SYDNEY DANCE COMPANY AND CARRIAGEWORKS PRESENT
NEW BREED
25 Nov – 11 Dec
New Breed Principal Partner
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Welcome
It is such a joy to be back in the theatre, and such a privilege to be finally sharing dance with you again. This has been another challenging year for us all and after the disruption of the last few months, it is wonderful that we are able to come together to enjoy this, the eighth edition of New Breed. As we all look to a brighter future, how fantastic that we are able to celebrate the next generation of Australian choreographic talent together. The four choreographers of New Breed 2021 are diverse in their background, their experience and their inspiration and I am delighted that all four have chosen to explore such thoughtprovoking, challenging and stimulating themes for their works. This is the very essence of New Breed and each year, I am heartened by how our emerging choreographers rise to the challenge and embrace the possibilities of working with the ensemble and our talented creative and technical team. I extend my heartfelt congratulations to Jasmin, Lilian, Jacopo and Rhiannon for their work and their practice; what you will see proves that Australian contemporary dance has a bright future. We are also proud that New Breed 2021 sees two new scores composed and we are delighted that one of these is the result of our partnership with the Sydney Conservatorium of Music’s Composing Women program. Our partnership with Carriageworks on New Breed is long-standing and greatly cherished: this is an incredible and inspiring space for choreographers, dancers and audiences alike. We are very appreciative of how this collaboration has allowed New Breed to flourish and I’d like to thank the Carriageworks team led by Blair French.
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I would also like to thank and acknowledge the support of the Federal Government through the Australia Council of the Arts and the NSW Government through Create NSW for their generous and unwavering support for Sydney Dance Company, and the broader arts community, over the last two years. The word ‘unprecedented’ has been rather overused, but these have been unique circumstances for us all and we are incredibly grateful to both of our government funding partners for their guidance, counsel and assistance as we have navigated through uncharted territory. Their collective belief in the importance, value and power of the arts is heartening and enormously appreciated. New Breed would not be what it is without The Balnaves Foundation, led by Neil Balnaves AO. Principal Partners of the program since its inception, The Balnaves Foundation has been instrumental in New Breed’s success. The visionary leadership of the Trustees has created an invaluable framework to nurture Australian choreographic talent. Their generosity in providing additional support has allowed us to extend the season this year. With another year of truncated performance seasons, we thank them for their leadership support to bring artists and audiences together, just as it should be, as the year closes. I hope you enjoy New Breed 2021. Rafael Bonachela Artistic Director, Sydney Dance Company
Sydney Dance Company’s eighth edition of New Breed at Carriageworks is a welcome and much needed return of live performance to our stage. New Breed supports the very best emerging Australian choreographers through the annual commissioning and presentation of new dance work. To be able to present such ambitious live work to onsite audiences after a challenging period of lockdown, is especially thrilling. New Breed is co-presented by Carriageworks and Sydney Dance Company, in conjunction with The Balnaves Foundation, whose commitment to the program is vital to the future of Australian contemporary dance. On behalf of Carriageworks I acknowledge the vital work of the 2021 New Breed choreographers Jasmin Sheppard, Jacopo Grabar, Lilian Steiner and Rhiannon Newton and give thanks to Anne Dunn and Rafael Bonachela for their continued hard work and dedication in supporting a range of Australian voices; thanks also to The Balnaves Foundation for enabling this critical program, and to the NSW Government through Create NSW and the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts for their integral ongoing investment and confidence in our contemporary multi-arts program. Blair French CEO, Carriageworks
