It was fantastic to be able to join the Ausdance NSW team, the choreographers and more than 150 young people from all over Australia on the last day of the Australian Youth Dance Festival at NAISDA Dance College in Gosford NSW.
Shades of Us, presented in Mt Penang Gardens on the final evening, was a performance that grew out of an intensive week of creative development with choreographers Sue Healey, Philip Channells, Anton, Kay Armstrong, Matt Cornel, Adelina Larsson, Lee Pemberton, Vicki Van Hout and artistic director Rowan Marchingo.
Here are some of photos of this memorable performance on the last evening.
The beautiful gardens provided an inspirational setting for each of the seven site-specific works, set in amazing sculptural spaces, exotic plantings, water features, rolling grasses, a gorgeous cactus garden, stone walls and multiple stairways.
The choreographers guided their young dancers through the spaces with great sensitivity and skill, making seven mini works, each repeated several times throughout the one-hour performance. This enabled audiences to view the works from different angles and at different times in the gathering dusk. The diffused lighting came into play as the sun set, adding to the magical atmosphere. The works were accompanied by a soundscape especially composed by Bob Scott.
The week had included a busy program of creative development, taster classes, forums and performances by some of Australia’s leading youth dance groups. Dancers came from as far away as Europe, from Perth, Adelaide and Darwin, and from regional cities including Alice Springs, Cowra, Broome, Bega, Tathra and Wollongong.
Apart from performances by these groups during the week, a highlight was an Indigenous dance forum with Vicki Van Hout, who is documenting and creating an Indigenous dance technique, supported by NAISDA Dance College. She raised many important issues, and we'll link to her full presentation when it becomes available.
The AYDF is a unique event on the Australian dance calendar, with its focus on Indigenous dance culture, creative development and site-specific work. It was exciting to see all of these elements brought together so successfully by Cathy Murdoch and the Ausdance NSW team, and to see a new generation of young dancers from all over Australia benefiting from such a unique experience. The new studios at NAISDA and the cooperation of Kim Walker and his team helped to make this an extra special AYDF.
The creative team of Shades of Us would like to thank each young artist for their individual creative input, brave spirits and hard work.
(Photos: J.Dyson)