Nude Live

World Premiere

Witness dancers moving and breathing, their bodies and souls bared as they explore and respond to one of art’s greatest subjects – the unclothed human body.

As part of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ major summer exhibition, Nude: art from the Tate collection, and with highly physical and emotionally charged choreography by Rafael Bonachela, dancers respond to paintings, sculptures, photographs and works on paper by renowned artists such as Pablo Picasso, Lucian Freud, Henri Matisse and Louise Bourgeois.

This very special performance will take you into an immersive, intimate world where art meets dance.

Co-presented by Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney Dance Company and Sydney Festival.

The exhibition Nude: art from the Tate collection is a collaboration between Tate and the Art Gallery of New South Wales.

Program supporters: Kiera Grant, Leonard Groat, Carole Lamerton, Kenneth R Reed AM, Ray Wilson OAM and Robyn Martin-Weber.

Note: This show is performed nude. Recommended for ages 16+.

7 – 23 January
Art Gallery of NSW

Duration: 60 minutes

“★★★★★ Profoundly thought provoking” – Limelight Magazine

“The closer you get the more unknowable and awe-inspiring they appear. It goes without saying they [the dancers] are remarkably beautiful in form and function, works of art in themselves.” – The Australian

“★★★★ 1/2 What you see will be worth the visit. More than a viewing, Nude Live is an experience.” – Sydney Morning Herald

“…emotionally touching and insightful in the dance relationships to the artworks.” – Jill Sykes on Nude Live as one of this year’s Festival highlights.

“I keep my head erect and eyes level. I don’t fold my arms or clasp my hands because it communicates a defensiveness I’m elated to realise I do not feel…. With nowhere to hide, yet everything on display, in a rapid and total way – I quit trying. And it feels great.” – Kate Hennessy, The Guardian

Listed as part of TimeOut‘s 10 Best things we saw at Sydney Festival 2017.

“There was an instantaneous feeling and understanding of ‘oneness’; I felt we were in the art, surrounded by the art, being connected to the art through the dancers, and ultimately ourselves becoming the art; especially in the moment during the movement that audience members were taken by the hand and placed in formation; suddenly there was one of the most profound and deepest senses of ‘belonging’ I have ever felt.” – Andrew, Audience Member reflecting on the ‘Nude Live’ nude audience performance.