After what has been another tumultuous year for the performing arts, The Balnaves Foundation is delighted to be supporting the eighth edition of New Breed. In 2020, New Breed was the first time Sydney Dance Company were able to take to the stage, it was almost implausible that 2021 would be the same. Now, with this being the first time the dancers will have performed in Sydney in nine months, seeing live performance return with such exciting work from these four emerging choreographers makes this program even more compelling. We are passionate about supporting Australia’s creative community and the vital role the arts play in our cultural legacy and connectiveness; this is even more important as we emerge from recent COVID -19 challenges. Supporting new opportunities for artists is essential, and New Breed’s function as an incubator for emerging talent is a proven success. We are proud that over the last eight years more than 30 Australian choreographers have come through this program, with many going on to enjoy successful national and international careers, a testament to the opportunities New Breed presents. We are thrilled to be able to support Sydney Dance Company to extend the season to fifteen performances again this year. This extension offers lovers of dance more chances to experience this work live and provides the choreographers with the opportunity to share their creative vision with a larger audience. Fostering the talents of the next generation of artists is a privilege and we are very pleased to continue our support of Sydney Dance Company as it secures the future of contemporary dance in Australia. Neil Balnaves AO The Balnaves Foundation 2
Program 25 November – 11 December Carriageworks
Given Unto Thee Jasmin Sheppard
21 mins
Springtime Again Lilian Steiner
20 mins
Stereotipo Jacopo Grabar
13 mins
The Gift of a Warning Rhiannon Newton
16 mins
Content Themes Please note, Given Unto Thee by Jasmin Sheppard explores themes regarding issues of the abuse of power by religious institutions, explored through a First Nations lens. Please note at various points in the program, haze and strobe/or strobe-like lighting effects will be used.
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New Breed Cast Isabella Crain Sabine Crompton-Ward Davide Di Giovanni Dean Elliott Jackson Fisch Jacopo Grabar Liam Green Luke Hayward Telea Jensen Dimitri Kleioris Jesse Scales Emily Seymour Mia Thompson Chloe Young Rehearsal Director Richard Cilli Rehearsal Associate Juliette Barton Create NSW Beyond The Studio Fellow, Dramaturg/Outside Eye Angela Goh
Photo: Pedro Greig
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Given Unto Thee Jasmin Sheppard “When the missionaries came to Africa, they had the Bible and we had the land. They said “Let us pray.” We closed our eyes. When we opened them, we had the Bible and they had the land.” (Rev. Desmond Tutu) Given Unto Thee looks at the use of religion by colonising powers as a vehicle for control of Indigenous peoples, and for the acquisition of their land. Whilst this idea of religion as a tool for colonisation sits so far from the spirituality of many religious followings, we discussed and explored how the notion of a ‘promised land’ or a God-given mission can muddy the ability for humans to understand deep and long reaching connection to Country of Indigenous peoples the world over. As a Tagalaka woman, I have approached this work from the lens of First Nations Australian experience of the missions here, where many people were moved to and displaced from their families and land. During the process we interrogated how land, body and spirituality are interconnected, and explored the fragmentation of religion, place of origin, and how connection to cultural heritage affects our physical present.
Choreographer
Jasmin Sheppard with the dancers
Music Paranormal Pipe Dream - Naretha Williams Servitor for the Stolen - Naretha Williams Collective Consequences - Naretha Williams #10 - Aphex Twin Costume Designer
Aleisa Jelbart
Lighting Designer
Alexander Berlage
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Springtime Again Lilian Steiner It’s Springtime Again, and the field is full of drama already in bloom, - heard through the eyes and seen through the ears. Nothing is impossible in curiosity’s wandering through the lava lamp. Curiosity with a capital C can become a character. Springtime Again portrays humanity through abstraction. Individual personalities, desires, agendas and fates are held within and by group dynamics But as observers, we face our own projections We are the protagonist, But so is the other. Perceived trajectories do not necessarily equate to narrative. Freedom is in the curving of edges and the swallowing up by shadows and the turning away from the spotlight. And dance does not belong only to human bodies. If you close and open and close and open and open and close your eyes, you will see and hear and participate in the dance everywhere. Now, Sharpen and blur and resharpen your focus, You are already shaping the constellation.
