Tertiary Networks

“I felt so humbled that [my child] had the opportunity to dance in such a professional setting and with such a well organised event and team at Sydney Dance Company. It really did inspire her dreams. The kindness and care shown to the dancers that we witnessed, was a highlight as was the opportunity to see how proud they were of themselves at the show and tell session on Friday afternoon.”

Forty-seven dancers aged between the ages of 13 and 18 formed our two 2022 Youth Ensembles. Youth Ensemble ran for eight weeks of each of terms 1, 2 and 3 and, for the first time, culminated in a performance outcome, held in the Neilson Studio. The performance, for family and friends, was attended by 128 people and included newly created works by Pre-Professional Year alumni Eliza Cooper and former company dancer Davide Di Giovanni.

Sydney Dance Company’s ongoing partnership with FORM Dance Projects in Western Sydney continued for its fourth consecutive year, and seventh year in total. This included two days of workshops in Parramatta for seventy HSC dance students.

Our team of ten Teaching Artists undertook training to deliver education workshops whilst on national tour, learning Sydney Dance Company repertoire and developing an understanding of the creative processes used by the company to develop these works. The Teaching Artists delivered sixty-six face-to-face workshops to young Australian school students aged 8 to 18 years.

Bespoke workshops were also delivered to schools and organisations in Newcastle and Coffs Harbour throughout the year. The education team at Sydney Dance Company works with these organisations to identify their goals and develop unique experiences for them through dance, allowing for an in-depth and unique engagement opportunity.

School matinee performances were run throughout the year and included pre-show discussions with creatives, a performance of the work and a post-show Q&A with opportunities for students in the audience to ask questions. A Secondary school matinee performance of ab [intra] was delivered to 519 students from twenty schools from the Greater Sydney area in June. In September a matinee performance of Impermanence was delivered at the Arts Centre Melbourne as part of Arts Centre Melbourne’s Megamix program; a collection of shows that were fully subsidised by Creative Victoria’s Positive Start funding. This resulted in tickets being fully subsidised to eligible schools and as a result 600 students were able to attend the performance in person. A matinee performance of Resound in Sydney was delivered in October to 538 students and teachers from twenty-three schools, sharing with them the newly commissioned work The Universe is Here by Stephanie Lake, and Summer by Rafael Bonachela.

A digital livestream of the Impermanence matinee at Arts Centre Melbourne was also made available to schools as part of the Federal Government’s RISE funding. This was made free for schools to access and more than 1,300 students from across Australia were able to view the performance online.

In February 2022 Sydney Dance Company commenced an exciting new partnership with the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. The twentysix students in the Bachelor of Music program undertook a structured program of coursework at the Sydney Dance Company Wharf Studios which included Somatic Practice and Theatrical Improvisation, Stylised movement for Musical Theatre, and Classical Techniques for Dance performance. Partnerships like this enable Sydney Dance Company to establish strong links with higher education and offer students access to learn from leading industry professionals.

Sydney Dance Company plays a critical role in contributing to the Australian arts ecology. Besides offering holistic support through industry development and training, and creation of career pathways, as well as traineeships, partnerships and sharing of our infrastructure and resources, we also encourage greater giving to the arts. We do this by forging alliances and collaborations with diverse dance communities, other arts organisations, corporate sponsors, and patrons, and across government departments. We believe these valuable and rewarding collaborations play a vital role in sustaining not only Sydney Dance Company but also underpinning the sustainability of our sector and community. Throughout the year, Sydney Dance Company staff and dancers share our expertise and undertake information exchange and professional development with our networks of national and international peers.

Building capacity and professional networks not only impacts the long-term sustainability of the sector through continual benchmarking of skills and knowledge against world’s best practice, but it also adds to the cultural vibrancy of the nation by contributing to and supporting the development of arts practice which leads to the creation of new work and performances.

Thirty students in their final year of study for their Bachelor of Fine Arts at Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) attended a masterclass delivered by Sydney Dance Company, some of whom have since undertaken secondments with us at our Wharf Studios. This relationship continues to develop and will see Sydney Dance Company alumnus, David Mack, stage Rafael Bonachela’s 2 One Another on WAAPA students for a performance season in 2023; the third work of Rafael’s to be presented at WAAPA.

Sydney Dance Company provides secondment opportunities to students at other tertiary dance training providers, providing tertiary and vocational students the opportunity to gain insight into professional practice. Over the course of 2022, Sydney Dance Company hosted thirteen secondments from external training institutions including The Australian Ballet School, WAAPA, New Zealand School of Dance, Adelaide College of the Arts, Victorian College of the Arts and NAISDA Dance College (National Aboriginal Islander Skills Development Association).

At Sydney Dance Company we celebrate the ever-changing diversity of experience and skill within the ensemble and are strengthened by every new voice who joins us. Open auditions are an important part of the recruitment process for Sydney Dance Company and after two years of rescheduling, in February we finally held our first open audition since 2017. 84 candidates from around Australia, and three international candidates made their way to the Wharf Studios to audition with us in 2022. For many dancers, this is their first connection with the company and the audition process enables us to connect with national and international industry in an equitable and accessible way.

Sydney Dance Company continue to feel the benefits of our renewed home at the Wharf. It has been heartening to see more people visiting and returning to work at the Walsh Bay Arts Precinct, taking advantage of Sydney Dance Company’s café and foyer as a place to meet, collaborate and work. We are committed to growing the venue hire business through a targeted approach to commercial hires, partnerships and internally run activations. Hirers have included Cotton On, Australian Tap Dance Festival, The Australian Ballet, Universal, Disney, Hong Kong Dance Company, Crossroads Live, Gondwana Choirs, Bangarra Dance Theatre, Australian Theatre for Young People, Bell Shakespeare, NSW Department of Education – The Arts Unit, Sydney Opera House, Redlands School, Surf Life Saving Australia, and Young Presidents Organisation.

A City of Sydney Nighttime activation grant was used to support the delivery of Happenings – a series of three free Friday night activations, in partnership with Nick Wales. The series launched on 11 February 2022 as part of the Company’s yearly program of events in celebration of Sydney Mardi Gras with featured performances by electric classical musicians, drag performers and DJs.

Sydney Dance Company Wharf Studios, and specifically the Neilson Studio, have been assets that allow Sydney Dance Company to contribute in-kind support for independent artists and the greater arts community. Over 100 hours of in- kind support has been provided to organisations such as Ausdance, Make Music Day, Flamenkisimo ‘Evocasion’ and Phunktional Arts ‘Beyond the Walls’.

Our industry support also extends to sharing resources with the independent dance sector and other arts organisations. In 2022 we established a contra partnership with Sydney Eisteddfod and extended them a reduction in venue hire costs in exchange for a range of marketing support.

As part of Sydney Fringe Festival 2022, and with subsidized support from Sydney Dance Company by way of venue hire, and equipment, Flamenkisimo brought the face of flamenco in Australia to the Wharf. Evocación had two sold-out performances in the Neilson Studio and highlighted the diversity of the independent dance community in Australia.