Co-created by Bangarra Artistic Director Frances Rings and Goolargon Bardi artist Darrell Sibosado, Illume is a sensory exploration of the Bard and Jawi people’s cultural knowledge, connection to land and light. The work was conceived as a company-first visual arts collaboration. Sibosado’s artwork unfolds throughout the evening as a visual and physical meditation on Country, ancestry and tradition.
The experience is hard to describe, it’s something you feel, something you surrender to. The work is a love letter to Sibosado’s home soil, the Dampier Peninsula. Beginning with a Bardi Jawi creation story, the birth of the physical world, Shadow Spirits. Over the next 70 minutes the audience is drawn into an exploration in 11 sections.
From the glowing Manawan trees, to the pollution of colonisation, to the sanctity of the Mother of Pearl, each moment bleeds effortlessly into the next, guided by the vehicle of light. Its forms, meanings, and significance, approached in a way that’s both conceptual and deeply grounded in culture.
I felt humbled to be let in on this work. There was a sacredness to the space. And the overwhelming sense that the audience was being invited into something deeply personal and ancient.
The dancers themselves are incredible. The ensemble of 18 moved with precision and connection. There is a clear sense of trust and presence between them, their physicality so connected, it feels almost telepathic. Their bodies aren’t just interpreting Sibosado’s art, they are part of it.
This show is a meeting of creative minds. The melding of Sibosado’s artwork with a broader design story is executed by a team of true professionals. Set design by Charles Davis and costume design by Elizabeth Gadsby is a stunning and natural extension of the world.
Though it seems obvious that the lighting design in a show about light would be nothing short of spectacular, Damien Cooper’s masterful work exceeded my every expectation.
Composer Brendon Boney’s score struck a specific chord with me. It is chaotic and guttural and beautiful. Every single creative element feels like a natural extension of the art, contributing to the world building of this show, suspended between time and reality.
Illume also marks a significant milestone for the company, Bangarra’s first full season in the Joan Sutherland Theatre at the Sydney Opera House. That one of Australia’s most prominent stages is now a home for Indigenous storytelling fills me with immense joy. More and more we are witnessing Indigenous stories on the mainstage, a shift that is both exciting and overdue.
Illume is not easily summed up. It’s a performance that needs to be experienced to be understood. Bangarra Dance Theatre continues to prove that dance can do more than entertain. It can hold space, pass down knowledge, and tell stories in ways that words fail.
Illume runs from 4 – 14 June at Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House before going on tour. Full dates below.
Tickets: https://my.bangarra.com.au/events
Website: https://www.bangarra.com.au/productions/illume/
Socials: https://www.instagram.com/bangarradancetheatre/
Photo credits: Daniel Boud
Australian Tour Dates
Sydney Gadigal Country 4 – 14 June, Sydney Opera House
Perth Whadjuk Noongar Boodja 10 – 13 July, Heath Ledger Theatre
Albany Kinjarling 18 July, Albany Entertainment Centre
Canberra Ngunnawal Country 25 – 26 July, Canberra Theatre Centre
Brisbane Meanjin 1 – 9 August, Queensland Performing Arts Centre
Darwin Garramilla 15 – 16 August, Darwin Entertainment Centre
Melbourne Wurundjeri Country 4 – 13 September, Arts Centre Melbourne
