence,
Nina Levy,
Margaret Mercer
Maggie Tonkin
Denise Richardson
Emma Sandall
Overseas:
Susan Reiter (New York).
DANCE AUSTRALIA
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The opinions expressed in
Dance Australia are not
necessarily those of the
publisher or editorial staff.
ISSN 0159-6330
CREDIT: GENE SCHIAVONE
Marcelo Gomes in Swan Lake
If I could travel
back in time...
f I could travel back in time, Paris circa 1920 would be high on my list of places
to go. Its Diaghilevs Ballet Russes that I want to see all those wonderful
designs by the likes of Picasso, Matisse, Bakst, in combination with
choreography by Fokine, Massine, Balanchine, Nijinsky, accompanied by
Debussy, Stravinsky, Prokofiev. With such a rich concentration of artistic talent,
its no wonder that audiences were mad for Diaghilev.
Our Superstars of the stage feature
traces back to that very period. It was the
Australian Ballets production of
Nijinksy, based on the story of that great
and ultimately tragic Diaghilev dance
artist, that inspired us to celebrate our own
legendary male dancers.
Diaghilevs genius was his recognition of the equal
importance of all artists the composer and the
designers, as well as the dancers and choreographers in creating a dance production.
He also understood the vital role that publicity plays in the success of a production. That
concept, that a show relies on numerous people and roles, is the idea behind our 2016
Careers Special. Every dancer is supported by an invisible army of individuals, without
whom the performance would not happen.
Thus our Careers Special is full to the brim with ideas for dancers looking to make their
mark off-stage. Its a subject close to my heart as a dance student I knew from the outset that I
didnt want a career as a performer. I lacked both the temperament and the talent but I loved
dance and was determined to work in the industry. Little did I know, as I contemplated my
options back in the mid-90s, that I would land up with a multi-faceted career involving teaching
in studio and university settings and, of course, writing about dance for this very publication.
I hope that the 2016 Careers Special helps you on your own career trajectory,
whatever it may be.
Every dancer is
supported by an
invisible army of
individuals...
www.facebook.com/
DanceAustraliaMagazine
Subscribe to Dance Australia:
subscriptions@yaffa.com.au
Subscribe to our e-news:
www.danceaustralia.com.au
NINA LEVY ACTING EDITOR
We chose Harlequin
loors because
they are leaps and
bounds ahead of the
alternatives.
As a Company that specialises in exceptionally physical and

emotional routines that are punctuated with ballistic loor
and aerial work, Harlequins Liberty sprung loor panel system
paired with Harlequins Studio performance vinyl creates a safe
and resilient portable dance loor solution for the elite Adelaidebased dance company.
ArtisticDirectorGarryStewartsaid,Creatingasafeenvironment
for our dancers is fundamental and with Harlequin dance loors,
we feel conident that we are providing them with the best.
As an active touring company, we feel safe in the knowledge
that our Harlequin loors around the globe provide a strong and
consistent base on which our dancers can perform at their best.
Garry Stewart
Artistic Director
Australian Dance Theatre
Australian Harlequin Pty Ltd
Unit 1, 47 Prime Drive
Seven Hills, NSW 2147
Australia
Tel: +61 (2) 9620 7770
Fax: +61 (2) 9620 7771
www.harlequinfloors.com
auscontact@harlequinfloors.com
SYDNEY
LONDON
LUXEMBOURG
BERLIN
PARIS
MADRID
LOS ANGELES
PHILADELPHIA
FORT WORTH
HONG KONG
Watch the full interview with Australian Dance Theatre via

our website or on our Harlequin Floors YouTube channel.
Contact us for further information, advice or samples on
+61 (2) 9620 7770
Dancer: Samantha Hines. Photo credits: Chris Herzfeld; Camlight Productions. Courtesy of Australian Dance Theatre.
Paul Cowley
Acting Executive Director
Australian Dance Theatre
NEWS | EVENTS | BEST OF THE WEB
Wild and untamed
Australian Dance Theatre's latest work,

Objekt, which will premiere this October,
has been created in collaboration with
Germany's tanzmainz dance company,
thanks to funding from Catalyst, the
Federal government's arts and culture
fund. This is the first time that Australian
Dance Theatre (ADT) has collaborated
with an international dance company.
Earlier this year ADT artistic director
Garry Stewart and dancer Kimball Wong
travelled to Europe to work on the
project, which had its world premiere in
Germany in June. Now two dancers from
tanzmainz will come to Australia to work
with ADT for the Australian premiere.
Objekt explores the objectification
of humans and how this allows one
group to measure, corral, and
subjugate another. The work reflects
today's socio-political reality of
refugees, immigration, terrorism and
xenophobia.
Objekt plays Adelaide College of the
Arts 5-8 October.
After six months on the road and in the air,

touring nationally and internationally, Sydney
Dance Company (SDC) will return home this
October with double bill Untamed.
Untamed features Anima by SDC artistic
director Rafael Bonachela and Wildebeest by
award-winning young choreographer
Gabrielle Nankivell.
Nankivell's Wildebeest was originally
commissioned as part of SDC and Carriagework's
New Breed 2014 program and was presented in
December of that year. Talking about the original
work, Nankivell says, Cinematic in both
visual aesthetic and sound, Wildebeest is
an eerie little story assembled from the
dancers fascination for physicality their power as individuals and
strength en masse - their wild
wildebeests within. With the head
of an ox, the hindquarters of an
antelope and the mane and tail of a
horse, the wildebeest as image
morphs easily between living animal and
fanciful creature. Storms and predators gather as
instinct stirs the herd and migration whirrs into
action like an ancient machine. Widlebeest
features a score from Luke Smiles who is featured
in our 2016 Careers Special (see page 25).
Bonchela's work Anima is a premiere; its title
comes from the Latin for breath, vital force,
spirit and soul. In Anima, Bonachela will
collaborate with Sydney and Paris based
Australian director, designer and illustrator
Clemens Habicht - known for his filmclips for
Flume, the Presets and Tame Impala. Together

they will create a visual world where interactions
between the human body and the moving image
exist. Set to a concerto for cello and strings by
British/Bulgarian contemporary/classical
composer Dobrinka Tabakova, the work will
explore some of the mysteries of the inner self - the
hidden and unrealised impulses, the unspoken
thoughts and the unnoticed actions that inform
and drive the persona.
"Untamed" plays Roslyn Packer Theatre,
Walsh Bay Sydney 18-29 October.
PHOTO: PETER GREIG
PHOTO: ANDREAS ETTER
ADT brings
international
collaboration to
Adelaide
Sydney to host the Genee

Australia will host the 2016 Gene
International Ballet Competition, with the
finals to be held at the Sydney Opera
House, 11 December. Semi-finals will be
held at the Concourse in Chatswood,
7-9 December.
In addition to competing on
stage, candidates will undergo
intensive training with leading
faculty, judges and
choreographers. This years
commissioned choreographer is
Tim Harbour, resident
choreographer of the Australian
Ballet, staff member of the
Victorian College of the Arts
Secondary School and a teacher at
Melbourne University. Harbour
has created choreography
especially for the Gene to be revealed for the

first time at the competition final.
For more information about the Genee,
including ticket bookings head to www.rad.org.au
PHOTO: ANTHONY BURNS
6 / INSTEP
Yuin Ghudjargah at
Dance Rites 2015
CREDIT PRUDENCE UPTON
Preserving
Indigenous
dance
Dance Rites, Sydney Opera House's
Indigenous dance competition, is returning
in October 2016, following its debut in 2015.
The competition will see each contestant
group present three dances a welcome and
farewell dance, one of which must include a
chant in local language, and a third wildcard
dance of the groups choosing. The winners
receive $20,000 and the opportunity to
perform at Homeground at Sydney Opera
House in 2017. One runner-up will receive
$5,000 in prize money and in 2016 a new
prize of $3,000 will be awarded to the best
wildcard dance of the finals.
Last year more than 150 participants from 10
communities across New South Wales,
Queensland and the Torres Strait Islands'
Indigenous communities participated in the
inaugural Dance Rites competition,
culminating in the final which was watched by
a capacity crowd on the Opera House's
Western Boardwalk.
WEB HIGHLIGHTS
A highlight of the Opera House's

annual Homeground celebration of First
Nations arts and culture, Dance Rites
aims to safeguard and revitalise
threatened cultural practices language,
skin markings and instruments to
ensure they are shared from one
generation to the next.
For this years much anticipated event,
Sydney Opera House head of Indigenous
programming Rhoda Roberts will travel
to remote, rural and regional areas to
work with individuals, community
groups, Aboriginal Land Councils and
local councils to engage participants and
local communities. We are losing this
cultural knowledge on a daily basis so its
vital that traditional dance takes a
prominent place in modern Australian
culture, The Sydney Opera House has
been a meeting place for many years and
the first Corroboree was held between
black and white on this site, says Roberts.
A national platform and competition,
Dance Rites enables audiences to engage
with language, dance, skin markings and
traditions of diverse First Nations
cultures. But its not just an experience
for audiences by participating in Dance
Rites individuals can reconnect and
reclaim their personal histories through
dance as well as share these experiences
in their communities.
Dance Rites takes place Sunday 9 October
at the Sydney Opera House.
NEW WORK FROM

DIRTYFEET
Sydneys Dirtyfeet will
present first-draft works from
two young choreographers,
Brianna Kell and Ivey Wawn,
28-29 October at Shopfront
Contemporary Art and
Performance in Carlton, NSW.
www.danceaustralia.com.au/
news/new-work-from-dirtyfeet
2
WHERE THE MAGIC
HAPPENS
Lucy Guerin talks to Nina Levy
about the value of working
overseas, her new work for
Melbourne Festival and whats
next on her calendar.
news/where-the-magic-happens
3
DANCE PROGRAM FOR
QUEENSLAND ACADEMIES
CREATIVE INDUSTRIES
Queensland Academies Creative
Industries, a selective entry senior
state high school based in Kelvin
Grove, Qld, has announced the
introduction of dance as part of its
multi-strand arts faculty. Dance
will be offered from 2017,
complementing the schools
existing arts program that
includes design technology, film,
music, theatre and visual arts.
news/new-dance-program-forqueensland-academies-creativeindustries
8 / INSTEP
St Petersburg Ballet
Theatre returns
Focus on pain (Part 3)
Pain that wont go away
By Janet Karin OAM
The Australian Ballet School
Pain warns you that a part of your body
is at risk and you need to protect it. Pain
should disappear as injured tissues
recover, but your brain can become
confused and continue sending
unnecessary pain messages. Nerve
endings in your tissues may become
over-sensitive and start sending
unnecessary warnings to your brain.
Your nerves can release chemicals to
stimulate additional nerve fibres to send
warning messages. Your brain and spinal
cord can act like a master control,
intensifying all the messages sent by the
nerves and affecting parts that are not
injured. You might find pain or stiffness
on the opposite side to the injury, or all
over your body.
Memories of past pain and fear of
future pain can increase your brains
sensitivity until it reacts even though
there is no threat to your body. If you are
injured, focusing on the pain will increase
your sensitivity. Instead, focus on moving
comfortably and increasing your pain-free
range. If pain persists when a health
consultant has assured you the tissues
are healing, you need to rebuild your
technique slowly, avoiding mental or
physical tension. Breathing calmly stops
the fear response and reassures your
brain that your body is safe.
Special thanks to Janet Karin who
wrote this article specifically for the
Healthy Dance column.
This column is provided and

sponsored by Harlequin Floors.
www.harlequinfloors.com
St Petersburg Ballet Theatre returns to

Australia and New Zealand this December to
present two full length classical productions,
Swan Lake and The Nutcracker.
With its dramatic Tchaikovsky score, Swan
Lake sees Prince Siegfried fall for the Swan
Princess Odette, a love that is threatened by
the evil sorcerer Rothbart.
The Nutcracker, on the other hand, is a
Christmas ballet, all about the magical tale of
young Clara and her Nutcracker Prince, and
their fantastical adventures in a world where
dreams come to life. Again the Tchaikovsky
QUT aglow
Queensland University of Technology (QUT)
has officially opened its brand new dance
facilities at its Kelvin Grove campus. The
six-storey building includes three new dance
studios, and QUT head of dance, professor
Gene Moyle is excited. The studios have been
designed to intuitively respond to the needs of
our dance teachers and students, she remarks.
Each studio is fitted with six-metre high glazed
walls, which provide excellent natural light.
Students can look out and passers-by can look
in. At night it is like a glowing dancing lantern.
The highest quality sprung dance flooring
system by Harlequin Floors enhances grip and
rebound. All studios have stainless steel dance
barres and full-length mirrors, theatre quality
rigging, advanced audio and smart lighting,
while acoustic material in the ceiling minimises
sounds and ensures the acoustics dont echo
outside of the studios. Flat screens allow
score is is one of the most loved and

recognised of classical scores.
Founded in 1994, the 60 member St
Petersburg Ballet Theatre presents full-length
classical ballets around the world, giving
200-250 performances annually. The
company will peform Swan Lake in Adelaide,
Swan Lake and The Nutcracker in Melbourne
and Sydney, and Swan Lake in Christchurch,
Wellington and Auckland.
For more information see www.
danceaustralia.com.au/news/st-petersburgballet-theatre-returns
students to video themselves on their phones

during classes and project it on to the wall for
immediate feedback and learning purposes.
The new dance facilities are part of a project
that has seen the expansion of QUT's Creative
Industries Precinct as a whole and were officially
opened on Sunday 28 August, as part of the
CreateX Festival, which included a range of
dance performances and workshops, including
a performance by QUT dance alumni
Michelle Ryan, artistic director of Restless
Dance Company.
Dance Teaching
for the 21st Century:
10 & 11 December 2016

Sydney, Australia
Practice and Innovation

Featuring Australian and international perspectives from the
UK, USA, New Zealand, Singapore and India on:
vocational training, higher education, dance pedagogy,
approaches to learning and dance science.
Also includes practical workshops centred around repertoire
and inclusive and somatic practices.
Educate, Innovate, Change

Book online at www.trybooking.com/LOZI
/RoyalAcademyofDanceAustralia
@RADheadquarters
www.rad.org.au/Conference2016
Photo: Elliott Franks
SEMI-FINALS
79 December, 10.30am
The Concourse, Chatswood
FINAL
11 December, 6.30pm
Sydney Opera House
LIMITED TICKETS AVAILABLE

www.rad.org.uk/genee_tickets
Tune in to the live stream of the

Final from Sydney Opera House
on 11 December at 6.30pm AEDT
Sign up at
www.rad.org.uk/geneelive
@RADheadquarters #Genee2016
/GeneeInternationalBalletCompetition
royalacademyofdance
Photo: Elliott Franks
Royal Academy of Dance is a charity registered in England and Wales No. 312826
Presented by
10 / FEATURE
CREDIT: PIPPA SAMAYA
Paul White
11
SUPERSTARS
OF THE STAGE
Dance Australia celebrates the beauty and athleticism of the male dancer.
rom Mikhail
Baryshnikov to Fred
Astaire, Rudolf
Nureyev to Michael
Jackson, the last
century has been
peppered with
legendary male
dancers. Whatever
the genre, these stars
a, athleticism, grace
the hearts of audiences
around the world.
And yet, when one looks at the statistics,
participation rates amongst children in dance
remain skewed towards females. While the male
participation rate is gradually climbing, a
2013/2014 survey of participation rates in sport
and physical recreation by the Australian
Bureau of Statistics revealed that only 30 700
males participated in dance/ballet in
comparison to 202 900 females.*
Looking at the evolution of ballet as a
performing art form, its easy to see one reason
why that genre has attracted women more than
men. The artform's popularity soared in the 1800s,
with the rise of the Romantic ballet. As the
industrial revolution saw gender roles become
increasingly delineated, the stage was no longer
considered a masculine space men were seen to
belong to capitalist pursuits. Simultaneously, the
Romantic ballets reinforced these gender
stereotypes with stories dominated by women
women who were delicate, sylph-like and ethereal.
Into this tradition stepped Marius Petipa. It
was the end of the nineteenth century and the
Romantic ballet was in decline, but Petipa's
spectacular pas de deuxs, bravura solos,
colourful ensembles and collaborations with
Tchaikovsky would see the dawn of a new era
that of the great classical ballet. While Petipas
ballets were far more dynamic than the softly
feminine Romantic ballets, he was very much

focused on the ballerina. The male dancer
existed to support the female, the star.
And so the period in which gave us the
ballets that remain in the repertoire of all
major ballet companies was very much about
women. Small wonder that we still see the
effects of that legacy today.
In more recent times, however, a male dance
star tradition has developed. For ballet, the first of
these was Vaslav Nijinsky, and it was his director,
Sergei Diaghilev who can be credited with
creating a context in which his star could rise.
Diaghilevs ballets were electrifying fusions of
modern art, music and choreography and they
wowed early twentieth century Parisian audiences.
Nijinsky was a crucial part of this success.
Perhaps one of the best-known collective dance
memories of Nijinsky is of his silk-rose petal
clad, dramatic final leap through the window
frame and out of audience sight in Le Spectre de
la Rose. Those silk rose petals sometimes came
loose and became highly sought after souvenirs.
Nijinksy was a celebrity.
Nijinskys superstar status is a chapter in a life
that was both triumphant and tragic. Its a story
that has been told by choreographer John
Neumeier in his ballet Nijinsky, which the
Australian Ballet have just performed in
Melbourne, and will present in Adelaide in
October and Sydney in November.
Given that Nijinsky is a work about the first
male megastar of ballet, it feels timely to
celebrate todays male dancing stars. Weve
profiled dancers from Australian companies as
well as two special guests from overseas.
There is also a bonus interview with West
Australian Ballet's Andre Santos at
www.danceaustralia.com.au/artists.
Enjoy!
- NINA LEVY
* http://www.abs.gov.au
12 / FEATURE
CREDIT JEFF BUSBY
Madeleine Eastoe and

Kevin Jackson in Giselle.
KEVIN JACKSON
The Australian Ballet
In his thirteen years with the Australian Ballet,

Kevin Jackson has taken stellar roles, including
Albrecht opposite Madeleine Eastoes Giselle and
Des Grieux in Kenneth Macmillans Manon. He
is a favourite with our critics; Susan Bendall
describes him as elegant and assured while
Irina Kuzminsky notes the technical assurance
and emotional coherence of his dancing. In the
2016 Dance Australia Critics Survey, both
Deborah Jones and Alan Brissenden named
Jackson Most Outstanding Dancer for his
rendition of Albrecht, Brissenden describing him
as innately noble, dramatically convincing and a

superb partner for Eastoe.
Now Jackson is taking on the role of Nijinsky
in the Australian Ballets production of John
Neumeiers Nijinsky, about that legendary
dancer and choreographer. Jackson is one of
seven male dancers who portray different
aspects of Nijinskys personality, and also the
poster boy for the production.
At the time of writing, the Nijinsky season has
not yet begun and Jackson has just returned
with the company from its London tour. Jet-lag
doesnt dampen his enthusiasm about the
upcoming role. This Nijinsky is going to be
one of the most incredible and enriching
experiences, I hope, in the rehearsal period and
on stage because there are so many intense and
rich human raw emotions to draw from. That is

carried through not just physically but also
emotionally, he remarks.
Its human emotion that moves Jackson as a
performer. [I am drawn] to roles where I can
totally invest emotionally within myself and also
with my partner, he reflects. Things like Des
Grieux in Manon, Albrecht in Giselle... the
Graeme Murphy Swan Lake is still up there.
While Jacksons own emotional life has been
dominated by the discipline of his profession, he
had a spell of rebellion as an 18 year old. Having
left his Perth home to train at the Australian
Ballet School at just 15, Jackson had always been
focused on his training. Now he began to see a
life outside the studio. My focus changed and I
was looking for more life experiences. My focus
was not the studio, it was the things on the
weekend, the parties, the social gatherings... all
that kind of stuff that you do at 18, that you dont
get to do as a dancer.
With hindsight, Jackson believes that break
away from the mindset of a professional dancer
was an important part of shaping him as an
artist.It gave me a chance to live life without
just focusing on dance," he explains. "Its given
me emotions to draw on and life experiences to
draw on within my artform. That said, he feels
fortunate that he managed to return to the fold.
I thank God that David [McAllister] and the
ballet staff pulled my head in and said, 'Look
you have the talent to go there but youre going
to have to work harder than youre doing.' At the
end of the day it was me who pulled myself
together but I needed that gentle push.
Promoted to principal dancer in 2010,
Jackson has proven that he was well worth
pushing and can reflect back on a career of
many special performances. Dancing with
American Ballet Theatre [in the role of Des
Grieux, as a special guest] in Manon was just
incredible and dancing with Madeleine Eastoe
in her last show as Giselle was just something
that will be in my memory for ever. I still get
emotional thinking about it. And then Graemes
Swan Lake, taking that to New York, LA, taking
it to London, dancing on these international
stages and taking the Australian Ballet banner
with us these are incredible enriching
moments to hold in my heart forever.
In 2014 Kevin Jackson was invited to guest

star with American Ballet Theatre in New
York. Jackson played the role of Des Grieux
in the companys production of Kenneth
Macmillans Manon. It wad the first time in
more than 20 years that a dancer of the AB
had performed with ABT and Jackson was
only the second AB company member to
receive such an invitation.
13
Freelance dancer, singer and actor
Dayton Tavares may be only 20 years old but

he has already achieved some career highlights
of which artists twice his age would be proud
- starring in the lead role of Billy Elliot in the
musical of the same name in Sydney and
Melbourne in 2008 and 2009 (he won a Green
Room and Australian Dance Award for this
role) and then being invited to join the
Broadway production of this same show, in
2009 2010. His Broadway debut at just 13
years old makes him the youngest Australian
ever to have played a lead role there. And,
whilst in the USA, he even got the chance to
perform at the White House - and received a
standing ovation from the First Lady, Michelle
Obama! Yet unlike many that attain so much
at such a young age in the intervening years he
has remained focused and motivated whilst
continuing to relentlessly hone his craft. That
discipline and hard work is now yielding
incredible performance opportunities that see
him at the threshold of a whole new trajectory
as an artist. But how has he achieved this?
Tavares didnt start dancing until he was almost
10 and then only at the insistence of his sisters
because he thought it was a girls sport. At that
time his sport was soccer. His first dance lesson
was in an all-boys class and, although initially
reluctant, he quickly changed his mind. After
five minutes of class I fell in love with dance
forever," he confesses. "I started off with hip hop
and after a few months picked up jazz and tap. I
only started ballet when I had to - as I was
auditioning for Billy Elliot the Musical - but it
quickly became one of my favourite styles!
While Tavares was instantly attracted to
dance, the fact that he became so good, so
quickly, tells a tale not only of his natural facility
but also about his maturity. The young Tavares
was able to discern more from his art form, and
the world about him, than simply copying steps
and fitting them to music. Reminiscing about
his early role models, he says, My first
inspirations of movement were Michael Jackson
and Bruce Lee. I started off as a martial artist
before I was a dancer. Bruce Lee was my
favourite and from a young age I was inspired by
his sharp movements but also his ability to adapt
to any situation with ease, even becoming fluid
when needed. His light and shade made his
movement so interesting. Michael Jackson has
an incomparable performance quality and one
of the most innovative and recognisable dance
styles globally! Both of them have an immense
amount of discipline, attack and an extremely
high work ethic.
When Tavares speaks about what he loves
about dance one appreciates how passionately
connected to the form he is. He confides, To

me, dance has always and will always be the most
trying, yet rewarding challenge. Dance is a way
for me to experience a stress whilst being in a
sense of euphoria. There is no one perfect way of
dancing, which makes it so special. At the same
time, I am constantly striving for perfection as a
dancer. I will never be completely happy with
myself in dance, but I am infinitely happy doing
it. When I was young, I made up a game, which
will give you a better understanding of what I
mean. Whenever I train, I always try to be better
than my own reflection in the mirror. When I get
better, the mirror has already improved with me
and thus has set the new standard. I know I can
never beat this game but I am so excited by the
challenge. Its so strange how you can be so
ecstatic about this kind of frustration, and be
inspired by resentfulness.
So, while many may believe that training a
great dancer is only about hard work, hours
spent in a studio and technique, its obvious that
Tavaress perspective, as well his talent and

dedication, has facilitated a level of expertise
that is world standard, in demand and now
paving the way for a whole new journey of
exciting work offerings, for him. He has recently
finished touring with Marko Panzics, Dream
Dance Company in Secret Society
choreographed by US choreographer, Candace
Brown. October will find him in Los Angeles
under the tutelage of Rob Rich as this years
scholarship recipient of the Global RichFam
RichBoyz Project.
In closing, he shares, Dance is a neverending story and perfection is a limitless goal in
this art form. Motivation, for me, simply comes
from always wanting to be better than I am.
Also, my dance idols keep me motivated.
Following their journeys and videos gives me a
goal. Always make sure you have someone to
look up to and you will always have motivation.
Sound advice indeed.
SALLY CLARK
Dayton Tavares
CREDIT: ELVIS DI FAZIO
DAYTON TAVARES
14 / FEATURE
MARCELO GOMES
American Ballet Theatre
The ballerinas of American Ballet Theatre

