DirtyFeet’s Out of the Studio 2025 spotlights emerging choreographers Cassidy McDermott Smith and Shyamla, alongside a talented ensemble cast.
Featured Repertoire
Repertoire Archive
Love Lock
Choreography / Melanie Lane
Inspired by the power of love stories, Melanie Lane’s bold new work Love Lock deconstructs love songs to create a folk dance that celebrates the fantasies and realities of love.
Duration: 25 minutes
momenta
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
A journey into the poetry and physicality of human bonds.
Duration: 75 minutes
The Shell, A Ghost, The Host & The Lyrebird
Choreography / Marina Mascarell
This piece poses many questions: the body's meaning and its capacity to transform; the relationship with technology, and the connection with nature.
Duration: 26 minutes
I Am-Ness
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
I Am-ness calls for the convergence of the moving body and creative mind, charting a world in flux where simplicity dominates, and expectations are subverted.
Duration: 15 minutes
Somos
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
Meaning “we are” in Spanish, Somos features a cascade of intimate solos, duets and trios with a distinct Spanish flavour.
Duration: 50 minutes
Summer
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
An uplifting new work from Rafael Bonachela, capturing the lightness and positivity of new beginnings. With a score by Australian composer Kate Moore, recorded by the Australian String Quartet and striking costumes by the masters of colour Romance Was Born, Summer will have your spirits soaring.
Duration: 16 minutes
The Universe is Here
Choreography / Stephanie Lake
Fusing movement and music, The Universe is Here brings blistering light to the stage and a fizzing glimpse of a haunted dreamscape. Poetic, fresh and forceful, Stephanie Lake's work is intricate and dynamic dance that hits you in the solar plexus.
Duration: 35 minutes
Impermanence
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
A visceral and thrilling exploration of the juxtaposition of beauty and devastation, this full-length work features a new score full of emotional power from Grammy Award-winning composer Bryce Dessner performed in association with the Australian String Quartet.
Duration: 65 minutes
Cuatro
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
Four dancers. Four musicians. Four Films.
Duration: 14 minutes
Us 50
Choreography / Gideon Obarzanek
Us 50 is a grand-scale work by Gideon Obarzanek featuring 50 performers made up of past dancers that have graced our stage, current Company dancers, and members of our community.
Duration: 40 minutes
Neon Aether
Choreography / Gabrielle Nankivell
Gabrielle Nankivell’s premiere, Neon Aether, is a theatrical adventure into the infinite unknown. Inspired by science fiction and outer space, audiences will be transported into a vivid, ethereal world beyond the clouds.
Duration: 25 minutes
Cinco
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
Be moved by a “dazzling technical display of flexibility” (★★★★, Sydney Morning Herald) in the world premiere of Rafael Bonachela’s Cinco. Watch “elastic dynamic dancing” (The Daily Telegraph) from our award-winning dancers, in delicate costumes by revered fashion designer Bianca Spender, set to Alberto Ginastera’s soaring String Quartet No.2.
Duration: 26 minutes
ab [intra] – Contemporary Dance Work
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
ab [intra], meaning ‘from within’ in Latin is ‘an exploration of our primal instincts, our impulses and our visceral responses’, says choreographer Rafael Bonachela. From tenderness to turmoil, ab [intra] is a journey of intense human existence that will command your attention.
Duration: 70 minutes
Forever & Ever
Choreography / Antony Hamilton
Set to a sonically stimulating score by The Presets’ Julian Hamilton, Forever & Ever fuses together a killer mix of dance, techno, high fashion and vivid lighting to hypnotic effect.
Duration: 36 minutes
Ocho
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
Explosive and powerful, Ocho, is "sexy, athletic choreography…" (Time Out Sydney), showcasing the dancers' virtuosity.
Fusing a brutalist industrial dreamscape with a surging electronic score by Nick Wales that features haunting vocals by Aboriginal singer Rrawun Maymuru of the Mangalili clan, Ocho explores the infinite connections that exist between us all.
Duration: 40 minutes
Full Moon
Choreography / Cheng Tsung-lung
Cheng Tsung-lung's Full Moon harnesses the power of the moon and the mythology and poetry of mankind to thrilling effect.
Duration: 38 minutes
WOOF
Choreography / Melanie Lane
WOOF generates variations of collective actions that speak from matters of the heart. In an imagined physical future, stealing from classical dances, romantic paintings and pop culture, a re-invention of community takes place.
In dialogue with Clark’s bold musical score, WOOF relentlessly forges a duality of instability and empowerment, harnessing the fantasy of a post-human collective spirit.
Duration: 20 minutes
Lux Tenebris
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
Lux Tenebris explores light and darkness with fiercely physical movement and deep, electronic beats by composer Nick Wales.
