Award-winning choreographers and artistic leaders Thomas E.S. Kelly and Taree Sansbury return to NAISDA to direct Goeyga Buya. Banal. Djarrawawuy: Sun Cycle in its landmark 50th year.
Kelly, a Minjungbal, Wiradjuri and Ni-Vanuatu choreographer, and Sansbury, a Kaurna, Narungga and Ngarrindjeri artist, are returning to where it all began for their acclaimed First Nations performing arts company Karul Projects.
Working with NAISDA's current students, they will bring their creative voice and expression to the Carriageworks stage across November 26-28.
Sun Cycle celebrates five decades of First Nations-led education, culture and creative excellence, reflecting the generations of artists who have come through NAISDA while looking firmly towards what comes next.
Drawing its title from three languages: Goeyga Buya, Sunrise in Kala Lagaw Ya; Banal, Sun in Darkinjung; and Djarrawawuy, Sunset in Gumatj, Sun Cycle traces the arc of the sun from first light through twilight dreaming to the promise of a new sunrise.
Kelly and and Sansbury's journeys reflect that cycle. Working across dance, theatre and sound, amplifying First Nations' voices, visibilities and stories locally, nationally and internationally, most recently Thomas has taken that work to the screen as host and creative force behind the ABC Kids series 'Dance with Tom',
"NAISDA helped me understand who I am, what I want to say and how I can say it through my practice," said Kelly.
"To return with Taree and create alongside the next generation of emerging artists in NAISDA's 50th year is incredibly special.
"This isn't about looking back at something that has finished. The knowledge and stories carried by the people before us are alive in these young artists, and they have their own voices and their own stories to tell.
"This is their moment to shine, and I can't wait for us all to come together and celebrate it."
Contemporary Indigenous dance will be performed by NAISDA's Developing and Practising Artists. NAISDA's two cultural communities will share the Carriageworks stage for the first time, bringing cultural song and dance from Moa Island, Torres Strait, and the Dätiwuy Clan, North East Arnhem Land.
NAISDA chief executive officer Kim Walker AM said the production reflects the continuity that has defined NAISDA across five decades,
"For 50 years, NAISDA has been shaped by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and communities sharing knowledge and dance, with each generation creating new possibilities for the next," he said.
"Thomas and Taree represent that beautifully. They came to NAISDA as developing artists and are returning as award-winning creative leaders to work alongside another generation finding their own place in Australia's cultural and creative landscape.
"Sun Cycle celebrates where we have come from, with its energy belonging to the First Nations artists of today and everything they will carry forward."
Tickets are available via the Carriageworks website.
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