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100915 Media Release Sydney Dance Company and Australian Chamber Orchestra, Illuminated

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100915 Media Release Sydney Dance Company and Australian Chamber Orchestra, Illuminated MEDIA RELEASE September 10, 2015 AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER ORCHESTRA AND SYDNEY DANCE COMPANY WITH GUEST SOPRANO TARYN FIEBIG lLLUMINATED ONE SHOW ONLY MELBOURNE ARTS CENTRE, STATE THEATRE SUNDAY OCTOBER 25 Two of Australia’s greatest ensembles, Sydney Dance Company and Australian Chamber Orchestra, come together on Sunday 25 October for one unmissable performance, Illuminated. Sydney Dance Company The Wharf, Pier 4, 15 Hickson Road, Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia In this stunning showcase of virtuoso dance and music, a trio of breathtaking dance pieces created by Helpmann Award-winning choreographer Rafael Bonachela, are set to the compositions of BenJamin Britten, Vivaldi, JS Bach, and Jean-Philippe Rameau. Dancers, and musicians led by the irrepressible Richard Tognetti, share the limelight and the stage throughout the performance, Joined by acclaimed Opera Australia Principal Soprano, Taryn Fiebig, performing Britten’s acclaimed song cycle, Les Illuminations. This one-off Melbourne exclusive premiere of Illuminated precedes the Australian Chamber Orchestra and Sydney Dance Company’s inaugural Joint international tour. The two companies present Illuminated in Hong Kong in November, with special guest soprano Katie Noonan. The Australian Chamber Orchestra and Sydney Dance Company first joined forces in 2012, for the creation of Project Rameau, a full-length dance work, set to the music of Jean-Philippe Rameau, which premiered at Sydney Theatre 29 October 2012, for an eight show sell-out season. Proposed by Deborah Jones (The Australian) as Best New Work in the 2013 Dance Australia Critics Survey, Project Rameau “radiates energy, joy and its own kind of wit” (The Sydney Morning Herald) in a stunning performance, which brings Rameau’s impassioned Baroque ballet and opera music roaring into the 21st century. This “thrilling first collaboration” (Limelight Magazine) between two of Australia’s premier arts organisations, led by visionaries Richard Tognetti (ACO) and Rafael Bonachela (SDC), has sparked an ongoing exchange over the past three years, fuelled by a desire to take Project Rameau to an international audience. The result, Illuminated, is an exceptional triple bill, comprising a selection of excerpts from Project Rameau, alongside two of Bonachela’s additional works (Les Illuminations and Variation 10) which have been inspired by the music of one of the world’s greatest composers, Benjamin Britten. Bonachela’s Les Illuminations was originally created in 2013, in partnership with Sydney Opera House, as a tribute to Britten, and as part of international celebrations recognising the centenary of the composer’s birth. The work takes its title from Britten’s composition of the same name, a deeply romantic song cycle for soprano and strings, inspired by the evocative poetry of 19th-century French poet Arthur Rimbaud, and sung in French. In this stunning work, featuring costumes by fashion designer Toni Maticevski, four dancers take to the stage in a series of “duets in which bodies and minds are entwined in beautifully crafted couplings”(The Sydney Morning Herald). The “erotically charged choreography, laced with yearning, betrayal, loss of innocence and a dash of thinly buried cruelty’’ (Limelight MagaZine) expertly echoes the darker more complex love relationships explored in Rimbaud’s prose. In Variation 10, Bonachela takes inspiration from Britten’s Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge, commissioned by British composer Boyd Neel for the 1937 SalZburg Festival. Dedicated with affection and admiration by Britten to his esteemed teacher, Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge is generally recognised as the composition that launched Britten’s career. Illuminated is presented at Melbourne Art Centre’s State Theatre for one show only at 5pm on Sunday 25 October. Early booking is recommended to secure your seats, following sell-out seasons of Project Rameau at Sydney Theatre in 2012, and Les Illuminations at Sydney Opera House in 2013. Sydney Dance Company The Wharf, Pier 4, 15 Hickson Road, Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia Tickets from $59. Group packages available. On sale from September 16. Book at artscentremelbourne.com.au/illuminated, or telephone 1300 182 183. For more information visit sydneydancecompany.com/illuminated or www.aco.com.au/illuminated. For all of the latest Sydney Dance Company news and behind the scenes happenings subscribe at sydneydancecompany.com, or follow us at: facebook.com/sydneydanceco twitter.com/sydneydanceco instagram.com/sydneydanceco youtube.com/sydneydancecompany Follow #SDCIlluminated @SydneyDanceCo on social media. And for all the latest on the Australia Chamber