(ABT) all want to be partnered by Marcelo
Gomes. Suavely handsome, innately elegant,
completely devoted to his partners, this
Brazilian principal dancer has made his mark
in all of the princely and heroic roles in the
many full-length ballets that American Ballet
Theatre performs. His bravura is always
presented with modesty and a quiet joy. He
puts not only his ballerina but the audience at
ease; nothing appears effortful or forced.
Gomes, 36, is not only an exemplary partner;
he is an exemplary 21st-century ballet dancer.
He displays a long, expressive line and never
stints on classical purity, but is also amazingly
versatile and intrigued by a multiplicity of styles.
He is anything but a one-note virtuoso
firecracker; his dancing exudes excitement, but
also gallantry and dramatic intelligence.
Even as ABT audiences have watched him
mature, Gomes has retained a boyish
enthusiasm that emerges often enough to
communicate his deep love of dancing. Hes
also broadened his dramatic reach, taking on
sinister or downright nasty characters. In Kevin

McKenzies Swan Lake, on alternate nights he
dances Siegfried and the manipulative,
alluring Rothbart, to whom every female in the
ballroom seems drawn.
He joined the company at 17, after ballet
studies that took him to the Hand Conservatory
in Florida and the Paris Opera Ballet School,
and after winning a prize at the 1996 Prix de
Lausanne. Quite early on, I took note of him in
Twyla Tharps works; she was among the first to
notice his talent and versatility. He was in the
cast of several ballets she made for ABT starting
in the late 1990s, and found a terrific vehicle
when Tharps Sinatra Suite entered the
companys repertory.
So right from the start, Gomes demonstrated
how adept he was at contemporary
choreography and choreographers coming to
work with ABT have gravitated towards him
when casting their ballets. Since the 2009
arrival of Alexei Ratmansky as ABTs artist in
residence, Gomes has been featured in nearly
every ballet this prolific and brilliant Russian
choreographer has made for the company,
including Prince Ivan in his 2012 re-imagining
of Firebird, Prospero in The Tempest, and a lead
role in Symphony #9, the opening work of
CREDIT: GENE SCHIAVONE
Marcelo Gomes as
Prince Siegfried in
Swan Lake.
Ratmansky's Shostakovich Trilogy.

My time with Ratmansky has been
incredible, Gomes says by phone during the
companys eight-week spring season in New
York. He knows our strengths and weaknesses;
knows how to push us, and how to let it go. He
is a choreographer who is very particular about
his steps and how they must look. Yet he really
wants you to put your own personality into
things. Sometimes hes more interested in that.
Our job is to inspire him. Were the blank
canvasses, and hes creating on us. I try to imitate
exactly what hes doing unless he says to do it
like you would do it. He describes being in the
studio with Ratmansky as a 50-50 exchange
hopefully. Thats what you want to get, with
somebody that you work with so closely.
ABTs recent New York season offered
Gomes a chance to deepen his portrayals of
the heroes of Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty and
Ashtons Sylvia, and he was prominent in a
fascinating new Ratmansky ballet, set to a
Leonard Bernstein score. It also gave him the
chance to venture into character roles
something he did, to the surprise of many, last
year when he asked Ratmansky to let him take
on Carabosse in his new Sleeping Beauty, in
which he also was first-cast as the Prince. As
noble as refined as he was portraying the hero,
on alternate evenings he appeared as a fiercely
vengeful Carabosse.
Even more surprising, this year he took on
the very substantial comic role of Widow
Simone in Ashtons sunnily engaging La Fille
Mal Gardee, and seemed to be having a blast.
Expanding his repertory in this way has helped
me so much in how I approach roles, and how I
act on stage, Gomes says. Ive always liked to
act so why not take on something that is
completely out of my comfort zone?
I thrive on challenge and work, and putting
myself out there in different situations not
always the same way. It feeds my soul, and it
feeds me artistically as well.
Among the varied challenges hes taken on
are the hunky sexual aggressor in Matthew
Bournes The Car Man, in which Gomes
performed in London last year. He also tours
internationally with "Kings of the Dance",
and has started to choreograph in recent
years, including a substantial ballet to
Tchaikovsky for ABT last year.
Asked if he has a wish-list of roles hed like to
add to his huge repertory, Gomes mentions he
hopes to do more Balanchine, and to have
further opportunities to work with Jiri Kylian.
Next year marks his 20th year with ABT,
and the company has an unofficial tradition
of saluting dancers on that occasion. Asked
how he would decide what to perform on
that evening and with whom, Gomes said, I
love dancing with all my ballerinas. Every
single one gives me something different. I
wouldnt be able to pick just one!
SUSAN REITER, NEW YORK
B LO C H C E L E B R AT E S
T H E G E N E I N T E R N AT I O N A L
BALLET COMPETITION
2016 SYDNEY
C L A U D I A D E A N , B LO C H B R A N D A M B A S S A D O R
G O L D M E DA L A N D A U D I E N C E C H O I C E AWA R D 2 0 0 9
16 / FEATURE
CREDIT: GREGORY LORENZUTTI
Alisdair Macindoe
ALISDAIR MACINDOE
Independent dancer, choreographer and

sound designer
Articulate, detailed, dynamic these are some

of the words that spring to mind when watching
Alisdair Macindoe. Critic Susan Bendall agrees.
He has an earthy quality that is more everyman
than ballet boy yet his dancing meticulously
reveals the tiny micro-movements within a
phrase, she reflects. He often brings a
mechanical feel to his dancing with controlled
isolations or jerks that melt into the next
phrase. Macindoe is a sound designer alongside
his dance and choreographic practice, and
Bendall observes that his work in composition
seems to drive his sense of movement and
relationship with spatiality.
Macindoe looks like he was born to move
and, indeed, dance has been a part of his life for
as long as he can remember. I fell in love with
dancing as a toddler, attending rehearsals with
my mother who is a harp player. She was
playing in a show with dancer Penelope Nunn
at the National Theatre in St Kilda, he recalls.
Before that I had been doing Carl Orf music
for kinder classes and had an affinity with music
and rhythm. Both my parents are classical
musicians so I can only guess my love of dance
comes from their love of music. Its hard to
describe why or how you love something when
you began loving it before your first memories.

At age five the young Macindoe began classes
with Nunn at the South Yarra Ballet School, later
moving to the Victorian Ballet School under
Diane Parrington, then the Victorian College of
the Arts Secondary School (VCASS) and finally
the Victorian Colllege of the Arts (VCA).
Macindoe knew early on that he wanted to be a
dancer. I recall traveling to the VCA with my
mum when she was teaching harp there at age 4
or 5, seeing the dancers in the studios and telling
her on the car ride home that dancing was what I
was going to do when I grow up, he reminisces.
In spite of this early conviction, Macindoe had a
two year break from formal training after
graduating from VCASS. I was in dire need of
independence and exploration of the world outside
the studio, he remembers. I worked in night
clubs, took break dance classes at The Space, did a
short circus course at NICA and some
international travel as a tourist. When I decided to
return to dance it was a choice I made as an
independent adult, not an inevitable step forward
from my schooling years, and I had a different
relationship with dance from that point. After
graduating from VCA Macindoes first professional
gig was with Lucy Guerin Inc and he credits
Guerin with mentoring him through the process
of transitioning from student to professional.
Macindoe has performed with a range of
artists and companies, including Lucy Guerin
Inc, Chunky Move, Leigh Warren and Dancers,
Antony Hamilton Projects and Stephanie Lake,
to name just a handful. He is also a

choreographer and, as aforementioned, a sound
designer, and has danced in several of his own
works, an experience he describes as challenging.
Making work and performing in it, if nothing
else, makes you realise how enjoyable it is to just
be a dancer in a work. In the situation where you
are doing both jobs (or more) you realise how
much work there is in being a director and
choreographer. I have made works where I have
been in many roles at once (against advice from
Lucy not to do so) and found the levels of stress
and workload almost unbearable. I was director/
co-choreographer/sound designer/lighting
designer/performer and during show week ended
up in the theatre for 20 hours three days in a row,
literally going home for an hour sleep and a
change of clothes!
For Macindoe, great dance happens when a
work is able to articulate the internal landscape of
the mind via movement. When a dance work or
dancer manages to, or even just attempts to
bridge this inner world with the rest of the world,
thats when I get excited, he explains. [I am
moved] when the work is a welcoming or
accessible porthole to a language and world that I
havent fathomed with my own body before, and
when this world and language is rich and has
been well explored by the artists them selves.
Macindoe values laughter too - when asked to
name his favourite performance roles, both
involve humour. There are two works that come
to mind in no particular order, he replies. The
first is Antony Hamilton and Byron Perrys I Like
This, the inaugural Next Move work produced by
Chunky Move. This work is as close to being in a
comedy I have experienced and featured many
laugh out loud moments, its about two guys
making a new show. The other is Lucy Guerins
Conversation Piece, a work with a lot of laughter
and spontaneity that reflected on subjects like
social anxiety and the hidden aspects of the
psyche in the context of small talk.
Macindoes work as a performer has earned
him national acclaim. In 2013 he was the
recipient of the Helpmann Award for Best Male
Dancer for his role in Stephanie Lakes DUAL
and in 2012 he won the Green Room Award for
Best Male Dancer for that years work. At the
time of our conversation, he has been
announced as one of the four shortlisted
nominees for the Australian Dance Award for
Outstanding Performance by a Male Dancer,
for his performance in Lucy Guerins Motion
Picture. To be recognised by peers for your
work feels comforting, he comments. Lucy
created a role for me in that show that was
greatly challenging and gratifying.
So whats next for Macindoe? The next big
things are a tours of Lucys Motion Picture,
Antony Hamiltons Meeting, Stephanie Lakes
DUAL, sound design for a work by Lee Serle,
grant writing for the development of a new
musical work I am making and the
development of a new album.
18 / FEATURE
PAUL WHITE
Independent dancer, Germany
Australian dancer Paul White is a long way from

home in every sense. He has been living in
Germany for five years, dancing with the late
Pina Bauschs Tanztheater Wuppertal, and is
about to leave the company to pursue
independent work at the time of our
conversation. Its not just a far cry from Mackay,
North Queensland, where he grew up, but also
from his first professional job as a dancer. I got
my first full-time job when I was 15 dancing at
Jupiters Casino. So its like Jungle Scene! And
Tango! And a Dream Sequence! Really Vegas
style, with acrobatics and the works, he laughs.
A back injury brought the gig to an end after two
years and, after rehabilitating in Brisbane, White
changed course completely. I did the professional
year program with Queensland Ballet, he says.
The commercial world was just too crazy for me!
A friend suggested that White audition for Meryl
Tankards Australian Dance Theatre (ADT),
although by the time an audition notice appeared
the company was under the direction of Garry
Stewart. Id never really done a contemporary
class, recalls White. ADT were doing Birdbrain at
the time and I was like, Wow look at these crazy
people! They were flying horizontally and doing
ballet at the same time. It kind of felt right.
Thus Whites career as a contemporary
dancer began and he has never looked back.
With a style that is at once muscular and fluid,
White ripples across the stage. A versatile
performer, he is as at home with the poetry of
Meryl Tankards The Oracle as the clever wit of
the late Tanja Liedtkes Construct. He has
danced with an incredible range of companies

and choreographers ADT, Tanja Liedtke,
Martin del Amo and Meryl Tankard, Britains
DV8, and, of course, Tanztheater Wuppertal.
It seems unfair to ask him to pick the
performances that have been most special, but he
answers with his trademark sense of humour. I
actually loved dancing in the casino, he says with
a wicked grin. I love commercial stuff because
you get to express the lighter side of human nature
which maybe you dont get in contemporary
dance as often. Fun and vitality and throwing a
woman around party vibe it was really fun."
More seriously, he ponders the question. One
of the most significant moments was Tanja
[Liedtke], Kristina [Chan] and I opening Construct
in London. We made the work in Adelaide
under the casino theres this sort of dark, dingy
hole. They call it Studio 2 or something at the
Playhouse. We went from this dingy little studio to
the Southbank Centre in London. We just felt like
the luckiest kids in the world.
The Oracle, a solo by Meryl Tankard for White
was also special, he says. "The opportunity to
perform a solo in so many different theatres
around the world was amazing. With the music
of Stravinsky it was like ohhhh, White gasps. In
one state I think Chicago - we did a version
with a 91-piece orchestra, I think. I usually feel
small with the music of Stravinsky but that made
me feel very small because I could feel the
vibration coming up from underneath. I could
feel it lifting me higher as I jumped because [the
orchestra] was playing slower. It was an amazing
experience to play with the timing of a solo I had
already done 60 or 70 times, with an orchestra.
Pina Bausch is like a trip. You go on a
strange new vacation life every time you do a
piece. For instance, in her Rite of Spring it feels

like nothing exists outside of the square of earth
and the women who have to be chosen for the
sacrifice With each of Pinas works,
particularly the older ones, theres a complete
environment to get lost in it could be it could
be a dancehall, or looks like a big grave, or in
Nelken, a sea of flowers the environments she
created are really special to perform inside of.
As a performer White says his favourite roles
are the ones that allow him to be investigative as
a performer. One of great things about Pinas
work is that often there is a certain task that has
to be completed in a certain time. I enjoy process
that occurs on stage, in performance, because I
feel like I get taken somewhere. Theres
opportunity for newness and creativity to come
from somewhere unexpected I love that
because theres new possibilities every time.
Paul White won the Dancers Pro Award for

Outstanding Modern Performance (Male) at
the UK Critics Circle National Dance Awards in
2013, for his performance in Meryl Tankards
The Oracle, a solo that she created in
collaboration with White. He received
international acclaim for the role, with Guardian
critic Judith Mackrell remarking, in his final,
lung-bursting, convulsive leap, we can almost
believe White is channelling Nijinsky's
performances of Petrushka, a tormented soul
poised between death and transfiguration.
Few dancers should pit themselves against a
legend, but White is one of them. (2 June
2013, Review:The Oracle).
CREDIT: PIPPA SAMAYA
Paul White
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Photo: Eduardo Patino 2013,2016 Gaynor Minden, Inc.
20 / CAREERS SPECIAL
CREDIT TRISTAM KENTON
21
LIFE
AFTER
DANCE
Being a dancer isn't the only way to engage

with the dance profession, writes Nina Levy.
ust as dance is ephemeral, only existing in the moment, a career as a

dancer is a fleeting thing in comparison to many other careers. For
starters, a dancer can only last as long as the body is physically capable
of the work. Whether due to age or injury, most dancers will reach a
point where they are either not physically able to continue performing,
or not willing to maintain the punishing regime that is required to be a
dancer, and make the decision to retire from performance.
Dancers retire for other reasons as well. The lifestyle of a dancer can involve
unconventional working hours and time away from home, whether on tour or working
interstate or overseas. Parenthood may be a catalyst for a career change, or simply a
desire to lead a different kind of lifestyle. Thus a career as a dancer generally doesnt
have the longevity of other vocations.
A dance career can feel ephemeral in other ways too. For independent and freelance
dancers, work is not always consistent. It isnt always possible to work solely as a dancer.
Ive never considered not dancing

So its important for any dancer or aspiring dancer to think about other career
options but as performance psychologist and dance artist Dr Shona Erskine notes,
thinking about life after dance is not, traditionally, a consideration in dance training
and practice. Were unusual in dance, as a physical form, that we dont encourage
[diversification], she remarks. When I talk to people at the Australian Institute of
Sport, they have well-being officers, for want of a better term, to make sure that the
athletes have a life! Theyre there to ensure that the athletes stay connected to the
world and keep their studies going at a slower pace, theyre not there to add stress
to the timetable. Theyre there to make sure that people have rounded lives so that
when their bodies tire, they have options.
I feel like Ill be giving up my dream!
Depart by Circa, at Tower Hamlet Cemetery
Another complicating factor when considering life beyond the stage is that
dancers tend to be emotionally connected to that dancer identity. More than a
job, being a dancer is a passion, a vocation, a great love affair. It is also all too
easy to feel like one is giving up by taking a new career path. In 2013, USbased dance artist Shawn Renee Lent, who has worked extensively in community
dance, wrote a blog post* about this issue that went viral, indicating that she had
touched a nerve amongst dancers. Lent wrote to challenge the idea that taking
an alternative career path to the stage is failure for a dancer, and to propose
instead that dance artists have a vital role to

play in areas such as cancer research and
treatment, combating racism and bigotry,
the prison system and many more. Her post
focuses on the value of community dance
artists and the fulfillment such a career may
bring, but also highlights the fact that there
are many worthwhile, rewarding avenues for
dancers to pursue beyond being a traditional,
professional dancer.
But what else can I do?
Behind every dancer

and every performance
is an array of roles.
Here are just some of
the people who ensure
that dancers are able to
do what they do:
It can be difficult to consider pursuing an

alternative career path because dancers love
dance. But choosing a non-stage career
doesnt have to mean leaving dance. Check
out our handy diagram for some ideas about
the huge number of dance-related jobs out
there. We've also spoken to a range of people
working in dance-related professions from
stage management to dance psychology
about their careers, tranisitioning from
dance to a new career and more!
LIGHTING
DESIGNER
SOUND
OPERATOR
LIGHTING
OPERATOR
SOUND
DESIGNER
JOURNO/
CRITIC
PERFORMANCE
PSYCHOLOGIST
PILATES
INSTRUCTOR
*http://shawnlent.com/am-i-a-dancer-who-gave-up/
Bonus interviews online!
COSTUME
DESIGNER
Read two more interviews, with Simon

Turner, stage manager at Sydney Dance
Company, and Sandi Woo, creative
SEAMSTRESS
producer/dance artist/teacher, at
www.danceaustralia.com.au/artists
Portfolio careers
Jobs in the arts sector are not always
full time or long term and so it is
common to find people working
portfolio careers, consisting of multiple
occupations. Several of the people we
have profiled for this Careers Special
are "slashies" - dance artist <slash>
sound designer, dance artist <slash>
producer, dance artist <slash>
performance pyschologist. Your acting
editor (me!) is also a slashie. When I'm
not in the magazine editor role, I edit
Dance Australia's website, freelance as
a writer, lecture sessionally at WA APA
and manage and teach at my own
studio.
This kind of career has its pros and
cons - from my own experience, an
upside of a portfolio career is the
variety. My week is varied so I rarely
feel bored or uninspired. I also get to
work with an incredible range of people;
artists, students, academics. The
biggest challenge is staying on top of it
all - sometimes I feel like my brain isn't
big enough!
DIETITIAN
REHEARSAL
DIRECTOR
MARKETING
MANAGER
THEATRE
STAFF
PHYSIO
PREPROFESSIONAL
TRAINING:
STUDIO TEACHER,
SCHOOL TEACHER,
UNIVERSITY
LECTURER
ARTISTIC
DIRECTOR
COMPANY
TEACHER
PUBLICIST
CHOREOGRAPHER
STAGE
MANAGER
23
Rachel Crompton
Pilates director and instructor
achel Crompton is Pilates director at

Elixr Health Clubs. Prior to training
as a Pilates instructor she had a
dance career which took her from
Queenslands Darc Swan all the way
to the Moulin Rouge in Paris, and as a freelance
choreographer, working on the Sydney 2000
Paralympic Games, as well as Sydney Showboat.
She talks to Nina Levy about her career path.
Why did you choose to leave your

performance-based career?
I was 32, which is getting quite old for a dancer,
and job opportunities werent as frequent. I had
felt like I had ticked all the boxes I wanted to as a
dancer and was ready to move on. Plus I was
getting to a point in my life where I wanted some
job security. I had also fallen pregnant and knew
there would be no dancing work for a long time.
How did you transition from dancer to your

current position, Pilates director at Elixr
Health Clubs?
I was doing Pilates at my local gym and totally
fell in love with it. I felt it gave my muscles and
body a similar work out as dance. In 2002 I
studied my Certificate III and IV in Fitness then
did my full Pilates instructor certification and
Rachel Crompton at
the Moulin Rouge.
became an instructor at Elixr Health Clubs in

Sydney. Elixr was one of the first Pilates clubs in
Sydney. We also continue to evolve the Elixr
Pilates style with updated scientific research, so
as an Instructor, I will never stop learning and
never stop taking courses.
It is so rewarding
making a positive
difference to
peoples lives.
ELIXR
School of
Pilates
COURSES FOR ASPIRING
TEACHERS AND ENTHUSIASTS
HERES WHAT WE OFFER:

Weekend courses for teachers-in-training
Weekend workshops for instructors
Matwork, Reformer and Studio teacher training
In-depth anatomy and physiology training
Nationally recognised certication
Courses in Sydney and Melbourne
What does being a Pilates Director involve?