Duration: 40 minutes
Frame of Mind
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
Frame of Mind features a dramatic contemporary-classical soundtrack by Bryce Dessner (from American hit rock band The National), recorded by San Francisco’s virtuosic Kronos Quartet. Frame of Mind won four Helpmann Awards in 2015 – Best Choreography, Best Dance Work, Best Male Dancer and Best Female Dancer – in its critically acclaimed premiere season.
Duration: 35 minutes
Wildebeest
Choreography / Gabrielle Nankivell
Gabrielle Nankivell’s eloquent creation, Wildebeest, showcases the power of dancers as individuals and strength en masse. Moody and animalistic, it’s backed by a stormy and industrial score by Luke Smiles.
Duration: 30 minutes
Emergence
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
From an inspired collaboration with composer Nick Wales and internationally acclaimed singer-songwriter Sarah Blasko comes Emergence, a dance work by Rafael Bonachela featuring the alluring costume creations of Australian fashion designer Dion Lee.
Duration: 37 minutes
2 One Another
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
Crackling with exultant power and intricate physical conversation, a pulsing pixelated backdrop, baroque-meets-electronica soundtrack and fragments of poetry, 2 One Another is a bright hour of irrefutable sensuality, delivering a visceral charge that has rocked audiences the world over.
Duration: 65 minutes
The Land of Yes and the Land of No
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
Beautifully wrought from the world of signs and symbols in our everyday lives, Artistic Director Rafael Bonchela’s celebrated production has toured extensively in the UK, Europe and Australia since it first premiered at the Ludwigsburg Festival, Germany in 2009.
Duration: 70 minutes
LANDforms
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
Born out of a creative concept devised by Rafael Bonachela and Ezio Bosso, LANDforms takes its inspiration from the landscape and the elements and their impact on the earth and the industrial landscape of cities.
Duration: minutes
Raw Models
Choreography / Jacopo Godani
Daring and sexy, Italy’s Jacopo Godani makes work that pushes the dancers to their limits. His first Australia work, Raw Models is set to a composition by German electronica duo 48 Nord.
Duration: 15 minutes
6 Breaths
Choreography / Rafael Bonachela
Since the 2010 premiere of Rafael Bonachela’s award-winning 6 Breaths the work has toured to New York, London, Barcelona, the Venice Biennale in Italy and the prestigious Movimentos Festival in Germany. A symphony of dance, music by Italian composer Ezio Bosso and costume design by Josh Goot, this emotive work will take your breath away.
Duration: 40 minutes
Info, Dates & Times
Out of the Studio
DirtyFeet
Dates
19 – 20 September
Location
Neilson Studio at Sydney Dance Company
(10 minutes from Barangaroo Metro Station)
Out of the Studio | DirtyFeet
Out of the Studio 2025, champions experimentation and provides a vital platform for artists to test, refine, and share new ideas. With performers and collaborators including Mitchell Christie, Madeleine Backen, Remy Rochester, Frances Orlina, Janakan Suthanthiraraj, and Dyan Tai, the season promises bold creativity and fresh perspectives. We’re proud to support DirtyFeet as they nurture the next generation of contemporary dance artists shaping the future of NSW.
Out of the Studio, is supported by Create NSW
| Date | Time | Book Now |
|---|---|---|
| Friday 19 September | 6.30pm | Book Now |
| Saturday 20 September | 2.30pm | Book Now |
| Saturday 20 September | 6.30pm | Book Now |
Prices
| Adults | $30 |
| Dirtyfeeters | $15 |
| Elders | $15 |
| Concessions | $15 |
| Companion | $0 |
For full details visit DirtyFeet’s website.
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Info, Dates & Times
Out of the Studio
DirtyFeet
Dates
19 – 20 September
Location
Neilson Studio at Sydney Dance Company
(10 minutes from Barangaroo Metro Station)
Out of the Studio | DirtyFeet
Out of the Studio 2025, champions experimentation and provides a vital platform for artists to test, refine, and share new ideas. With performers and collaborators including Mitchell Christie, Madeleine Backen, Remy Rochester, Frances Orlina, Janakan Suthanthiraraj, and Dyan Tai, the season promises bold creativity and fresh perspectives. We’re proud to support DirtyFeet as they nurture the next generation of contemporary dance artists shaping the future of NSW.
Out of the Studio, is supported by Create NSW
| Date: | Friday 19 September |
| Time : | 6.30pm |
| Book Now: | Book Now |
| Date: | Saturday 20 September |
| Time : | 2.30pm |
| Book Now: | Book Now |
| Date: | Saturday 20 September |
| Time : | 6.30pm |
| Book Now: | Book Now |
Prices
| Adults |
| $30 |
| Dirtyfeeters |
| $15 |
| Elders |
| $15 |
| Concessions |
| $15 |
| Companion |
| $0 |
For full details visit DirtyFeet’s website.