Orchestra go to: aco.com.au, or follow us at: facebook.com/AustralianChamberOrchestra twitter.com/A_C_O instagram.com/AustChamberOrchestra www.youtube.com/AustralianCO ENDS Image: Australian Chamber Orchestra and Sydney Dance Company, Illuminated, featuring Satu Vänskä and Richard Cilli. Photo by Peter Greig. MEDIA CONTACT For more information, images or interviews contact: Julie Clark, Publicist, Sydney Dance Company, [email protected] / 0409 517 738 Mary Stielow, Publicist, Australian Chamber Orchestra, [email protected] / 02 8274 3812 ILLUMINATED, SEASON INFORMATION Venue State Theatre, Melbourne Dates One show only, Sunday 25 October 2015, 5pm Tickets from $59 Bookings On sale from September 16, www.artscentremelbourne.com.au/illuminated/ 1300 182 183 VARIATION 10 Choreographer: Rafael Bonachela Composer: Benjamin Britten, Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge Leader: Richard Tognetti Costume designer: Toni Maticevski Set and lighting designer: Benjamin Cisterne Sydney Dance Company The Wharf, Pier 4, 15 Hickson Road, Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia LES ILLUMINATIONS Choreographer: Rafael Bonachela Composer: Benjamin Britten, Les Illuminations Soprano: Taryn Fiebig Leader: Richard Tognetti Costume designer: Toni Maticevski Set and lighting designer: Benjamin Cisterne PROJECT RAMEAU Choreographer: Rafael Bonachela Composers: Jean-Philippe Rameau, Vivaldi, JS Bach (selections) Leader: Richard Tognetti Set and lighting designer: Benjamin Cisterne Costume designers: Rafael Bonachela and Fiona Holley ABOUT SYDNEY DANCE COMPANY Sydney Dance Company is Australia’s leading contemporary dance company, presenting new works in Sydney, around Australia and internationally, under the Artistic Direction of Rafael Bonachela. Since 1985 the Company has been resident in purpose-built studios at Pier 4 in Sydney’s Walsh Bay, minutes from the city’s famed Harbour Bridge. Its studios house the largest public dance class program in Australia, attracting nearly 80,000 participants each year. A legendary force in contemporary dance in Australia, Sydney Dance Company will celebrate its 50th year in 2019. More information, sydneydancecompany.com ABOUT AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER ORCHESTRA Inspiring programming, unrivalled virtuosity, energy and individuality, the Australian Chamber Orchestra’s performances span popular masterworks, adventurous cross artform projects and pieces specially commissioned for the ensemble. Founded by John Painter, the ACO originally comprised just 13 players, who came together for concerts as they were invited. Today, the ACO has grown to 20 players (three part-time), giving more than 100 performances in Australia each year, as well as touring internationally. The Orchestra performs all over the world: from red-dust regional centres of Australia to New York night clubs, from Australian capital cities to the world’s most prestigious concert halls. The ACO’s dedication and musicianship has created warm relationships with celebrated musicians and artists around the world. The ACO has recorded for the world’s top labels. Recent recordings have won three consecutive ARIA Awards and documentaries featuring the ACO have been shown on television worldwide and won awards at film festivals on four continents. ABOUT RAFAEL BONACHELA Rafael Bonachela’s appointment as Artistic Director of Sydney Dance Company made international headlines around the dance world in 2009. His vision for the Company embraces a guiding principle that has seen the repertoire grow, with the addition of commissioned dance works from Australian and visiting international guest choreographers. These premiere works are often programmed alongside Bonachela’s own creations, ensuring diversity for audiences and providing much Sydney Dance Company The Wharf, Pier 4, 15 Hickson Road, Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia sought after opportunities for his remarkable ensemble of dancers to be exposed to the work of some of the most in- demand choreographers of our time. Full bio available at sydneydancecompany.com/artistic-director/ ABOUT RICHARD TOGNETTI Richard Tognetti has established an international reputation for his compelling performances and artistic individualism. He began his studies in Wollongong NSW with William Primrose, then with Alice Waten at the Sydney Conservatorium, and Igor OZim at the Bern Conservatory, where he was awarded the Tschumi PriZe as the top graduate soloist in 1989. Later that year he led several performances of the Australian Chamber Orchestra, and that November was appointed as the Orchestra’s lead violin and, subsequently, Artistic Director. He is also Artistic Director of the Festival Maribor in Slovenia. Richard performs on period, modern and electric instruments and his numerous arrangements, compositions and transcriptions have expanded the chamber orchestra repertoire and been performed throughout the world. As director or soloist, Richard has
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