WTF presents ‘Gudirr Gudirr’ in Brisbane

Running over 11 days from 13-23 February, WTF is Brisbane Powerhouse’s iconic global contemporary performance event where culture and spectacle collide. Featuring works that challenge the traditional definitions of theatre, WTF14 brings together a worldly ensemble of irreverent, iconoclastic performance artists unlike any other.

Fresh from a season in London, Gudirr Gudirr brings the personal and the political to life. “Gudirr Gudirr” is the Yawuru word for the wader bird, which sounds a warning when the tides change. To ignore the warning is to risk drowning. Dancer and choreographer Dalisa Pigram’s movement draws on her work with Malay, Yawuru and Japanese elders of Broome. With it she creates a bold new piece about issues facing Indigenous Australians today.

The breakout hit of Dance Massive and a compelling combination of dance and storytelling, Gudirr Gudirr is a collaboration between Pigram (co-director of dance company Marrugeku), Belgian choreographer Koen Augustijnen and visual artist Vernon Ah Kee. The trio created a beautiful world, featuring a kaleidoscope of movements – from animal mimicry to martial arts – as well as video projections, spoken word and fishing nets.

Marrugeku, under the artistic direction of Pigram and Rachael Swain, is a company that uses contemporary dance, traditional and contemporary music, circus, installation and video art to share the memories and traditions of Indigenous communities across the region. Since their beginnings in 1994, the company’s works have been presented both in remote Indigenous communities and at international and national arts festivals.

Marrugeku’s Gudirr Gudirr will be presented at Brisbane Powerhouse, an arts hub located in the suburb of New Farm, QLD, on Thursday-Saturday, 20-22 February.  Tickets are $35. For more information on the Brisbane performances of Gudirr Gudirr, visit brisbanepowerhouse.org.

Also, in other news, the Australian Performing Arts Market (APAM) has moved to Brisbane and will coincide with Brisbane Powerhouse’s WTF14.

Photo by Ponch Hawkes.