Dance in Australia

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A wide variety of dance occurs in Australia. Classical ballet companies include the Australian Ballet. Other ballet and contemporary dance companies include the Australian Dance Theatre, Bangarra Dance Theatre, Leigh Warren & Dancers and the Sydney Dance Company. The Australian Dance Council (or Ausdance) is the peak body for dance in Australia.

The Australian version of Dancing with the Stars has led to increased awareness and popularity of dance and dancesport.

Bush dance has developed in Australia as a form of traditional dance, it draws on traditions from English, Irish, Scottish and other European dance. Favourite dances in the community include dances of European descent, such as the Irish Céilidh "Pride of Erin" and the quadrille "The Lancers" and number of "home-grown" dances, such as the "Waves of Bondi".

Many immigrant communities continue their own dance traditions on a professional or amateur basis. Traditional dances from a large number of ethnic backgrounds are danced in Australia, helped by the presence of enthusiastic immigrants and their Australian-born families. It is quite common to see dances from the Baltic region, as well as Indian, Indonesian or African dance being taught at community centres in Australia.

Still more dance groups in Australia employ dances from a variety of backgrounds, including reconstructed European Court dances and Medieval Dance, as well as fusions of traditional steps with modern music and stylings.

The corroborree is one example of Indigenous Australian ceremony including dance.

Contents 1 Major dance companies 2 Post secondary dance education 3 List of current dance companies operating in Australia 4 References 5 External links

[edit] Major dance companies

Those dance companies funded by the Major Performing Arts Board of the Australia Council and from state arts agencies are:

• The Australian Ballet
• The Queensland Ballet
• The West Australian Ballet
• The Sydney Dance Company
• The Bangarra Dance Theatre
• The Australian Dance Theatre

[edit] Post secondary dance education

NSW:

• National Aboriginal Islander Skills Development Association (NAISDA)
• University of NSW (Kensington Campus)
• University of Western Sydney
• Wesley Institute

Victoria

• Australian Ballet School (Senior School only)
• Box Hill Institute (Centre for Performing Arts)
• Deakin University (Rusden Campus)
• Victorian College of the Arts (University of Melbourne)
• Victoria University of Technology (Footscray Institute

Queensland

• Queensland University of Technology (Kelvin Grove Campus)

South Australia

• Adelaide Institute of TAFE (Performing Arts) part of the Helpmann Academy
• Tabor College

Western Australia

• Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (Edith Cowan University)

[edit] List of current dance companies operating in Australia

A-C

• Aboriginal Islander Dance Theatre
• The Australian Ballet
• The Australian Choreographic Centre
• Australian Dance Theatre (Meryl Tankard Australian Dance Theatre 1993-1999)
• Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust
• BalletLab
• Bangarra Dance Theatre
• Bjelke-Petersen School of Physical Culture
• Buzz Dance Theatre
• Canberra Dance Theatre
• Chunky Move

D-M

• Dance Exchange
• Dance North
• Dance Works
• Dancehouse
• Expressions Dance Company
• Igneous
• Kage Physical Theatre
• Leigh Warren & Dancers
• Mirramu Dance Company

O-Z

• One Extra Dance
• The Queensland Ballet
• Raw Metal Dance Company
• Restless Dance Company
• Strange Fruit
• Sydney Dance Company
• TasDance
• Tracks Dance Theatre
• West Australian Ballet
• Wu Lin Dance Theatre

[edit] References

• Dance in Australia - a profile (a 1MB PDF file) by David Throsby, Professor of Economics at Macquarie University.

[edit] External links

• Australian Dance Council
• The Australia Dancing portal, hosted by the National Library of Australia