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Bangarra Dance Theatre farewells dancer Deborah Brown by Clea Woods 21 March 2014
B
angarra Dance Theatre announced that after over ten years of outstanding achievements, senior dancer Deborah Brown has decided to leave the company. As well as being one of Bangarra’s most acclaimed performers, Brown has been encouraged and nurtured as a choreographer by Artistic Director Stephen Page, creating one of four works in Dance Clan 3 during Corroboree Sydney in November 2013. Since joining Bangarra in 2003, Brown has performed nationally in 16 different works with the company: Bush, The Dreaming, Clan, Spirit, Boomerang, Gathering, True Stories, Mathinna, Fire – A Retrospective, of earth & sky, Belong, Terrain, Warumuk – in the dark night, Blak, Kinship and Dance Clan 3. In addition, Brown has toured with Bangarra to 14 different countries with seven different works: Bush, Awakenings, Rites, True Stories, Spirit, Warumuk – in the dark night and Kinship. In 2013, Brown choreographed her first work for Bangarra as part of Dance Clan 3 – a short dance film titled dive. This was well received by audiences and critics alike with Anca Frankenhaeuser of the Sydney Morning Herald describing it as a “little gem of a film” whilst Deborah Jones from The Australian described it as “excellent”.
Deborah Brown. Image: Greg Barrett
Artistic Director Stephen Page says of Brown’s contribution to the company, “Soon after Deborah Brown started with the company, it quickly became evident that her style was rare and unique. There’s a distinctive beauty in her artistic expression that allowed her to emerge as a leading Bangarra dancer. Joining the artists in the Bangarra creative spectrums, from the creation of new works, the time spent with Indigenous communities to the live performances on stage, Deborah connected to the spirit of our stories and shared them with audiences across Australia and around the world. She became an inspiration and a muse to myself and our choreographers, she will live on in the spirit of Bangarra’s songline. I wish Deborah all the best for the future.” In 2010 Brown was nominated in the ‘Best Female Dancer in a Dance or Physical Theatre Production’ category at the Helpmann Awards for her performance in Fire - A Retrospective. In 2013 she won
the Helpmann Award in the same category for her performance in Terrain. In 2013 Deborah was selected by Arts Queensland as a Culture Champion for her contribution to the Queensland arts and culture sector. Despite the award nominations and many other memorable moments, Brown identifies spending time ‘on country’ and performing at The Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Harvey Theatre and Theatre du Chatelet in Paris in 2008, as career highlights. Deborah Brown says of her departure, ‘My time with Bangarra is one of the greatest love affairs I’ve had, artistically and culturally. The presence there is indescribable and I will forever have the company’s medicine in my veins.’ Deborah Brown is a descendant of the Wakaid Clan, Badu Island and her grandmother is a descendant of Mer people, Murray Island. She also has Scottish heritage. Brown began dancing at the age of five.
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