I audition and train new instructors for Elixr
Health Clubs. I also look after the timetables of
almost 200 Pilates classes across our two clubs,
look at member feedback, write Pilates and
fitness courses, and importantly look after
quality control I love helping our instructors
become better. I monitor and give them
feedback on their teaching - theres always
something to improve or something new to
learn. This applies to me too!
What dont you miss about performing?

I love performing, there is nothing more
fulfilling. What I dont miss are the rehearsals
and the aching body that goes with it, the
constant nursing of strains or injuries.
What do you enjoy about teaching Pilates

and being a director?
I love the buzz you get from teaching classes. It
is so rewarding making a positive difference to
peoples lives. I also equally enjoy the
satisfaction of having private clients as I have
met some incredibly successful people I would
never usually meet. I have made great
friendships with many of them.
What skills/knowledge did you bring from

your performance career to your Pilates
career?
Discipline, hard work, passion, and the ability
to see the body and to correct it - to see where
people hold tension, which muscles are weak,
what parts of the body need mobility or stability.
Teaching a class is in many ways like a
performance. You have to bring a certain
amount of performance energy to your
presentation. You have to correctly program the
class, keep people interested and motivated and
make them want to stay till the end.
For more information and course

details, please contact:
e: edu@elixr.com.au t: 02 8113 8808
w: elixr.com.au/education/school-of-pilates
facebook.com/elixreducation
@elixrschoolofpilates
Zena
Morellini
Marketing manager,
Sydney Dance Company
ena Morellini talks to Nina Levy

about her journey from bobby pins
and pointe shoes to photo shoots and
audience research.
Tell me about your job as marketing

manager at Sydney Dance Company
what does it involve?
Its a juggling act, one that keeps me inspired,
passionate and challenged - from developing
marketing strategies to organising photo shoots
and short films, web development to audience
research. Its a fusion of organisation, creativity,
analysis, technology and diplomacy. The dancers
are incredible and I take any opportunity to peek
into the rehearsal room. There are always more
people that can be engaged with the company
either through social media or attending
performances and theres always more that I can
be doing to entice new audiences and retain
existing ones. Im honoured to be able to work so
closely with our artistic director Rafael
Bonachela whose vision I share - he says there are
"1000s of people out there that love
contemporary dance, they just dont know it yet."
Lets rewind now tell me about your

dance training.
I started when I was 3 years old at June Stevens
Academy of Classical Ballet in Perth WA where I
creative development for each and seeing how

different artistic directors minds worked.
went through countless bobby pins, pointe shoes

and band-aids in the pursuit of classical ballet
perfection within the RAD syllabus. Perhaps
naively I never considered any other career so
applying to the Western Australian Academy of
Performing Arts (WAAPA) in year 12 seemed the
natural next step. I was accepted and proceeded
to throw myself into three years of intensive
dance training as part of WAAPAs Diploma of
Performing Arts (Dance) course, which opened
my mind to contemporary dance and other
disciplines.
You landed up working in event

management before moving to marketing
how did those moves come about?
Organically - the first company I was an
assistant stage manager for, Deckchair Theatre,
used to manage the on-field entertainment for
Fremantle Football Club so I used to help out
with this. It was through contacts I met during
these games that I went on to also work in the
sports presentation teams for Perth Football
Club, Western Force, NSW Waratahs and on
international events including the 2006 Asian
Games in Qatar and the 2015 European Games
in Azerbaijan. So Ive been fortunate to be able
to continue to utilise the skills I learned from
stage management on the side of my marketing
career. It was also while I was at Deckchair
Theatre that I was given the opportunity to take
on the marketing and development manager
role. I stayed in this role for four years before
moving to Sydney and working in the marketing
team at Sydney Opera House. During this time
my marketing career evolved and really took off.
It wasnt until I managed the Spring Dance
festival marketing campaign in 2012 that Rafael
was curating that I realised how I could
integrate dance in my new career path.
Marketing was never something I sought out but
now that Ive been working in it for 12 years I
cant imagine doing anything else and I love
that Ive now come full circle from where my
career aspirations began and am now working
with dance full time.
You went back to WAAPA to study stage

management what made you decide to
pursue an off-stage career?
To be honest, as much as I loved ballet I knew I
wasnt as good, and didnt want it as much as a
lot of other people in the course. Youve got to
REALLY WANT to be a dancer as its hard
work, physically and emotionally. And from my
experience its not the best that make it but
those that want it the most. So I finished the
three years and took a year off to work out my
next move... pun intended! I was never
interested in teaching or choreographing but
knew I didnt want to leave the arts entirely, so I
applied and was accepted into both the stage
management and arts management courses at
WAAPA. I was torn between the two but
decided that stage management sounded more
hands on and provided closer contact to the art
form and creatives, which excited me more.
What was it like to transition from dance

into a behind-the-scenes role?
Surprisingly smooth, I think because I was
ready for a change. I loved dancing but I needed
a new challenge. I was always an organised
person so that part of the role came easily but
Id only ever known dance, so being exposed to
other genres was life changing. I developed a
whole new appreciation for theatre, musical
theatre and film and enjoyed being part of the
What new skills/qualifications did you have

to learn in order to make the leap from
dance to stage management/events
management/marketing?
To transition from dance to stage management I
undertook another three years study at WAAPA
(Advanced Diploma of Performing Arts, Stage
Management) that set me up to be able to call any
performance genre and also work within the
production team of a film crew. From stage
management to marketing I was thrown in the
deep end and relied heavily on Google to navigate
my way though the first few years! I learnt a lot
how to create a marketing strategy, what a SWOT
analysis was, how to write copy and negotiate
partnership benefits with large organisations. It
challenged me but a lot also came naturally.
Zena Morellini (front) at a

photo shoot for SDCs New
Breed in 2014.
CREDIT TIM ROCHE
Based on your own experiences, what

skills do you think dancers have that
transfer to other disciplines/careers?
Passion, although its not a skill, its definitely a

benefit. To be results driven, never settle for
good enough or to give up and to strive for
perfection. The ability to work autonomously
but also part of a team. Creativity and to be able
to problem solve by finding solutions from a
new perspective.
25
Luke Smiles in
The Funeral Tree by
Gabrielle Nankivell
Luke Smiles
Freelance dancer and
sound designer/composer
s a dancer, Luke Smiles has worked

with Sue Healey, (Vis-a-Vis Dance
Canberra), Gideon Obarzanek
(Chunky Move), Garry Stewart,
Meryl Tankard, Australian Dance
Theatre, Lucy Guerin Inc., Balletlab, Byron Perry,
Antony Hamilton, Windmill Theatre, and
Gabrielle Nankivell. Although he currently spends
most of his time working as as a composer/sound
designer, he has never retired from dancing. It's a
juggling act, he tells Nina Levy.
How did you come to sound design?
What does working as a composer/sound

designer entail?
I think my approach to composition/sound
design, especially for dance projects, is somewhat
different to others. Having worked for many years
as a dancer its allowed me to observe the
choreographic process from the inside, which
provides me two benefits. One is an
understanding of the time consuming nature of
creating dance along with the level of detail and
information that is contained within
choreography, and the other is the rapport that I
have with choreographers who know my
background and often allow me to suggest
possibilities that influence the choreography itself.
When creating a soundtrack for dance its
imperative that Im in the dance studio with the
choreographer and the cast the entire time
throughout the creation of the work. In terms of
collaboration, the rehearsal studio is the real
workplace where the piece is made, so its natural
for me to be in there too. Of course this means I
CREDIT CHRIS HERZFELD, CAMLIGHT PRODUCTIONS
From a young age I was fascinated by the sound

of video games and, more importantly, cinema.
As the pursuit of dance is so time consuming I
never had the opportunity to study music. It
wasnt until I was working as a professional
dancer that I was in a financial situation to
purchase equipment and seriously begin to
explore this alternate interest. A few years into my
dance career, my first sound job came when I
was fortunate enough to be commissioned to
create the score for a dance production by
Gideon Obarzanek for the Nederlands Dans
Theater. This division of career seemed the
perfect fit for my creative life. I was able to
consider both dance projects or composition
projects and attempt to balance the two in the
hope that I would forever maintain a passion for
both without exhausting either one too much.
then have to go away and spend most nights
creating sound so I have possibilities to respond
with in the dance studio during rehearsals.
Did you need to acquire any new skills or

qualifications to transition into sound design?
Im completely self taught and thankful to the
knowledge of others who were willing to share.
What are the challenges of being a slashie

(dancer <slash> sound designer)?
The greatest challenge for me is to not wear
both hats at the same time! There have been a
few situations where Ive created the soundtrack
for a production that Im also dancing in but
thats just cause for a ridiculously stressful time!
Dancing all day then working on sound all
night isnt the best combination for maintaining
a clear focus and a rejuvenated body.
Apart from that Id say time management is a
challenge that faces all creative people who
work freelance. There are so many things to
juggle a lot of the time - schedules, funding,

venues and tech requirements, let alone
inspiration, research, and development - that
make effective time management a big help.
And the advantages?

The obvious advantage of being a slashie is
the potential of making a living in the arts by
doing multiple things.
What do you enjoy about working in sound?

Sound is a fantastic artistic medium because
we as humans are really good at
understanding it. Sound also has a profound
effect on our emotions. The world is a very
noisy place and for a composer/sound
designer theres an infinite amount of creative
possibilities at your disposal all around you all
of the time. Exploring the combination of
the qualities of sounds along with their
emotional connection with an audience is
what I enjoy about working in sound.
Dr Shona Erskine
Performance psychologist and dance artist
hona Erskines career is characterised

by diversity. Originally a dancer, she is
now a practicing psychologist. That
doesnt mean shes left dance behind
her, though. Erskine is both a
performer and a choreographer, and presented her
first full-length work, White Matter, in late 2015.
She is also a teacher at the Western Australian
Academy of Performing Arts dance department.
So what does being a performance
psychologist involve?
I see dancers, actors and musicians," replies
Erskine. "On a more traditional level, being a
performance psychologist involves a single person
with some kind of issue in their performance,
coming to see me as a psychologist. Most of the time
its about how we coach this performance to be
better. A lot of times people think theyve got a really
big problem thats going to be with them for the rest
of their lives. With some solid mental skills they can
very quickly turn that around. So were working with
the brain like its another muscle. Weve often
over-trained the body but forgotten to train the brain
to keep up with the body. We can add a few more
mental skills in there and people are often flying.
Education is another component of Erskines
work. I talk to schools and students, and at
conferences, she says. The teacher, the
director, the choreographer theyre the ones
who control the behaviour, the etiquette, the
expectations in the space. Were helping
IMAGE: GREGORY LORENZUTTI FOR ON VIEW BY SUE

HEALEY AT CARRIAGEWORKS, 2015. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Erskine performing
in Sue Healeys
On View.
teachers to understand the

consequences of the way that
they teach. Any method of
teaching has consequences but
its about ensuring that the
consequences youre getting are
the ones you want.
Erskine's decision to study psychology wasnt
about wanting an alternative career path, as much
as being interested in the subject. She had
completed a Bachelor of Dance at the Victorian
College of the Arts and was working as an
independent dancer when she began her
psychology undergraduate degree. She didnt
complete her final qualification, a doctorate, until
she was in her late 30s. I started chipping away at
it, she recalls. Id do a unit here, a unit there
it was bubbling away in the background but it
wasnt a career change. What I was doing was the
dancing. Psychology was an interest on the side.
While career goals werent at the forefront of
her mind, Erskine is now grateful for the options
that psychology offers. Even though I still want
to be an artist, I dont want to do a contract where
I work 38 hours a week thrashing my body for
someone else any more, she remarks. We all
reach a place in our physical practices where we
tire. For me, having something else to step into
has been phenomenal.
While the transition to professional
psychologist happened incrementally, it still had
its challenges, says Erskine. I have a persona

thats very relaxed in the studio. But as a
psychologist I had to develop a different kind of
persona. That was a challenge. Im much more
relaxed about that now but initially I would just
leave sessions sweating, she laughs. That said,
Erskine believes there are skills she learned as a
dance artist that suit her to her new field. The
life of a dancer provides us with many
struggles [you go] through this massive
journey that often spans more than a decade,
when youre just wanting something so
incredibly and trying so hard to get it. Theres
nowhere to hide in dance, youre so exposed, not
just physically I think all those experiences
help with that psychology space.
And the best bits about being a dance
psychologist?
Two things spring to mind straight away.
One is, its such a privilege to hear peoples
stories. The other thing I really like about it is
how effective so many of the skills are to see,
time and time again that people can transform
themselves within such a short amount of time.
I find that so satisfying.
Sharon Jux
CAPEZIO
Retail store manager

Capezio, Mornington
With a professional and teaching background
in various genres of dance and itness, Latin
dance being my irst love, the role of retail
store manager for Capezio Mornington has
given me the opportunity to assist dancers of all
ages ind the most appropriate dance product
for their needs.
Working for Capezio, the brand I had come
to know in the UK, has widened my career in
this industry and has been exciting, rewarding experience. Providing teachers with great
customer service and being able to help them

with the demands of running schools gives me
enormous job satisfaction. Being able to share
the excitement of young dancers in itting their
irst pointe shoes and developing my expertise
in products that will support them in achieving
their goals is a privilege.
Throughout my life dance has taught me
discipline, hard-work and determination all of
which helps me in my career journey which I
am proud to say is now with Capezio.
www.capezio.com
Penny Lancaster
Founding chairperson (honorary)
ADi Australian Dance
Institute (RTO 91600)
ADi
My passion for dance grew from student

to professional dancer, director of a youth
dance company and teacher with my own
large dance school, developing nationally
recognised courses. I was inspired to help
the next generation of students gain wider
life-skills with knowledge and skills beyond
dance technique. This knowledge incorporates
subjects in critical thinking, body science,
nutrition, dance history and awareness of
career pathways. I felt motivated to create
www.australiandanceinstitute.com.au
Sandra Breen
OAM
CSTD examiner
CSTD
a new Australian syllabus embedding these

academic elements into the day-to-day
progressive dance class.
This vision embraced the principles of the
Australian Qualiications Framework in vocational education for syllabus programs. Now
nationally accredited, these have morphed into
Certiicates I IV in Dance. Parents especially
appreciate vocational certiicates providing a
safety-net for students who leave school
early to dance professionally. My greatest joy
is when a young dancer gains extra points in
HSC via VET studies, creating better tertiary
choices; or a dancer opens a school, having
been given new conidence by achieving Certiicate IV in Dance Teaching & Management.
Sandra Breen has spent most of her working

life in dance, irstly as a professional performer,
then as a teacher/choreographer and currently as an examiner/adjudicator. Sandra was
awarded an OAM in 2010 for services to dance.
Sandras own dance studio has had many
success stories, with students such as Kelley Abbey, Keith Hawley, Lisa ODea and
Sue Ellen Chester going on to professional
engagements, both in Australia and overseas.
Many other students have gone on to varied
www.comdance.asn.au
careers, but still say they gained great conidence, friendship and values from their time
in dance school.
The training and learning to become a CSTD
examiner was immense, says Sandra, but
she had huge support from those who were
already examiners. Now she feels privileged to
be entrusted with the responsibility of being
an examiner.
Sandra recognises the importance of ongoing professional development in sustaining a
life-long career. I am passionate about dance
and am always learning, she comments. I
feel I have made a difference to many young
lives through dance and hope to continue for
many more years.
Timothy Gordon
ew Zealand-born Timothy
Gordons performance
career began in 1979 with
the Australian Ballet, and
took him to Nederlands
Dans Theater and Ballet
Frankfurt. At Ballet Frankfurt he moved from
performer to teacher and choreographer,
returning to Australia to work at the Australian
Ballet School in 1987. He has since worked as a
freelance choreographer and director, and
taught at a variety of schools and companies
both in Australia and overseas. He is also a
qualified Alexander Technique practitioner.
These days Gordon is to be found at the
National College of Dance in Newcastle. I teach
a diploma course, he says. My practice is mostly
choreographic and I teach in accordance to that
principle and activity. I greatly enjoy the Colleges
platform of invention and versatility, and the
students who are as authentic and as gifted as you

could wish for. Its a great privilege in all respects.
Diversification from performance to
choreographing and teaching was a natural
process, says Gordon. Like many dancers, he
found the physical demands of dance on his
body became the catalyst for a change of career
focus. I was spent physically, he remembers.
It finished abruptly and I had to go on, injuries
et cetera. You cant rest on your laurels! You
need fortitude, imagination and confidence to
go on. Then you require a plan to go forward... I
sought to broaden my experience and
knowledge and offer something inherent from
within that was both creative and practical.
Since leaving performance, Gordons career
has had multiple strands, all connected by dance.
A wonderful concept, the arrangement has its
challenges, he says. I found it is nearly
impossible to achieve the best balance between
Artistic Director
The Board of Governors of Hong Kong Ballet wishes to appoint a new Artistic
Director to lead the Company starting with its 2017/18 season.
The Company
One of the premier classical ballet companies in Asia, Hong Kong Ballet (HKB)
is a world-class institution that represents Hong Kongs unique character. Since
its inception in 1979 HKB has grown to a company of nearly 50 accomplished
dancers of different nationalities. Its strong and ever-expanding repertoire is
comprised of the nest classical and neo-classical full-length ballets as well as
acclaimed contemporary works created by top choreographers in the likes of
Alexei Ratmansky, Nacho Duato, Jorma Elo and Fei Bo. The Companys recent
touring expeditions, including the 5-city visit to Canada and USA this past March,
have gained wide critical acclaim, adding to its rising international prestige.
Job Scope
At the artistic helm at HKB, the Artistic Director (AD), who reports directly
to the Board of Governors, is responsible for the Companys style, repertoire,
programming and brand. To fulll the Companys visions, the AD, through his
or her inspiring artistic plans supported by an accomplished artistic staff and
the Executive Director-led administrative team, will foster an environment that
encourages artistic growth and community engagement.
Special Skills and Qualities
The AD should be able to elevate the Companys artistic status by planning and
executing exciting artistic programmes of international scale and standards,
drawing inspirations from the Companys illustrious past as well as Hong Kongs
unique culture.
The AD must have outstanding artistic reputation, network and ability to acquire
classics as well as commission exciting new works to enrich the HKB repertoire.
He or she must also be able to identify and attract the best talent from dancers
to designers to choreographers who are either well-established or emerging
from Hong Kong and overseas to work with the Company. To reinforce his or her
artistic leadership, the candidate should work in the studio as coach, repetiteur
and/or choreographer. While his or her capacity to manage both the nancial
and human resources of the Company must be demonstrated, the candidates
ability to immerse into Hong Kongs vibrant dance sector and the local culture is
an asset.
All interested candidates with suitable experience should submit application
materials including a cover letter outlining your qualications and reasons for
interest in the post, a current CV, a one-page statement describing your teaching/
nurturing philosophy, choreographic style and your proposed artistic vision for
HKB, and a 5-10 minute video sample of choreography, performance repertoire,
and/or teaching via DVD/CD or weblink to: adsearch@hkballet.com or post to the
following address:
Ms. Daisy Ho, Chairman, Global Search Committee
Hong Kong Ballet, 60 Blue Pool Road, Happy Valley, Hong Kong
Closing date for application: 31 October 2016, 6:00pm (HK Time)
The Hong Kong Ballet Website: www.hkballet.com
CREDIT LESTER DE VERE
Ballet master and choreographer, National College of Dance (Newcastle)
the different components Im engaged in.

