Brett Dean’s Fire Music is dedicated to the victims of the 2009 “Black Saturday” bushfires in Victoria, Australia. It will be the score for The Narrative of Nothing, Graeme Murphy’s work for the Infinity program. Co-commissioned by The Australian Ballet, the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic and the BBC Symphony Orchestra, it premiered in Stockholm in 2011. Here, Brett chats with us about making the work.

Did the knowledge that Fire Music would be used for choreography influence your work?
It did, actually. Graeme said to me quite plainly from the outset: “Write the piece you want to write. Don’t worry about what I might make of it.” But I think the knowledge of it being the motor, the engine, for a piece of dance theatre was in the back of mind, and quite happily so. I felt the piece going in certain rhythmic directions … [it] really takes off in certain moments. It has a high energy. Originally, that was to do with the dynamics and propulsion of fire; I’d spent a bit of time talking with a fire scientist from the CSIRO. But then it took on its own dynamic, and part of that was the knowledge that this would be used on stage.

Did the physics of fire provide you with a system for composition?
[The scientist] showed me maps, diagrams, even videos of fires that they’d tracked … but that was only one part of the story really, and in the end it didn’t correlate closely enough with where I wanted to go. Once the piece started to evolve in terms of sounds and motifs and energy of its own, it took on its own life – a bit like a fire, it just started spreading. [Parts of it] have a manic quality; it’s technically quite challenging, it has a very fast inner life, very fast passage work, but the main pulse of the piece is fairly steady – so it has these big bones, and this relentless pushing forward, all the while darting out in different directions. (more…)

Our intrepid publicist Eli Wallis reports from THAT Sydney Opera House shoot.

In a moment between shots Amber Scott and Patrick Thaiday look at each other, bewildered and excited, as if to say “How did we find ourselves perched 180 metres in the air, on top of the Sydney Opera House?”

Dancers are often asked to push the limits, physically and emotionally. From the rehearsal studio to the stage, a dancer’s day is one of balanced discipline and adrenalin. So it was no surprise that our Principal Artist Amber Scott and Bangarra Dance Theatre artist Patrick Thaiday leapt at the chance to climb the Sydney Opera House (SOH) sails for a photo to celebrate the beginning of The Australian Ballet’s 50th anniversary year.

A lot of planning went into bringing the beautiful vision to life. Three weeks out from the shoot, Ballet and SOH staff shared ideas of how it could be achieved. Having lived and breathed the ‘House’ for over 20 years, our SOH staff leader knows the tunnels, ladders, hidden doors and hatches that lead to the sails like the back of his hand. We were warned that the “sail climb” is not for the faint-hearted (or the claustrophobic, or anyone afraid of heights) and would require elaborate safety equipment. (more…)

Next week we will welcome Stephen Page and the dancers of Bangarra Dance Theatre into the studios to resume rehearsals for Warumuk – in the dark night, part of the Infinity program. Here, Stephen tells us about his creative process and how it was inspired by his connections with Yolngu communities.

I’ve always been fascinated with Aboriginal astronomy and the timeless mystery of the night sky. I was in Yirrkala, which is an Aboriginal township in North East Arnhem Land, in November last year and had many conversations with my Yolngu families about the meaning of the constellations. (more…)

Our dancers are back in the studio today after their summer break, and next week they’ll be resuming rehearsals for the Infinity program, including the Gideon Obarzanek work There’s Definitely a Prince Involved. Here, Gideon tells us a little about how the piece evolved.

So let’s talk about ballet. What can you tell me?

… Swan Lake? OK, how does the story go?

… Hmm, that’s an interesting take.

What do you think it’s about?

… Love? So, let’s talk about love.

Although I am very much involved with dance, it has been over 20 years since I worked with ballet. So when David McAllister discussed the idea of making a new work with the company, I found myself talking a lot about ballet with friends and colleagues. Interestingly, most knew very little about it, but when pushed to name a ballet almost all said Swan Lake. When I asked them to tell the story, I received some genuinely interesting variations on this ancient folktale. What was conclusive, however, was that it was very much to do with love, true love. This emerging topic seemed to be an invitation for people to speak more about themselves. Or maybe my discipline to stay on subject easily dissolved as I was seductively drawn to more personal and private stories. (more…)