2019 Season One

Sydney Dance Company’s 50th Anniversary bursts into life with a thrilling triple bill from Rafael Bonachela, Gabrielle Nankivell and Melanie Lane, each having created a wildly inventive and spellbinding experience for the audience.

Celebrate our 50th year through these three extraordinary works that will take you on one unforgettable journey.

Follow #2019SDC #SDCTurns50 @SydneyDanceCo on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Buy a Gift Voucher here.

Roslyn Packer Theatre Walsh Bay, Sydney
26 March – 13 April

Canberra Theatre Centre
2 – 4 May

Arts Centre Melbourne
8-11 May

National Tour (VIC, NT, SA, TAS)
16 May – 17 August
More Info

Choreography: Rafael Bonachela
Music: Alberto Ginastera, String Quartet No.2 Op.26
Costume: Bianca Spender
Lighting Design: Damien Cooper
Cast: Davide Di Giovanni, Holly Doyle, Riley Fitzgerald, Chloe Leong, Charmene Yap

Neon Aether

Choreography: Harriet Oxley
Lighting Design: Damien Cooper
Cast: Ariella Casu, Janessa Dufty, Dimitri Kleioris, Luke Hayward, Jesse Scales, Emily Seymour, Mia Thompson, Victor Zarallo

WOOF

Choreography: Clark, commissioned composition
Costume Design: Aleisa Jelbart
Lighting Design: Verity Hampson
Cast: Ariella Casu, Dean Elliot, Chloe Young, Janessa Dufty, Dimitri Kleioris, Jacopo Grabar, Liam Green, Luke Hayward, Emily Seymour, Jesse Scales, Mia Thompson, Victor Zarallo

Read the Bonachela / Nankivell / Lane program here.

1. Best Seats – Enjoy priority booking ahead of the general public so you can renew your favourite seats and book in your year of extraordinary dance.
2. Best Price – Save 15% on tickets to Season One and Two.
3. Behind The Scenes Experiences – Go behind the curtain with our 2019 artists and Company dancers. Find out fun facts and what life is like as a dancer.
4. Flexibility – Unlimited free ticket exchanges.
5. Exclusive Offers – Receive a range of arts and dining offers.

Subscriber Benefits

All 2019 Subscribers will be posted a subscription card that entitles them to the following benefits valid from 1 January until 31 December 2019. All promo codes and links required will be supplied with subscription cards and via email.

Unlimited FREE ticket exchanges with Sydney Dance Company ($5 fee waived)

Invitations to Sydney Dance Company behind the scenes events

Free programs and monthly eNewsletter

Save 10% on Sydney Dance Company dance wear launched in January 2019.

Sydney Dance Company Dance Classes

Art Gallery of NSW

Receive tickets at concession price for the exhibition The essential Duchamp (27 Apr – 11 Aug 2019) at the Art Gallery of New South Wales. Simply display your Sydney Dance Company subscriber card at the Gallery’s ticketing and information desk on arrival to receive the discount

Australian Chamber Orchestra

Receive 10% off full price adult tickets for the ACO’s 2019 mainstage performances nationwide. Redeem using the promo code provided with your subscription card.

Dendy Cinemas

Receive 20% off Adult tickets at Dendy Newtown and Dendy Opera Quays upon presentation of a valid Sydney Dance Company subscriber card. This offer is not valid on Saturdays after 5pm, public holidays, Dendy Arts, Dendy Lounge, Festivals, special events and premieres. Not valid in conjunction with any other offer. Only available when purchasing tickets in person at the Dendy Box Office.

Ensemble Theatre

Receive 10% discount on full priced single tickets to Ensemble Theatre plays in 2019. Book via phone to access this special offer. T: 02 9929 0644 – Quote the code provided with your subscription card.

Griffin Theatre Company

Enjoy concession priced tickets to Griffin Theatre Company productions in 2019. Redeem by using the promo code provided with your subscription card online, via (02) 9361 3817, or at the box office. Offer excludes ATYP @ Griffin events.

