DanceLife Blog

Tasmanian born and trained dancer Lockhart Brownlie moved to Sydney in 2007 to follow his dream of being a dancer. 3 years later this in demand dancer has danced in the musical phenomenon Wicked and has just filmed an episode of Glee in the US for the Britney Spears episode. DanceLife caught up with Locky while in LA.

1. You grew up in Tasmania and moved to Sydney in 2007 where you completed a Certificate IV in Performing Arts at Brent Street. How hard was it for you to pack up and move to a new State? What was the biggest challenge for you once you got to Sydney?

Moving to Sydney was a major step for me and my family. I always new I wanted to move to Sydney and attend Brent Streets Studio's Full Time Course so for me it was an easy transition. I did have one big challenge and I guess for a lot of people who come from small dance studios and attend a Full Time course, especially one with very high expectations and prestige, is making yourself stand out from the rest and showing as much of your dancing ability as possible. As a boy it was a lot easier, as there were only a small handful of boys in my year but it's still the same fear that a lot of people deal with. You need to be confident in who you are and think why you were chosen in the first place.

2. Auditions for full time courses are currently happening. What advice would you give to anyone auditioning for a full time course?

Auditions are scary and they never seem to get any easier. Never let your nerves take over your body. Try not to judge yourself against other people in the room, try and be totally focussed on what the audition panel is asking of you and remember why it is your there. TO DANCE.

3. You were selected to join the cast of Wicked which played in Melbourne for 13 months. What was it like being a part of such a successful show, also your first musical?

Being a part of Wicked was Amazing. Wicked was my first Musical and I was cast in the show fresh out of Full Time. Not only was it my first payed job doing what I loved but it was the biggest thing to hit Australia. I think the most memorable part of the whole process for me was the rehearsals and the creation of the show. Being a part of something with the amount of special effects, great music, great dancing and an incredible cast that Wicked had, was something really special to watch grow and come to life.

4. Dancers get hungry and curious in this country and tend to check out LA at some stage in their dancing life. While you were there for 3 months you signed with agency MSA. What was the process for getting in front of them and then taking you on?

I was lucky enough to be in LA when Agency MSA had their auditions. MSA hadn't held an open audition in like 5 years, so it was a pretty big deal for everyone over here. Over 400 people attended this audition and it was my first experience auditioning in America.
The audition consisted of a Jazz section and a Hip Hop section. The Jazz was taught by Mandy Moore and Hip Hop by Tony Czar. The studio was small and we had to learn everything in multiple half's. There were no cuts and no-one was really told anything on the day of the audition. It wasn't until a few weeks later when I was visiting NY that I received a call and email saying I had been accepted into the agency. I flew back to LA to meet with them and it all went from there.

5. The process of getting a VISA is always difficult for us Aussie dancers. What's some advice you could give someone who is looking to get their O-1 VISA?

Obtaining your O-1 working visa is a lot of work but definitely worth it in the end. Some advice I would give people who want to apply for their Visa is to start researching about it now, because it takes at least 7- 9 months of emailing lawyers/Attorneys before it gets approved.

6. You are currently over in LA and have just filmed a scene for Season 3 of GLEE with Britney Spears. Tell us about this experience and how you got this gig?

Filming for the hit TV show Glee was an amazing experience. The Episode is dedicated to Britney Spears but unfortunately I did not get to meet her. The episode is about the character from the show 'Britany' played by Heather Morris, coming in and out of dreams that she is actually Britney Spears herself. Britney appears on the episode but from what I heard only as an actress. My involvement in the show was being a dancer in a re-enactment of one of Britney's hit music videos "Me Against The Music". Heather Morris who plays Britany in the TV show is Britney Spears in this Video Clip and the whole set and costumes were created exactly like the real music video. Was a really exciting time for me especially as it was my first job here in LA.

Interview by Clint Salter

The 2010 Light the Night fundraising concert for leukaemia research and Cancer patient resources will be held on Monday October 11 at 7.30pm at the City Recital Hall, Angel Place. Tickets are now on sale.

Light the Night has become a "must see" on the Sydney Entertainment Calendar. After five years, funds raised at this event have exceeded $200,000 with all proceeds going towards funding leukaemia research. This year, money raised will go to the Arrow Bone Marrow Transplant Foundation to fund leukaemia research and to the Leukaemia Foundation to fund a courtesy transport vehicle supporting families and carers of those in need.

