Wayfinder

Anyone familiar with directors Amber Haines and Kyle Page’s previous work knows not to expect anything but the unexpected from them.

^{By Shele Parker Black}

FOR THE UNACQUAINTED, the Dancenorth Australia duo were responsible for RED, a duet featuring two performers in a transparent dome that slowly deflates throughout the work, and Communal Table, a choreographic work that brought people into the space to have dinner with a table of strangers, before each table became a stage where the dancers revealed themselves among the crowd.

Their latest work, Wayfinder, is arguably their most ambitious performance yet – a full ensemble of dancers atop an inflatable stage.

Wayfinder is the culmination of a dynamic collaboration between Haines and Page, three-time Grammy nominated Australian band Hiatus Kaiyote, sound artist Byron J. Scullin, and visual artist Hiromi Tango.

The collaboration came about through identifying in their collaborators’ work an element of joy and connection. Page says Hiatus Kiayote, a Naarm-born three-piece band, who call their sound wondercore, entrusted their entire catalogue of sound to Scullin to create an original composition for the work.

“We felt as though their sound captured the essence of what Wayfinder wanted to be – this kind of joyful expression of optimism and hope and exuberance.”

The show is also iconically steeped in the work of visual artist Hiromi Tango, whom Page met through the Sidney Myer Creative Fellowship. For Wayfinder, Tango dreamt up and created an incredibly rich visual arena made from 100 kilometres of recycled wool that has been handwoven by scores of volunteers from communities across the country.

As a post-pandemic piece, it was intended as an antidote to the distress, anxiety, polarisation and suffering experienced by so many around the world.

“It needed to be a response. It needed to be an offering and a counterpoint to that period that had left so many people in pain,” Page says.

Not only does Wayfinder guarantee to be an electric feast for the eyes and ears, but the creators hope it serves as a reminder for our incredible capacity as humans for connection, pleasure, possibility, exploration, expression, and openness.

The most extensive national tour of an Australian contemporary dance work ever, don’t miss your chance to see Wayfinder.

Alice Springs
WHEN SAT 3 AUG | 7PM
AT ARALUEN ARTS CENTRE
COST $40-$69 
INFO araluenartscentre.nt.gov.au

Darwin
WHEN FRI 9 AUG, 8PM | SAT 10 AUG, 5PM
AT DARWIN ENTERTAINMENT CENTRE
COST $44-$48 
INFO darwinfestival.org.au

_{Photo: Amber Haines}