Software controlling the live interaction between music and dancers is written in the programming environment Max MSP. A camera tracks the dancers' movement in space, allowing them to shape the sonic environment. Further triggering of audio cues are initiated by rings worn by the dancers.
Choreographer
Lilian Steiner with the dancers
Composer
Fiona Hill, played live by Fiona and the dancers
Costume Designer
Aleisa Jelbart
Lighting Designer
Alexander Berlage
Sydney Symphony Orchestra Fellowship
Miles Mullin-Chivers, Cello Emily Newham, French Horn
Audio mix
Bob Scott
Recording Engineer
Sean Carey
Max MSP programming
Fiona Hill
Additional software programming and support
Benjamin Carey 6
Stereotipo Jacopo Grabar This piece aims to explore the role that stereotypes play in our society, and the different ways in which people relate to them, through a representation of the most common assumptions and biases on the Italian culture and people. Stereotypes are an ‘addition’ to the shared layer of cultural identity. A cultural artifact that can be either imposed on people who were born with it or sought after by those who look for a sense of cultural belonging. They can be funny, offensive, shallow, or even absurd. Yet for some reason, they are still the safest way to describe what is perceived as unfamiliar to us. But are these preconceived assumptions really accurate? How can we learn to cherish them as part of our shared identity, while still recognising the secondary role they play in determining one’s individuality?
Choreographer
Jacopo Grabar
Music Ponchielli: La Gioconda: Act 2 “Cielo e mar” [Enzo] - Amilcare Ponchielli Main Title (The Godfather Waltz) - Giovanni Rota Verdi: Attila, Act 3: “Oh dolore!” (Foresto) Giuseppe Verdi & Temistocle Solera Costume Designer
Aleisa Jelbart
Lighting Designer
Alexander Berlage
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The Gift of a Warning Rhiannon Newton We cement the force of a curse to the physical body of a gift, the gift of a warning (E. Sedgwick, 2003). The force of humans has physically changed the make-up of the planet. So profound is the scale of this change that it is recognised as a new geological era, the very material composition of the earth and its atmosphere is altered. In dance we work with the forces the human body is capable of. Exerting an increased pressure on the earth, we absorb the energies of our surroundings, burn the resources of the body and set in motion forces that impact beyond the skin. Curse, or gift? Dance is known for its ephemerality, it’s momentary and fleeting existence between those who share in it. Maybe there is something we can learn from the way we work with force in dance? The force of a dance. One that circulates, reuses and passes on energy, an energetics living in and between bodies. Bodies sensitised to their capacity for force, that sense themselves as an exhaustible resource. The force of a dance, like the force of a curse, circulates and returns as the gift of a warning.
Choreographer
Rhiannon Newton
Music
Peter Lenaerts
Costume Designer
Aleisa Jelbart
Lighting Designer
Alexander Berlage
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Photo: Pedro Greig
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New Breed Partners
Sydney Dance Company Sydney Dance Company has been led since 2009 by Spanish-born Artistic Director Rafael Bonachela and over that time the Company has cemented its reputation as a creative powerhouse. An acclaimed group of 17 dancers present new work each year by Bonachela and other choreographers, designers, composers and musicians. Sydney Dance Company has a broad community beyond the practice and performance of its dancers. We believe in the universality of dance, and with the largest public dance class program in Australia, both online and in-studio, thousands connect each year with the grace, strength and creativity that lives within all of us. Our nation-wide education program offers a strategic curriculum targeting primary and secondary students through to career focused study for pre-professional dancers and university graduates. Carriageworks Carriageworks is the largest multi-arts centre in Australia. We commission Australian and International artists to make monumental new work that intersects with contemporary ideas. Reflecting the diverse communities of urban Sydney, our artist-led program is ambitious, radical and always inclusive. The Balnaves Foundation The Balnaves Foundation is a private philanthropic organisation established in 2006 by Neil Balnaves AO. The Foundation provides support to charitable organisations that aim to create a better Australia through education, medicine and the arts with a focus on young people, social disadvantage and Indigenous Australia.