Nonetheless, Gordon is passionate about his
career. In teaching I love the interaction, being
enthusiastic, being clear about the information I
put out there. I enjoy watching the blossoming of
[young people's] abilities. About choreography
he remarks, It is everything interesting including
being totally unpredictable and often on occasion
an extremely challenging track to climb.
Gordons advice to those interested in
choreography or teaching? Learn to think on
your feet and question ideas no matter how
embedded they are or who spouts them. Have
some knowledge of all areas of your profession
and the other arts. Continue to learn to refine
your practice/methods and dont lose sight of
your creativity.
m Do
iss n
out
t!
Have you booked

your tickets to the
PREMIER DANCE
CONFEREN
NCE
to be held
this year?
26th, 27th, 28th

h September 2016
Gold Coast, Queensland
BOOK NOW!
www.atod.net.au
and follow the links
Emrys Goldsworthy
ENDEAVOUR
Senior lecturer myotherapy/

Private practice clinician
Endeavour College of Natural Health
My passion for dance has taken many forms
over the length of my career, from dancing with
the Royal New Zealand Ballet to running busy
myotherapy clinics where I treat both amateur and
professional dancers. Myotherapy is a branch of
manual medicine that focuses on the treatment
and management of musculoskeletal pain and
dysfunction. It allows me to work with dancers in a
variety of settings, from pre-pointe assessments, to
technique correction and improvement, as well as
treatment and rehabilitation of injuries. My knowl-
edge and experience in dance has been invaluable

to my myotheraphy career, equipping me to treat a
range of dancers. My background in dance has
allowed me to specialise my health clinic to treat
dancers helping them to become the healthiest
dancers they can be. Seeing my patients recover
and improve their dance technique is incredibly
rewarding.The transition from the arts to health
has been surprisingly smooth, and has allowed me
to stay connected to my foundation in dance and
make a difference in the lives of dancers every day.
www.endeavour.edu.au
Melissa Caltabiano
Head teacher/ Dance coordinator/ Sport
coordinator/ Choreographer/ Year advisor
Burwood Girls High School
ACPE
Combining her two greatest loves resulted in

Australian College of Physical Education (ACPE)
graduate Melissa Caltabiano reaching an early career high when she was appointed head teacher,
personal development, health and physical education/dance at Sydneys Burwood Girls High School
at the age of 28. This role sees the dance enthusiast manage a faculty of nine staff along with the
popular schools physical education curriculum,
sport, student management, budgets, excursions
and overseas tours. Melissa also tackles the role

of dance coordinator concurrently, with responsibility for eight dance ensembles for the school. I
absolutely love dance it is my greatest passion.
I get so much enjoyment and satisfaction from
teaching and watching my students turn into performers, choreographers and critics. Helping them
develop creatively to problem solve and work with
others is an important life skill. Melissa said she
was initially attracted to ACPE because it was the
only education provider that allowed her to qualify
as a physical education teacher and a dance
teacher at the same time. I was so impressed by
the focus on practical experience in schools that
other institutions did not provide.
www.acpe.edu.au
Christine Denny
TAPATAK OZ
Founder and director

Tapatak Oz
Encouraging children to express themselves
fully and freely through the art of tap dance is
one of the highlights of my career thus far. And
creating the tap dance syllabus Tapatak Oz has
allowed me to take that one step further by
giving tap dance students around the world, a
chance to set targets, reach goals and develop
their unique sense of self, whilst also developing rhythm and dance skills that will be with
them for life no matter what career path they
follow.
www.tapatak-oz.com
For me, Tapatak Oz and its examination

process have allowed me to reach out to inspire
the next generation not just as great tap dancers, but as joyful human beings. Encouraging
them to love who they are, seek excellence in
all they do and to always treasure the part of
them that makes them truly unique in the world.
I believe the arts are a powerful force in a childs
life and education. So I truly encourage dancers
to seek out a career as a teacher in the arts. It is
the most incredibly rewarding experience.
Alice Lee Holland

Resident director, Circa
CREDIT TRISTAM KENTON
Depart by Circa
CREDIT PIPPA SAMAYA
ntil six months ago, Alice Lee Holland was firmly entrenched
in dance. As an independent choreographer she has made
numerous works including full-length works Tiny Little
Tragedies (2012) and Preparing to be Beautiful (2008). Holland
was artistic director of West Australian-based STEPS Youth
Dance Company from 2009 until the company was absorbed into WAs
flagship contemporary dance company Co3 in 2015.
Now she is resident director of Brisbane-based circus company, Circa.
So what led Holland to diversify into the wonderful world of circus?
A desire to keep developing and stay challenged, replies Holland.
When I finished my time with STEPS I wanted to make the best next
decision. Theres not a lot of opportunities to be an artistic director or in a
position of leadership [in dance] and I wanted to keep growing in that way.
The role of resident director is an eclectic one, says Holland. I spend a
lot of time in the rehearsal if were making a new work. Ive been involved
in four new creations so far. Of the six months Ive been in the role, Ive
been on tour overseas for four of those. My role also depends on what the
tour is and what the show is. I spent two and a half months working on a
show called Closer, at the Underbelly Festival. That involved stage
management, tour management, direction Its fluid, depending on what
is needed. When Yaron [Lifschitz, artistic director of Circa] is around I do
a lot of assistant directing. When Yaron is not around I have to make a lot
more decisions.
Transitioning from dance to circus has involved a shift of approach.
Circus is far more different [to dance] than I anticipated, reflects
Holland. While a Circa show may appear to have similarities to dance, the
way the work is created and structured is different, she says. In Opus, for
example, there are far more elements of improvisation and response than
you realise. Also acrobats work inside a set of specialties. That is a lot about
where the work comes from how does this person meet that person in
the space with their particular specialties rather than someone coming
in and expecting that everyone in the cast can do the same thing.
Holland has developed a number of new skills in the role. Ive learned
to switch head spaces really fast, she says. Tour management is a lot
about fine detail and how are we getting from the train station to the
accommodation whereas associate director, you have to be in a creative
space and ready to have conversations about the concepts of the work
And then there are the more obvious skills. Im building my understanding
of circus in terms of vocab and skills and specialties, and rigging.
Whilst its been a steep learning curve, Holland believes her dance
background has given her a number of skills that transfer well to the circus
context. Theres a certain kind of trust and fearlessness about dance. Those
attributes have transferred. Secondly theres my experience as a dancer
working with directors and choreographers on new work. When youre
making something new theres a special attention you have to pay to every
word. That attention takes you a little bit closer every time to what youre
making, something new that no one really knows yet. In this role Im part of
that in the same way, listening and observing and contributing to the creation
of new work but obviously not contributing physically in this role."
A third skill that has transferred is about communication.The best
example of that is weve just done a new work called Depart [pictured left
& p20] in Tower Hamlet Cemetery in London, comments Holland. It
had 150 performers per night and they were from community choirs, and
the National Centre for Circus Arts, the Central School of Ballet, Circa
and it was all for the London International Festival of Theatre. There were
so many people involved in that work and being able to have the best
possible conversations with all those people is something I developed
across my decade as an independent artist.
Holland is relishing her being immersed in a new genre. Theres just
one thing thats hard and its that I want to know all of it NOW, she
laughs. At times I miss having that information about the technique and
the way something feels [to physically do]. But I think mostly [my
outsider view] is a good thing. And I love challenges, so even when
things are hard, its awesome. Im learning at an exponential speed its
pretty thrilling. The people I am working with are really fabulous
because theres this culture were all driven hard by the same ambition
and commitment to this family.
YOUTH
AMERICA
GRAND
PRIX
WORLD'S LARGEST
STUDENT BALLET
SCHOLARSHIP
COMPETITION
2017
SEASON
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA October 21

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA October 22
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA October 23
For additional information
and to register, visit WWW.YAGP.ORG
Kenedy Kallas. Photo by VAM/Siggul.
&8$&HUWLFDWH,,,
LQ$VVLVWDQWGDQFH7HDFKLQJ
32 / FEATURE
SEWING A
BALLET
Ballets are composed of steps

but they are also composed of
stitches. Thousands and
thousands of stitches.
Step behind the scenes and
into the world of the
wardrobe at West Australian
Ballet, as the company
prepares to present The
Nutcracker this November.
CREDIT: FRANCES ANDRIJICH
HIS production of The

Nutcracker is all about
Christmas magic, says Jayne
Smeulders, co-choreographer
of West Australian Ballets
upcoming season of the much-loved ballet.
Im super excited about it, I think because I
love Christmas so much. I hope that our
Nutcracker is magical too! Thats my aim. I
want kids to sit on the edge of their seats,
smiling and laughing and thinking about
Christmas day and getting really excited... and
all the adults too, of course.
Recently retired from her role as principal dancer
with West Australian Ballet (WAB), Smeulders is
part of a choreographic team of three, joining WAB
artistic director Aurelien Scannella and Sandy
Delasalle to choreograph The Nutcracker. While
WABs last production of Nutcracker was set in
Australia, this version is traditional in every sense.
The sets, the costumes, the choreography... its all
traditional, says Smeulders. Looking at the photos
on these pages, its clear that tradition doesnt need
to preclude originality.
Heres a a sneak peek inside the wardrobe and
rehearsal rooms of WABs new Nutcracker.
CREDIT: TONY CURRIE
33
ABOVE: West Australian Ballet

rehearsing "Waltz of the Flowers".
RIGHT: Tutus by Charles Cusick
Smith and Phil R Daniels.
ABOVE: Nutcracker Prince

LEFT: Brooke Widdison-Jacobs as
the Sugar Plum Fairy
FOOTNOTES
OPPOSITE PAGE: WAB head of

wardrobe Lyndell Darch.
The costumes and sets

for WABs new Nutcracker
are by UK designers
Charles Cusick Smith and
Phil R Daniels.
In this production there
will be:
Close to 200 individual
hair pieces, wigs
and hats
10,000+ metres
of fabric
2,270 flower petals
50,000 individually
placed glitter dots on
Flower costumes.
36km of silver
thread used in
Snowflake skirts
34 / FEATURE
Vertical Influences
35
PUT IT
ON ICE
What happens when you combine ice-skating
with contemporary dance? Nina Levy spoke to
Alexandre Hamel, of Canadian contemporary
ice-skating company Le Patin Libre, to find out.
CREDIT: ALICIA CLARKE, DANCE UMBRELLA
Nina Levy: Ice skating is, traditionally all about

competition and glitzy shows so how did Le
Patin Libre come to exist?
Alexandre Hamel: The project started with a
bunch of slightly rebellious figure skaters who
wanted to keep skating, but who were also
seeking an alternative to the On Ice show
business, in which I include the Olympics.
Our first gigs were on frozen ponds, for the
small local winter carnivals that are a lively
tradition in Qubec. We were young and it smelt
like teen spirit. In fact, we played that song a lot
in our beginnings! So, it was all rock soundtracks,
acrobatics, funny numbers and a tongue-in-cheek
attitude. The traditional figure skating system
didn't like to see a bunch of high level skaters
stray away from their business. Docile figure
skaters are their primary resource, after all... So,
we were barred from some ice rinks and
described as a bad influence on kids. We were
also quite vocal about the underbelly of figure
skating; such as hyper-sexualisation, lots of
money made with unpaid performers, excessive
training methods, questionable coaches.
In 2011, we were given lots of ice time by a
private ice rink owner in France. It allowed us to
venture into choreographic experiments that were
much more advanced and intelligent than our
beginnings on frozen ponds. We started to
understand that we wanted contemporary skating
focused on what can make it interesting and
unique: glide [the name for the moment when an
ice-skater travels on the ice in a held pose, such as
an arabesque]. Glide was how skating could
achieve its modernity... and then move beyond.

Then, we got support from big artistic
institutions, and here we are in big art festivals
with our latest show Vertical Influences.
NL: The of the five members of Le Patin Libre
are also the choreographers. Tell me about your
choreographic process how do you go about
creating a new work?
AH: At first, it is very playful and exploratory.
We try things, we do things that feel good.
Then, some of us, one of us or all of us
remark on something and we decide to invest
more research into it. It might be a group
formation, or the movements of a soloist, or
a specific trajectory on the ice. After lots of
attempts, when we can manipulate it very
well, we go from research to creation. At that
point, for Vertical Influences, a dramaturg
(Ruth Little, from Australia) got involved to
help us read different meanings for the
choreography we were experimenting with.
After, we choreograph it for real, with this
new meaning in our mind. The show
comes together.
All that time, Jasmin Boivin, who is also one
of our skating choreographers and dancer,
composes music. Sometimes, we bounce off
his musical ideas. Other times, he follows the
choreography we created. The music of the
trailer of the 2016 Melbourne Festival [at
which Le Patin Libre will perform Vertical
Influences] is music that he composed in this
process, for Vertical Influences.
CREDIT: ALICIA CLARKE, DANCE UMBRELLA
36 / FEATURE
Melbourne Festival
Melbourne Festival has an
eclectic range of dance works in its
2016 program.
6-9 October: Triptyque by Les
7 Doigts De La Main at Arts
Centre Melbourne
6-12 October: The Dark Chorus
by Lucy Guerin Inc at the Meat
Market (Read our interview
with Lucy Guerin about this
show at www.danceaustralia.
com.au/news/where-themagic-happens
7-10 October: Thank You for
Coming: Attendance, by Faye
Driscoll at North Melbourne
Town Hall
14-16 October: Dance
Territories by Sarah-Jane
Norman and Nacera Belaza,
presented by Dancehouse at
Dancehouse
15-22 October: Vertical
Influences by Le Patin Libre at
OBrien Group Arena
21-23 October: Voces by Sara
Baras's Ballet Flamenco at Arts
Centre Melbourne
For more information about
these shows head to:
www.danceaustralia.com.au/news/
contemporary-dance-circus-iceskating-this-is-melbourne-festival
NL: Le Patin Libre has existed since 2005

how has the group evolved over time?
AH: I think that everything we did between
2005 and 2014 was a kind of slow transition
from figure skating to contemporary skating.
With Vertical Influences, that we premiered in
2014 in London, I think we finally reach a
mastered form of that contemporaneity.
Vertical Influences is our first show that is
only based on glide. Glide is the possibility to
move through space even if immobile. It is the
independence between movement and motion.
It is a magical effect perceived as a kind of
vertigo, by the audience. And this is where we
have something to bring to the contemporary
artistic scene. That realisation is what changed
the company and our skating.
We stopped doing things like figure skating
shows and figure skating; adding things
(sparkles, musicians, fire works, stories,
whatever). And, we started to make skating more
nude, more pure. That's what Vertical
Influences is all about. This simplification
allows our skating to say things of its own about
us, our times, our world.
NL: Do you always perform in purpose built
ice-arenas?
AH: Vertical Influences has been created to be
performed in standard ice rinks used by
ice-hockey players and figure skaters. We travel
with a complex lighting kit and a sound
37
engineer because it is a quite big

challenge to turn those frozen
gymnasiums into decent theatres. What's
great about this, is that it allows the artsy crowds
to discover that they have a nice ice rink in
town. And it allows the ice-sports fanatics to
discover something new. It's nice to gather the
sport and art audience together in one common
joyful experience.
We already performed in those seasonal rinks
installed for Christmas, but they are usually too
small for our complete shows. Glide need lots of
space! When we perform on those small
outdoor rinks, we do short performances trying
to bridge the big gap between contemporary
performance and the general audience.
NL: What are the challenges of choreographing
on ice/in ice skates? Are there ever ideas that are
difficult to realise because of the nature of ice/the
ice skating boot?
AH: For us, there is no challenge. It's our medium,
it's what we do, we love it. In fact, off my ice skates
or my roller blades, I feel clumsy, boring and slow.
However, dance choreographers already tried to
do things on ice and it didn't work up to their
expectations because they didn't have the ice
With glide, you can

be just standing,
immobile, but reach
great speed.
virtuoso do not have the frame of mind for

poetry, freedom, individualism, art and
eventually, contemporary performance.
That's why we're so lucky that a bunch of
rebels of this discipline got together, escaped
that system and were finally able to join glide
virtuosity with freedom and poetry.
NL: There is something magical about ice-skating...
skating virtuosity, themselves. It made it impossible

for them to really grasp and feel the unique nature
of the medium. They did great stuff, but it's dance
transferred on ice. It's not ice-skating revealing
itself as a new artistic medium.
It takes at least 10 years of intense training to
develop an ice-skating virtuosity and reach a
point when a profound understanding of glide
can be felt. The problem is that those 10 years
are often spent in the figure skating world,
which doesn't prepare a person to be a
thoughtful artist interested by the deep nature
of things. Figure skating is very superficial:
pastiche, sparkles, big smiles, reality TV...
Figure skating has a strong beauty pageant
aspect to it. It's all about obedience and
conforming to pre-installed ideals. So, the
people who end up being beautiful skating
AH: The magical thing is glide. Its the fact

than a human can move through space without
using the normal movements associated with
locomotion: walking, running, jumping,
crawling, cartwheeling, etc... With glide, you
can be just standing, immobile, but reach great
speed. It creates a vertigo. Deep inside our
brains, millions of years of evolution are telling
us that this should not be. Yet, it is! That's why
ice-hockey is such a magnetic sport. And that's
the special thing we're bringing to
contemporary performance.
Le Patin Libre will perform Vertical Influences
at the 2016 Melbourne Festival, 15-22 October.
See www.danceaustralia.com.au/news/
contemporary-dance-circus-ice-skating-this-ismelbourne-festival
Dance in a wider context

Styles taught: Vestris/ Bournonville, Volkova/Vaganova, RAD, Cecchetti, Graham, Spanish Dance Society
frica,
Asia
Graduates dancing professionally in Australia, Europe, North America, South Affrica,
i A
i
JESSI SEYMOUR
ISOBEL ANDERSON AWARD 2016
WINNER CECCHETTI
NSW INTERMEDIATE MEDAL 2016
WINNER CANADIAN NATIONAL
BALLET SCHOOL
4 WEEK
SUMMER SCHOOL 2016
WINNER LUCIE SARANOVA
SILVER SECTION 2016;
FINALISST ROBERT
T AND
ELIZA
ABETH ALB
BERT
SCHOLA
ARSHIP 2016
SYDNE
YDNEY
EY EISTE
ISTEDD
DFOD
CONGRATULATIONS
TO HARRY CHURCHES
(ROYAL BALLET,
LONDON) ON BEING
SELECTED TO REPRESENT
ROYAL BALLET
COMPANY AT THE ERIK
BRUHN COMPETITION
IN CANADA IN
NOVEMBER 2016
THE
PAUL RUSSELL
Gene Gold 2009
ER
SUMM
OL
SCHONUARY
JA
16-20
2017
BRAYDEN GALLUCCI
WINNER ISOBEL
ANDERSON AWARD
ADVANCED 1 2016
RUNNER-UP
C
ETTI NSW
SENIOR
R MEDAL 2016
FINA
ALIST PRIX DE
SANNE 2016
STEVEN MCRAE
Gene Gold 2002
Prix de Lausanne
winner 2003, Principal
Artist Royal Ballet
Covent Garden,
Winner Young
Australian
Achiever of the year
UK 2014
AURELIAN CHILD
DE BROCAS
Gene Gold 2012
Lucie Saranova
Awards Winner 2013
Cecchetti Gold
Medal 2013,
Scholarship Hamburg
School inal year
2015/2016
SHOWTIME!
39
A tap/
gap year
Sally Clark talks to 18 year old
Jonah Ende about his time
tapping in New York.
CREDIT: OFER LEVY
ts not uncommon for Aussie teenagers to

elect to have a gap year following their
year 12 studies and travel abroad to
experience the world whilst they transition
themselves into adulthood and whatever will
come next. But those with a passion for
performance (dance or musical theatre), may
choose to forgo the international travel option to
devote those funds and themselves to a year (or
two) of full-time study, in the hope that they
might skill themselves up to professional
standard and thus define their whats next
Sydneys Jonah Ende, is an 18-year-old with
a passion for tap dance who found a way to
combine both options when he took himself
off to New Yorks Broadway Dance Centre
(BDC), in February this year to train with
them for six months as part of their
International Student Visa Program (ISVP)
Ende admits that the catalyst for starting dance
lessons came after his mother, Tara, observed him
dancing at a family bat mitzvah, when he was 8 or
9, and recognised some talent (she had been a
I always knew that I was going to

go on a gap year and if I could
combine travelling with dancing
that would be the perfect option.
dancer herself who trained and danced with Jane
Beckett). She suggested that dance lessons might
be a good idea but he confesses to being
apprehensive, at first, until nearly two years later
when they came upon an all boys dance class at
Dein Perrys Tap Pups School.
He started with tap classes only but, as his love
for tap and dance flourished, he took up other
classes on offer there including hip hop, jazz
technique and acrobatics. He notes, Tap Pups
School has been like a second home to me. I am
still tapping with many of the boys who were at the
school when I started. Dein, being my first teacher,
introduced me to tap dancing and seeing where it
has taken him has given me the drive to succeed.
Ende has always enjoyed the support of his

family for his passion to dance and says that it
was his father who had the idea to look at
dance schools for when I finished my HSC...
but how it unfolded and how he came to be at
BDC in New York now seems quite
serendipitous.
At the end of 2014 I was on a school band
tour performing in New York and California. My
parents came along to follow the tour band.
They were walking in New York one day (in
search of a toilet) and happened across the
Broadway Dance Centre. My mum talked my
dad into going in to have a look inside and they
bought me a T-shirt. Nothing more was thought
about the dance school but when my parents did

a Google search of dance courses in 2015 [he
was in the middle of his final HSC year] it just
so happened that the International Student Visa
Program for Broadway Dance Centre came up.
His dance concentration (BDCs term) was
tap so he did a minimum of five tap classes per
week. The ISVP course structure is for a
minimum of twelve dance classes per week (which
students choose from the range of 300 they offer
per week!) but that includes two mandatory ballet
classes per week. For Endes concentration he also
had to include compulsory classes in flamenco,
new style hustle and stepping.
Interestingly enough, when Ende travelled to
New Hampshire, following his graduation from
BDC, to participate in a tap intensive with
Aaron Tolson and Derick Grant (two BDC
teachers), their course content included yoga
and Pilates. Its obvious that the new generation
of tap mentors is keen to develop the all-round
dance capabilities/fitness of their students and
not just the dexterity of their beats. When you
40 / SHOWTIME!
see the choreography of new tap stars like

Michelle Dorrance, with whom Ende also
trained at BDC, you can see why this versatility
is imperative.
Whilst training at BDC, Ende, lived in a single
room student dorm on West 30th Street. He
jokingly refers to this room as a glorified shoe
box which he transformed into his Australian
cosy man cave with an Australian flag hanging
on the wall and a photograph of [his] two best
friends from Sydney. The dorm was about a 15
minute walk from the BDC studios so after a
couple of months he improved the commute by
purchasing a skate board so [he] could skate in
the bike lane, to school. He recalls, That
definitely saved me some time... at the expense of
my elbow! Obviously that commute wasnt
always accident free!
He admits that The first night was very
lonely but that he made friends, and was
constantly meeting people from all over the
world [who] have something in common we
are all dancers. He adds, New York is
definitely a city where something is always
happening. There is a buzz here. [And] having
Broadway just around the corner is a treat.
Hamilton was amazing! But the obvious
benefits of training and residing in the dance
CREDIT: REID PERRY
LEFT: Jonah Ende

training at the Los
Angeles Tap Festival
epicentre of the world weren't the only

highlight, he remarks. I was privileged to see
rare footage from Jason Samuel Smiths
personal collection of tap dancing videos. I have
come to appreciate how important tap history is
the legacy we have to uphold.
When his course was complete Ende was able
to extend his visa to facilitate travelling to New
Hampshire to participate in The Intensive run
by his BDC teachers, Tolson and Grant. He then
finished up his odyssey with another week of
superlative training at the Los Angeles Tap
Festival, which was held at the Debbie Allen
Dance Academy and under the direction of,

