Interplay
The Sunday Age
Sunday August 24, 2008
INTERPLAY
The Australian Ballet. At the State Theatre, Arts Centre. Opening Thursday, until Sep 8. $115-$30. Tel: 1300 136 166.You might have seen the posters around town featuring a couple of fit-looking dancers and nothing but the URL of a website. It's an interesting marketing ploy from the Australian Ballet and one probably designed to appeal to those who'd be turned off instantly by the mention of ballet. Interplay is the AB's season of new works - all world premieres this year - that go beyond the usual twirling tutus. New Yorker Nicolo Fonte and Toronto's Matjash Mrozewski have contributed two original pieces this year and Australian Stephen Baynes is also back after 2007's Constant Variants. Interplay relies heavily on strong original scores and targets music fans as much as ballet lovers, composers Gerard Brophy, Richard Mills and Ross Edwards all featuring this time around. Will it fly? Previous years have proven that triple bills are a safe bet for audiences since the AB's program is diverse enough for most viewers to find at least one or two works that appeal.
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