FACT SHEET EMBARGO: MON, 15 DECEMBER 5.00PM

CELEBRATING 50 YEARS IN 2015

INTRODUCTION

Australian Dance Theatre is ’s first professional contemporary dance company, founded in 1965 by Dr Elizabeth Cameron Dalman OAM with the aim to ‘open the horizons for provocative contemporary dance’. For 50 years the company has stayed true to this vision and produced some of the most exciting and iconic .

This proud South Australian company will shine in its 50th year as one of the most significant and resilient dance companies to have evolved from the great social and cultural changes of Australia in the 1960s.

Join us for a celebration of the tenacity, creativity and genius that is Australian Dance Theatre.

THE 2015 PROGRAM

50TH ANNIVERSARY GALA 16 – 18 July 2015 Dunstan Playhouse, Festival Centre Presented by Australian Dance Theatre in association with Centre.

Australian Dance Theatre’s current and former Artistic Directors are some of the most acclaimed choreographers in the country. At our Gala event we pay tribute to these directors and the history of the company and present a brand new work created by Garry Stewart and co- choreographed with former dancer Larissa McGowan.

FOUNDERS’ CELEBRATION 10 June 2015 Adelaide Arcade

The founders of Australian Dance Theatre come together to celebrate the birth date of ADT at its very first home in Adelaide Arcade.

AUSTRALIAN DANCE THEATRE 126 BELAIR ROAD, HAWTHORN 5062 AUSTRALIA WEB: ADT.ORG.AU EMAIL: [email protected] TELEPHONE: +61 (0)8 8373 7733 FAX: +61 (0)8 8373 7030

EXHIBITION 11 September – November Festival Theatre Foyer,

The exhibition will show how the company has reinvented itself under changing artistic directorships. Presented in association with the Adelaide Festival Centre’s South Australian Performing Arts Collection.

COMMEMORATIVE BOOK November 2015 “Australian Dance Theatre: A company without parallel”

A commemorative book chronicling the company’s past and current eras will be launched at a special book-signing event. Written and edited by Dr. Maggie Tonkin of the University of Adelaide, the book will commemorate a number of significant milestones and celebrate the achievements of the company over the past 50 years. Published by Wakefield Press.

AUSTRALIAN DANCE AWARDS 12 September 2015 Her Majesty’s Theatre, Adelaide Presented by Ausdance SA in association with Adelaide Festival Centre

Held in conjunction with Australian Dance Theatre’s 50th celebrations, Australia’s most accomplished and leading artists of the professional dance industry will converge on Ade­laide for the presentation of the annual awards ceremony. The pre-eminent industry awards are featured within an evening of performance that showcases the best and most innovative dance Australia has to offer.

AUSTRALIAN DANCE THEATRE 126 BELAIR ROAD, HAWTHORN Page 2 of 6 SOUTH AUSTRALIA 5062 AUSTRALIA WEB: ADT.ORG.AU EMAIL: [email protected] TELEPHONE: +61 (0)8 8373 7733 FAX: +61 (0)8 8373 7030

TOURING AUSTRALIA

BE YOUR SELF NATIONAL TOUR “An exhilarating dance work” – Sydney Morning Herald

Garry Stewart’s Be Your Self reveals the precarious stability of the concept of self as the work steps through the conventions we use to construct a singular and consistent notion of ‘I’. In an analysis of selfhood, Stewart situates the body at the centre of his inquiry. In Be Your Self the Australian Dance Theatre dancers are transformed into erupting, powerful, creative entities projecting a plethora of physical images and impressions set to an unpredictable, cartoonish, electronic score.

20 June: Mandurah Performing Arts Centre (Mandurah, WA) 24 – 27 June: State Theatre Centre (Perth, WA) 7 July: Dubbo Civic Theatre (Dubbo, NSW) 9 & 10 July: Illawarra Performing Arts Centre (Wollongong, NSW) 5 – 6 August: Barossa Arts & Convention Centre (SA) 7 August: Marion Cultural Centre (SA) 14 August: Murray Bridge Town Hall (SA)

COLLISION COURSE 9 – 12 February 12.30pm, 3pm, 8pm daily Big Screen, Federation Square Melbourne (VIC)

Collision Course includes a cast of over 100 sportspeople and dancers colliding in mid-air in extreme slow motion. Screening as part of Recharge: Experimenta Biennial of Media Art.

TOURING INTERNATIONAL

MULTIVERSE “Fascinating work” – The Australian

Based on ideas from theoretical physics, Multiverse creates extraordinary images that delve into notions such as string theory, parallel dimensions, multiple universes and black holes: ideas that are at the centre of current thinking into how we understand the universe. Multiverse is one of the first 3D performances to be created by an Australian dance company. Viewed through 3D glasses, Multiverse is an extraordinary work that combines the power of live dance with the wonder of 3D graphics from one of the great innovators of Australian dance.

