Touring

Garabari

by Joel Bray Dance, Wiradjuri

Garabari means Corroboree in Wiradjuri and will be a large-scale new work by Wiradjuri choreographer Joel Bray in co-production with CHUNKY MOVE, Victoria’s leading contemporary dance company. The Wiradjuri are called The People of the Three Rivers and Garabari will be a contemporary Corroboree celebrating rivers as the veins of Country and as the ancient songlines and trade routes that have always connected the many Peoples of this continent. The work will be developed over a series of creative developments in Melbourne and out on Wiradjuri Country.

“This work has been appearing in my dreams. Sometimes it is a series of pilgrimages through manicured gardens, sometimes it is a massive rave in a warehouse, sometimes it is a collection of canoes on the river with the audience watching from the riverbank. Sometimes it is on the stage. Perhaps it will happen in all of these places.“ - Joel Bray

Garabari is supported through the Restart Investment to Sustain and Expand (RISE) Fund - an Australian Government initiative, the Australian Government through the Indigenous Languages and Arts program and through Creative Australia, the Victorian Government through Creative Victoria, BlakDance through BlakForm, the Besen Family Foundation, and Eastern Riverina Arts.

Garabari was commissioned by Chunky Move with the support of the Tanja Liedtke Foundation through the Chunky Move Choreographer In Residence program.

Guuranda

Image credit Tim Standing

Guuranda

by JACOB BOEHME (IDJA)

70mins (no interval)

Welcome to Narungga Country. You’ve been warned. 

Guuranda is a monumental new theatre work telling the Narungga Creation stories of South Australia’s Yorke Peninsula from Narungga/Kaurna theatre-maker Jacob Boehme.  

Commissioned by Adelaide Festival, Guuranda has been created by a collective of First Nations artists, Narungga Elders and non-Indigenous artists. It is written and directed by Jacob Boehme with artwork by Narungga visual artist Kylie O’Loughlin and sung by Narungga songwoman Sonya Rankine and songman Warren Milera, supported by the Narungga Family Choir. 

Taking its title from the Narungga language name for the Yorke Peninsula, Guuranda tells of a people and place that teach us about being human, drawing on history to speak into the present. These ancient stories are not myths, nor are they old, quaint tales. These stories are vital, violent, delightful and dangerous. They are stories to charm, shock and instruct audiences of all ages.  

Effortlessly weaving together theatre, song, puppetry, dance and visual art, Guuranda shares stories that offer insight and balance, with chaos and death ever-present. You must look, listen and tread carefully.

Guuranda has been commissioned by Adelaide Festival and produced by Insite Arts. 

Artistic Director, Writer & Choreographer

Jacob Boehme

Narungga Elders/Dramaturges/Cultural Consultants

Aunty Lynette Newchurch
Aunty Deanna Newchurch
Uncle Rex Angie
Uncle Edward Newchurch 

Senior Consulting Elders

Uncle Lewis O’Brien
Aunty Pauline O’Brien
Aunty Lynette Crocker
Uncle Kevin ‘Dookie’ O’Loughlin 

Narungga Songman/Songwoman

Warren Milera
Sonya Rankine

Associate-Choreographers & Performers

Caleena Sansbury
Cheeky Chandler
Edan Porter
Jada Narkle
Jordan O’Davis
Luke Currie Richardson
Shana O’Brien
Zoe Brown-Holten

Artistic Team

Narungga Song Woman & Translator: Sonya Rankine
Translator: Tanya Wanganeen
Visual Artist: Kylie O’Loughlin
Composer: James Henry
Dramaturge: Chris Mead
Staging & Lighting Design: Jenny Hector
Audio-Visual Design: Keith Deverell
Costume Design: Kathryn Sproul
Puppet Designer & Maker: Philip Millar 
Leatherworker: Sue Manski
Movement Coach: Rinske Ginsburg 

Premiere Production Team

Production Manager: Nathan Evers 
Stage Manager: Cecily Rabey
Assistant Stage Manager: Zsuzsa GM

Premiere Producers – Insite Arts International 

Executive Producer: Jason Cross 
Associate Producer: Stella Webster 

NARUNGGA FAMILY CHOIR

Choir Director: Grace Robinson
Choir Facilitator: Jessica Vangelista
Choir Audio Engineer: Patrick Telfer 

