When The Australian Ballet commissions a new work, like Graeme Murphy’s Firebird, it can be hard to get a sense of what the ballet will look like until opening night, despite tantalising glimpses of the scenery as it’s ushered in and out of studios, and surreptitious peeks at the costumes.
Sometimes, we’ll engage a photographer to document the creation of a new work as it unfolds in the studio so we can publish rehearsal photos in souvenir programmes or our website in the place of traditional production shots. These images offer a fascinating insight into the choreographic process and capture a side of dance and dance-making that you just don’t see on stage.
These beautiful photos of Graeme Murphy and the cast of Firebird were shot by Jessica Bialek at the Ballet’s Melbourne studios three weeks before the work premiered in Adelaide.
Firebird and other legends plays in Sydney until 22 April
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