The 2010 concert will feature a spectacular range of Australia's talented artists, who give freely of their time to help raise money for this worthy cause. Performing this year will be multi-award winning Australian songstress Katie Noonan, the writer and star of Shane Warne the Musical currently in Channel 10's Offspring Eddie Perfect, Wicked star Rob Mills, the inspiring and natural talents of Old Man River, Australia's upcoming Classical Collective Aston, unique singer and songwriter Brian Campeau, acclaimed singer songwriter Emma Dean and three of Australia's popular musical theatre performers John O'Hara, Sheridan Harbridge and iOTA, with more performers to be announced in coming weeks.

Light the Night is inspired by Matthew Rennie, a brave young man who fought a three year battle against leukaemia. Unfortunately Matthew passed away shortly before the 2007 concert. Light the Night was created by Matthew's two brothers, musical theatre performers Shaun Rennie and Adam Rennie, and friends Monica Smith and Greg Smith.

Wicked star Lucy Durack, a regular Light the Night performer, is looking forward to this year's concert. "Light the Night never fails to be one of the most special nights of my year. It's such a treat to be in the presence of such eclectic and legendary performers all giving their time generously and with such heart. It is always so well organised and the vibe backstage reflects that, everyone is able to just enjoy the evening. Most of us head out to the auditorium to watch each other's numbers in between our own, so while it is obviously an evening of the highest profile performing artists you're likely to find around Australia, it also has this lovely feeling of community, cohesiveness and there's a bit of magic about it too."

www.lightthenight.com.au

VENUE: City Recital Hall Angel Place, Sydney
DATE: Monday 11 October 2010
TIME: 7.30pm
PRICES: Premium $110 A Reserve $67.50 B Reserve $55.00
BOOKINGS: City Recital Hall box office 02 8256 2222 or www.cityrecitalhall.com

The people have spoken and no-one has a clue what they're banging on about.

After a decade of delivering world's-best-practice satire, the ever-popular Wharf Revue returns in 2010, serving up Sydney's tastiest smorgasbord of irreverent humour with Not Quite Out of the Woods.

Performances are at Riverside Theatres from September 27 to October 2. In an orgy of pointless recrimination and hilariously ill-informed party-political punditry, The Wharf Revue team including Jonathan Biggins, Drew Forsythe, Phillip Scott and Amanda Bishop present a parade of pompous, opinionated pedants practiced in peurile partisan point-scoring. And alliteration.

Watch in startling 1-D as the heroic Abbottar infiltrates the marginal electorates and becomes one with the Mar'gi, a forgotten race of fringe dwellers who fight to stop the boats and strip-mine the magical forests. Follow Red Riding Hood as she tries to navigate through the factional deadwood, aided by Bob Brown - the woodcutter who can't cut down anything.

Stumble upon a forest glade, where proud Kristina and her Unpopular Mechanicals rehearse their next charade for the long-suffering citizens of NSW. Follow the Japanese wha - sorry, scientists - as they hunt for the fish John West rejects, when Moby Dick meets the Iron Chef!

Join Sarah Palin for a mad tea party, vote for your favourite dysfunctional economy in the Eurodivision Sovereign-Debt Song Contest or quietly die inside as Mark Latham hosts "Hey, Hey, It's Yesterday!" Who said fairy tales can't come true?

Wharf Revue at Riverside Theatres, cnr of Church and Market Streets Parramatta
DATES: September 9 & 10
TIMES: Thurs 9 & Fri 10at 10am & 12.30pm
TICKETS: $13 per student/ additional teacher
BOOKINGS: Riverside Theatres Box Office on 8839 3399 or www.riversideparramatta.com.au

As part of the Sydney Fringe Festival, comes the new and quirky musical, In a Pink Tutu playing at the Seymour Centre from September 20 to 25. Best described as South Park meets Spelling Bee with a touch of Into the Woods thrown in, this hilarious black comedy tells the tale of what happens when a chaotic group of ballet students murder their ballet teacher.

It's dawn at Ms. Travelle's Ballet School and a class of keen, yet unskilled, students arrive to face their strict tutor. Ms. Travelle, played by Chloe Dallimore, can at times be mean, victimising and aggressive but she is completely unaware that her misdeeds may have horrifying consequences. Underneath the pink tutus of the students lies not innocence but a hatred for authority and a madness that leads them to commit unthinkable acts.

"Musical Director Christopher Harley has composed a superb contemporary score for In a Pink Tutu. Christopher writes songs that are very actor-driven, in the same way Jason Robert Brown does, and the result of watching this material in the hands of great performers is dynamite. I'm so excited to work with this wonderful material and such a talented cast," said Director, Peter Ross.