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Acknowledgements
New Breed is presented on the land of the Gadigal of the Eora Nation. Carriageworks, Sydney Dance Company and The Balnaves Foundation acknowledge the Gadigal people and pay respect to elders past and present. Carriageworks partners with Sydney Dance Company to present New Breed through the ongoing support of the NSW Government through Create NSW and the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts. The Balnaves Foundation is the New Breed Principal Partner. Sydney Dance Company welcomes a collaboration with Sydney Conservatorium of Music’s Composing Women Program, and the participation of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra Fellowship. Sydney Conservatorium of Music’s Composing Women Program The University of Sydney’s award-winning biennial Composing Women Program enables four postgraduate students to work closely with industry partners including Sydney Dance Company, Sydney Philharmonia Choirs and Sydney and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras to develop their compositional work and professional skills as part of their degree. The students have the opportunity to have their music workshopped and performed, working intensively as a group and with each artist or organisation over two years. Participants are mentored by Professor Liza Lim as well as members of the Conservatorium’s composition unit. Established by Professor Matthew Hindson, this program marks the Conservatorium’s centenary in 2015 demonstrating deep commitment to creating new pathways for a more inclusive world in music where the incredible diversity of women composing is celebrated.
Sydney Symphony Fellowship At the Sydney Symphony our ambition is to inspire everyone with leading performances of extraordinary music. Founded in 1932, the Orchestra continues to be a part of the nation’s cultural fabric, with performances from its home at the Sydney Opera House broadcast around the nation and streamed around the globe. We also perform across Greater Sydney, tour regional NSW regularly, and collaborate with guest artists from all musical styles reflecting the Orchestra’s versatility and diverse appeal. As part of our commitment to music and emerging artists, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra Fellowship program was established to provide orchestral training and creative development for the next generation of orchestral musicians. Fellows are mentored by members of the Sydney Symphony and the global artists with whom we collaborate. Our Fellows also contribute to the Sydney Symphony’s extensive Learning and Engagement program. Now celebrating its 20th year, the Fellowship program has seen its participants win numerous positions with major European, Asian and Australian orchestras. Eleven former Fellows now hold permanent positions with the Sydney Symphony. In 2021 we are proud to work with ten Fellows drawn from the most talented of Australia’s young wind, string, and brass musicians.
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Sydney Dance Company
Board of Directors
Management
Brett Clegg (Chair) Pam Bartlett David Baxby Jillian Broadbent AC David Friedlander Emma Gray Alexa Haslingden Mark Hassell Catriona Mordant AM Sandra McCullagh Emma-Jane Newton Paris Neilson
Artistic Director Rafael Bonachela
Patron Dame Darcey Bussell DBE
Project Manager Nick Read
Founding Patron Dancers’ Circle Julian Knights AO
Producer Dominic Chang
Ambassadors Judy Crawford Bee Hopkins Jules Maxwell Dance Noir Committee Co-Chairs: Pam Bartlett Peter Reeve Committee: Sally Burleigh, Jane Clifford, Debbie Coffey, Georgina Fergusson, Mandy Foley, Alexa Haslingden, Tina Johnson, Jan Logan, Jane McCallum, Christina Voitenko, Michelle Walsh and Judi Wolf.