Hicksons Izakaya

Enjoy an intimate preshow dinner on the wharf with exceptional Japanese cuisine and fantastic views of Walsh Bay at Hicksons Izakaya and 15% discount year round. Offer valid for food only, alcohol excluded, membership cards must be presented. Bookings essential

Opera Australia

>Receive an 8% discount* on single tickets to Opera Australia’s 2019 performances in the Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House, Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour and the State Theatre, Arts Centre Melbourne. Quote the promo code provided with your subscription card when booking directly with Opera Australia. Phone (02) 9318 8200 (Sydney) or (03) 9685 3700 (Melbourne), or visit opera.org.au and enter the promo code before selecting your performance and seats. *Valid until 7 December 2019. Limit of 4 tickets per production per customer. Not to be used in conjunction with any other offer. Excludes performances of West Side Story at the Sydney Opera House and Arts Centre Melbourne, Evita and events on New Year’s Eve.

Pinchgut Opera

Receive 10% off tickets to Pinchgut Opera’s Concert Series in 2019. Pinchgut Opera present Bach & Telemann in Sydney and Melbourne, an evening of uplifting elegance and grace, and a special one-night only concert in Sydney featuring shining countertenor Valer Sabadus. Use promo code provided with your subscription card when booking tickets to unlock this special offer through this link.

Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Receive a 10% discount (A, B & C reserves) on all Sydney Symphony 2019 Subscription Season concerts, available from 19 November 2018. Quote promotion code provided with your subscription card when you book online or call (02) 8215 4600. Visit www.sydneysymphony.com for performance details. (Terms and conditions apply: Cannot be used in conjunction with Special Events, special offers, concessions, subscription packages or Sydney Symphony Presents performances. Booking fee may apply. Valid via the Sydney Symphony Box Office only.

Sydney Theatre Company

$10 off Adult A-reserve tickets to 2019 main season plays presented the Drama Theatre and Roslyn Packer Theatre. This offer is subject to availability with a maximum purchase of two tickets per member, per production, and excludes Saturday evening performances. The valid productions in 2019 main season are Mary Stuart, How to Rule the World, Mosquitoes, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Torrents, Lord of the Files, Avalanche: A Love Story, The Real Thing, Cosi, The Beauty Queen of Leenane. Ticket on sale dates are available on the individual play pages at www.sydneytheatre.com.au. This offer cannot be used in conjunction with any special offer or concession and is not valid for Season Tickets.

Ventuno

Enjoy an intimate preshow dinner on the wharf with exceptional Italian cuisine and fantastic views of Walsh Bay at Ventuno. Receive 10% off your meal on presentation of your 2019 Subscriber card

Subscribe to the full year from only $111.50*.

Buy a 2019 Performance Voucher here.

Subscribe to the full year from only $111.50*.

Buy a 2019 Performance Voucher here.

★★★★ “Virtuoso display thrills with speed and stillness” – Sydney Morning Herald

“Inspiring, surprising and energising, Sydney Dance Company’s opening season performance lit a spark that will hopefully burn all year.” – The Daily Telegraph

“A triple treat… three works that foreground the dancers” – The Australian

★★★★ 1/2 “Absolutely electrifying…When the dancers really let rip, it’s hard to stay seated in your chair….take a chance on dance.” – Audrey Journal

★★★★ “Elastic dynamic dancing… a thrilling dance work flush with wit and invention…  Grimy zombies getting down to the pulsating beat of late night parties was the audience favourite” – Daily Review

★★★★ “The dancing is as dazzling as ever” – Limelight

★★★★ “A satisfying mix of contemporary dance to audiences old and new” – Dance Australia

★★★★ “Breathtaking contemporary dance… Fresh, vital and athletic as ever” – Bachtrack

“The diversity of material that the dancers were asked to perform in this triple bill was remarkable and, in their usual fashion, they rose to the occasion and looked stupendous throughout.” – Michelle Potter

“Contemporary dance at its best” – The F

“An exceptional showing, serving a varied trilogy in turns frenzied, poetic and intense” – The Plus Ones

“Totally blew my mind, a triple bill of absolute bliss.” – Sheree da Costa, former Company Dancer

“What an astonishing night of dance from Sydney Dance Company last night. Three utterly unique & compelling works. Congratulations on 50 years, and to Rafael Bonachela for such extraordinary vision over the past 10 years!” – Glynis Traill-Nash, Fashion Editor of The Australian