In a Pink Tutu's stellar cast of Australian musical stars includes Chloe Dallimore, Brad Carroll, Amelia Cormack, Chrystal De Grussa, Luke Joslin, Giverny Lewis, Tyran Parke, Brett O'Neill, Rohan Seinor and Kathryn Sgroi.

Director, Peter Ross is one of Australia's leading directors. His directorial credits include Resident Director for Boy from Oz, which starred Hugh Jackman, Debbie Does Dallas, Tell Me on a Sunday, which starred Jolene Anderson.

Musical Director, Christopher Harley is a Newcastle-based composer, writer, musical director and performer. In a Pink Tutu marks his first musical.

Choreographer, Cameron Mitchell has worked as a guest choreographer on Channel Ten's So You Think You Can Dance. His dance credits include Moulin Rouge and appearances on Hey, Hey it's Saturday. Mitchell has worked with Australian musical theatre star, Caroline O'Connor and children's entertainment sensation High-5.

In a Pink Tutu at Seymour Centre, Corner of City Rd and Cleveland St, Chippendale
Dates: September 20 -25
Times: Mon 20, Thurs 23, Sat 25 at 8.45pm; Wed 22 & Fri 24 at 6pm
Ticket Prices: Adults $28; Conc $24 (plus booking fee of $2)
Bookings: http://thesydneyfringe.com.au or www.seymourcentre.com

If you are a professional dancer who is available to travel the country as a XXXX Brand Ambassador for 12 months then please register your interest by emailing your CV and photo to kath.gourley@xxxxangels.com.au

Check out the website to view photos and video of the current tour and the William A Forsythe Choreography. www.xxxxangels.com.au

Gold Coast Audition:
Tuesday 21st September
10am
Sheridan's Studio 1.
Unit 18 "Behind Spotlight"
359 Southport - Nerang Road,
Ashmore Qld 4214

Sydney Audition:
Thursday 23rd September
10am
ED5 International studios
Bakehouse Lane
9 George Street
North Strathfield NSW 2137

DanceLife is thrilled to be able to catch up with Adam Garcia while he is in London touring with the Tap Dogs. We spoke with Adam about his career to date and also about coming home to do the Tap Dogs in January.

1. You started your tap performing career playing Slide in the Australian touring version of Hot Shoe Shuffle before it went London. How does it feel to be coming home all these years later with the Tap Dogs doing what we originally know you as, a tapper?

It's wonderful. Staying in London was never my plan but the opportunities that London presented me with were life changing. Coming home to dance again if very fulfilling.

2. To some younger Australian dancers they may recognise you from your recent judging spot on the hit UK television show Got To Dance alongside Ashley Banjo and Kimberly Wyatt. What was the process you went through to get this gig?

I had met the producer on a UK TV breakfast show - "The Big Breakfast" when Hot Shoe was first in London. The meeting came quite randomly & was luckily just a process of agreement.

3. You have been in London for quite a while now, a home away from home. What qualities as a performer and personality do you believe you posses that have kept you successfully working all these years?

I think I do have a quite belief in my abilities. Or rather I like to challenge myself & so simply put myself up to attempting all sorts of different things like film & TV. I have failed numerous times but in this industry that's just par for the course. I also think when I am in work I work very hard. I have an Australian work ethic. David Atkins & Dein Perry helped instil that in me.

4. Wicked is having a phenomenal season currently in Australia. Tell us about your experience playing Fiyero alongside Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth in 2002?

To be honest I didn't know who they were when I did the workshop in NYC back in 2002. I don't keep up with musicals that much but they were lovely people & amazing performers. I didn't even recognize Stephen Schwartz! But I did work it out fairly quickly that I was with a very special bunch of people. I do regret a bit not being able to open the show in NYC but I was invited to do the show in London & it was an immense privilege. It's the BIGGEST show ever.

5. You are currently touring with the Tap Dogs in London before coming to Sydney in January. What are Australian's like to work with compared to the British?

I think theatre people are kinda the same all over

6. What's next on the agenda for you after your commitments with the Tap Dogs?

I have the new season of Got To Dance in the UK. That takes me up to March next year. I rarely know what I'm doing more than 6 months in advance. I like that about my life.

Tap Dogs will return to Australia on 5 January for a five week season at the Capitol Theatre in Sydney. For more details go to www.tapdogs.co.uk

A whimsical, fairytale setting and Tchaikovsky's music transports us to the world of Swan Lake, not the Classical ballet but the Ice skating ballet.

Performed by ‘The Imperial Ice Stars' who hail from Russia and as the website tells us "have performed to nearly 3 million people across five continents...even in Cyprus in an outdoor amphitheatre in temperatures of 40C!"