Jason Samuels Smith. So he certainly
investigated every opportunity to train with the
worlds best during this trip.
Of the experience, Ende, says I had always
known that I wouldnt go straight to university
and I always knew that I was going to go on a gap
year and if I could combine travelling with
dancing that would be the perfect option. New
York is the centre of the tap world and I dont
know where else I would have gone to have the
opportunity to be surrounded by the tap heritage
and the teachers there. It was so inspiring!
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The Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School
DANCE
AUDITIONS
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For years 7 to 12
Professional training in dance

Integrated with a full academic education
for secondary students
Telephone (03) 8644 8644
57 Miles Street Southbank Victoria 3006
For detailed information about the
audition process go to our website
www.vcass.vic.edu.au/entry
Image - Students from left to right: Luke Dimattina and Jack Dalton
in Tim Harbours Volante
and Daisy Calnin in Garry Stewarts Currently Under Investigation
Photography by Deryk McAlpin (left image) Belinda Strodder (right image)
Audition online application available

April 11 2017
Auditions
July/August 2017
Auditions close
18 July 2017
NUTRITION
43
Protein:
More than
muscles!
Fiona Sutherland explains why
w
protein is so important and how
to make sure you get enough.
HESE days, I tend to talk very

little about individual nutrientts as
Ive moved much more into the
food-body-mind space and thin
nk
more about foods as a whole. Even so, I think
its important that dancers develop an
understanding of how you can incorporate a
wide variety of foods into your busy days, and
WHY some foods are more important than
n
others - for example, to maintain energy an
nd
performance, or to combat fatigue and
prevent injury.
Lets get back to basics - protein isnt just
found in food; it is the most important building
block in your body. Proteins are large, complex
molecules that play many critical roles. They
do most of the work in cells and are required
for the structure, function, and regulation of
the bodys tissues and organs.
Proteins are made up of hundreds or
thousands of smaller units called amino acids,
which are attached to one another in long
chains. There are 20 different types of amino
acids that can be combined to make a protein.
The sequence of amino acids determines
each proteins unique 3-dimensional structure
and its specific function. Some examples of
proteins in the body are enzymes and
antibodies. Proteins also have an important
structural role in cells and are responsible for
transport and storage within cells and
throughout the body. Hair, skin, eyes, muscles
and organs are all made from protein. So
pretty important!
Protein in food is also made up of amino
acids and assists the body with all these
important functions. When the cells of the
body breakdown or turn over, its important
that theres a steady supply ready to go (from
our diet), so that these tissues can be replaced
to keep us healthy and functioning at our best.
Whenever I mention protein in my
nutrition classes, many dancers immediately
think of muscles or specifically the
building up of muscles.
Yes, protein is an important nutrient for

muscle growth and development but also has
many other functions which are very
important, including:
Support of growth & development
Energy
Helps to fill you up leaving you feeling
more satisfied after a meal
Injury prevention & rehabilitation
Wound healing
Support of immune function, helps prevent
you from getting sick
Key Protein Foods:

Meats beef, lamb, pork, chicken, fish
Eggs
Dairy foods milk, cheese, yoghurt, or high
protein non dairy alternatives eg. Soy milk
Nuts & seeds
Tofu
Legumes (eg. Lentils, chickpeas)
How much do I need?

This is highly variable but is based mostly on
your body size and energy requirements. If
youre able to eat 1 x source of protein at each
meal (and some snacks as a bonus) then youre
doing really well. Males will need to eat larger
quantities than females (due to body size).
You will be able to reach this target by
including high protein foods at each meal and
also at some snacks during the day. If you
want to get more specific than this, its
important that you see a Sports Dietitian
(www.sportsdietitians.com.au) to get some
advice thats right for you.
Where do dancers go wrong

with protein?
If you rely heavily on fruit, vegetables and
salad for your meals, youre likely to be
missing out on valuable proteins. Remember
that grains (such as oats, crackers, grainy
bread etc) also have some protein too, but not
in as high quantities as the foods listed above.
To see how youre going, you might like to
write out a typical day of eating and see how
many different protein foods you are eating.
Then, see if you can make modifications by
adding some protein through your day - even
a little at a time can make a difference to the
way your body functions!
Some examples of ways that you

could increase your protein
intake are:
Add lean meat or a slice of cheese to your
sandwich or wrap at lunchtime
Enjoy a high protein milk drink, for
example a fruit smoothie (see recipe below)
Snacks could include natural yoghurt, nuts
or seeds, eggs or tins of tuna or salmon
Add more milk to your cereal in the
mornings or add some yoghurt for
something different.
Fiona Sutherland is
an accredited dietitian
and nutritionist and
consultant to the
Australian Ballet School.
44 / DANCERS WITHOUT BORDERS
Making marks in Germany

Australian Danielle Muir is now dancing in Berlin, reports Luke Forbes.
t the age of 22, Danielle Muir has

already made her mark on the
German capital. Now in her third
season in the ensemble of the
Staatsballett Berlin, she has
consistently been cast in
prominent roles. During a
conversation with her early in 2016, she rattled
off a list of her early career highlights,
achievements which would commonly be
amassed over a much longer time period.
I have danced in many ballets since joining
the company, but there are a few that really stick
out in my mind. I danced the White Cat in
Nacho Duatos Sleeping Beauty [and] was lucky
enough to be able to dance it while on tour in
Danielle Muir sailing
into her career.
Madrid. Giselles friends was another technical

but fun role to dance. I also really enjoyed
dancing in Angelin Preljocajs The Nights and
Nacho Duatos White Darkness.
Without precluding her hard work and
determination, Muir has been fortunate to have
been offered opportunities rather than have to
fight for them. Before I was offered a place at
the Royal Ballet School (RBS), I actually didnt
know much about it, she recalls. Being an
Australian, I had my heart set on going to the
Australian Ballet School (ABS) and I was offered
a place there as a full-time student when I was
fourteen.
Due to reasons beyond her control the young
Muir was unable to accept the ABS offer. The
following year however she competed in the

Alana Haines Australasian Awards in New
Zealand and the RBSs director was one of the
judges. She spoke to me after the competition
and expressed her interest, but at the time I was
still a bit too young. So she asked me to send a
DVD the following year. As it turned out, a year
later I was able to go to London and take classes
at the school for a week and on the second day I
was offered a place for the next year.
The high standards of the RBS evidently paid
off when her first audition outside London
jump-started what is usually a very difficult
period for young dancers.
The audition for Staatsballett Berlin was
one of the first company auditions of the
year, she recalls. I took class and
immediately after the director - Vladimir
Malakhov at the time - called me in to his
office and offered me a contract.
Many dancers who graduate from ballet
schools are faced with the prospect of no steady
work or income, searching for affordable daily
CREDIT: DIANA PATIENT
If you slack off and let your technique slip,

no one is going to let you know and tell you
how to work and improve.
classes, or accepting less-than-ideal working
conditions associated with short-term contracts.
Muir found herself with different challenges.
When you are in school you are constantly
being told what to do and being pushed by your
teachers. They tell you everything you need to
know and keep you motivated and on track. But
in a company you are totally in control of how
you work. If you slack off and let your technique
slip, no one is going to let you know and tell you
how to work and improve. You have to be very
self-aware and self-motivated to continue
improving in a company, especially as a corps
de ballet dancer.
Having overcome these professional
challenges, in addition to minor social ones such as settling in to a non-English speaking
environment and finding friends among a
group of colleagues with diverse backgrounds
and experiences - Muir intends to stay in
Berlin for the foreseeable future. My longterm goal is to become a principal ballerina
and be able to dance my favourite roles, she
confides. By the look of her promising career
thus far it appears to be a realistic goal. In her
own words, As soon as I started the audition
class [in Berlin], it just felt right.
DANCERS WITHOUT BORDERS
45
Stacey
Kenealy on
tour with the
Moulin Rouge
in New York.
Taking on
the world
Stacey Kenealy understands the
power of the building a brand,
writes Sally Clark.
tacey Kenealy, is a home-grown

performing artist who epitomises
all that can be achieved when you
are passionate, talented and
pursue a career without
geographic or artistic borders.
She is also one of a new breed of artists astute
enough to identify that the unique skill-set she
has crafted places her in an elite category that
appeals to international companies like Moulin
Rouge, Coca-Cola and Westfield. Thus she
works just as hard at developing an awareness of
Stacey Kenealy as a global brand as she does her
technique and maintaining peak physical
condition.
Kenealy grew up on Queenslands Gold
Coast and trained at Paradise Performers
Academy under Peta McKenney. At age 17, she
began working professionally, first at
Dreamworld and then in the Jupiters Casino
production of Zingara which, she
confesses, ignited her passion for largescale shows. During this Jupiters season
she successfully auditioned for the famed
Moulin Rouge and so left the Gold Coast
and relocated to Paris to join the company when
her contract was up.
Her first two years at the Moulin saw Kenealy
featured as a can-can soloist, highlighting her
dance and acrobatic expertise. Being a multiskilled dancer, based in Paris, also facilitated other
performance opportunities for Kenealy, such as
fashion shows, film clips and live television
performances - including presentations at Stade
de France for audiences of 100,000 people.
Next, she became part of the Moulins
touring company, affording a further five years
work and the chance to travel to and perform in
Italy, Malta, Australia, Belgium, Singapore,
Moscow and New York. Kenealy recalls that this
part of her career offered many new
experiences, including performing at the 60th
Italian Music Festival. The highlight of this
Moulin experience, or pinch-me moment, as
she likes to call it, came when she was asked to
be the face of the company, for interviews,
during their 2014 tour to New York, and
especially when they performed on a stage in
Times Square and for television news show
The highlight of this Moulin experience came

when she was asked to be the face of the company,
for interviews, during their 2014 tour to New York
Good Day, New York.
When Kenealy returned to Australia she
quickly assimilated herself into the top tier of
freelance commercial artists and was soon being
cast to dance on shows such as X Factor (seasons
3, 4 and 5). She performed alongside stars such as
Ricky Martin and Jess Mauboy (NRL Grand
Final 13) and with Jessie J and Rikki Lee. Her
modelling profile also soared which saw her land
television commercials and campaigns for brands
such as Lorna Jane, Westfield, Coca-Cola,
Lipton Iced Tea, and Rebel Sports (ASICS)
But basing herself in Australia didnt limit her
touring opportunities. When Americas famous
Glenn Miller Orchestra came to Australia, she was
one of only two female dancers cast to perform
with the orchestra as it toured the country. Then,
when the orchestra toured to Thailand
performing for the King of Thailand she was
there and a part of that, too!
She also counts herself very fortunate to have
been cast as one of the few Australians to

perform in the 2014 Commonwealth Games
Closing Ceremony in Glasgow and to have had
the chance to perform to such a large live
audience, in the stadium that night, and for
millions more on television.
Most recently, Kenealy, spent three months
based in LA doing classes with top
choreographers and forming relationships with
agents and photographers there. She continues
to develop herself as a multi-faceted artist whilst
she strengthens her portfolio and foundation
skills for her next ambition a performance
career that crosses her over into film and
television. While she continues to establish
herself in that new performance domain shell
be working just as hard to promote her own
unique brand - Stacey Kenealy, the global
performing artist.
With more than 10K followers on Instagram
already, I think shes made a great start!
ADVICE
47
Ask Emma
Do you have any

suggestions about how
I could make my stage
performance as good
as my rehearsal
performances?
15 year old aspiring ballet dancer.
FURTHERMORE
Dear Dancer,
The transition from studio to stage is a
critical one for all performers to master so
its great to raise the question early on.
The sooner you can develop a method
that works for you, the better.
It is natural that what feels comfortable in
a familiar studio feels foreign on stage
particularly when there is not adequate stage
time to acclimatise. Take away the fourth
wall and it can feel like you are dancing in a
deep, foreign cavern; your centre tends to
fall backwards and adrenaline pushes you
into overdrive. Keeping your cool while
delivering a performance that rises to the
occasion takes practise.
Mental preparation is key. Start by using
your imagination while in studio rehearsals.
Once youre on top of the choreography and
youve started to make it your own, the next
step is to see the performance in your
minds eye how you want to deliver it and
how you would like it to come across to the
audience. I like to listen to the music
through headphones before rehearsals,
going through the work in my mind. It is
also interesting to repeat this process after
the rehearsal to see how your approach and

ideas might have shifted, also to consolidate
corrections.
It is a good idea to bring new faces into
the studio to watch you rehearse if you have
that opportunity. Once youre comfortable
with the choreography its a good time to
mix things up so that you keep growing and
pushing. The presence of a new audience
will give you enough nerves to prepare you
for how you might feel on stage, as well as
some fresh feedback.
As a student, get as much stage
experience as you can. Grab every
opportunity to perform. Ultimately the best
way to develop performance confidence is
to get practise at it. For this reason I am a
strong proponent of the eisteddfod circuit.
Eisteddfods and festivals dot the year
providing plenty of opportunities to get
accustomed to dancing in different
environments in front of new audiences.
Give yourself ample time to prepare
before a performance. I have always liked
a steady pre-performance ritual. It keeps
me calm and focused. Once you arrive at
the venue the ritual begins, you steadily
work through each part of your
preparation until performance time.
Finally - and this is a fantastic tool for
life - fake confidence! Nerves will always
be there but I find it helpful to fake
confidence until I actually feel it. Decide
that you are exceptional and confident
and wear it. All the best!
Amy Bale, dancer, Romanian National Ballet

I excel most in the studio when I am relaxed
and have a clear plan of what I want to focus on
in that rehearsal, which means there's no
headspace for distractions. I try to keep it the
same for performance. In terms of remaining
calm, this means in the rehearsals leading up to
the show, taking responsibility for whatever is
in my control. Pinpointing moments where I
need to think about certain things, is one
example. Filming myself is another - it's the
hardest thing to face but once you get used to
it, it's one of the most effective ways to self
correct and if you can get it to a point your
happy with watching yourself you can feel
confident about putting it on stage.
Brett Simon
rehearsing Stephen
Pages Waramuk
(2012) with the
Australian Ballet.
When it comes to the actual day of the

performance I try not to change anything
drastically in regards to what I eat or the shoes I
wear. I usually try to have a nap or at least rest my
legs. I've also learnt not to over practise things on
stage before curtain up, because at times I have
just tired or stressed myself out. Sometimes I
know I always do something better the second
time through so I will make myself run it once, but
usually I just practise the couple of things that
might be a bit tricky, or mark through it while
listening to the music. If something is stressing
me out technically at that last moment, I try to
shift my focus to what I want to convey in the
character/through the piece, because this is what
it is about - not that one step.
PHOTO: LYNETTE WILLS
Emma Sandall answers readers questions
Emma Sandall danced with Bejart Ballet

Lausanne, the Royal Ballet, Scottish
Ballet and West Australian Ballet. She
teaches for companies and schools in
Australia, Europe and America.
Brett Simon, soloist, The Australian Ballet

Going over the choreography just before
performing can help - focusing on any
parts that you know are tricky so you can
feel happy that you know what you need
to do. Focusing on what you are trying to
say or communicate with your
performance and not just on the steps and
the choreography can also be useful. This
helps to create a story and allows you to
be fully involved in what is happening on
stage. Remind yourself that you know
what you're doing and have prepared
yourself for your show with some great
rehearsals, which will let you go on stage
feeling confident.
48 / OPINION
What's it like to partner your

real-life partner? Matthew
Lawrence spills the beans.
Dancing with
my better half
CREDIT BILL COOPER
atthew Lawrence and

Gaylene Cummerfield were
both born in New Zealand,
growing up in Christchurch.
n the same hospital, believe
it or not, says Lawrence. We were born in the
same month, a year apart. Cummerfield smiles:
Though we didnt meet until some time later.
Its a big place, New Zealand, agrees Lawrence.
You get lost in it.
Zo Anderson, Dancing Times (UK), 2008
Please excuse my two-mirrored vanity, opening

an article about us my wife and I - with a quote
from an article about us. Even Narcissus only
owned one mirror. But objectivity comes from
others. For instance, I need Anderson to tell you,
Hes [me] open, lively, talkative. Nice. And,
Shes quieter, but will often prompt him, raising
ideas that Lawrence will run with. My wife will
agree; she is the brain and I am the mouth.
Audiences love the art imitating life Theyre playing Romeo and Juliet, and theyre
married! stories. As former Z-list celebrities,
we had our fair share of romance articles. My
favourite was written by the Australian Womens
Weekly, headlining: Prince charming swept me
off my feet!, which managed to breach at least
ten popular clichs.
As Anderson rightly noted, my wife and I
started life in the same hospital, but met 18
years later at the Australian Ballet School (ABS).
As aforementioned, New Zealand is a big place.
It has two main islands and we grew up
separated by the Cook Strait.
Apparently, upon our first meeting at ABS, I
was rather dismissive and rude this story has
two versions. Fortunately, our initial
misunderstanding was short lived, and we were
soon flirting in Kiwi. Relationships, however,
were not overly encouraged at ballet school,
viewed as a temporary training distraction. One
of my tutors even advised, Dont let her [my
future wife] hold your career back.
Another time, a choreographer who would
often compare her dogs dancing ability to the
students accused my wife: If you hadnt been
canoodling so much with that boyfriend of
yours, maybe you would know the
choreography!, which was quite unfair, as we
had not been canoodling at all I promise.
Upon graduating from school, we both
acquired jobs, which were separated by the
Tasman Sea. Yet, with many letters - yes, before
Facebook, email and Skype - attempting poetic
49
OPPOSITE PAGE: Matthew

Lawrence and Gaylene
Cummerfield in the
Birmingham Royal Ballets
production of Kenneth
MacMillans Elite Syncopations
recitations (written with a wafting tone):

Far, we are near, meet in the rain
And soppy phone calls. We stayed together.
On a whim, Gaylene re-auditioned for the
Australian Ballet (AB). The directors overprotective secretary did not approve, chiding,
What do you think you are going to achieve?
Simply walk in there and dazzle him with your
presence? Clearly she did, and we were
together again and then, since.
Instances of real-life couples dancing
together, successfully although not
uncommon - are actually quite rare. Regularly
something goes amiss: proportions; style; rank or
maturity. Partner squabbling is often the deal
breaker. The usual verbal filters, which are
generally present, tend not to exist with couples,
creating the potential for nasty vocal fireworks.
Sydney
Dance
Company
LEFT: Matthew Lawrence

and Gaylene Cummerfield in
rehearsal for the Birmingham
Royal Ballets production of
Kenneth MacMillans Romeo
and Juliet.
Such instances make for a very uncomfortable

rehearsal environment. As such, ballet
companies tentatively navigate romantic
partnerships. Which perhaps contributed to us
being infrequently cast together. That is, before
our time with Birmingham Royal Ballet (BRB).
From first impressions with BRB, our future
stage bond was unexpected. Cutting to the point
on day one, we were asked, Do you mind not
working with each other? Clearly in Europe,
when couples move together, they envisage an
T A
Choreography by
Rafael Bonachela
& Gabrielle Nankivell
on-off-stage partnership. The surprising

eventuality, to the contrary, was our names being
regularly cast together: Odette/Odile
Cummerfield, Siegfried Lawrence; Romeo
Lawrence, Juliet Cummerfield; Aurora
Cummerfield, Prince Dsir Lawrence
In hindsight, the timing was perfect. We had
matured to a point of not caring too much.
Letting the stage go, before home, was necessary
in surviving all 24/7, 365, moments. Nothing
ruins dinner more than a - So what happened in
Vivid colour and

wild physicality
1829 Oct, Sydney

Book Now
roslynpackertheatre.com.au
Dancers Josephine Weise and Todd

Sutherland. Photo by Peter Greig.
50 / OPINION
that turn? conversation. Healthily, we seemed

to avoid such out-of-hours analysis.
Whether actual, or imagined, when dancing
together, audiences appeared to cheer that bit
louder than when apart. It is like spectators
really watched our every exchange, buying into
an amorous look or cheeky interchange as being
genuine. As a partnership, we also seemed to
receive glowing reviews. To the point of
predictability, it was written - real-life married
couple and chemistry.
Whatever the subjective actuality was, our
shows were my favourite. There was a bit of ying
and yang - a polar opposite - between us. Gaylene
would attack the stage. I was more conservative. A
planner. As my wifes partner I needed to be ever
present. She was fearless electricity; I was the
rubber sole supplying conduction (which makes
me sound rather boring). However, it just worked.
Or at least it felt that way.
MAARTEN HOLL
She was fearless

electricity; I was the
rubber sole supplying
conduction...
Matthew Lawrence and Gaylene Cummerfield in the Royal New Zealand Ballets Swan Lake, choreographed by Russell Kerr.
Ballet partnerships used to be in vogue.

Companies marketed couplings, creating star
units: Nureyev and Fonteyn; Baryshnikov and
Kirkland; Vasiliev and Maximova. And there
will be those who remember ABs star couple,
Marilyn Jones and Garth Welch. Each
coupling brought a contrasting dynamic,
bringing out the best in each other. Arguably,
this would add another level to a performance,
heightening the sense of authenticity.
Presently, I would struggle to name a pairing.
It is now interchangeable individuals.