“Poetic, athletic, jaw-dropping aesthetics!” – Gretel Killeen

“WOOF kept us on the verge of ecstatic release, then sent us into the night burning with incompatible desires” – Audience Member

“One of the most impressive and joyful experiences of dance I have seen in a long, long time… A triptych of subtlety, humour, pleasure, light, absurdity, humanness, non-humanness, movement of energy and the spirit of freedom and intellect… It was end of Rome meets future utopia.” – Audience Member

5 reasons why you can’t miss our 50^th Anniversary Triple Bill

1. DON’T GET FOMO: It’s our birthday and we want to celebrate with you – the audience!

2. THREE FOR ONE: Enjoy three works for the price of one. Escape to three different worlds and be entertained for 97 mins.

3. CULTURE FIX: Date night or friends catch up sorted. Enjoy a meal on the harbour at sunset before an evening performance!

4. I SAW IT FIRST: Be the first to see two brand new works that have never been performed before.

5. FASHION FORWARD: Collaborations are with renowned artists, like Australian fashion icon Bianca Spender and UK electronic musician Clark.
WHAT IS CONTEMPORARY DANCE?

Despite being one of the youngest art forms, contemporary dance is perhaps the most primal and physical. It is open to your own personal interpretation – you can view it in the same way you experience art and ask yourself how it makes you feel. Read our Collaborators Guide To Contemporary Dance here.

Bonachela / Nankivell / Lane is approximately 97 minutes and includes a 20 minute interval.

WHAT IS Bonachela / Nankivell / Lane?

The title of this season is actually a combination of the three chorographer’s surnames – Rafael Bonachela, Melanie Lane. Together they create a formidable triple bill celebrating Sydney Dance Company’s 50^th Anniversary year.

Bonachela’s new work features five dancers who perform to all five movements of a string quartet composed in the 1950s. It’s only fitting that the work be called Cinco, meaning five in Spanish.

Nankivell’s Neon Aether explores the sky, the imagination and the unknown. Referencing science fiction, the solar system and interstellar clouds, Neon Aether takes the audience on a journey through six episodes of the body ascending in space.

Completing the triple bill is Lane’s WOOF, which first premiered in New Breed 2017. WOOF imagines a post-human future where a re-invention of community takes place. It takes inspiration from classical dance, Renaissance art and pop culture and is accompanied by a bold musical score from UK electronic producer Clark.

WATCH: A preview of Melanie Lane’s WOOF.
READ: A Q&A with choreographer Gabrielle Nankivell

WHO CREATED THE MOVEMENT?

Rafael Bonachela, Cinco
“The impulse to feel, experience and understand a dance work in the theatre should be an individual one… when all explanations have been exhausted… the only thing left is to feel.”

Rafael Bonachelamore.Fun Fact: Rafael Bonachela’s work Cinco means ‘five’ in Spanish. In the Catalan dialect, it’s pronounced think-o.Gabrielle Nankivell, Neon Aether
“Neon Aether started out as the air before me into which I stretched my fingers, searching for a way to articulate things I felt but could not describe.”Gabrielle Nankivell is an Australian performer and director with formative ties to Europe. Gabrielle’s work has been widely presented across Australia, Europe and Asia. She previously choreographed Wildebeest for Sydney Dance Company, which was nominated for a 2017 Helpmann Award for Best Choreography. Read more.WATCH: Gabrielle create Neon Aether in the studio.Fun Fact: For one section of Neon Aether, Gabrielle asked the dancers to think of themselves as rotating planets around each other. This is reminiscent of an orrery – a clockwork model of the solar system.

Melanie Lane, WOOF
“I hope WOOF evokes a multitude of experiences for the audience… Mostly, I think there is a definite sense of transformation, how being human can be messy, outrageous and beautiful.”

Melanie is a choreographer and performer based in Melbourne. As a choreographer, Melanie has established a repertory of independent works performing in international festivals and theatres including the Sydney Opera House. In 2018, Melanie won the Keir Choreographic Award for her work Personal Effigies. Read more.

WATCH: Melanie create WOOF in the studio.

Fun fact: Melanie frequently collaborates with UK electronic musician (and her husband) Chris Clark, to choreograph his live shows. He has also scored four of her contemporary dance works.