Two of Australia's most celebrated dance companies; The Australian Ballet and Bangarra Dance Theatre, unite for Flora, a landmark world premiere.
Flora marks the fourth major collaboration between The Australian Ballet and Bangarra Dance Theatre, and the most ambitious yet.
Conceived and created by Mirning woman Frances Rings, Bangarra’s Artistic Director and co-CEO, Flora draws on 65,000 years of cultural storytelling to trace a journey through origin, disruption and renewal, with Australia’s native plants the heartbeat of it all.
Flora brings together more than 35 artists across both companies, weaving classical ballet and First Nations storytelling into a unified language that’s entirely its own. At its core, the work is about resilience and kinship; sleeping yams beneath the earth, ancient gums standing guard over generations, and the knowledge systems that have cared for Country across millennia.
Fire brings regeneration. Disruption gives way to renewal. It’s a vision of the continent’s deep past and its shared future.
Flora — The Australian Ballet x Bangarra Dance Theatre
- Melbourne: 12–21 March, Regent Theatre (with Orchestra Victoria)
- Sydney: 7–18 April, Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House (with the Opera Australia Orchestra)
- Tickets: here
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Visually, the production is a feast. Meriam Samsep woman Grace Lillian Lee has created sculptural costumes that transform the stage through clay, canopy, rain and fire, while Elizabeth Gadsby handles set design and Karen Norris is on lighting.
Kalkadungu composer William Barton has written an original score performed live by Orchestra Victoria and the Opera Australia Orchestra, and cultural consultancy by Muruwari descendant Matthew Doyle ensures the storytelling is grounded and genuine.
This is the first collaboration between the two companies under their current artistic directors, and it builds on nearly three decades of shared creative history. From Rites in 1997 through to Warumuk – in the dark night in 2012, each partnership has pushed what Australian dance can be.
Flora signals a new chapter, one rooted in ecological knowledge, intergenerational storytelling and a genuine reckoning with how culture, community and the natural world are inseparable.
It’s rare to see a work this considered and this sweeping on stage. Flora isn’t just a performance, it’s a statement about where Australian dance is headed, and what becomes possible when two powerhouse companies commit to telling a story together.
For more information, head here.
This article was made in partnership with The Australian Ballet.