Chemistry is a viscerally intangible quality.
And yet, as clear as the Eiffel Tower, it stands. As
a performer, sharing the stage with my intimate
other made performing not a selfish endeavour,
but a jointly held accomplishment. Special.
Cherished. Can only romantic couples create
this on-stage chemistry? Of course not. Yet,
manufactured or otherwise, the public adores
fairy-tale relationships. It has worked and sold
many tickets before. Why not encourage it again?
Lucinda Dunn OAM

Artistic Director
December Workshops
28 November to 6 December
with Lucinda Dunn OAM
Marie Walton Mahon ARAD RAD RTS
& Danilo Radojevic
z
Genee Preparation Workshop

z Teacher Sharing Seminar
z Progressing Ballet
Technique Workshop
Marie Walton Mahon
Danilo Radojevic
VIDA POLAKOV
TPCCA Pre Professional Graduate Winner
2015 Alana Haines Awards
Gold Medalist 2014 Genee International Ballet Competition
Commenced contract with WA Ballet Company 2015
classicalcoaching.com
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52 / COMPETITION
AUSTRALIA
BOUND!
I
Get passionate!
Larissa Savelievs tips for
Australian YAGP hopefuls.
You know what? Australian
dancers are so very elegant, very
beautiful. Sometimes they are
missing a little bit of the passion.
A lot of Latin American dancers
and Cubans, they have this
excited edge. I think Australian
dancers have a lot of class and
elegance, visually they are just
beautiful. But if I say, if I want to
add something, I would say
maybe a little more passion.
ts really happening! The Youth

America Grand Prix (YAGP) will be
holding audition workshops for its 2017
competition in Australia, in Brisbane,
Melbourne and Sydney this October.
It will be the first time YAGP has
toured to Australia but the concept
has been on the cards for a while, says
YAGP co-founder and director
Larissa Saveliev. Weve been
thinking about going to Australia for a
while, she explains. Theres so
much talent in Australia. I dont know
where you guys are getting all this
talent. If you look at YAGP history
over the last few years, a lot of the
winners are Australian. And Im not
only talking about winners a lot of
those who receive multiple
scholarship offers are Australian too.
As outlined in the June/July issue of
Dance Australia, the YAGP is as
much about the aforementioned
scholarships as it is about the
competition itself. The judging panel
comes from major schools and
companies around the world, and as
well as choosing the competition

winners, they also select students for
scholarships to their various schools
and institutions.
The Australian workshops will also
operate in this way both as auditions
for the 2017 YAGP and as auditions
for short-term scholarships to
international ballet schools says
Saveliev. "Because of our long-term
relationship with ballet schools such
as the Royal Ballet School, the
Stuttgart Ballet, and Ballet de Monte
Carlo, and American Ballet
Theatre if I see a student who I
think will be a good match for that
school, I have the ability to offer
short-term scholarships. The directors
of the schools have a trust in me.
The Australian workshops will be
conducted by Christopher Powney,
director of the Royal Ballet School,
Savelievs husband and co director/
founder of YAGP, Gennadi Saveliev,
YAGP scholarship co-ordinator from
Japan, Haruko Kawanishi, and
Saveliev herself.
CREDIT: VAM PRODUCTIONS
The Youth America Grand Prix is holding

auditions in Australia for the first time.
Nina Levy talks to the competitions
artistic director and founder Larissa
Saveliev to get all the details.
53
Past Australian YAGP

winners, LEFT: Hannah
O'Neill. OPPOSITE PAGE:
Dominie Lythgoe
Theres so
much talent
in Australia.
The longer term plan is for

semi-finals in Australia in 2018, says
Saveliev. Were working on that.
Most likely these will be in Brisbane.
Its also possible, she continues, the
workshops will take place every other
year rather than annually. Theres
just not enough months in the year to
visit all the places, she elaborates. A
two-year gap also allows time for new
talent to develop. If we come and
offer quite a few scholarships we need
to allow some time for a new
generation to grow up.
YAGP audition dates*

*Please note registrations have
closed.
Brisbane, 21 October
Queensland Ballet
Melbourne 22 October
The Australian Ballet School
Sydney 23 October
The McDonald College
For more details head to:
http://yagp.org/
this was no ordinary school production. ...quite honestly, in a number of ways it outshone many a professional show I have seen. Michelle Potter December 2015
t Freya Wilkinson
Royal Ballet School
t Victoria Norris
Royal Ballet School
t Kiely Groenewegen Graduated
at the Royal Ballet School
t Melody Martin Australian Ballet
t Rebecca Mottin English National
Ballet Swan Lake in the Round
t Riko Takahashi
Tivoli Ballet Theatre
t Jessica Allison-Walker
Australian Ballets The Sleeping
Beauty Storytime production
t Rio Morisawa
Royal Swedish Ballet School
t Amy Radford
Dutch National Ballet Academy
breathtaking! Herald Sun

Performed in a unique setting with international guest
artists including the 65 musicians of the ACB Orchestra.
Arts Centre Melbourne, Hamer Hall
7:30pm, 20 December / 1:30pm & 7:30pm, 21 December
Bookings open 4 July
www.artscentremelbourne.com.au
www.ticketmaster.com.au
The Australian Conservatoire of Ballet

cwdcacb@ozemail.com.au
www.acbaustralia.com.au
54 / REVIEWS
CREDIT JEFF BUSBY
ConnorWalsh and
Karina Gonzlez
REVIEWS
Houston Ballet
ROMEO AND JULIET
ARTS CENTRE MELBOURNE,
JUNE 2016
All the company dancers are first rate.

Most striking is the way they make
dancing seen utterly natural.
saw this Romeo and Juliet at the

premiere in Houston a year ago and
was impressed. Im pleased to say
that the ballet is as good as I
remember it, if not better, now that
the dancers have settled into their roles.
As I have reviewed the ballet previously, I
will not repeat my description here. Suffice
to say, the ballet is a traditional
interpretation that draws extra elements out
of the Shakespeare play while keeping the
highlights sacrosanct. It tells the story
logically and clearly, even though it has a
more complicated plot and more characters

than the Cranko and MacMillan versions. As
for the design it is is exquisite! Roberta
Guidi di Bagno (costume and set) and Lisa
Pinkham (lighting) have created a
masterpiece that is lavish without being
overwrought, sumptuous yet tasteful, with a
gorgeous sense of colour and costumes that
combine rich detail with simplicity.
The ballet moves swiftly. The crowd
scenes and sword fights are full of excitement
and colour, and are highlights in themselves,
while showing the tension and acrimony
between the feuding families. Despite its
traditional setting, the ballet feels fresh, the
humour modern and the mime and acting
genuine and affecting.
All the company dancers are first rate. Most
striking is the way they make dancing seen
utterly natural. They have splendid attack, relish
performing pirouettes and double tours, and
convey no sense of caution or hesitation when it
comes to difficult technique.
In the opening night cast, Juliet was
performed by Karina Gonzalez. She is so
pretty its not hard to believe that Romeo falls
in love with her at first sight! Her portrayal
moved from playfulness and shyness to passion
and tragedy -- she is the agent of the couples
undoing, initiating the marriage and the final
fatal mistake.
However, it is the men who steal the show.
Connor Walsh was an ardent Romeo. He has
a beautiful smooth style and jumps that

hover. He is also a brilliant partner, and the
pas de deux, especially the balcony scene, is
breathtaking for its sweeping lifts and falls,
expressing the rapture of love. He makes all
those running lifts look effortless. Together
they make a ravishing couple.
Also notable was Jared Matthews, as
Mercutio, jovial and debonair to his last
dying breath; Oliver Halkowich, compact
and athletic; and Derek Dunn as Balthasar.
All the smaller roles were notable for being
rounded, interesting characters as opposed to
cardboard cut-outs. The parents bitterness at
their folly is palpable.
Orchestra Victoria, under the baton of
Houston Ballets musical director Ermanno
Florio, sounded underdone, though it
improved as the evening progressed.
The Houston Ballet is Americas fifth
largest classical ballet company, with more
than 50 dancers. It has been directed since
2003 by Australian Stanton Welch. Going by
this production, Australians should be
bursting with pride at his achievements.
It is not often a company of this size,
complete with magnificent sets, can afford
to tour to Australia. The chance to see this
magnificent ballet was one not to be missed.
Go to www.danceaustralia.com.au/review/
houston-ballet-romeo-and-juliet for my earlier
review.
- KAREN VAN ULZEN
55
Queensland Ballet
LEST WE FORGET
PLAYHOUSE, QUEENSLAND PERFORMING
ARTS CENTRE, JULY 2016
Laura Hidalgo was also perfectly

cast in Rum and Coca-Cola. Sultry
and flirtatious she had an edge in
her interpretation that signified the
subtext inherent in both the song and
Taylors intent.
EST We Forget is a program of three

half-hour works that, on the 100th
anniversary of the Great War, reflects on
all wars. The triple bill brings two
specially commissioned works into
Queensland Ballets repertoire and an
American classic not previously performed here.
Paul Taylors Company B made a seemingly
upbeat conclusion to an otherwise quite sombre
program. Choreographed to a suite of nine songs
recorded by the Andrews Sisters, this 1991 work
appears, on one level, to be a tribute to those
icons of the 1940s, but through the prism of their
popular songs, Taylor insinuates a subtext that
challenges the innocence of those melodies, and
of the decade.
The movement, while contemporary, is
flavoured with the swing dances of the 40s, like
the Lindy hop. But contrasting with the gaiety of
numbers such as Pennsylvania Polka (danced
by Teri Crilly and Rian Thompson with
considerable abandon), are the background,
shadowy figures of war and sacrifice. In fact the

subtext of death sneaks an appearance in almost
every song.
The rawness of this juxtaposition was rather
muted this performance. However, a
bespectacled Camilo Ramos nailed Johnny, a
reluctant Romeo, in Oh Johnny, Oh Johnny.
Surrounded by a bevy of swooning girls, it was
a witty, slick interpretation of turns and
twisted leaps.
Laura Hidalgo was also perfectly cast in Rum
and Coca-Cola. Sultry and flirtatious she had an
edge in her interpretation that signified the subtext
inherent in both the song and Taylors intent.
Ma Congs In the Best Moments, which
opened the program, was the most abstract of the
three works, using The Hours Suite by Philip
Glass to reflect on human relationships.
Thematically, therefore, I thought its connection
to war also the most opaque.
Constructed across three movements, the
choreography matches the relentless, urgent
rhythms (often almost note for note) associated
with the music of Glass. Therefore it is
technically, ruthlessly uncompromising, and
requires a fearless attack not always evident. The
use of canon creates sculptural shapes of
extended limbs for a mere second before
dissolving into the next movement, while
moments of rare stillness often show the
expressive, soft open fifth position, with palms
facing front.
Clare Morehen and Shane Wuerthner,
supported by four other couples, were well
matched in the opening orange-lit sequence.
Throughout, the off-balance, spiralling turns,
and contorted extensions and lifts made for some
tricky partnering, which they rendered effortless,
although later there were some stickier moments

with the supporting couples.
Yanela Piera and Victor Estvez were also
seamless in the second more lyrical movement,
while Hidalgo, with Joel Woellner in the third
movement, galvanised with her fluidity and
finely tuned musicality.
Natalie Weirs We Who Are Left was,
unsurprisingly, given her flare for tapping into
the human psyche, the work most thematically
connected to the programs title. Choreographed
to selected parts of Benjamin Brittens The War
Requiem, it is visually striking, emotionally
charged, and in this performance, was delivered
with technical and expressive clarity.
Using five couples, costumed in shades of
battledress grey, Weir explores the classical (en
pointe) idiom with the fearlessness associated
with her best contemporary pieces. Duets are
more restrained but no less inventive; emotion is
encapsulated in the subtlest of movement.
An inspired lighting design by David Walters
has angled shafts of purple and blue overhead
and side lighting cutting through a smoky haze,
and individually capturing the dancers.
Morehens solo in the section She Who Was
Left was a highlight; the pair of boots at her
feet a poignant signifier of loss and grief. Her
pas de deux with Wuerthner, as the departed
phantom soldier, was beautifully conceived
and sensitively expressed.
An athletic section for men, to brass and
percussion, captured the Anzac spirit, but
ultimately We Who Are Left was about the
women. It was the highlight of a well-conceived
program of works, which, on an otherwise bare
stage, boldly allowed the dancers to shine.
DENISE RICHARDSON
CREDIT DAVID KELLY
We Who Are Left
56 / REVIEWS
The Dream Dance

Company
THE SECRET SOCIETY
PARADE THEATRE NIDA, JULY 2016
From the stalls, the experience felt less

formal and more spontaneous than your
average theatrical production but make
no mistake, these dancers were very well
rehearsed.
CREDIT: JOE BANANAS NY PHOTOGRAPHY
HE Secret Society is an entertaining

new work choreographed by Candace
Brown for the Dream Dance
Companys second season. Run by
founder/artistic director Marko Panzic,
this Sydney-based commercial dance
costume changes throughout the performance
company has already started to build a
which range from black tie evening wear, to the
reputation for bold and exciting new
short, colourful skirts of a dance party, and more
performances. Given that commercial dance is
conventional black athletic wear. Similarly, the
so often used in conjunction with other types of
shoes worn range from stilettos to flat soled black
performance, such as video clips or musical
sneakers, depending on the routine.
theatre, it is a novelty to see it taking centreA loose narrative is established by
stage, and the companys sixteen
showing video scenes interspersed
dancers really took ownership of
the Parade Theatres vast stage and Looking for a review? with dance numbers. Videographer
Frace Luke Mercados scenes are
Candace Browns choreography to
GO TO WWW.
projected on a large scale and have
impress their audience.
DANCEAUSTRALIA. the aura of an old style, cinematic
Although it is divided into
COM.AU
glamour. With few sets and props to
different sections, music producer
speak of, the videos are essential in
Aaron Lees seamless mash-up of
establishing the outward exclusivity, privilege and
pop, dance and R&B hits gives the impression of
wealth of this secret society. This is important
a continuously evolving atmosphere for The
because it provides a dramatic counterpoint to
Secret Societys duration. At one hour, this is a
later scenes in which the dancers seemingly let
relatively brief show but they pack a lot of varied
loose with the kind of hip-hop moves that evolved
routines into one hour. There are a number of
on the street, or the seriously sexy, hip-swivelling

moves that might have scandalised viewers in
Americas prohibition era, where jazz music and
dance developed in defiance of societys rules.
Audience interaction and response is
encouraged and on the night I attended there
were some vocal and enthusiastic supporters in
the audience. From the stalls, the experience
felt less formal and more spontaneous than
your average theatrical production but make
no mistake, these dancers were very well
rehearsed. Technically the dancers moved
easily from one style to another. It is difficult to
single out individual dancers as they were
listed only as a group in the program. Two
standouts I was able to identify on the night
were Lauren Seymour and Shivawn Joubert,
but they were not the only ones.
- GERALDINE HIGGINSON
58 / REVIEWS
CREDIT: TONY LEWIS
Felix Sampson, Matte

Roffe, Thomas Fonua,
Ellya Sam, Kimball
Wong, Zoe Dunwoodie
in Caught in Past Tense
Australian Dance
Theatre
IGNITION: HISTORY
ADELAIDE COLLEGE OF THE ARTS,
JULY 2016
Ignitions return with such a strong

program is cause for celebration.
FTER a five year recess, ADT has

revived Ignition, its annual season
devoted to the development of
choreographic talent. As in past
seasons, artistic director Garry Stewart
has given the choreographers a theme
to work with, this years being history. The
five works on offer engage with this theme in
very different ways, with three referencing
specific historical moments, and two reflecting
on the past in more abstract terms.
Kicking off is ADT dancer Matte Roffes
WOOLF!, a playful take on the classic film,
Whos Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, which explores
the marital dramas of two couples over one
drunken evening. After an introduction, delivered
in an American accent by Kimball Wong, the
four characters play out their mutual
recriminations, self-hatred, and infidelities in
front of a revolving mirror, lip-synching, speaking
and dancing at a relentless pace. Its a knowingly
melodramatic and very entertaining opener that
reflects the fraught gender relations of the 1950s.
The six dancers in Katrina Lazaroffs

Caught in Past Tense also make use of spoken
text, but in this case not to express their angst
but rather to depict the impossibility of
expressing themselves at all, and of recounting
the past. Dressed in 1940s and 50s brown and
yellow-toned day wear, they stutter and
stammer and get tangled up in attempts to
articulate past events, dancing jerkily on and
around a variety of props. This is a fine
although short piece of dance theatre.
In contrast, Epoch, by local independent
choreographer Erin Fowler, is a pure dance
work. Garbed in black long pants and longsleeved tops, the six dancers stand upstage in
dim side-lighting, before each dances
downstage in individual corridors of light.
Their solos, using subtle upper-body
movements, gradually segue into three duets,
before all return to the rear of the stage, lifting
their arms in unison. Epoch builds a
mysterious and intriguing atmosphere, and is
worthy of further development.
Thomas Fonuas The Village is an excerpt
from his full-length work, MALAGA, an
exploration of the infamous nineteenthcentury Human Zoos, in which indigenous
peoples were toured around Europe, exhibited
like animals in zoo-like settings. Accompanied
by a voice-over by his Samoan grandfather,
through anguished solos, duets and ensemble
work, Fonua depicts the despair of Pacific
Islanders whooften after being tricked or
even kidnappedwere forced to suffer this
degradation. As with another very different
excerpt presented at a previous ADT studio
showing, this work is a powerful indictment of

the inhumanity of colonialism: I hope we will
be able to see MALAGA in its entirety soon.
Lina Limosanis thirty-minute work, Ones
Wicked Ways, depicts the overthrow of a bunch
of narcissistic, debauched aristocrats by a
commoner, and is obviously loosely based on
the French Revolution. Dressed in white hoop
petticoats, breeches and coats, and wearing
oversized eighteenth-century wigs and
whiteface, the aristocrats indulge alternately in
power-plays, simulated sex, and silly games.
Limosani keeps the slapstick sharp, and subtly
manages the transition to a more sombre mood
when the commoner attempts to change the
system, first through political rhetoric in a
multi-lingual garble, then through physical
resistance culminating in violence. After being
hung and tortured by the aristocrats, he kills
them all, but the ending is somewhat
ambiguous, with the victor assuming a
seemingly dictatorial stance. Ones Wicked
Ways is funny and serious and highly
engaging, Limosanis deft timing and acute
sense of theatre making it clear why she was
awarded the 2015 Ausdance Peggy van Praagh
Choreographic Fellowship.
A number of the nations foremost
independent choreographers made their first
works for Ignition, including Antony
Hamilton, Anton, Tanja Liedtke, Larissa
McGowan and Christina Chan, as well as
New Zealands Ross McCormick, so its return
with such a strong program is cause for
celebration. Long may it continue!
MAGGIE TONKIN
16th-20th JANUARY
10+ up to pre-professional students
COME AND
EXPERIENCE
AUSTRALIAS
BEST TEACHERS
IN BALLET,
CONTEMPORARY AND
JAZZ, PLUS OTHER
FUN CLASSES.
GUEST TEACHERS
Guest
Principal
Artist
Guest
Principal
Artist
DAVID
MACK
KIRSTY
MARTIN
Sydney Dance
Company
Australian
Ballet Company
FACULTY TEACHERS
BRETT MORGAN
Artistic Director
TIMOTHY GORDON
Classical
ZOE JONES
Contemporary
BOOKINGS ARE ESSENTIAL THROUGH:
www.trybooking.com/MMRV
P: 02 4952 9294
www.nationalcollegeofdance.com
Ballet Scholarships for 2018

Redlands Ballet and Dance Academy enables students to combine academic study with
a full ballet and dance programme that is tightly integrated into the school day.
In recent years, 90% of Redlands HSC Dance students achieved Band 6 marks of 90+,
70% were selected for Callback, and two students were ranked 1st and 5th in the
entire state. All International Baccalaureate Dance students achieved Grades 6 and 7.
Gifted Year 7 2018 Ballet students are encouraged to apply for Ballet Scholarships at
www.redlands.nsw.edu.au/go/enrolments/scholarships by Monday 9 February 2017.
Redlands, Sydney Church of England Co-educational Grammar School

Redlands Ballet and Dance Academy, Allister St Cremorne NSW 2090
Phone: 02 9968 9856 Email: registrar@redlands.nsw.edu.au
60 / CLASS
Hot competition
Lania Atkins, winner of the 2016 Sydney

Eisteddfod Ballet Scholarship.
CREDIT WINKIPoP MEDIA
As always, the competition was fierce at this year's

Sydney Eisteddfod finals, reports Geraldine Higginson.
n August each year a significant

number of Sydneys dance
community gather at the Concert
Hall in the Sydney Opera House
for one of the highlights of Sydney
Eisteddfods calendar the Sydney
Eisteddfod Ballet Scholarship and Open
Jazz Dance Group Finals. For aspiring ballet
dancers these awards offer the eight finalists
a platform from which they can take the
next steps towards a professional career in
dance, and generous cash prizes are on offer.
For the jazz group dancers the financial
rewards are not as high, but the opportunity
to dance on the Concert Hall stage and the
prestige of winning mean this is also a
highly competitive event.
Trying to guess who will win the major
prizes as the evening progresses is
notoriously difficult as the overall standard
of selected finalists in both sections is very
high. From approximately 160 entrants for
the Ballet Scholarship this year, adjudicators
Rani Luther and Paul Knobloch gradually
narrowed the pool of contestants through a
number of classes and performances in order
to get down to eight finalists, and came to
know them quite well as a result. According
to Rani, what made the two major winners
stand out was, their maturity,
understanding and control of their technique
at such a young age, along with a warm
performance quality.
First prize winner was 16 year old Lania
Atkins, a student of the Dance Spot, NSW.
Lania impressed with her radiantly calm and
assured performance of Raymondas Dream
Solo, 2nd Variation, Act II and the
contrastingly dark tension of her free
variation. She wins a total of $18,000 to put
towards her training and the opportunity of a
short secondment with the Royal Danish
Ballet. Like a number of the finalists Lania
is no stranger to dance competitions and has
an impressive list of achievements for
someone so young. She has already been
accepted to start training at the Dutch
National Ballet Academy in September and
undoubtedly this sort of cash prize makes a
big difference to students like her (and their
families) who are taking on the costs of
living and training overseas for several years.
The second prize winner, 16 year old
Joshua Price, is a student of the Amanda
Bollinger Dance Academy in Queensland.
Joshuas love of performance and movement
came through strongly in his performance of
the Grand Pas de Deux Variation
(Tarantella) from Act III, Nutcracker, but his
strongest performance was in his free
variation ("The Story of the Shield"
choreographed by Joseph Aitken). This solo
gave Joshua an opportunity to command the
61
National College of
Dance, winner of the
Open Jazz Dance
Group section.
stage, displaying his authority and dramatic

potential, and he really made the most of it.
He wins $12,000, and like Lania, also has
the opportunity to take classes with a
number of prestigious schools and
companies across the world.
The Australian Conservatoire of Ballet
(ACB) also gave Performance Awards to
both Joshua Price and Luke Dimattina
(Victorian College of the Arts, VIC). This
entitles both dancers to perform with the
ACB, receiving a fee of $1,500 (and airfares/
accomodation if applicable). There were
some great performances from the
remaining finalists and fortunately none
went home empty handed with each
receiving $1,000. Tyla Steinbach (Tanya
Pearson Classical Coaching Academy,
NSW) captured Odiles dangerous,
menacing quality in a finely detailed
characterisation of the Black Swan solo
from Act III, Swan Lake and Lauren
Songberg (McDonald College, NSW) was
delicate and f leet of foot in her
interpretation of Auroras solo from Act I,
Sleeping Beauty. With the sinuous
undulations of a snake, Makenzie Henson
(Prudence Bowen Atelier, QLD) held the
audience spellbound in her Dreamtime
Serpent contemporary solo.
Seven finalists competed for the 2016
Open Jazz Dance Group Finals and the
Trying to guess who will win the major prizes

as the evening progresses is notoriously
difficult as the overall standard of selected
finalists in both sections is very high.
LEFT:Josha Price and

