Journal articles and newsletters from Ausdance and industry partners.
Thinking through dance—dancing through thought
Tess de Quincey expresses ideas about how and why she makes art in a stream-of-consciousness style of poetry.
Motion as expression and communication
Narelle Benjamin talks about how and why she makes dance for both stage and film.
Ronald Hynd’s The Merry Widow: Toward a definition of the ‘Ballet Lyrique’
Rodney Stenning Edgecombe looks for a new genre within ballet itself, making connections between other musical forms and such works as The Merry Widow, which was part of The Australian Ballet’s 2011 season. Reaching back into the history of ballet and opera, he proposes a new term, ‘Ballet Lyrique’.
The two Cups of 1962: the dancing horses of The Australian Ballet and the National Theatre
2012 marks the 50th anniversary of the premiere season of The Australian Ballet's Melbourne Cup, choreographed by Rex Reid. Melbourne Cup was a popular hit of 1962 and the ballet drew on the country’s most famous social sporting event for its story and setting. Jordan Vincent has investigated the surprising facts connecting Reid’s work with a second ballet on the same subject by Melbourne's National Theatre, titled Cup Fever: a fantasy on The Cup.
Thinking bodies, dancing minds: research with communities of creative minds
In seminal investigations, researchers from the Victorian College of the Arts and the Universities of Melbourne and Western Sydney collaborated with dance artists and scholars to explore the nature of thinking in the embodiment of kinaesthetic, cognitive, emotional and aesthetic perceptions.
Maybe we’re not human
Jonathan Bollen explores the utility of actor-network theory for researching performance. The focus of his analysis is Australian Dance Theatre's Devolution created as a collaboration between choreographer Garry Stewart and robotics artist Louis-Philippe Demers.
Designing for Nina Verchinina’s choreographic vivacity: a new light on Loudon Sainthill’s art
Art historian Andrew Montana presents his perspective on the designs the young Australian artist Loudon Sainthill made for the ballets of the beautiful Russian ballerina, Nina Verchinina. The story of this collaboration, and the fate of Verchinina as choreographer is intriguing.
In/between/Place: Tess de Quincey’s bodyweather of the central desert
Mary Elizabeth Anderson gives an account of Tess de Quincey’s experiments in Bodyweather training, place-based performance-making and documentation at Hamilton Downs, an old cattle station and youth camp about 100 kilometres beyond Alice Springs.
Variations in proximity as a tool for audience engagement
Clare Dyson illustrates her account of proximity in the relationship of audience and performer with examples from her own intriguing choreographies. How close is close? What does being a member of an audience, as opposed to being an ordinary person in an ordinary place mean?
Galvanising community (pt 1) Margaret Barr at Dartington Hall 1930 – 1934
Dance historian and scholar, Garry Lester introduces us to some of Margaret Barr's achievements at Dartington Hall in Devon during the 1930s. (You can read the second part of this article in Brolga 26.)
Observing Lois Greenfield
Australian photographer Laura Ross wonders what it is about Lois Greenfield's wonderful photos of dancers that sets her apart from her peers.
Guillermo Keys Arenas 1928–2006: an appreciation
Harry Haythorne honours Sydney-based Mexican-Australian dancer and teacher Guillermo Keys Arenas who made an enormous contribution to multi-culturalism through the annual Folkloric Festivals which he directed from 1979 – 94.
Mary Whidborne—first teacher of Dalcroze Eurhythmics in New South Wales?
West Australian Dalcroze expert, Joan Pope OAM establishes how much of an enigma Mary Whidborne is today, because it seems that she was the first significant teacher of Dalcroze Eurhythmics in this country.
A ragbag of ballet music oddments
Whereas literary scholars have a platform for publishing small or isolated findings, neither the ballet nor the musical world offers a comparable vehicle for such items. English literature scholar, Rodney Edgecombe shares some his minor but interesting discoveries about music for ballet.
Embodied histories of contemporary dance
Dr Katrina Rank discusses the role of memory, narrative and individual perception in relation to a live dance performance called Marvellous, which was a synthesis of five separate works she choreographed in 2000.
My dancing years the Borovansky Ballet
This is the fourth part of Tamara Finch’s story of her career as a dancer. The first three parts were published as ‘My dancing years’ in New York in Dance Chronicle, Volume 27, Numbers 1 – 3, in 2004. Part three concludes with the decision of Finch (then Tamara Tchinarova) and her mother to remain in Australia at the end of the 1938 – 39 tour by the Covent Garden Russian Ballet, and with an account of some of her early experiences in Australia including her time with the Polish-Australian and Kirsova Ballets.
The historical buzz on Buzz Dance Theatre
Adrian J. Lowe writes a history of the Perth-based contemporary dance company Buzz Dance Theatre. He writes from the perspective of an observer for those who may have an interest in dance, but not necessarily a working knowledge of the art form.
Dancing to the right tune
Past research indicated that dance companies use strategic public relations for various audience development activities that are innovative and successful in the short term. Recommendations from Madeline Wilson's research include long-term strategic audience development plans to ensure dance companies continue to develop audiences and remain viable in the future.
Margaret Barr, storyteller Part two: Climbers
Part 2 of Joanne Harris' exploration of two interesting works by story-teller and choreographer Margaret Barr that were captured on film in 1962 (Snowy) and 1980 (Climbers).
Volatile grace
New Zealand dancer and choreographer Douglas Wright has been inspirational for many dancers with his innovative approach to both the creative process and to embodying the movement.