The sets and costumes are traditional and as expected are lovely and glamorous. The Ice Stars are award-winning performers and most of them have been on blades since they could walk, so you get the idea of how talented they are.

The Lyric Theatre seemed somewhat limiting size-wise for the ice skaters. As a spectator I found I wanted them to have more freedom to build up to some of the tricks and flips and there were a few near misses where a few raggy fingers socked the side of the set.

The stand-out artists were the two female Ice Stars who played Odette (white swan) and Odile (black swan) who were both lovely, very balletic with long, lithe lines, graceful and elegant.

There are elements of Swan Lake being performed as an ice ballet as opposed to a traditional ballet which made me cringe a little. Firstly, ballet in boots doesn't allow the artists to point their feet, therefore every-time they perform an arabesque or do lifts with extended legs the boot spoils the line. Secondly, the lifts aren't as seamless on the set- down because of the skating boot and blade.

Don't get me wrong, I love skating and always watch the ice skating competitions when they're televised, however if I see Swan Lake, which conjures up images of the ballet I want something more along the lines of Sylvie Guillem with death-defying arches. The subtle and pure aesthetic beauty gets lost when performed on ice. Also the flashy trickery of lifts and spins breaks the audience mid-choreography into clapping frenzies which loses the mystique of the ballet-world and turns it more into sport, which by definition it is but I don't think that's what the Imperial Ice Stars are trying to convey in this production.

An absolute highlight for me was the visual spectacle of the group of swans on the lake which is simply stunning. Absolutely beautiful patterns and symmetry creates mesmerising images, almost like a moving painting.

This show is fun, a little kitsch and filled with tricks, lifts, spins, splits and more including a flame ring which blazes from the ice and Count Von Rothbart ends Act I surrounded by this crackle of fire. If you or your family love ‘wow-y' lifts and spins that are so fast they look like they're going to drill through the stage grab a ticket now this is definitely a fun night out.

By Emma Bell

www.emmabell.com

The 2010 Helpmann Awards® Ceremony will be held next Monday 6 September at 6.30pm at Opera Theatre, Sydney Opera House, whilst the After Party will be held at The Argyle in The Rocks. Acclaimed performer David Campbell will Host the Awards Ceremony. The Ceremony will include performances by the casts of Jersey Boys, Avenue Q, The Wizard Of Oz, The Drowsy Chaperone, West Side Story, Bangarra Dance Theatre, Smoke & Mirrors featuring iOTA, The Australia String Quartet, The Man In Black and the cast of Mary Poppins.

Live Performance Australia (LPA) today announced the names of Award Presenters for the 42 categories for the 2010 Helpmann Awards®. These include Kelley Abbey, David Atkins, Sandra Bates, John Bell, Cate Blanchett, Bille Brown, Mitchell Butel, David Campbell, Zoe Carides, Peter Carroll, Kate Champion, Tim Chappel, Adrian Collette, Chloe Dallimore, Marta Dusseldorp, Peter England, John Gaden, Lizzy Gardiner, Lisa Gasteen, Darren Gilshenan, Robert Grubb, Burhan Güner, Jane Harders, Amanda Harrison, Nancye Hayes, Steven Heathcote, Lindy Hume, iOTA, Shane Jacobson, Lana Jones, The Honorable Virginia Judge, Elena Kats-Chernin, Ewen Leslie, Julie Lynch, Danielle Matthews, Emma Matthews, David McAllister, Belinda McClory, Donald McDonald , Todd McKenney, Sharon Millerchip, Richard Mills, Amanda Muggleton, David Page, Stephen Page, Marion Potts, Hannie Rayson, Nick Schlieper, Terry Serio, Garry Stewart, Teddy Tahu Rhodes, David Williamson, Ben Winspear, The Umbilical Brothers and Ursula Yovich.

Tony Gould AM and Brian Nebenzahl OAM RFD will each be presented with the prestigious JC Williamson AwardTM, recognising their outstanding contribution to the Australian live performance industry.

The Helpmann Awards® will be broadcast live and exclusively on STVDIO, channel 132 on FOXTEL.

This will be the 10th presentation of the Helpmann Awards®, the pinnacle industry event for Australia's live performance industry, which annually attracts over 15.5 million people to shows across the nation with revenues of over $A1 billion.

Tickets are available to the General Public from $69 (plus transaction fee) for a spectacular event.