Lania Atkins with last
years winner Harrison
Lee.
diversity of their routines was a reminder

of just how broad a category jazz dance is
and choosing the winners must not have
been easy. In the final analysis,
adjudicators Olivia Ansell and Keith
Hawley awarded first prize of $2,500 to the
National College of Dance (Lambton,
NSW) for their routine to "Lean On" by
Major Lazer - a very well synchronised and
technically demanding performance.
Looking mighty sharp in their black suits
and white gloves, dancers from Capital
Performance Studios (Hornsby, NSW) took
second prize, while third prize went to
Brent Street (Moore Park, NSW) for their
old-style, musical theatre jazz routine.
The Sydney Eisteddfod Ballet Scholarship
has been held for 42 consecutive years, and
has had a number of different sponsors as it
has slowly evolved into a bigger and more
prestigious competition. Compere Francine
Bell, who did an excellent job introducing
the different dancers and groups, reminded
the audience several times that Sydney
Eisteddfod is currently searching for another
major sponsor so that it may continue into
the future. This is Australias biggest ballet
competition, after forty years it has a history
of its own and that is worth preserving.
-GERALDINE HIGGINSON
ELSTERNWICK
MORNINGTON
BONDI JUNC TION
O R F I N D YO U R LO C A L C A P E Z I O S TO C K I S T AT
C APEZIOAUSTR ALIA .COM
NEW W I L LO U G H BY
CLASS
The world
at her feet
Wodonga, in regional Victoria, is a
long way from Europe and America,
yet for young dancer, Amia Mason it is
her stepping stone to the world. Amia
(16 years), a student of Tim Podesta at
the Regional Academy of Performing
Arts, performed at the Youth America
Grand Prix (YAGP) earlier this year, an
experience she says, really opened my
eyes to just how amazing and
prestigious the ballet industry is.
Amia claims that the experience of
competing at YAGP taught her how to
control her nerves and helped her gain
more confidence as a dancer. Her
performances resulted in a number of
offers to further her dance training. I
was offered a full scholarship to the
Academy of Performing Arts in
Munich say Amia as well as the
opportunity to take part in the Summer
Intensive Program at Ballet West in
Salt Lake City in Utah, USA.
Amia completed the Summer
Intensive Program in
July and was
offered a full
tuition
scholarship
for the year
at Ballet
West
Academy.
She
accepted
this offer
and began
training at
Ballet West in
August this year,
ar,
initially staying
with a host family in
Salt Lake City until
her family relocates to
the USA.
Amia is enjoying the
timetable with dance classes from
Monday to Saturday each week. With
the goal to step out of her comfort
zone and expand and grow as a
dancer, she is well on the way to her
ultimate goal of becoming a
professional ballet dancer and
sharing her passion of the beauty of
ballet with others.
IMAGE: PHAEDRA BARNES
For Queensland dancer Layla Burgess (20

years) events this year are really a case of life
imitating art. Burgess, who has trained in
Queensland with Fiona Munro, Amanda
Bollinger as well as at Prudence Bowen
Atelier and Annette Roselli Dance Academy,
explains that, as a child, her dream was to be
Jody Sawyer, the dancer from the movie,
Center Stage who moves to New York City
to dance.
When Burgess first walked through the
doors of the American Ballet Theatre in New
York City in April this year, her excitement
was palpable. She was in New York to
compete at the Youth America Grand Prix
(YAGP), but had previously sent her audition
video to the American Ballet Theatre Studio
Company and had been invited to take classes
with the company over three days. I enjoyed
my three days so much and loved the people I
had met over this time and was sad to leave on
the last day she says.
While competing at YAGP, she received
another invitation to take class with the
Studio Company. Burgess explains My final
class with the Studio Company happened to
fall on the same day as the YAGP finals and I
was so excited for my class that I didnt even
realise that Id made the finals.
It was at a scholarship class for the finalists
at YAGP that Burgess was pulled aside by the

teacher who said she needed to talk to her.
Burgess says, I thought, 'Oh no Layla, youre
not supposed to be here. What have you
done?' The teacher asked her whether she
had accepted the offer from American Ballet
Theatre. Burgess explained that she didnt
know that she had been made an offer and
says she had to hold back her tears in front of
all the other dancers and scouts watching the
class. She says, I just prayed that she was
talking to the right girl.
Burgess was the right girl and she received
her formal offer that afternoon via email and
travelled to New York in September to start
training at the American Ballet Theatre
Studio Company. While she admits that she
is, a bit of a late bloomer when it comes to
ballet, Burgess says that she is proud of
completing Year 12 at All Saints Anglican
School in 2013. Education was always a
priority and she says young dancers should
not feel pressured into going into full time
dance at a young age. She is proof that, You
can have an education as well as follow your
dance dreams.
Of her training in New York, Burgess
cannot believe how luck she is and despite the
challenges of living away from home and not
having family close by, she is amazed to be
living her dream and has her eyes set on the
next goal an apprenticeship with the
American Ballet Theatre. Burgess says she
intends to dream big because, she has
discovered, dreams really do come true.
IMAGE: STEPHEN BOLLINGER
Big dream
63
64 / CLASS
Em
mily shines at
Ballet Teachers
orkshop
Wo
CREDIT NATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY
Emily Bray
Over 7000 dancers entered this year's

Ballet Teachers
T
Workshop
Scholarships, from which 113
finalists were selected to compete for
a prize pool totalling $17 450. The
finals were held on Sunday 21
August at the Darebin Arts and
Entertainment Centre.
The scholarships include three
major senior prizes, the Paul
Hammond Foundation Award, open
to males only (aged 16+) and the
Mabel Pryde Memorial Scholarship,
open to females (aged 16+) and the
Frances Naylor Award.
The Frances Naylor Award, worth
$5000, went to Emily Bray (Jane
Moore Academy of Ballet). Emily also
won the Mabel Pryde Memorial
Scholarship, also carrying a prize of
SECTION A: ages 8-9
SECTION B: ages 10-11
FIRST: Madison Sparkman

(Anita Coutts School of Dance)
SECOND: Charlotte Major
(The Academy of Classical Ballet)
THIRD: Bethany Whittorn
(Joanne OKelly School of Dance)
FOURTH: Hayley Brown
(Melbourne Academy of the Arts)
FIRST: Bridget Stackpole

(En Pointe School of Ballet)
SECOND: Jessica Poberezovska
(Jane Moore Academy of Ballet)
THIRD: Phoebe Fitzpatrick
(Michell Slater Performing
Arts Studio)
FOURTH: Eli Southurst
(Dance of Distinction)
SECTION C: ages 12-13

FIRST: Philippa Crawley
(Ballarat Ballet Centre)
SECOND: Milei Lee
(Brian Nolan Academy of Dance)
THIRD: Tara Newberry (VCASS)
FOURTH: Mio Bailey $150.00
(Anita Coutts School of Dance)
$2500, with second prize going to

Victoria Norris (Australian
Conservatoire of Ballet) and equal
third prize to Haruna Katsumata
(Australian Conservatoire of
Ballet) and Tamana Watanabe
(National Balletz).
The Paul Hammond
SECTION D: ages 14-15

FIRST: Abbey Lavery
(Dance of Distinction)
SECOND: Heidi Freeman
(KCs School of Dance)
THIRD: Ashlee Crowe
(Australian Conservatoire of Ballet)
Foundation Award, carrying a

prize of $2500, was won by
Luke Dimattina with second
prize going to Edan Kew and
third prize to Nathan Pavey.
All are students at the Victorian
College of the Arts Secondary
School (VCASS).
e
c
n
a
D
e
k
i
l
u
o
any wa
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TABLET
66 / SUMMER SCHOOL GIVEAWAY

Brigitta Olderied 2015 graduate, National College of Dance
WIN
A WEEK
EXPRESSIONS DANCE COMPANY

QLD Want to learn from some of Australias best dance artists?
Expressions Dance CompanysBrisbane Contemporary Dance
Intensive (BCDI) is one of Australias best contemporary dance
training programs. Work directly with the EDC ensemble and special
guest artists in this challenging, exciting a
eek! EDC is giving
a lucky reader the chance to win a one
week place in BCDI Summer 2017 held
9--13 January and 16-20 January.
www.expressionsdancecompany.or
AT THE SUMMER SCHOOL
OF YOUR CHOICE!
ANNETTE ROSELLI
CE ACADEMY
DANC
C
Dance Australia, in partnership with the

schools on these pages, is offering our readers
a chance to win a weeks tuition at a summer
school during January 2017.
TELL US IN 25 WORDS OR LESS YOU

UR
DANCE HIGHLIGHT OF 2016!
Got to http://www.danceaustralia.com.au/news//
win-a-week-at-a-summer-dance-school-2017 and
d
enter your details for your chance to WIN!
COMPETITION CONDITIONS: This competition is only open to readers with an
Australian address. This Yaffa Media competition closes on the last mail (1400 hours),
Thursday November 24th 2016. This is not a game of chance. The prize winner will be
judged on the premises of the promoter Yaffa Media (ABN 54 002 699 354), 17-21
Bellevue St, Surry Hills, Sydney at 1600 hours on Friday November 25th 2016. The deccision
is final and no correspondence will be entered into. The prize cannot be bartered and is not
redeemable for cash. There are 14 prizes as listed in this spread.
IMAGE: KIMENE SLATTERY CHING
IMAGE: ALEX FINN
Amelia
Townsend
D Annettee Roselli Dance Academy

Summer School (17 - 21 January 2017)
days of
consists of five consecutive
c
comprehensivee dance training in classical
orary, pointe, boys coaching,
ballet, contempo
repertoire and body conditioning. The
Summer School offers three levels to suit all
ages, (8 - 10 yearrs, 11 - 13 years, 14 years and
ng faculty including, Robert
over). An excittin
Director of Elmhurst School
Parker (Artisticc D
for Dance), Jan
nee Devine, Claudia Dean,
nd Tracey Carrodus.On
Adam Blanch an
Sunday 22nd JJanuary students have the
dition for the Elmhurst
opportunity au
ud
School for Dan
ncce with Robert Parker.
www.annetterooseelliballet.com.au
67
JASON COLEMANS MINISTRY OF DANCE

VIC T
The lucky winner will take part in our Summer School Program for 2017. This
is a uniique opportunity for students to be stretched, challenged and have the time of
r lives! The action packed week (January 16th to 20th Jan 2017) encompasses a
ety of genres including Jazz, Broadway, Hip Hop, Contemporary, Vocal and
ng. Teachers include Jason Coleman joined by the best of the best in the industry.
theministryofdance.com.au
THE AUSTRALIAN BALLET SCHOOL

SUMMER SCHOOL 2017
VIC Once very lucky contestant will win five consecutive dayys of
comprehensive training in classical ballet and other dance styles, in a variety
of programmes for national and international students at The Primrose Potter
d by staff of the
Australian Ballet Centre in Melbourne. Classes are conducted
School and guest teachers from The Australian Ballet and thee dance
community. The three different programmes have been develloped to cater
for the needs of students aged 8 - 18 years.
Open Programme
Pre-Professional Programme
Boys Programme (week one only)
Creative Programme (week two only)
http://www.trybooking.com/20364
ALEGRIA SCHOOL OF BALLET

NSW Alegria School of Ballet is delighted to
offer one lucky winner a place in the 2017 Alegria
Summer School (16 20 January). Very talented
and experienced faculty covering classical, pas de
deux, contemporary and repertoire. The prize is
suitable for a talented and sincere student of
Advanced 1 level or above.
www.alegria.com.au
MELBOURNE CITY BALLET

VIC Be a part of Melbourne City Ballets exciting Summer Intennsive week
happening January 9th-13th. One lucky winner will have the opp
portunity to
be taught directly by Melbourne City Ballets Company Artists att their
beautiful studio facilities. The Summer Intensive will offer two leevels (ages
10-15 & 16+) of classical ballet and contemporary movement, perrfect to start
the new dance year!
www.melbournecityballet.com.au/education
68 / SUMMER SCHOOL GIVEAWAY
THE BOYS SUMMER SCHOOL

With Special Guest Celebrity Tutor Li Cunxin
NSW We would like to offer a lucky winner of Intermediate or Adva

RAD or equivalent a place in the Boys Summer Sch
hool in the spectacular
surrounds of Shore School, North Sydney. Residentiaal/non-residential options
available. Residents will have the opportunity to meet and socialise with more th
g
fifty other boys who share their passion for dance, through activities such as swimming,
ber1 January.
basketball, indoor games and excursions. 27 Decemb
egular attendee
Harrison Lee
www.boyssummerschool.net
THE AUSTRALIAN
CONSERVATOIRE OF BALLET
IMAGE: DAVID KELLY
VIC Regarded as having an excellent reputation for strong professional

ballet training, the Australian Conservatoire of Ballet is offering 5 days of
quality training at ACB Summer School (16th 20th January) for
students 12 years and above, taught by ACBs experienced
staff and
p
special guest teachers. The lucky winner will al
also be given an A Reserve
double pass to see Christine Walshs The
Nutcracker to be performed at the Arts Centre
Melbournes Hamer Hall on 20th and 21st
December with its own ACBs full orchestra
featuring international guest artists.
www.acbaustralia.com.au
QUEENSLAND BALLET
QLD Queensland Ballets Summer School (9-14
THE MCDONALD
COLLEGE
NSW The McDonald College is delighted to oofffer a one
week scholarship to our International Summer School
S
for
dancers and dance teachers. With an international
n and highly
respected faculty of dance teachers this course pr
presents a unique
opportunity for students aged 7 to 18 years. Thee course dates are:
Week one 10 to 14 January, and Week two 16 20
2 January 2017.
This exciting programme includes classical ballleet, contemporary, jazz,
repertoire, character, conditioning, pilates, pointe, stagecraft, boys
coaching and more, dependent upon age.
www.mcdonald.nsw.edu.au
and 16-21 January) offers talented young dancers

the chance to further their training in a culture of
collaboration and excellence. Artistic Director, Li
Cunxin and Director of Training, Christian Ttchev
are among an elite group of teachers mentoring
students in classical ballet technique, pointe work,
repertoire, character dance,
contemporary dance, pas de
deux and more.
queenslandballet.com.au/
summerschool
69
Eka Mastrangelo.
IMAGE: W
WIN
NKIPOP MEDIA
TH
HE NORTH SHORE
H
DA
A
ANCE ACADEMY
NSW
W The North Shore nc
Acadeemy is delighted to offer a pl
our exciting Senior Summer Schoo
ol
p
from January 16 to 20, 2017. This prize
is
for senior
n students aged 10 years and
d
abovee. Classes will be taught by Anne
Gray aand a faculty of excellent teachers.
Classees will include Open Ballet,
Repertoire, Contemporary, Jazz, Song &
Dance and Pilates.
NATIONAL HEATRE
BALLET S HOOL
National T eatre Ballet School is
lighted to off one lucky wiinner a full
scholarship to ou
ur On Stage Summer
School 2017 onday 9 January
Saturday 14 nuary. Our elite facility
ll deliver eenres of dance including
Classical pertoire, Character,
Flamenco aand Jazz. All studeents will be
owcased
d in a professional fully
costum performance on The National
e Melbourne stage on tthe final
y.
National Theatre Ballet School
woul lso like to offer 2 Adul and 2
Child
d tickets to our 2016 Christmas
n in December.
w.nationaltheatre.org.au
www.northshoredanceacademy.com.au
PRUDENCE
BOWEN ATELIER
QLD Pr nce Bowen Atelier has
enjoyed enoormous success at
national a d international
competit s this year. In 2017, we
are pleased
d to
t offer a taste of our
world classs training at our 10th
mmer School from
annual Su
um
16th-20t January. This scholarship
suitable for talented and
enthusiasstic student aged 11-18.
NATIONAL COLLEGE OF DANCE

NSW Grab this amazing opportunity to win a placed at the
National College of Dance 2017 Summer School with
Principal Artists - Australian Ballets Kirsty Martin and Sydney
Dance Companys David Mack. Be
inspired and challenged at this
incredible week of workshops with
Australias best teachers. Other teachers
include Artistic Director Brett Morgan,
Timothy Gordon, Zoe Jones. 16-20thJanuary, 2017.
www.nationalcollegeofdance.com/events or
www.trybooking.com/MMRV
IMAGE: RON FUNG
Valentina
Buay, winner
of the 16 years
Contemporary
Solo, Sydney
Eisteddfod.
70 /
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DIFFERENT
POINTES P/L
Authorised retailer
Gaynor Minden
Dancer Julia Erickson, photographer Eduardo Patio, courtesy Gaynor Minden Inc.

Custom Pointe Shoe Fitters.

Fitting Hand Crafted Ballet
Shoes since 2008
Juon Pointe Fitting Method
Fittings by appointment only

New location Pennant Hills area
Studio visits can be arranged
Lisa Gordeno, Bellairs, 6 Coles Pde Newport,

NSW 2106
T. 0434405791, E. lisa@bellairs.com.au
www.bellairs.com.au
Phone 0428 500 424

Email: dpointes@bigpond.net.au
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SCHOOLS OF DANCE
TO ADVERTISE CONTACT CAROL ROSELLI: (07) 3348 6966 OR CAROLROSELLI@YAFFA.COM.AU
NORTH STRATHFIELD
ELSTERNWICK
NSW
BEVERLY HILLS
Academy Of Dance Mary Geer
Beverly Hills
Government accredited, licenced.
professional adjudicator Cecchetti /
RAD ballet, contemporary, jazz, tap,
musical theatre, singing, hip hop,
primary to advanced & status RAD
(LM), C.B.A., C.I.C.B. Cert IV Classes,
F.I.S.T.D. (Lond).
P: 02 9533 4641
DOLLSPOINT/RAMSGATE
Deidre Bronner School of Ballet
Principal: Deidre Bronner, ARAD (Lond)
Solo Seal. Classical (grades and
majors), character, jazz, contemporary.
Hawthorn St, Ramsgate.
P: 02 9529 7545
M: 0412 529 755
GORDON/KILLARA/
NORTH TURRAMURRA
Atkinsons Dance Academy
Principal: Lynda Atkinson ARAD, RAD
Teachers Diploma, CDA Reg. Teacher.
Classes 3years to advanced. RAD
Classical, CDA, Jazz/Contemporary,
Funk Jazz and Tap.Adult classes also
Professionally trained teaching staff.
P: 02 9948 1015
M: 0417 667 390
NEWCASTLE
National College of Dance
Artistic Director: Brett Morgan.
Delivering national accredited courses
in Dance Performance CUA40111
Certificate IV in Dance, CUA50111
Diploma of Dance (Elite Performance)
Studio Cnr Young & Lloyd Rd,
Lambton NSW 2299
P: 02 4952 9294
E: nc.dance@optusnet.com.au
www.mwmdance.com
The McDonald College

Australias Leading Academic and
Performing Arts College: The McDonald
College is a co-educational,
non-denominational school for uniquely
talented students from Infants to Year 12.
The school specialises in providing a full
academic program together with
performing arts training in classical ballet,
dance, acting, music and musical theatre.
McDonald Performing Arts College:
Specialising in classical ballet
(RAD and Open), modern and tap (FATD),
hip hop, jazz, acting, music (vocal and
instrumental) and eisteddfod tuition.
This program is open to students from
the wider community and runs in the
afternoon mid-week and on Saturday.
Australian International Ballet
Academy (AIBA): Training and
nurturing Australias ballet dancers for
the future. Byaudition only.
Premier State BalleP: A youth ballet
company. Applications by audition.
Faculty: Highly qualified academic and
distinguished performing arts staff in
all genres.
Principal: Mrs Maxine Kohler, MEd Dip
Tch RAD
P: 02 9752 0500
17 George Street,
North Strathfield NSW 2137
www.mcdonald.nsw.edu.au
WOOLLAHRA
Woollahra Academy
Principal: Val Jenkins, Cecchetti examiner.
Fully qualified faculty. Cecchetti childrens
classes from three years. Classes
conducted in classical, contempory jazz
and character. Special boys classes.
P: 02 9326 1969
North Shore Dance Academy

Principal: Anne Gray, ARAD Teaching
Diploma (DIST) RAD ballet, jazz,
character, contemporary, pilates and
hip-hop. Children from 3 years to
advanced and Solo Seal.
VICTORIA
ARMADALE
Rebekah Davey Academy of Dance

Quality ballet & dance training with
former Principal Ballerina, Rebekah
Davey. Part time classes for children and
casual classes for adults. RAD ballet
syllabus, open ballet classes, private
coaching, competitions, baby ballet,
modern, jazz, latin, nutrition
Register now for 2016.
To advertise contact Carol Roselli

on 07 3348 6966 or
carolroselli@yaffa.com.au
88 Kooyong Road, Armadale, Vic, 3143

www.citydancecentre.com.au
E: citydancecentre@yahoo.com
P: 03 9822 8130
carolroselli@
yaffa.com.au
GLEN IRIS
Established 11 years under the direction

of Amber Hobson. Half-day program
available via audition only. Dance-play,
classical ballet ACB syllabus and
weekly open classes, jazz contemporary,
character, conditioning and limber,
specialised coaching for competitions.
Faculty for 2016: Amber Hobson, Adrian
Dimitrievitch, Kerrie McArthur, Joanne
Plowman, Terese Power, Barbara
Warren-Smith, Philippa Ziegenhardt.
Jason Colemans Ministry of Dance