Choir Performers:
Richard ‘Shaggy’ Brown
Damien Brown
Jacob Brown
Anja Cruse
Jacynta Lehtinen
Luke Picone
Natalie Pocervina
Kelly Rossi
Jodie Seiuli
Faith Seiuli
Kayla Seiuli  
Christian Seiuli  
Alyssa Siale
Elke Smirl
Tegan Smirl  
Markeeta Smith
Jaimie Taunoa 
Paulie Taunoa  
Jamayne Taunoa-Brown  
Rua Taunoa  
Taree Taunoaa  
KC Taunoa  
Jessica Vangelista
Isabella Vangelista
Kaarl Waldorp
Jacob Boehme

Audio Engineer 

Craig Pilkington – Audrey Studios

Session Musicians

Guitar: Gary Watling
Percussion: Alexander Meagher
Drumkit: Chris Lewis
Tenor Trombone & Bass Trombone: Adrian Sherriff 
Trumpet: Eugene Ball
French Horn: Cinzia Posega

Commissioning & Presentation Partner

Adelaide Festival 

Government funders

RISE fund
Arts SA
Creative Australia 
Creative Victoria

Other sponsors & supporters

Tandanya
Bunjil Place
Opera Australia 
Insite Arts
Wilin Centre, Faculty of Fine Arts & Music, The University of Melbourne 
State Theatre Company South Australia
Circus Oz

SILENCE

SILENCE by Karul Projects

SILENCE is an urgent call for TREATY, highlighting the stories and struggles of Blak communities since colonisation. Through SILENCE, Karul Projects take their place in the lineage of fierce First Nations makers calling for Sovereignty.

Choreographed by Thomas E.S. Kelly, SILENCE is a powerful dance performance, featuring seven performers on a stage slowly engulfed in dirt, representing the call for Land Back.


““Structurally fragmentary and narratively fluid, this innovative work functions as an artistic journey of emotion, movement, music and meaning. Clear in its purpose, strong in its message and fierce in its delivery, SILENCE will be sure to leave its mark on ongoing conversations concerning sovereignty, power, recognition and Aboriginal voice. Irreverent but deadly serious, this provocative performance achieves every aim it sets out to accomplish.” ”
— (4 star review, Perth 2024 - ArtsHub, Nanci Nott)

Is this the Commonwealth of Australia? Yes? This is your Landlords speaking!

Through raw physicality, humorous skits, and a power anthem soundtrack, we disrupt the silence of a 250+ year struggle. The same questions echoed through generations. SILENCE pulls the Treaty conversation out from under the rug and slams it back on the table. Because the conversation about a TREATY cannot be silenced in Australia.

Funny and irreverent and reverberating with power… If you think you know Australian contemporary dance, you haven’t seen SILENCE. With thrashing live drumming and a raw aesthetic, Thomas E.S. Kelly has combined intimate storytelling with significant moments in Australian history as SILENCE interprets an ongoing conversation for a new generation.

There’s SILENCE between the stars as the Emu travels across the night sky. There’s SILENCE in the dancer’s energy when they hit the cut, the rupture between rhythms and movement creating a vibrational glitch for the spirit world to enter. It’s also the deafening SILENCE under White noise.

We have marched across our Country. We have had promises made and promises broken. We stand on a stage, to the beating of a live drum kit, as bodies thrash through white noise to continue the conversation. Towards action. Towards resolution.

Jhindu Lawrie’s audacious rock drumming full of dynamism, grunge and raw power calls back to Thomas E.S. Kelly’s choreography, in brash, yet vulnerable and visceral scenes, with Kelly’s trademark charm and wit interspersed in between.


Karul Projects is an emerging First Nations professional contemporary dance company based on Minjungbal Country, founded in 2017 by Thomas E.S. Kelly, Minjungbal-Yugambeh, Wiradjuri and Ni-Vanuatu, and Taree Sansbury, Kaurna, Narrunga and Ngarrindjerri.

Image by Simon Woods

Tour dates and locations:

THE MAJ, Boorloo (1-2 MAY)

His Majesty’s Theatre (Perth)

1 & 2 May 2024

TICKETS

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE, Warrane (8-11 MAY)

SOH Studio (Sydney)

8 - 11 May 2024

TICKETS

 

60min duration, no interval

Ages 12+

Water based haze, dirt, dust and strobe lighting will be used in this performance. 

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander audiences are advised that this show references people who have died.


