Dance News

Brett Lucas, the reinvented founder of The Academy of Music Dance Drama, runs his school with this in mind: “I am on a mission to empower the creative minds and create more creative markets.” Brett has run The Academy of Music Dance Drama since 2018 and has continuously worked to transform it into the South Coast’s leading performing arts school, refusing to let a global pandemic stand in his way. Brett has increased student enrolment despite the standstill that COVID-19 has created for most people. In his three years of owning The Academy of Music Dance Drama, Brett took enrolment from 75 to over 250 students, with most new additions within the past year.

Arts production around the world might have slowed right down but that didn’t stop dancer, actress and choreographer Lara Bianca Pilcher from kicking creative goals, with a slot secured in the World Monologue Film Festival Semi-Finals. The finals will be screened physically at Dendy Newtown in Sydney on Wednesday 21 April, with a free virtual Finals and Awards Night for a global audience on Saturday 24 April. The Semi-Finals will be screened virtually the night before on Friday 23 April.

Reference Material, a new dance work from choreographer Alisdair Macindoe exploring the process and history of dance making in the age of narcissism, debuts as a part of Darebin Arts Speakeasy season at the Northcote Town Hall Arts Centre from 14 to 24 April.

Hayes Theatre Co and Luckiest Productions are thrilled to be presenting Merrily We Roll Along this year from 24 June – 31 July. This Sondheim classic will be directed by Dean Bryant (Sweet Charity, Assassins, Little Shop of Horrors) and choreographed by Andrew Hallsworth (Muriel’s Wedding, Sweet Charity). Keep an eye out over the coming weeks for the cast announcement!

FORM Dance Projects and Riverside Theatres will present NARCIFIXION, a dark and humorous dance work  about narcissism, at Riverside Theatres from 13th to 15th May. It will also be available to watch online on  15th May. Led by high-profile Australian independent dance artists and powerful performers, Anton (Legs On The Wall,  Australian Dance Theatre, Bangarra Dance Theatre) and Brianna Kell (TasDance, Dance Makers Collective,  DirtyFeet), NARCIFIXIONis a pertinent, highly detailed and expansive contemporary dance duet, examining  identity in the digital age. 

Inspired Dance Film Fest Australia was born last year to offer a place where dance on film can thrive and be seen. Where dancers, choreographers and filmmakers can meet to create exciting new work and show it to a new audience. It starts in July with Inspired Dance Youth Film Festival, a stand-alone event this year that will run from 9-11 July. It will feature outstanding opportunities for young filmmakers to learn from leading industry professionals in the lead-up to a red-carpet Gala Screening and Awards Presentation on 11 July at Sydney’s Entertainment Quarter.

Tickets are now on sale for ADT's bold new season, Convergence, in early May. Bringing together acclaimed choreographers from four continents, Convergence offers an exciting program of five short works from local and international artists, including ADT’s 2021 Associate Artist, Adrianne Semmens, and the three most recent winners of the prestigious annual Hannover Choreographic Competition: Tu Hoang (2020 winner, from Vietnam), Oscar Buthelezi (2019 winner, from South Africa), and Philippe Kratz (2018 winner, from Germany). Join the performance at The Odeon, from 5 - 8 May 2021 for Convergence - a joyful convergence of richly varied dance works and stories from across the globe.

One of the most loved fairytale musicals of all time, Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella, will have its Australian Premiere in Sydney at the Capitol Theatre in November, presented by Opera Australia and the Gordon Frost Organisation.

This March ADT's short film, The Circadian Cycle, continues to garner accolades around the world, with its inclusion in the line-up for Cinedans Fest the latest in a long list of international film festival screenings. Completed in August 2019, The Circadian Cycle is an experimental short film conceived and directed by Garry Stewart, with cinematography from renowned filmmaker Cordelia Beresford.

Enter a world of splendour and romance, of eye-popping excess, of glitz, grandeur and glory! A world where Bohemians and aristocrats rub elbows and revel in electrifying enchantment. Pop the champagne and prepare for the spectacular spectacular…welcome to Moulin Rouge! The Musical. Tickets to Moulin Rouge The Musical are now on sale. Due to the extraordinary demand throughout the pre-sale period, a further four weeks of performances have since gone on sale, with tickets now available for performances up to 5 December 2021.

As part of Inner West’s vibrant Multicultural Community-led Celebration Day, INDOKids Fest 2021 will be a family fun day for everyone that celebrates Indonesian arts and community on Saturday 27th March at Leichhardt Town Hall, Sydney.

 As part of the Chatswood Cultural Program, concert goers will be uplifted by the rhythmic richness of the Willoughby Symphony Orchestra when - for the first time - it joins forces with powerhouse aerialists from physical theatre makers Legs On The Wall for the thrilling Next Chapters concert on Saturday 22 & Sunday 23 May at the North Shore’s leading cultural hub, The Concourse, Chatswood.