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Dozens of ballet dancers glide gracefully across the stage in pink and beige tutus and leotards.
The ease of the pirouettes, jumps and scissor steps almost makes one forget the intense physical endurance and discipline required by the dance form.
UPSOT: Dance practice: “One, two, three. One, two, three. Well, well. Oh my gods, fantastic!”
40 top students from Melbourne’s prestigious Australian Ballet School are training tirelessly ahead of a historic gala in Melbourne this weekend.
It’s to celebrate the school’s 60th anniversary, with a centerpiece commissioned by the school’s former principal, Lisa Pavane.
“Four Seasons” celebrates the school’s history and looks toward its future.
Founded in 1964, the school has been training dancers and artists ever since, many of whom have gone on to successful careers here and abroad.
Artistic director Megan Connelly says the school’s reputation is recognized around the world.
“We have students from Japan, Korea, China who come and train with us because that is our international reputation for a holistic education that doesn’t just teach classical ballet, but actually, it’s about ‘a real breadth of education for our students, so we have a lot of international students who have come to the school, gone through the school and joined the company.’
The young students dancing at the gala are part of a dwindling cohort of ballet dancers in Australia who are trying to keep the tradition alive.
The latest National Arts Participation Survey conducted in 2023 found that ballet participation fell from 2 percent of Australians in 2019 to just 1 percent.
Jai Fauchon, a 20-year-old student, says the anniversary show gave him the opportunity to choreograph his own piece.
“I was asked earlier this year to create a piece for the 60th anniversary gala that I was so excited about. The piece has two different songs in it. One is called Last Life and it’s a percussive instrumental piece and the other is a percussive instrumental piece “It’s a Chilean folk song. So there’s a lot of contrast and it’s a piece that I’m really looking forward to sharing with the audience and seeing my peers dancing on stage. Yes, it’s really exciting to make my choreographic debut at school.”
Ballet, an international art form more than 500 years old, originated in the courts of Italy, then spread to France, and was finally revitalized in Russia during the 1900s.
But in Australia, the tradition’s future seems less certain.
The Arts Participation Survey showed an overall decline in attendance at dance events, with 28 per cent of Australians having attended a dance performance and just 5 per cent reporting having watched ballet.
This represents a drop of one percentage point from the previous survey in 2019 and contrasts with the 47% of Australians who attended live music events during the same period.
Megan Connelly says that regardless of the challenges facing the ballet world, including the recent COVID-19 pandemic, she believes the key role art plays in our lives has never been clearer.
“I think perhaps the importance of the arts has been reframed slightly by the experiences we’ve had during COVID and we certainly still feel incredibly supported. Our broader community, our schools and our businesses across the country , but also by the government, really support us to continue the Australian ballet school for what it is, a national treasure and yes, I think we are here to stay.
The school’s gala performance opens this weekend in Melbourne but it won’t be the only ballet in town.
The Australian Ballet, the country’s leading classical ballet company, will also present the classic Etudes and an original work, Circle Electric, by award-winning choreographer Stephanie Lake.
The company’s artistic director, David Hallberg, says it’s important for traditional ballet institutions to understand the roots of the art form while still offering something new and exciting.
“I think there is something beautiful in both works. There is the beauty of classical ballet and I am very proud of the way the dancers interpret the beauty of classical ballet here at the Australian Ballet, but for those who love contemporary dance and something more modern and fresh, they will definitely have it at Circle Electric.