About Karul Projects

Thomas E.S. Kelly and Taree Sansbury, met at NAISDA Dance College on the Central Coast of New South Wales in 2009. They have worked professionally together ever since, creating their own dance-theatre works, choreographing and performing for companies nationally. Thomas and Taree created Karul Projects in 2017, to create more opportunities for employment and skill building for First Nations artists.

Creatives / Cast: 

Thomas E.S. Kelly (Choreographer/Writer/Performer) Minjungbal-Yugambeh, Wiradjuri and Ni-Vanuatu
Taree Sansbury (Rehearsal Director/Performer) Kaurna, Narrunga and Ngarrindjerri
Vicki Van Hout (Choreographic Dramaturg) Wiradjuri
Alethea Beetson (Dramaturg) Kabi Kabi/Gubbi Gubbi and Wiradjuri
Jhindu-Pedro Lawrie (Percussion Composer/Performer) Mirning and Wuthathi
Benjin Maza (Performer) Yidindji, Birri Gubba, Meriam Mer and Tanna Island
Glory Tuohy-Daniell (Performer) Indjalandji-Dhidhanu and Alyewarre
Keia McGrady (Performer) Githabul Migunberri-Yugumbeh
Olivia Adams (Performer) Wulli Wulli
Tamara Bouman (Performer Understudy) Birpai
Sam Pankhurst (Music/Sound Designer)
Karen Norris (Lighting Designer)
Selene Cochrane (Costume Designer)

Header image by Gregory Lorenzutti

 

The national tour has received financial assistance from the Australian Government through Creative Australia, its arts funding and advisory body.

The Perth presentation is supported by the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland's Grow Market Development Fund.

SILENCE is produced by BlakDance. The premiere production in 2020 was co-commissioned by BlakDance, HOTA Home of the Arts, City of Gold Coast, Queensland Performing Arts Centre and Brisbane Festival, with support by the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts, its arts funding and advisory body and the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland.

The Other Side Of Me

THE OTHER SIDE OF ME - Gary Lang NT DANCE COMPANY

NT Dance Company offer a powerful, moving dance duet that navigates the limits of physical expression.

Images by Paz Tassone

The Other Side of Me by Gary Lang shares the tragedy of Stolen Generations through the heartbreaking story of one man stranded between two families, continents and cultures. This achingly intimate dance duet confronts the destruction wrought by Motherland and colony still felt by First Nations people, but offers the redemptive beauty of singing his spirit home.

West and Central Australia Tour locations 2024

  • Saturday 27 April 7:30 PM

    Tickets Here

  • as part of ISPA

    Tuesday 30 April 6:00 PM

    Wednesday 1 May 7:30 PM

    Thursday 2 May 7:30 PM

    Tickets Here

  • as part of Red Earth Arts Festival - REAF 2024

    Friday 10 May 8.00 PM

    Tickets Here

    Dance Workshops:

    Thursday 9 May 3:30 - 4:30 PM

    Book Here

    Thursday 9 May 5:00 - 6:00 PM: ‘Join the Company’ intermediate-advanced dance workshop

    Book Here

  • Friday 17 May 7:00 PM

    Tickets

  • as part of Garrmalang Festival

    Studio Theatre

    Wednesday 22 May 7:00 PM

    Thursday 23 May 7:00 PM

    Tickets Here

  • Saturday 1 June 7:30 PM

    Tickets Here

About NT Dance Company

GARY LANG ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Born in Darwin, Larrakia man Gary Lang is a NAISDA graduate and alumnus of Bangarra and Dancenorth. Since 2002 Gary Lang has choreographed 9 seminal works in the Aboriginal dance canon, including GOOSE LAGOON, Mokuy, Waŋa (Spirit), Forbidden, Milnjiya, Milky Way' — River of Stars created with the Western Australian Ballet. In 2013, he was honoured with the distinguished Australia Council for the Arts’ Dance Board Fellowship.

Creatives / Artists: 

Gary Lang (Choreographer) Larrakia
Josephine Crawshaw (Cultural Consultant) Kalkarindji
Jesse Norris (Cultural Consultant) Torres Strait Island descendent
Banula Marika (Cultural Consultant, Songman) Yolŋu
Erica McCallum (NT Dance Company General Manager)
Elizabeth Rogers (Project Manager)
Noelle Shader (Rehearsal Director)
Laura Fish (Co-Creator, Dramaturg, Writer)
Liz Pavey (Co-Creator, Dramaturg)
Chandler Connell (Performer) Wiradjuri and Ngunnawal
Alexander Abbot (Performer)
Tyrel Dulvarie (Performer - Margaret River + Perth) Yirrganydji
Janet Munyarryun (Voice Artist) Yolŋu
Samuel Pankhurst (Composer/Sound Designer)
Arian Pearson (Sound Designer) Yolŋu
Samuel James (Video Artist)
Joseph Mercurio (Lighting Designer)
Jennifer Irwin (Costume Designer)
BlakDance (Tour Producer)

 

The story is based on actual events. However, names, incidents and timelines have been changed for dramatic purposes. All characters depicted in the production are composites or fictitious. Any similarity to the original story, or of fictitious characters to an actual person, living or dead, is coincidental and unintentional.

