Concord

Overview

A trio of performances, Concord is dramatic, charming and sharp, occasionally all at once. Annually, the Australian Ballet presents a triple-bill to display both important repertory or reworked pieces and new works in a diverse setting. The three presented in Concord could not be more disparate, and yet their differences were never jarring, but a pleasant surprise.

Opening the production is Por vos muero (For Thee I Die), a work steeped in the romantic darkness of Spain's Golden Age. Choreographer Nacho Duato was inspired by the music and dance of the sixteenth century. Poetry lies at its core, with the texts of Garcilaso de la Vega acting as a comma between the individual dances. The choreography, abetted by dark, flowing costumes switched between sweeping statement and clean movement — akin to the ebb and flow of life and death it represents. Set to a beautiful medieval score, Por vos muero is such a rich ballet, I found myself willing it to continue long after the dancers had relinquished their masks to the curtains.

Smartly situated in the middle is Scoula di ballo, a story ballet set in a dance school filled with characters with whom most of the audience could identify — the boorish stage mother, the opportunistic instructor, the terrible-but-trying-anyway student — all performed so gleefully. Though beautifully executed and incredibly charming, I don't often connect with the pantomimish behaviour of these sorts of works. The rest of the audience around me, however, was in fits and giggles and offered much applause.

Waking the audience from merriment is the final ballet Dyad 1929, performed for the first time in August this year. With choreographer Wayne McGregor at the helm, this work is part of his Dyad diptych, the other, Dyad 1909 to be performed in London. Abstract in its style, Dyad 1929 exists free from the flowing movements of the first two parts of Concord, inspired by the aviation advancements of the age for which it is named. This work is clean and incredibly tight. The set is simple and terrifically effective with its use of light. Dedicated to the memory of seminal choreographer Merce Cunningham who passed away earlier this year, Dyad 1929 shares a kinship with the energy of his work.

Ultimately, the most impressive element of Concord is the dancers at its heart, able to so swiftly move between not just roles, but immense changes in style and aesthetic. Concord is a collection of short stories so diverse that it should and will endear the notion of attending the ballet to more than just its loyal subscription base. The current magic of the Australian Ballet certainly deserves it.

* If you are under 26 - you are eligible for massive savings. See The Australian Ballet website for ticketing details.

Stephanie Williams & Andrew Killian performing Dyad 1929. Photo: Jim McFarlane