Premiere of ‘Arc’ at Brisbane Festival
After 307 days Australasian Dance Collective Are Back Live
The last time Australasian Dance Collective (ADC) was live on stage was November 16, 2019.
Tomorrow night their ensemble steps out in front of an audience for the first time in more than 10 months.
Arc, as part of Brisbane Festival, is a milestone for the company in many ways ⏤ their first performance for 2020, and the first time the company dancers have performed alongside ADC’s 30-strong Youth Ensemble. Read more about Arc here.
A staggering 38 dancers will move as one in the bespoke creation from ADC’s Artistic Director, Amy Hollingsworth. Arc captures the odyssey of the human spirit, and how we strive for purpose and unity following a time of separation and fear.
She said tomorrow was a triumphant moment for not just the collective, but for all our supporters.
“It has been such a tumultuous and testing year… not just for us, but for everyone in the community and around the world,” she says
“It will be with absolute gratitude and pure joy that we step in front of an audience for the first time in nearly a year. We know how lucky we are to be able to be back performing and we intend to give our audience a show to remember.
“Nothing compares to that exchange of energy you feel when you perform for a live audience – it’s going to be so special to experience that again.”
Hollingworth praised the dedication and focus of the dancers ⏤ first with the cancellation of THREE, which was just days from its April premiere, and then throughout lockdown. The dancers were unable to train in the studio for almost two months and undertook all classes, rehearsals and creative development from their own living rooms (and kitchens) via zoom.
“They have been unwavering in their work this year, maintaining peak physical condition and nurturing their creative flow – and it is all worth it at this moment,” she says.
While the company ensemble has not performed in 2020, ADC’s Youth Ensemble has had the astonishing honour of performing twice in just three weeks. They were the first performers to reopen QPAC’s Cremorne Theatre, when they took to the stage for Echo on August 28 and 29 and now they are part of Brisbane Festival with Arc.
For 17-year-old Youth Ensemble member, Natalya Alexiou, in a year of constant change and disappointments, the opportunity to perform two high profile events in three weeks was incredible.
“I’m in Year 12 at school and it’s been really tough there. But the Youth Ensemble has been a real constant in my life this year – it’s given me something to look forward to. And now, getting to perform alongside the company dancers, and learn from them, it’s a massive deal for all of us, it shows us the possibilities, and how we could be in the future. I can’t wait.” she says
“I’ve only ever performed in a theatre setting, so to perform in such an open, picturesque environment, with the river in the background and the sun setting, it’s going to be amazing.”