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Executive Director Anne Dunn Deputy Executive Director Lizzi Nicoll Executive Assistant Andy Grant
Programming Coordinator Kerry Thampapillai Jacob Williams (Maternity Cover) Chief Financial Officer Sean Radcliffe Accountant Melissa Sim Payroll Assistant Carina Mision Chief Commercial Officer Caroline Spence Director of Operations and Open Programs Polly Brett Kylie Tung (Maternity Cover)
Acting Customer Service Manager Michael Sieders Event and Venue Hire Manager Sandra Di Palma Head of Training Linda Gamblin Pre-Professional Year Course Coordinator Omer Backley-Astrachan Training Associate Gabrielle Nankivell Conditioning Studio Manager Felicity McGee Learning Manager Sam Dashwood Learning Coordinator Alys Gwillim Education Strategic Advisor Helen Cameron Head of Philanthropy Michelle Boyle Philanthropy Manager Madeleine White Philanthropy Coordinator Anya Platoskina
Dance Class Manager Ramon Doringo
External Affairs Assistant Amy Burrows
Ticketing Specialist John Calvi
Corporate Development Manager Marcus Hurley
The Company Head of CRM Heath Wilder
Rehearsal Director Richard Cilli
Company Doctor Dr. Michael Berger
Head of Brand, Audience and Sales Priscilla Hunt
Rehearsal Associate Charmene Yap Juliette Barton (Maternity Cover)
Sports Doctor Dr. James Lawrence
Marketing Coordinator Natalie Zagaglia
Dancers Isabella Crain Sabine Crompton-Ward Davide Di Giovanni Dean Elliott Jackson Fisch Jacopo Grabar Liam Green Luke Hayward Telea Jensen Dimitri Kleioris Rhys Kosakowski Chloe Leong Jesse Scales Emily Seymour Mia Thompson Chloe Young
Marketing Coordinator Adrienne Salmon Publicity Manager Alexandra Barlow Resident Multimedia Artist Pedro Greig Technical Director Guy Harding Stage Manager Simon Turner
Physiotherapists Ashlea-Mary Cohen Company Teachers Iohna Mercer Cathie Goss Joshua Consandine Felicity McGee
Technical Coordinator Tony McCoy Production Electrician Ren Kenward Production Technician James Lister Head of Wardrobe Annie Robinson Wardrobe Makers Sally-Anne Andrews Azure Schofield
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Carriageworks
Board Cass O’Connor (Chair) Geoff Ainsworth AM Michael Gonski Andrew Maiden Matthew McCarron Gitanjali Bhalla Sani Townson Cameron Honey Eleni Watts (Observer) Chief Executive Officer Blair French Executive Assistant Chantel Bann Director, First Nations Programs Jacob Boehme Director, Partnerships & Communication Enid Charlton Director, Programs Daniel Mudie Cunningham Director, Commercial Andrew Demetriou Director, Events & Production Kri Leitner Director, Corporate Services Mike Worner Curator, Programs Aarna Fitzgerald Hanley Exhibition Manager Glenn Thompson Program Coordinator, Solid Ground Emily Johnson Education Officer, Solid Ground Debbie Higgison Program Assistant, First Nations Programs Katherine Stone Music Curator, Vivid Thomas Supple Program Producer Nerida Ross
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Head of Marketing Electra Foley Partnerships Manager Vlach Ashton Digital Marketing Specialist Ben Allison Ticketing and Customer Relations Coordinator Lena Li Visitor Services Officer Eddie Gock Commercial Account Manager Jena Ye Commercial Account Coordinator Michelle Cao Production Manager Katherine Hamilton Production Manager Todd Hawken Executive Producer Loredana Cross Producer, Events Jackson Morphett Field Farmers Markets Creative Director Mike McEnearney Producer, Food Events Jessica Abrahams Assistant Producer, Food Events Spencer Morrow Finance and Administrative Manager Janine Peukert Finance and Administrative Assistant Caitlin Tiley Head of Operations Megan Davis Building Facilities Manager Mathew Ibanez Building Facilities Assistant Rodrigo Arriaza
Photo: Pedro Greig
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JOIN THE CONVERSATION #SDCNewBreed Facebook @sydneydanceco @carriageworks Youtube @sydneydancecompany @carriageworks Instagram @sydneydanceco @carriageworks sydneydancecompany.com carriageworks.com.au Photo: Pedro Greig
New Breed Principal Partner
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Government Partners