Europe 11 – 21 March European Premiere – Villeneuve d’Ascq, Colombes, Sevilla

1 – 6 June Focus on Australian contemporary dance – Théâtre National de Chaillot, Paris

AUSTRALIAN DANCE THEATRE 126 BELAIR ROAD, HAWTHORN Page 3 of 6 SOUTH AUSTRALIA 5062 AUSTRALIA WEB: ADT.ORG.AU EMAIL: [email protected] TELEPHONE: +61 (0)8 8373 7733 FAX: +61 (0)8 8373 7030

G “Jaw droppingly physical” – The Guardian (UK)

In 2000 Garry Stewart premiered Birdbrain – an ironic, post modern deconstruction of Swan Lake. In 2008 Garry Stewart continued his project of referencing iconic ballet with the debut of G, a reworking of Giselle. Dramaturgically, G refers to an essay titled ‘Giselle, Madness and Death’ by Steven Wainwright of Kings College London which links the narrative of Giselle to the pathologisation of women as hysterics in early 19th century France. The musical score to G was created by Luke Smiles (Motion Laboratories), one of the lumin­aries of music composition for the new wave of Australian contemporary dance.

South America September – October

EDUCATION

SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS

Open Rehearsals For Schools - Go behind the scenes and observe the creative process of Australian Dance Theatre in the studio.

Dance Day - A day of dance and creativity for dance students, led by the Australian Dance Theatre dancers.

Teaching Resources - DVDs and education notes available for school dance teachers to hire and buy.

TERTIARY DANCE STUDENTS

Indigenous Internship - A three-week intensive program for outstanding indigenous dancers to gain enhanced physical skills and a thorough understanding of working within a professional environment.

KickStart - An opportunity for elite tertiary dance students to receive an intensive professional mentorship from Australian Dance Theatre for three-weeks.

Secondment Week - An unparalleled program for graduating tertiary dance stu­dents to receive intensive professional training, culminating in a rare opportunity to audition for the company.

AUSTRALIAN DANCE THEATRE 126 BELAIR ROAD, HAWTHORN Page 4 of 6 SOUTH AUSTRALIA 5062 AUSTRALIA WEB: ADT.ORG.AU EMAIL: [email protected] TELEPHONE: +61 (0)8 8373 7733 FAX: +61 (0)8 8373 7030

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

ENHANCEMENT A program that gives independent artists access to a professional-grade company to assist their creative development.

RESEARCH

NEUROCOGNITION AND DANCE Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage Grant, supported by the Australian Research Council Linkage Project scheme.

ADT is collaborating with an international team of re­searchers on a research project “Thinking Brains and Bodies: Distributed Cognition and Dynamic Memory in Australian Dance Theatre”.

Researchers come from a range of academic disciplines – Psychology, Dance, Anthropology, Cognitive Science and Cognitive Neuroscience – in an interdisciplinary effort to investigate and understand thinking in dance, with two public outcomes launched each year.

ADELAIDE EMBEDDED

An initiative by Artistic Director Garry Stewart, which sees unexpected events held around Adelaide.

ICE CUBE Used as a portable performance space, the large clear cube will be placed in unexpected environments as a unique take on the ‘pop up’ performance experience.

DANCE MARATHON Australian Dance Theatre will collaborate with an array of Adelaide-based dancers for the 24- hour event, accessible to all levels of dance ability and targeted at ages 18+.

As well as other events to be announced.

OTHER EVENTS

PUBLIC PROGRAM A range of public events including Pre-Show Talks, Post-Show Forums, Q&A sessions and Open Rehearsals & Showings will be held throughout the year.

ROUGH DRAFT An opportunity for the audience to step inside the minds of some of South Australia’s most innovative thinkers to experience their creative development process in an informal setting.

AUSTRALIAN DANCE THEATRE 126 BELAIR ROAD, HAWTHORN Page 5 of 6 SOUTH AUSTRALIA 5062 AUSTRALIA WEB: ADT.ORG.AU EMAIL: [email protected] TELEPHONE: +61 (0)8 8373 7733 FAX: +61 (0)8 8373 7030

AUSTRALIAN DANCE THEATRE SCHOOL

CLASSES FOR ADULTS Open to the public, adults can learn new moves and improve their dance technique with beginner to intermediate level classes taught by current and former Australian Dance Theatre dancers.

CLASSES FOR YOUNG DANCERS Contemporary dance and performance skills classes to enhance the existing training of excellent young dancers aged 14 – 18

YOUTH ENSEMBLE Some of Adelaide’s most gifted young dancers attend weekly rehearsals at Australian Dance Theatre, learning from current and former members and perform at events around Adelaide on a regular basis. Entry by audition only.

ARTISTIC DIRECTORS

1965 – 1975 – Dr Elizabeth Cameron Dalman OAM

1977 – 1985 – Jonathan Taylor

1986 – Anthony Steel and Lenny Westerdijk (artistic caretakers)

1987 – 1993 –

1993 – 1999 –

1999 – Bill Pengelly (interim Artistic Director)

1999 – current – Garry Stewart

Ends.

Connect with Australian Dance Theatre on Social Media: facebook.com/australiandancetheatre twitter.com/ausdancetheatre youtube.com/adtaustralia

For further information regarding Australian Dance Theatre contact: Gabrielle Leonello \ 08 8121 7717 \ 0425 554 454 \ [email protected]

AUSTRALIAN DANCE THEATRE 126 BELAIR ROAD, HAWTHORN Page 6 of 6 SOUTH AUSTRALIA 5062 AUSTRALIA WEB: ADT.ORG.AU EMAIL: [email protected] TELEPHONE: +61 (0)8 8373 7733 FAX: +61 (0)8 8373 7030