Overview
No matter how much time you've dedicated to learning Beyoncé's dance in 'Formation', chances are you can appreciate a good dance move here and there. But today's pop culture choreography didn't just appear on TV screens and dancefloors around the world by magic. Before they became a part of everyone's best routines, it is highly likely that they were conjured up by the next generation of contemporary choreographers and performers. In fact, we'd bet on it.
Eight such artists are currently on display at the Melbourne semi-finals of the 2016 Keir Choreographic Award, which commissions and presents new choreographic works in a competitive context. In the biennial award's second edition, Aussie practitioners Sarah Aiken, James Batchelor, Chloe Chignell, Ghenoa Gela, Martin Hansen, Alice Heyward, Rebecca Jensen and Paea Leach will battle it out for the prestigious prize and a very tidy $30,000. On the jury is Brussells-based performance theorist Bojana Cvejić, curator and critic Pierre Bal-Blanc, US choreographer Sarah Michelson, the inaugural recipient of the Award Atlanta Eke and founder of the foundation, Phillip Keir.
The four selected finalists will then travel up to Sydney to perform over three days at Carriageworks, with evening performances on May 5, 6 and 7, along with an afternoon performance on May 7. You can even get involved by voting for the Audience Choice, which awards one of the artists $10,000. So you won't just be witnessing trail-blazing performances of music and movement, you'll also be getting a glimpse of (and participating in) the future of dance. And it might just help with your Beyoncé moves.
And thanks to Carriageworks, we're giving away 10 double passes to the Keir Choreographic Award, taking place over three days from May 5-7. Just enter below.
Image: Gregory Lorenzutti for Dancehouse.