THE Australian Ballet has chosen to celebrate its 50th birthday in the national capital by bringing home several of our ?golden girls?, principal artists Lana Jones and Rachel Rawlins and Queanbeyan?s Dimity Azoury.
It will perform at a free show, ?Telstra Ballet in the Park? at Stage 88, in Commonwealth Park, as part of the Canberra Festival, on March 16.
?CityNews? spoke to Rawlins recently as she prepared to embark on a celebratory tour around the country and later to New York.
Promoted to principal dancer in 2004, Rawlins left home at age 13 after taking ballet classes here with Del Brady and later studying at the Victorian College of the Arts, the National Theatre Ballet School and The Australian Ballet School.
Rawlins has no family left in Canberra, but has many old friends here and likes to see them.
After an early career with The Australian Ballet, she joined The Royal Ballet in London for two years as a first soloist. Back in Australia, audiences thrilled to the beauty of performances such as Juliet in ?Romeo and Juliet? and Cio-Cio-San (Butterfly) in ?Madame Butterfly?. Now at the peak of her career, she says, ?you gain things as you get older?.
She?ll be dancing in an excerpt from Act II of ?Giselle?, a role she says she?s done a few times and loves.
?I try to do outdoor performances about once a year? it?s always a very special night? it gives people a chance to see the ballet,? she says.
Artistic director, David McAllister, describes the free performance as ?our birthday present to our passionate Canberra supporters?, noting the long connection that began in 1965 when the company helped open the Canberra Theatre. Another long connection is with principal sponsor Telstra, which has partnered with The Australian Ballet for 28 of its 50 years.
Our golden night will feature Australian Ballet highlights from over the decades in ?La Favorita?, ?Don Quixote?, ?Giselle?, ?The Nutcracker?, ?Le Corsaire? and ?Molto Vivace? and ? never seen before in Canberra ? Graeme Murphy?s memorable interpretation of ?Swan Lake?.
But for ballet tragics, the highlight will be the piece from ?La Bayadere?, where 11 female dancers take the stage in white tutus, tiaras and tulle.
Ballet staff say Commonwealth Park will give the audience a chance to see the company?s dancers up close.
Telstra ?Ballet in the Park?, Stage 88, 7pm, Friday, March 16. If the weather is inclement, visit australianballet.com.au at 3pm on March 16 for updates. No tickets are required.
PHOTO: Rachel Rawlins in ?Giselle?, by Jean Francois Campos
About Helen Musa
Source: http://citynews.com.au/2012/news/golden-girls-home-for-the-party/
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