A Light in the Dark
Tracing the spectacular rise of Sydney-based Bangarra Dance Theatre from a young and hungry independent company driven by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander creatives to becoming one of Australia’s most treasured performing-arts outfits, Wayne Blair and Nel Minchin’s powerful documentary compels. Stephen A Russell speaks to Minchin about the triumphs and the tragedies that underpin the group’s monumental achievements.
Listen to Bangarra Dance Theatre’s artistic director, Stephen Page, speak about the First Nations–led company he has led for thirty years, and it’s clear the fire still burns inside him. It’s all in the name, really. Bangarra is the Wiradjuri word meaning ‘to make fire’. That light radiating from Stephen captivated documentary filmmaker Nel Minchin when she saw him speak about his mesmeric dance film Spear (2015) at a Sydney Theatre Company (STC) event in 2016. She recalls:
I saw him speak and just realised what an interesting character he is. Spear is such a visceral and beautiful film, and a really interesting story he explores without a dialogue-based script. And I thought, ‘I want to find out more about that story and that person.’
Minchin grew up in Perth and was aware of the award-winning work of Bangarra, but not intimately so. She has a track record in telling stories about
