Media Release 4 September 2019

UPLIFTED

Sydney Dance Company’s 2020 Annual Program explores the thrill of boundary pushing Dance dynamic movement and presents unmissable collaborations with international powerhouses, Rafael Bonachela, William Forsythe and Bryce Dessner. An extensive European and Company South American tour featuring the smash-hit WOOF by Melanie Lane will follow, along with the return of a critically-acclaimed contemporary classic, ab [intra]. 2020 is the year to experience Sydney Dance Company and its artists in all their quicksilver brilliance.

2020 Season Rafael Bonachela, Sydney Dance Company’s Artistic Director, says, ‘After a full and fantastic Announcement 50th anniversary in 2019, I look at 2020 as the start of the next 50 years for Sydney Dance Company. The year ahead is filled with national and international touring and it is always a great pleasure and privilege to share the performances of the extraordinary dancers of the company.

Season One is a reflection on the creative journeys I have taken in my work and influences, starting with E2 7SD, a duet created in 2004 and the piece which launched my career when it won the Place Prize for choreography in London, the audience vote award and the New York Bloomberg Choice award. E2 7SD is partnered with the Australian premiere of William Forsythe’s N.N.N.N..

Forsythe is a choreographer I have long admired and I relish the opportunity to bring more of his work to audiences here, as well as giving the dancers the chance to perform it. We'll also dive into a collaboration in Season One, this time with the Australian String Quartet, as we jointly commission the celebrated Bryce Dessner to compose a new score. Impermanence will be a major new work and I can’t wait to choreograph it and share it with you.’

Sydney Dance Company 2020 SEASON DETAILS

Season One

BONACHELA / FORSYTHE

In 2020, Sydney Dance Company will explore the everyday and lead you into the sublime.

This season presents dance at its most radiant, fearless and transformative.

Bonachela / Forsythe collects three works from across the spectrum of physicality. Impermanence sees Artistic Director Rafael Bonachela join forces with Bryce Dessner of iconic American rock band The National to create a world premiere work with a specially created score, performed live on stage by the Australian String Quartet. It’s a rare triple threat that explores the ephemeral nature of all things.

William Forsythe’s N.N.N.N is an Australian premiere from the visionary godfather of contemporary dance; witty, riveting and “astonishingly intense” (New York Times).

Presented as a mind in four parts - four dancers in a permanent state of union. The dancers draw a complex and intense register with their bodies, with amplified breath providing the soundtrack to choreography that builds from a fluid entanglement of limbs through to high voltage exhilarating chaos. A compelling exposition of connecting breathtaking movement with sound.

★★★★ “Forsythe’s fascinatingly oddball composition” – The Guardian (N.N.N.N)

Completing the bill is the multi award-winning E2 7SD, the virtuosic duet that launched Rafael Bonachela’s choreographic career. E2 7SD is based on personal diaries and attracted international recognition for Rafael Bonachela in 2004 and was awarded the prestigious Place Prize.

E2 7SD was conceived as a performance and sound sculpture of an emotionally charged landscape. The dancers perform in the mirror of their own vocal journeys, showing energy, beauty and white-hot intensity in the mundane, the dangerous and the desperate.

★★★★ “An intensely physical and emotional duet… there is challenge, aggression, love and despair” – Culture Whispers (E2 7SD)

21 March – 4 April Walsh Bay Single tickets from $45

12 - 16 May Arts Centre Melbourne

The Sydney and Melbourne performances of Impermanence are presented in association with Australian String Quartet. Bryce Dessner’s music composition Impermanence is co- commissioned by the Australian String Quartet and Sydney Dance Company. This commission has been assisted by the through the Australia Council for the Arts, its arts funding and advisory body.

National Tour

Bonachela / Lane An electrifying double bill featuring Rafael Bonachela’s newest creation Impermanence and Melanie Lane’s critically acclaimed WOOF.

16 June – 8 August

NSW 13 June, Orange 17 June, 20 June, Bathurst 24 June, Dubbo 27 June, Wyong

NT 4 July: Darwin

QLD 11 July, Gold Coast 15 July, Rockhampton 18 July, 22 July, Toowoomba

WA 19 July, Albany 1 Aug, Mandurah 6 – 8 Aug, Perth

Season Two ab [intra]

★★★★ ‘Contemporary dance at its most evocative and beautiful’ TimeOut

Rafael Bonachela’s dynamic and powerful masterwork ab [intra] returns for a very special encore season direct from a sell-out European tour in 2019 showcasing Australia’s best contemporary dancers. ab [intra], meaning ‘from within’ in Latin is ‘an exploration of our primal instincts, our impulses and our visceral responses’, says choreographer Rafael Bonachela. From tenderness to turmoil, ab [intra] is a journey of intense human existence that commands your attention.

The music fuses lush cello concerto with ambient electronica as the exquisite dancers occupy a visually arresting ethereal world. This is a ferociously physical and heartfelt piece that will stay with you long after you leave the theatre.

★★★★ ‘ab [intra] has to be seen to be believed’ Sydney Morning Herald

19 – 22 August Roslyn Packer Theatre Walsh Bay Single tickets from $45

28 August Sydney Coliseum Theatre

International Tour

★★★★ ½ “Like nothing seen in dance before” Audrey Journal on WOOF

In September and October, the Company will embark on an extensive European and South American tour performing repertoire including Rafael Bonachela’s newest creation Impermanence, the ferociously physical and heartfelt ab [intra] and Melanie Lane’s smash- hit WOOF.

★★★★½ “A dazzling, electrifying, heartfelt work. Highly recommended.” Limelight on ab [intra]

Season Three

New Breed

Meet the new breed of Australian dance creators

★★★★ “A must-see that features four exciting and challenging works.” ArtsHub

In 2020 Sydney Dance Company, Carriageworks and The Balnaves Foundation continue their commitment to emerging choreographers and present the seventh edition of New Breed.

Showcasing a rich diversity of choreographic ideas, an incredibly talented group of choreographers will create brand new pieces on members of Sydney Dance Company.

Don’t miss this limited season of raw talent and fresh ideas from some of Australia’s most exciting dance creators.

New Breed is made possible by The Balnaves Foundation.

“The bar is set high in every respect” The Australian

26 Nov – 5 Dec Carriageworks, Sydney

Media Contact For information, images or interviews contact: Alexandra Barlow, Publicity Manager [email protected]