Bookings - Sydney Opera House, (02) 9250 7777 or sydneyoperahouse.com

A FULL LIST OF NOMINATIONS IS AVAILABLE ON THE WEBSITE.

www.helpmannawards.com.au

FAME THE MUSICAL Producer John Frost announced today that the role of Miss Sherman in the Sydney season of FAME will be played by Tony award winning actress Lillias White. Ms White has been recognized on Broadway with the Tony Award®, Drama Desk Award®, People's Choice® Award and The Outer Critics Award® for Best Actress in a Musical - Broadway's Prestigious Quadruple Crown - for her 1997 role as Sonja in The Life. In 1990 she won The Obie Award® for Best Actress in a Musical for her portrayal of Hennie in Romance in Hard Times. In addition, she won The Drama Logue Award® for Best Actress in a Musical for her role in the national tour of Dreamgirls. Other Broadway credits include How to Succeed in Business, Once on This Island, Rock n' Roll: The First 5,000 Years ( Aretha Franklin ), Barnum, Carrie and Dreamgirls, and she has performed in US and international tours of Ain't Misbehavin', Tintypes and The Wiz. Ms White's TV and film credits include featured roles in the films Pieces of April, The Grinch That Stole Christmas, North and Disney's Hercules. In 1992, Ms White won an Emmy Award® for her role as Sesame Street's Lillian Edwards.

John Frost said, "I'm overjoyed that Lillias had a gap in her busy performing schedule to join my production of FAME. She is an extraordinary performer, and now Sydney audiences can see why Lillias has won just about every theatre and television award there is in the US. Sydney, prepare for The Voice!"

This new multi-million dollar high-energy production of FAME THE MUSICAL, featuring some of the most dynamic choreography you'll ever see in the theatre, opens at the Capitol Theatre from October 9 for a strictly limited season.

FAME is, almost uniquely, a classic of cinema, television and music theatre. The movie, released in 1980, won an Academy Award and swept the world. The TV show ran for six seasons, won numerous Emmy Awards and was broadcast in over 70 countries. FAME THE MUSICAL ran for a decade on London's West End and has been seen by over ten million people worldwide. It follows the story of a diverse group of students at New York City's celebrated High School of the Performing Arts who inspired a generation.

FAME THE MUSICAL is directed and choreographed by Kelley Abbey, and also stars Andrew McFarlane, Brian Wenzel, Timomatic and Talia Fowler. Darlene Love, who performed the role of Miss Sherman in the Melbourne and Brisbane season, returned to the US for commitments on a movie about her life.

Tarantara Tarantara! The song the Sergeant of Police, Todd Keys sings with his ‘lads' all donned in English policeman garb was going around in my head on the way to the carpark! I was surprised how much I enjoyed The Pirates of Penzance!

Written by WS Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan this show was first performed in 1879 and is still as much fun now as I'm sure it was then, however, don't expect a rockin' out Jon English musical, this is the original comic opera version performed by Opera Australia.

The gorgeous mood-enhancing lighting by designer, Trudy Dalgleish is complemented by a minimalist set designed by Richard Roberts, which has a raked stage, framed by lights and a calm backdrop, with clouds intermittently projected onto it. The actors themselves play a part in the set, wheeling on large props. They roll trees and statues onto the stage, that look like pop-art, cardboard cartoons - but it works! Although inauthentic these props really add to the kitsch-ness of the production and makes for a jolly ol' time.

Opera Australia headed up by the ever-entertaining Anthony Warlow will have some of the younger audience members thinking he is ‘channeling' the ultimate Pirate King, Johnny Depp from the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean' films. In fact the program cover looks very similar to Johnny Depp on the cover of ‘Pirates of the Caribbean - The Curse of the Black Pearl'. With due credit though, Warlow is very funny and frolics and rollicks around the stage leading his enthusiastic and sometimes camp gaggle of pirates.

Dainty blonde Mabel is played by Rosemarie Harris and the charming, endearing Frederic played by Matthew Robinson is extremely well cast and this couple are matched well though don't produce fireworks.

There are some definite highlights which are a hoot, one being when the cluster of ‘daughters' are approached by Frederic and they shuffle about the stage as a huddle of white lace and boaters and then threaten him with their lace parasols. Their father, the Major-General Stanley, played by the amazing Peter Carroll, is hilarious and sings the famous tongue-twisting "I am the very model of a modern Major-General" song to a wild applause, this number is definitely one of the stand-outs in the show.

With an energetic, mischievous cast and dynamic numbers, topped off by massive cartoon roses framing the set at the end this is an absolute hoot of a show - A comic, hearty opera for the whole family!

Emma Bell is writer, reviewer and interviewer and can be found at www.emmabell.com.au