Sydney Opera House
August 29 2012

By Kristy Johnson.

Spring Dance Curator, Rafael Bonachela, commissioned works by Emily Amisano, Stephanie Lake, Larissa McGowan and Lisa Wilson for this year’s festival. Chosen “because of their unique talent and different approach to dance-making”, Contemporary Women ticked all the right boxes when it came to creating four innovative pieces of choreography for Sydney Dance Company.

First and foremost, it was exciting to see four of Australia’s most talented female choreographers create a repertoire of works, performed by the best of Australia’s contemporary dancers. Usually we aren’t privileged to see a complete program solely of female choreography.

Kicking off the night was Desire by Queensland’s Lisa Wilson. Focusing on the internal forces that drive us or make us hesitate or waver in action, inspiration came from the interior landscape of body and mind. A brilliant cast including Emily Amisano, Lachlan Bell, Thomas Bradley, Juliette Barton, Richard Cilli, Janessa Dufty and Bernhard Knauer, brought together the landscape of body and mind with connectedness and fluidity of movement.

Photos by Jess Bialek

Fanatic by Adelaide’s Larissa McGowan provided great comic relief and was by far my favourite piece of the night. Using humour and physical expression, the dancers investigated what happens when Alien and Predator movie fans express their emotions through youTube. Laughter was often heard from the audience throughout the entire piece.

Dancer Emily Amisano, who performed in Desire, returned as choreographer for the third instalment of the night, Yield. Sydney based Emily, examined how we come to understand others through their behaviours, reactions and limitations, by considering the balance within a relationship. A playful nature was depicted through the use of props including stools and mats, as well as the expressions shown on the dancers’ faces.

The final piece of the night, Dream Lucid, was choreographed by Melbournian Stephanie Lake. Stephanie asked the audience to consider a modern dilemma.  Are we able to be an individual in a society so highly controlled or is our freedom simply an illusion? This was evident to see through the dynamic choreography, and inability of the dancers to escape contact by other artists.

The clever use of lighting for the program should receive a mention. Benjamin Cisterne created depth to the performances through flickering lights, which caused the choreography to appear more dynamic and intense at times.

By the amount of applause given at the conclusion of the night, it was evident I wasn’t the only one who thoroughly enjoyed each performance. Each piece was innovative in its own right, had one captivated by the sheer level of talent of the dancers, and entertaining. Once again, Sydney Dance Company did not disappoint.

Launch Pad
Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Art
February 2012

By Belinda Adams.

It is intriguing that so many people rush to see the latest international or interstate shows when they arrive in Brisbane, but little do the theatre going public know of the talent that exists in our very own backyard.

In a small performance studio in the Judith Wright Centre, Expressions Dance Company performed Launch Pad 2012. Featuring the work of local choreographers and dancers in an intimate setting, Launch Pad was nothing short of exquisite. They were able to create an environment that rivaled any large scale production with some simple prop changes and clever use of lighting.

The dance itself was raw, complex and brilliantly executed. Each of the choreographers had a chance to speak with the audience and tell the story of where their choreography began and how the idea evolved. This created a very personal experience for the audience and gave us an insight into the choreographers’ processes.

Gareth Belling, a Queensland Ballet dancer and choreographer created two works for Launch Pad. The first was From Darkness, a duet performed by Riannon McLean and David Williams that blurred the distinction between victim and offender. Watching this piece the dancers had you experience what they were feeling as they drew you into their story with raw movement and ultimate belief in their characters. The second Say Something, a piece performed by QUT dance students, explored the dynamic of broad based acceptance at the expense of personal opinion. This piece was energetic and fast paced with very contrasting choreographic choices. Overall, Gareth succeeded in creating wonderfully eloquent work for such a young choreographer. He certainly has a bright future ahead.

Bloodlust, by Claire Marshall was inspired by the movie Single White Female to start and further explored toxic friendships. Samantha Mitchell and Michelle Barnett performed this piece with total commitment and conviction. Both are very talented dancers who bought this rigid, intense piece to life.

The final performance was Crush by Lisa Wilson, performed by Elise May and Jack Ziesing. This was a debut showing for Wilson with EDC and she certainly delivered an amazing creation. Crush, portrayed the dancers struggle with panic and its contrasting manifestations of restraint and immobility. With the skillful use of varied LED light sources, Elise and Jack presented this piece with maturity and one hundred percent commitment to their personas. Elise is a striking dancer with a clear talent and skill for this demanding art form. This was an edge of your seat piece that had you breathless from start to finish. I can’t wait to see Lisa Wilson’s current work in progress entitled Lake. She is a transpiring choreographer who has a gift for creating quality work with a unique essence.

Launch Pad 2012, represents the true core of dance and perfectly showcases the talent that exists in Brisbane. This performance embodies what dance truly is – raw, powerful and honest.