 

The Other Side of Me is produced by Gary Lang NT Dance Company with the tour produced by BlakDance. The national tour has received financial assistance from the Australian Government through Creative Australia, its principal arts investment and advisory body.

The production is a collaboration between Gary Lang NT Dance Company and Northumbria University, UK. It has received financial support through the Northern Territory Government, Regional Arts Australia, the British Council, Creative Australia, Brisbane Festival and Queensland Performing Arts Centre.

The work premiered in 2023 in Darwin Festival at the Darwin Entertainment Centre.

The Complication of Lyrebirds

by Jasmin Sheppard, Tagalaka and Kurtitjar

Date Premiered: January 2021

The Complication of Lyrebirds is a 55 minute First Nations contemporary dance work designed to break away from the social expectations of what it means to look or sound Aboriginal. 

What if colonisation denied your family access to their culture? What then makes you Aboriginal? The lyrebird adopts the calls of others to appear attractive, yet there is an authentic identity to the bird that is no mere mimic.

Jasmin Sheppard (Choreographer) and Kaine Sultan Babij (Co-Collaborator) perform on stage with a 3 projector setup. The history of the White Australia Policy is re-contextualised as choreographic tools with other media; evocative voice overs, highly detailed props and video projection, from a team of brilliant creatives Carly Sheppard (Dramaturg), Naretha Williams (Sound), Cris Derksen (Composer), Samuel James (Video), Karen Norris (Lighting), Emily Adolfini (Props) and Fiona Holley (Costume).

Artist-led education programs alongside presentations introduce students to Indigenous choreographic processes with learning around dance appreciation, performance and composition. Post Show Q&A and forums are offered to create a discussion about the diverse themes of the work.

The work premiered at Sydney Festival 2021 in conjunction with Campbelltown Arts Centre, and Native Earth Theatre Company, Toronto.

The creative development and premiere of the work was supported by Campbelltown Arts Centre.

This powerful First Nations dance show is a thoughtful highlight of Sydney Festival 2021. The Complication of Lyrebirds asks us to acknowledge that all First Nations people are unique, that they have their own journey to follow and histories to draw upon.

STEPHEN A RUSSELL, Time Out 2020

Images by Sam James.

Jasmin Sheppard is a contemporary dancer, choreographer and director, a Tagalaka Aboriginal woman with Irish, Chinese and Hungarian ancestry. She spent 12 years with Bangarra Dance Theatre, her performance acclaimed by critics as “powerfully engaging, fluent dexterity” (Sydney Morning Herald). Jasmin choreographed a major work for the company ‘MACQ’, which toured Australia and Germany. In 2012 Jasmin was nominated for an Australian Dance award for ‘Best Female Contemporary Dancer’. In 2017 ‘MACQ’ was nominated for a Helpmann Award for best dance work as a part of ‘OUR Land People Stories’ and in 2018 received a Helpmann for best regional touring program. Other works include ‘No Remittance’ for Legs on the Wall and ‘Choice Cut’ for Yirramboi festival, which debuted at Toronto’s ‘Fall For Dance North’ Festival 2019. Jasmin premiered her main stage production ‘The Complication of Lyrebirds’ at Sydney Festival 2021 and in 2021 also co-directed ‘Value For Money’ alongside Sara Black for GUTS Dance, receiving rave reviews with seasons at Araluen Arts Centre and Darwin Festival. Jasmin created ‘Given Unto Thee’ for Sydney Dance Company’s 2021 New Breed program and was performer, movement director and associate writer for S Shakthidharan’s: 宿 (stay), presented by Sydney Festival 2022 in partnership with OzAsia. Her work is passionate, political and described as “surreal and highly evocative” (The Australian). Jasmin Sheppard is supported by BlakDance, established in 2005, a national industry and producing organisation for First Nations contemporary dancers and choreographers.