The 2025 Sydney Festival will be an “exhilarating and thought-provoking journey through the arts with exceptional talent at the reins”. So promises Olivia Ansell, who is presiding over her fourth (and last) as Director before moving on to lead the Luminato Festival in Toronto, Canada.
The program features over 130 shows and events, including 22 world premieres and 24 Australian exclusives at 43 locations and with over 50 free events inclusive of more than 12 nights of free live music.
Fourteen dance events are on the program, including masterclasses. Among them is the premiere of The Chronicles, choreographed by Stephanie Lake. The Chronicles will draw together 12 dancers, an electro-acoustic score by Robin Fox, the Sydney Children’s Choir and a solo vocalist singing live on stage. Lake is currently Resident Choreographer for the Australian Ballet. (January 16 to 19, Roslyn Packer Theatre.)
Another premiere will be Afterworld, A Requiem for Eurydice, choreographed by Sue Healey with music by Laurence Pike. Five dancers will perform against the ethereal film presence of the late 110-year-old Eileen Kramer as Eurydice, in her final dance performance. Dancers Nadiyah Akbar, Josh Freedman, Benjamin Hancock, Taiga Kita-Leong, Siobhan Lynch and Kramer will explore themes of mortality and the profound revelation of being in close proximity to death. (January 7 to 11, Bell Shakespeare, The Neilson Nutshell.)
The Sydney Festival runs from January 4 to 26.
See more on Sue Healey and Eileen Kramer here.