Photo: EDC’s Jack Ziesing and Riannon McLean. Photo by Fiona Cullen.
Published by Dance Informa dance magazine – everything dance in Australia – dance news, dance auditions & dance events.

Expressions Dance Company’s Launch Pad, an intimate in-studio season of short duets, will return to Brisbane’s Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Art in February 2012.

Launch Pad was developed by EDC’s Artistic Director Natalie Weir in 2010 to give choreographers an opportunity to road test new ideas and Brisbane audiences a chance to experience contemporary dance at close quarters and in detail.

“Launch Pad is always presented in our studio at the Judith Wright Centre. I love the intimacy of the studio and welcoming audiences into our creative space,” Natalie Weir said. “I wanted to create a platform for creation, a program designed for genesis of ideas in a supportive and understanding environment, with a group of very talented dancers who are experienced in giving to the creative process”.

For Launch Pad 2012, Weir has extended invitations to local choreographers Lisa Wilson, Claire Marshall and Gareth Belling to create a series of duets on the EDC dancers.

“I asked Lisa Wilson to choreograph for Launch Pad because she is an exceptional creator whose work is very beautiful. Her choreographic career is really gaining momentum. Launch Pad seemed a good opportunity for her to be able to experiment with her style and play with new ideas,” Weir said.

Claire Marshall is a Brisbane-based choreographer known for her work across different mediums, including the very popular SlowDive, which since its debut in 2010, has been touring Queensland.

“I invited Claire to create a duet because she has been making very unique work as an independent artist. She has a very distinct voice and I am looking forward to seeing if she further develops this style or goes in a different direction for Launch Pad”, explained Weir.

Gareth Belling, company dancer with Queensland Ballet, will be creating his first contemporary piece on EDC in Launch Pad.

“I have known Gareth for some time, from when I worked at Queensland Ballet as a choreographer and he was in many of my works. He has always shown an interest in choreography and has created pieces for Queensland Ballet, which have been very successful. I am very happy to give him the opportunity to work with EDC. It will be exciting to see how he develops a contemporary duet”, said Weir.

“Choreography is my passion and I’m pleased that Launch Pad has been successful over the last two years, in allowing choreographers to develop their ideas and present new work and grow their own passion”, Weir shared.

Launch Pad 2012
February 21 – 25
EDC studio, Level 4, Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Art

Photo: EDC’s Jack Ziesing and Riannon McLean. Photo by Fiona Cullen.

The Australian Ballet

Sydney Theatre
May 2010

By Dolce Fisher

This year’s theme for Bodytorque was ‘Muses’, a subject interpreted differently by each budding choreographer. The audience was treated to a smorgasbord of different dance styles, with displays of strong classical ballet, modern and contemporary dance.

Tristan and Isolde by Daniel Gaudiello was classic in style.  The choreography was very intricate and extremely demanding on the dancers, highlighting their strong technical abilities. Gaudiello definitely gave the audience a glimpse of his vision for the story as a full-length work.

Vivienne Wong gave us Touch Transfer. The work brought Wong’s inspiration of  ‘being lost in the stroke of a brush’ to life in movement. A simple, yet defined, choreographic concept, it was a beautiful work.  Her thought process involved much more than just the movement. The backdrop contained much detail of the actual choreography. A colour representing each dancer and the pattern of the brush strokes became a painting capturing the shape of the dancers’ movements.

Contour by Lisa Wilson, guest choreographer and current recipient of the Hephzibah Tintner Foundation Choreographic Fellow, showed a defined maturity and was more contemporary in style.  Dancer Dana Stephenson stood out in Wilson’s choreography and sat very comfortably in the movement style. The work felt like it needed to be performed in bare feet to really delve into the fluidity of the contemporary movements.

Alice Topp, a company member who is becoming very comfortable with switching hats to choreographer, presented Scope. This work was the highlight of the program, danced by talented Chengwu Guo, Natasha Kusen and Karen Nanasca. The trio was cast perfectly, dancing like they shared a deep understanding of one another. The work incorporated projected pictures of each of the dancers onto three individual cycloramas. With inspiration drawn from a photographic exhibition and the idea of the human body as a vessel for our actual being, the work had a peaceful spirituality about it. Scope was captivating and just beautiful to watch.

Closing the show was a work by Kevin Jackson discussing a relationship between a mother and her son. Expressed through the eyes of a mother as her son comes of age, it was a lovely portrayal of the mother/son relationship. The costuming seemed too minimal and distracting at times. Amy Harris showed immense use of extension with the choreography highlighting her amazing line. At times some movements seemed disconnected to other portions of the choreography and almost out of place, but the piece displayed some lovely partnering work.

Bodytorque is a wonderful environment for these young dancers to explore their creative talent and is nurturing the next generation of choreographers whilst challenging and delighting Sydney audiences every year. If only these new works could tour the country and been seen by other cities.

Photo: Dana Stephensen and Brett Simon. Photo by Paul Empson