Illume
Bangarra Dance Theatre
Reviewed By Karina Lawrence
Performing for the first time in The Joan Sutherland Theatre at the Sydney Opera House the Premier of Illume was precisely that, a ray of magical and spectacular light.
Showing on Gadigal Country from June 4 – 14, the iconic Bangarra Dance Company known for its indigenous roots is indeed a breath of fresh air with this uplifting and inspiring performance.
The Creative Team have certainly generated an innovative and artistic visionary with a wholesome and vibrant theme along with connections to our ancestral history in such a impactive way.
The Production is bought to its delighted audience by Executive Director and Co-CEO, Louise Ingram and Frances Rings who is the company’s Artistic Director, Co-CEO and Choreographer, who was thrilled to introduce this special performance at the Opening Night Premier and beamed with pride, of the company’s growth in performing and gracing the stage in such an iconic space for dance, theatre and in turn the art of story telling.
Mirning Choreographer, Frances Rings and Goolarrgon Bard Visual Artist, Darrell Sibosado’s collaboration explores the awe of light, a bridge between the physical and spiritual worlds. It charts the impacts of light pollution in a climate emergency.
The story of Galaloong represents the genesis of life, a creation story that provides people with a sense of connection to Country and a compass for their own personal journey.
Artistic and Cultural Collaborator, Darrell Sibosado says it perfectly. “Each of us is a part of that big design. When we live in harmony, we keep adding to the pattern.”
The staging is simply Devine with incredible light effects and wonderful innovative designs from Set Designer, Charles Davis and Lighting Designer, Damien Cooper. You are literally transported into another world of blissful magic and dreamtime light fusions. It’s like revisiting where time began with a futuristic flavour, integrating the past and time ahead, all while being captivated by the hypnotic moves within dance.
The Video Design by Craig Wilkinson is like watching a magic show come to life right before your eyes, with the music from Composer, Brendon Boney intertwining the cues with that of marrying light and sound brilliantly.
The music through ought is haunting, transient and certainly impactive.
The Dancers were authentic and offered their beautiful artistic flair of flowing movements with abstract shapes, of course perfecting the art of making it seem effortless with their athletic nature and beauty of lines.
We are greeted with the cast forming their own sounds through movement and embodying their cultural heritage with a deep grounded essence that was alluring and captivating.
The company of 18 dancers including Lillian Banks, Courtney Radford, Kallum Goolagong, Kassidy Waters, Jye Uren, Maddison Paluch, Daniel Mateo, Emily Flannery, Janaya Lamb, James Boyd, Chantelle Lee Lockhart, Amberlilly Gordon, Donta Whitham, Zeak Tass, Edan Porter, Tamara Bouman, Roxie Syron and Eli Clarke offer an integrated style of artistry, passion and storytelling through their bodies with efforts perfection.
The lines and shapes and connection displayed are beautifully depicted and the organic choreography executed with a rawness and ability to showcase their individuality within this group setting.
The closing scene is Devine mixture of colourful light, movement and the reminder of the passion in story telling, literally in that dreamtime theme and powerful historic way. It’s beautiful to witness and leaves you truly in appreciation of this empowering energetic force created to relish in.
A strong influence within this epic journey of story telling is the focus of the Mother Of Pearl Shell and it is in this seven where we are presented with all her glory of stars and power with her sacred light.
The physical presence of the mother-of-pearl shell serves as a bridge to the spiritual realm. Its iridescence holds a unique power, weaving together stories and meaning. Through its essence and spirit, the intangible becomes tangible, creating an enduring legacy for Goolarrgon people.
The costuming by Costume Designer, Elizabeth Gadsby and Emerging Costume Designer, Rika Hamaguchi also offers an artistic flare to the performance. Subtle focal points that allow for the story to be executed through this means of design, also enhances the movement of the performance and layers within the journey of light and connection to the theme and storyline.
This 70-minute performance with no interval, takes you on an epic trail and adventure of a time that flows and moves with great depths of power through a journey that is both timeless and ever flowing. It will captivate your imagination and artistic expression of light and its free spirited spark of odyssey and interchanging gestures.
“This is what has been passed down to me to continue and take where it’s going. It’s an ever-changing thing … It’s about taking these traditional practices and traditional languages into the contemporary space and trying to make people realise that it doesn’t belong way back 1000 years ago, it belongs here, because I’m here now, and it is me.” Darrell Sibosado, Goolarrgon Bard, 2022.
Bangarra Dance Theatre are bringing Illume to various locations around Australia such as Perth, Albany, Canberra, Brisbane, Darwin and Melbourne. Check out their website for touring dates and book your tickets before it sells out fast!