All things dance! Not just a dance
studio...its a one acre dance
environment. Home to the finest
teachers, Ministry provides a retreat
where casual enthusiasts to aspiring
professional can immerse themselves in
the exhilaration that is dance. Learn
contemporary, tap, Cecchetti ballet,
street tap, hip hop, broadway, jazz, acro,
group singing, acting, musical theatre.
www.theministryofdance.com.au
P: 03 9329 6770
E: admin@theministryofdance.com.au
MOUNT WAVERLEY
www.glenirisdance.com.au
P: 0412 252506
MITCHAM
Victorian Dance Academy

School of Performing Arts
Kinder dance to advanced. Classes in
jazz, tap, classical ballet, contemporary,
theatrical, lyrical, stretch & technique,
acrobatics, boys only class, VCE dance
and adult classes. At VDA we offer
technique classes, competition classes,
exam and concert work.
Principal: Kerrie Fraser (B.Ed (dance);
B. App Sci; Dip Arts; MSFD; CSTD)
Studio D
Celebrating 20 years of dance. Ballet,
jazz, tap, hip hop, musical theatre,
contemporary, lyrical and acro.
2 years to adults.
Principal: Rhonda Draper, SFD
P: 03 9547 6358
M; 0417 883 463
www.studiod.com.au
NORTH BALWYN
Gay Wightman School of Ballet
Australian Ballet School system of
training. RAD and BMAAD examinations
beginners to Solo Seal. Classical
ballet, jazz, character and contemporary.
309 Doncaster Road, North Balwyn.
P: 03 9857 5405 or 03 9804 0526.
PASCOE VALE
HIGHETT
City Dance Centre
Directors Sakura Shimizu Demasson
With experienced guest teachers
Melbournes original adult and
professional ballet centre
Mornings: open professional classes
Evenings: open adults and beginners
classes
To advertise contact
Carol Roselli on
07 3348 6966 or
E: bekkah.d@gmail.com
P: 0404029296
4/25-39 Cook Rd, Mitcham

www.victoriandanceacademy.com.au
M: 0477 680 104
P: 9874 5830 (studio)
E: vicdanceacademy@gmail.com
Studio: St Ives
P: 02 9983 0365,
PO Box 509, St Ives, 2075
www.northshoredanceacademy.com.au
71
Jane Moore Academy of Ballet

Principal: Jane Moore, 28years
teaching experience, trained by and
taught for Kathleen Gorham O.B.E.
R.A.D. classical syllabus. Pre-primary
to advanced, jazz and tap. Thorough
and nurturing training.
P: 03 9557 5664.
Shirlene School of Classical Ballet

Established 1960. Director Shirley Jones,
FISTD (CSB) Fellow, Dip, Cert IV. Kinder
dance to professional, Cecchetti int, adv,
dip, character, pas de deux, boys
training/weights, pilates. Four proper
studios, air-conditioned. Learn from a
professional in professional studios.
P: 03 9354 3781
Studios: 9A-9D Anderson St,
Pascoe Vale Sth, 3044 Vic.
MCKINNON
BEAUMARIS/BLACKROCK
The Beau-Rock Ballet School
Principal: Mrs Jenny Tew-Guthry
ARAD/FSFD/Examiner SFD. Southern
Federation of Dance syllabus pre
school advanced. Classes in classical,
jazz and tap. Students prepared for
Eisteddfods.
Bell-Rose Academy of Dance

Principal: Julie Bell-Rose.
Classes available in classical, character
and jazz ballet. Pre-school through to
teenagers and adults. Preparation for
RAD exams.
M: 0412 225 538
P: 03 9584 5074
Visit our website

GO TO WWW.
DANCEAUSTRALIA.
COM.AU
72 / SCHOOLS OF DANCE
TO ADVERTISE CONTACT CAROL ROSELLI: (07) 3348 6966 OR CAROLROSELLI@YAFFA.COM.AU
www.daniellesstudio.com.au
RICHMOND
PERTH
QUEENSLAND
BRISBANE
Laneway Dance
Technically strong. Creatively free.
RAD ballet, contemporary, lyrical,
acro, jazz, hip hop & conditioning.
On-site physio. State-of-the-art dance
facility in Richmond.
17 Clark St Richmond
E: sarah@lanewaydance.com
P: 0423052219
www.lanewaydance.com
Debra Whitten School of Dance

All classes at Unit 7, 104 Compton
Road, Underwood.
Principal: Debra Whitten, ARAD Solo
Seal. Diploma from Victorian College of
the Arts. Dual Graded Examiner for the
Royal Academy of Dance. Fully equipped
studios. Classes in classical ballet (RAD),
jazz & tap.
Postal: 14 Farr-Jones Ct, Daisy Hill 4127
P: 07 3808 7823
ST KILDA
National Theatre Ballet School
Training Organisation 3600 CRICOS
Course Provider Code 01551E
Certificate IV in Arts (Classical Dance)
21683 VIC Diploma of Arts (Classical
Dance) 21684VIC Advanced Diploma in
Arts (Classical Dance) 21685VIC fulltime. Full curriculum in ballet (RAD)
from first steps & dance play to Solo
Seal, jazz, tap & contemporary.
Cnr Carlisle and Barkly Streets,
St Kilda 3182
P: 03 9534 0224
F: 03 9593 6366
E: ballet@nationaltheatre.org.au
SOUTHBANK
Victorian College of the Arts

Secondary School
VCASS provides an outstanding
specialist dance program for secondary
age students. Integral to this program is
the provision of a high quality academic
education and a supportive
environment. Dance tuition fees are
supported by the Victorian Government.
P: 03 8644 8644
www.vcass.vic.edu.au
VERMONT
Queensland National Ballet

Queenslands leaders in classical and
contemporary dance.
Offering full-time Government
accredited courses and excellence
programmes 7yrs +
Artistic Director: Martyn Fleming
former Principal, English National
Ballet and Bejart Ballet Lausanne
Patron: Maina Gielgud former
Artistic Director, Australian Ballet
Company
Ballet Master: Chris Lam former
dancer, Les Ballets Trockadero de
Monte Carlo, Les Grands Ballets
Canadiens de Montreal, Gothenburg
Ballet - Sweden, Ballet du Grand
theatre de Geneve and The
Australian Ballet Company.
Outstanding premises, the Old
Museum, Bowen Hills, Brisbane
www.qldnationalballet.com.au
Find us on Facebook and Instagram
Sayers Dance Centre
Principals: Vivianne Sayers (founder of
Queensland Dance School of
Excellence) and Nadine Sayers, ARAD
(Solo Seal). Ballet, (RAD), jazz, tap,
contemporary, hip hop, musical
theatre, creative dance. Ages 2
adults, boys & girls. Air-conditioned
studios at Kenmore.
P: 07 3378 4222
E: dance@sayersballet.com.au
www.sayersballet.com.au
En Pointe School of Ballet

ACB Syllabus based on Russian
Vaganova method.
Director: Renee Grinsted, graduate of
the Australian Ballet School, Bachelor
of Dance (Deakin), & Post Graduate
degree in Classical Ballet Teaching
(VCA). Classical Ballet training from
pre-primary through to advanced,
pilates, private coaching,
contemporary, jazz, VCE dance, & baby
ballet & half-day vocational training
program. All classes taught by qualified
professionals in our fully equipped
studios in Vermont.
www.enpointeschoolofballet.com.au
M: 0423 251 400
Carol Roselli on
(07) 3348 6966 or
GOLD COAST
Danielles Studio of Dance

Prinicipal: Danielle Williams RAD RTS
Specialising in classical ballet.
Training from tiny toes to Solo Seal.
Full-time classical course and
Junior extension program for the
aspiring and dedicated dancer
Contemporary, Jazz & Character
Faculty: Keely Bates, Wim Broeckx,
Ariane Murray, Jordan Smith, Sarah
Quinn & Anna Veretennikova
22 Ern Harley Drive, Burleigh Heads, 4220
P: 07 5522 1966
M: 0407 49 2767
Mad Dance House

The Mecca of all things dance related in
Brisbane. A studio dedicated to the 17
plus age group. Beginners to
professional. 55 classes a week. Ballet,
hip hop, jazz, contemporary, tap,
popping, locking, breaking and more.
Agency and performance opportunities.
To us, dance is more than the physical
art form it is a way of life.
Level 2 & 3, 43 Adelaide Street, Brisbane
maddance.com.au
P: 07 3210 6724
Facebook: Mad Dance House
Instagram: Mad Dance House
The Perth School of Ballet

Teaching dance in Perth for nearly
50 years
Leaders in classical ballet,
contemporary & modern dance training
Offering full-time & part-time
pre-professional programs of the
highest calibre
Cecchetti ballet & ISTD modern
syllabi (kindy to advanced 2)
Exceptional teaching faculty
P: 08 9203 6175
E: info@perthschoolofballet.com.au
www.perthschoolofballet.com.au
Find us on Facebook
SOUTH AUSTRALIA
WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Charlesworth Ballet School (CBS)
Formerly the Terri Charlesworth Ballet
Centre, CBS offers expert tuition of the
highest quality from 4 years of age.
Classes located around the Perth
metropolitan area.
P: 08 9 475 0320
E: schooladmin@
charlesworthballet.com.au
Charlesworth Ballet College (CBC)
Our college programme provides
training at an international level in the
Russian Vaganova method. Academic
and dance training available full-time
from 10 years and after school from 8
years. Acceptance by audition only.
1 Mabel St North Perth WA 6006
P: 08 9201 1812
E: collegeadmin@
charlesworthballet.com.au
www.charlesworthballet.com.au
JOONDALUP
Samantha Jane School of Ballet

Elite Ballet School RAD ballet, CSTD
jazz/tap/contemporary, acrobatics,
lyrical, neo-classical, classical ballet,
pointe, variation coaching. Exams,
interstate & international tours and
performance opportunities offered
year round.
2016 Elite Programmes: full-time,
part-time and extension courses (all
audition based). Exceptional group of
staff lead by Principal Samantha Corby
RAD RTS.
www.samanthajaneschoolofballet.com
admin@sjsb.com.au
08 9300 1729
3/7 Packard Street,
Joondalup, WA, 6027
Visit our website

GO TO WWW.
DANCEAUSTRALIA.
COM.AU
Pavlova School
of Classical Ballet
Principal: Valentina Pavlova (the
Kremlin Ballet Theatre, Moscow,
Principal Dancer).
Classical Ballet (Russian Vaganova
method)
Technique
Repertoire
Pointe
Beginners to advanced classes
Fully Equiped Studio.
P: 08 8337 1692
E: vpavlova@tpg. com.au
www.pavlovaschoolofballet.com.au
Carisma Dance & Fitness

Principal: Carissa A. Neate-Lammers
ARAD RTS
Students trained from pre-school to
professional level. Classical Ballet
(RAD), SACE Dance, Repertoire,
Contemporary, Jazz, Tap, Ballroom,
Hip Hop, Adult Classes, Fitness,
Training for Exams, Competitions &
Auditions (Local, Interstate &
International)
www.carismadancefitness.com.au
E: carissa@carismadancefitness.com.au
P: 08 8212 4820
251 Waymouth Street, Adelaide, SA 5000
Terry Simpson
Studios
212 Gays Arcade, Adelaide
Suburban branches: Mitcham Institute
& Scotch College
Principal: Terry Simpson, ARAD, LRAD,
RAD examiner & mentor.
RAD graded & vocational examinations,
full-time vocational training and Sace
Dance Stage. 1 & 2 also offered
recreational dance, contemporary, jazz,
hip hop, tap, pilates, pointe, repertoire.
P: 08 8223 4374
F: 08 8223 4374
terrysimpsonstudios@hotmail.com
www.terrysimpsonstudios.com.au
73
NORWOOD
Norwood
Ballet
Centre.
CLASSIFIEDS
ADJUDICATORS
Principal: Jackie Thompson, Fellow C.I.C.B.

Cecchetti Int. ballet, jazz, hip hop,
contemporary, tap and flamenco.
Excellent air-conditioned purpose built
studios at 111 Kensington Road, Norwood
P: 08 8331 3010
M: 0414 962 313
www.norwoodballet.com
E: dance@norwoodballet.com
AUSTRALIAN
CAPITAL TERRITORY
Canberra Dance Development Centre

Director: Jackie Hallahan, RAD
Teachers Diploma, IMFATD, AISTD
(Cecchetti) Teaching Certificates,
Advanced Dance Teaching Post
Graduate Studies, QUT
CDDC caters for dancers of all ages and
skill. Classes in ballet, jazz funk,
contemporary, street jam, tap, hip hop,
drama, singing and fencing.
Performance opportunities, industry
accredited courses, part time and
full-time dance and study tours for
overseas students.
www.dancedevelopment.com.au
E: j.hallahan@bigpond.com
P: 02 6259 1550
NORTHERN TERRITORY
ALICE SPRINGS
Australian Dance Academy
Director Lynne Hanton ABS AD.Dip.CT.
Graduate of Australian Ballet Teachers
Course and international studies.
Professional and vocational training in
classical ballet modern and
contemporary dance. Full-time
students perform as apprentice
dancers with Duprada Dance company.
Carol Roselli on
07 3348 6966 or
carolroselli@
yaffa.com.au
Australian Dance Adjudicators Inc.

(ADA)
For qualified adjudicators, membership
and training courses.
www.adadance.org.au
E: adadanceadjudicators@gmail.com
ADA, PO Box 4049, Shellharbour, NSW,
2529, Australia
President: Rosalynne Boothroyd.
E: rosalynneboothroyd@gmail.com
P: 02 4296 4667
M: 0417 046 994
Vice President: Julie England
P: 02 4954 9372
Secretary: Lisa Maloney
M: 0414 557 194
BALLET BARRES
SANDRA GRIFFIN ARAD
BUSINESS FOR SALE
Solo Seal; Childrens Graded Examiner

RAD; FATD Teachers Certificate (Tap);
freelance teacher, adjudicator,
choreographer, coach
P: 02 6258 8803
M: 0409 916 301
EISTEDDFODS
SYDNEY
Liteweld
Made to order, portable models similar
design to the Australian Ballet touring
barres. Fixed models and custom
design also available.
P: 03 5664 4392
E: liteweld@dcsi.net.au
Dance Studio outlet for sale on the

beautiful Mid North Coast
Run your own dance studio with all
the work done for you !!
100 students +, own premises, great
rent,teachers and culture.
Studio support in all areas to help
your business grow with this new
dynamic group.
More details call Jeff on 0400917261.
DANCE PHYSIOTHERAPY
McDonalds Sydney Eisteddfod
Call for entries!
Event dates: May September 2015
Enter online by 8 March for earlybird
discounted rates.
Dont be late, entries close as each
event is fully subscribed.
P: 02 9261 8366
E: marketing@sydneyeisteddfod.com.au
www.sydneyeisteddfod.com.au
WWW.DANCEPHYSIO.COM.AU
Injury prevention pre-pointe & dance
screening.
Debra Crookshanks
P: 02 9948 6188 Balgowlah
Melinda Purnell
P: 0433 351 117 North Strathfield
Melinda Purnel
P: 0417 274 744 Sutherland
Coming
next issue:
The enduring appeal
of pointe shoes
P: 08 8953 1800
F: 08 8953 1800
DARWIN
Leisas School of Dancing
Principal Teacher: Leisa Jackson,
Diploma of Performing Arts. Cecchetti
pre-primary to advanced with
performance and theatre training and
preparation for audition students.
131 Abala Road, Marrara, NT 0812
Postal: PO Box 35, Sanderson, NT 0813.
P: 08 8927 2777
M: 0400 143 929
F: 08 8927 2777
Teachers spotlight:
Carol Roselli
on 07 3348 6966 or
Behind every great student

is a great teacher
A career on stage:
pros and cons
Ballet Preljocajs
Snow White
74 / LIMELIGHT
Chris
Herzfeld
L-R: Riannon McLean

and Erin Fowler
Chris Herzfeld is an Adelaidebased photographer and one of

Australia's best-known dance
photographers.
n did you first become

terested in photography?
CREDIT CHRIS HERZFELD, CAMLIGHT PRODUCTIONS
d always had cameras around the

use so I started playing with them at
and it progressed from there. I was
able to start developing my own pictures at age 6.
Do you come from an artistic family?

My father was a cinematographer/photographer
and my brother is a self taught artist and musician.
What path did you take to become a

professional photographer?
I started working in television straight after
finishing high school. I always shot stills part time,
shooting mainly headshots, product shots and
landscapes. After 22 years in the TV industry I set
up my own company Camlight Productions.
Camlight specialises in photography,
cinematography and lighting.
How did you get involved in dance

photography?
I was lucky enough to get a job as Lois Greenfields
photographic technical manager in late 2003
when she started working with ADT on the
showHeld. Through the season of Held I
discovered that I had an eye for shooting dance
and after the season had finished I continued to
shoot ADT as well Expressions Dance Company
in Brisbane as a number of independent
choreographers.
What do you like about working with

dancers?
I love that dancers are so flexible and responsive.
They bring a unique physically to each shoot.
When I ask a dancer to move in a certain way or
manipulate their body and face to be both soft and
tense they can do it easily. As artists they are
wanting and willing to try new ideas which makes
the process exciting and collaborative.
at point A and finishes at point B with jumps, turns

twists and many other elements thrown in along
the way. The human eye frequently misses many
parts of the phrase as the dancers can be moving
so quickly. The challenge for me as a dance
photographer is to give the audience a glimpse, a
frozen moment if you like, of that dance phrase
and, if I do my job correctly, that moment will
capture the intent of the whole phrase.
What have been some of your favorite

dance shoots?
Always tough to answer I love shooting dance
rehearsals as it seems to me that is documentary
photography in its purest form. There is no set up
- just me sitting in a rehearsal space trying to
capture the feeling and energy in the room and
translating that into a 2D medium thats the
photograph. I love many of my personal shoots in
that it challenges me on a technical level but also
puts the dancers into an environment in which
they are normally not seen. Each shoot has its own
unique challenges from shooting in my lounge
room, which measured 3mx3m, to shooting on the
streets but still lighting the dancers so it seems they
were shot in a studio.
What is the craziest gig you have ever done?

What are the challenges of dance
photography?
Dance is typically structured to be viewed by an
audience in 3D, if you like. A dance phrase starts
Chris Herzfeld
That would have to be my Superhero series - not

a dance shoot as such but a shoot that could
only be made possible with unique skill set that
dancers possess.
We created two small comic books complete

with stories, costumes, props the whole works.
From my research I believe this may be the first
true photographic comic in the world. Every thing
is real in this project from the backdrop that was
drawn by Adelaide artist Thom Buchanan and
measured 12m x 3.5m to all the dancers costumes.
We did not photoshop or cut and paste to create
any of the jumps. Dancers jumped and one shot
was taken. It was an amazing effort by everyone in
front and behind the camera.
Tell me something about being a dance

photographer that most people wouldnt
know or realise
The amount of time you have to spend lying or
kneeling on the floor to get the shot. It ruins a lot
of clothes!
9/1
2016
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SUPPORTING THE FEET OF THE AUSTRALIAN BALLET

O F F I C I A L P O I N T E S H O E PA R T N E R
L E A N N E S TO J M E N O V A N D K E V I N J A C K S O N
P R I N C I PA L A R T I S T S O F T H E A U S T R A L I A N B A L L E T
P H O TO G R A P H Y DA N I E L B O U D
W W W. B LO C H .C O M . A U

Dance Australia - October - November 2016

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Dance Australia - October - November 2016

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ISSUE 206 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 16

Inspiring ideas for dance

44 DANCERS WITHOUT BORDERS

66 SUMMER SCHOOL GIVEAWAY

48 DANCING WITH MY BETTER HALF

Editor Karen van Ulzen

To sell Dance Australia,

Online Editor Nina Levy

CREDIT: GENE SCHIAVONE

Marcelo Gomes in Swan Lake

NINA LEVY ACTING EDITOR

As a Company that specialises in exceptionally physical and

Watch the full interview with Australian Dance Theatre via

+61 (2) 9620 7770

NEWS | EVENTS | BEST OF THE WEB

Wild and untamed

Australian Dance Theatre's latest work,

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2016 | WWW.DANCEAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

After six months on the road and in the air,

Flume, the Presets and Tame Impala. Together

PHOTO: PETER GREIG

PHOTO: ANDREAS ETTER

Sydney to host the Genee

especially for the Gene to be revealed for the

PHOTO: ANTHONY BURNS

CREDIT PRUDENCE UPTON

A highlight of the Opera House's

NEW WORK FROM

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2016 | WWW.DANCEAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

This column is provided and

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2016 | WWW.DANCEAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

St Petersburg Ballet Theatre returns to

score is is one of the most loved and

students to video themselves on their phones

10 & 11 December 2016

Practice and Innovation

Educate, Innovate, Change

LIMITED TICKETS AVAILABLE

Tune in to the live stream of the

CREDIT: PIPPA SAMAYA

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2016 | WWW.DANCEAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

feminine Romantic ballets, he was very much

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2016 | WWW.DANCEAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

CREDIT JEFF BUSBY

Madeleine Eastoe and

The Australian Ballet

In his thirteen years with the Australian Ballet,

as innately noble, dramatically convincing and a

rich human raw emotions to draw from. That is

In 2014 Kevin Jackson was invited to guest

Freelance dancer, singer and actor

Dayton Tavares may be only 20 years old but

connected to the form he is. He confides, To

Tavaress perspective, as well his talent and

CREDIT: ELVIS DI FAZIO

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2016 | WWW.DANCEAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

American Ballet Theatre

The ballerinas of American Ballet Theatre

sinister or downright nasty characters. In Kevin

CREDIT: GENE SCHIAVONE

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2016 | WWW.DANCEAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

Ratmansky's Shostakovich Trilogy.

CREDIT: GREGORY LORENZUTTI

Independent dancer, choreographer and