Dancenorth premieres 'Wayfinder'

 

Townsville-based Dancenorth will present a new work, called Wayfinder, at the Townsville Civic Theatre as part of North Australian Festival of the Arts. 

The company has joined forces with three-time Grammy nominated Australian band Hiatus Kaiyote and sound artist Byron J. Scullin to create what it describes as "physical exuberance, sonic resonance, and collective exhilaration [. . . ] in a kaleidoscopic fusion of dance, music, and visual art".

Wayfinder is conceived and created by the company's artistic director Kyle Page and associate artistic director Amber Haines. The dancers are Marlo Benjamin, Sabine Crompton-Ward, Nelson Earl, Tiana Lung, Damian Meredith, Felix Sampson and Michael Smith and the costume and set design is by Japanese-Australian visual artist Hiromi Tango, known for her brightly coloured textiles.

"Wayfinder is a moment of celebration, positivity, and togetherness - an antidote to the fear and anxiety permeating all corners of the globe," says Dancenorth Artistic Director Kyle Page.

". . . This is the first time Dancenorth has performed at the Townsville Civic Theatre in decades, and we are thrilled to be partnering with NAFA to share a work of this scale with Townsville," he adds.

Wayfinder has been commissioned by both the Brisbane Festival and the North Australian Festival of the Arts. Townsville City Council is keen to establish Townsville as the arts and culture capital of northern Australia, and "helping to foster and enhance Dancenorth’s exceptional national and international artistic reputation is part of our strategy,” Cr Ann-Maree Greaney says. “Dancenorth is Townsville’s greatest cultural export and Council is incredibly proud to invest in one of Australia’s major performing arts companies and commission this new Australian work."

'Wayfinder' will be performed on 24 - 25 June. More info here.

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