WAAPA dancers soar in a blend of classical and contemporary performance
Updated: 4 Nov 2021
Elise Anthony
WAAPA’s dance students will round out 2021 with a series of performances celebrating its graduating dance students in a stunning program of classical ballet and contemporary dance.
Verge, which runs from 12-18 November in The Geoff Gibbs Theatre, will feature highlights from famous classical ballets as well as two freshly-minted contemporary dance works.
Moonlight Soiree, created by WAAPA’s Coordinator of Classical Ballet Kim McCarthy in collaboration with guest artist Leanne Stojmenov, features 2nd and 3rd Year ballet students in iconic classical roles. The award-winning Stojmenov danced with the Australian Ballet for 18 years, garnering critical acclaim for her outstanding performance in the title role of Alexei Ratmansky’s production of Cinderella.
The program also features two new contemporary pieces choreographed on the 2nd and 3rd Year Contemporary Dance students by WAAPA lecturer Adelina Larsson Mendoza and guest artist Sam Coren.
Larsson-Mendoza is a Swedish/Mexican choreographer, performer and educator who trained in the Netherlands and moved to Australia in 2007. In 2020, she was awarded the Australian Dance Award for Outstanding Achievement in Independent Dance. Coren, who trained at the London Contemporary Dance School, is an award-winning dancer and choreographer whose work encompasses both stage and screen. In the UK he has collaborated with high-profile names including Hofesh Shechteer Company, English National Ballet, Antony Gormley, Chemical Brothers, FKA Twigs, among many others, while his international work has taken him to New Zealand, Canada, Spain and – luckily for WAAPA – Australia.
With both ballet and contemporary dance on the program, Verge is the perfect show for all lovers of dance. So come celebrate the technique, artistry and passion of WAAPA’s graduating dancers, as they take their final bow before embarking on their professional careers.
Tickets can be purchased here.
Cover Photo by Stephen Heath
The program also features two new contemporary pieces choreographed on the 2nd and 3rd Year Contemporary Dance students by WAAPA lecturer Adelina Larsson Mendoza and guest artist Sam Coren.
Larsson-Mendoza is a Swedish/Mexican choreographer, performer and educator who trained in the Netherlands and moved to Australia in 2007. In 2020, she was awarded the Australian Dance Award for Outstanding Achievement in Independent Dance. Coren, who trained at the London Contemporary Dance School, is an award-winning dancer and choreographer whose work encompasses both stage and screen. In the UK he has collaborated with high-profile names including Hofesh Shechteer Company, English National Ballet, Antony Gormley, Chemical Brothers, FKA Twigs, among many others, while his international work has taken him to New Zealand, Canada, Spain and – luckily for WAAPA – Australia.
With both ballet and contemporary dance on the program, Verge is the perfect show for all lovers of dance. So come celebrate the technique, artistry and passion of WAAPA’s graduating dancers, as they take their final bow before embarking on their professional careers.
Tickets can be purchased here.
Cover Photo by Stephen Heath
