BALLET UN~STAGED

Full-body studio shot of a model in a black fitted outfit seated confidently on a transparent chair

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    Creative Direction

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    Photography

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    Styling

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    Post Production

The Australian Ballet couldn't dance, so we built them a stage eight square metres wide and shaped like a phone. It became one of the most-watched ballet performances this country has ever produced.

The pandemic shut the Sydney Opera House and Melbourne's State Theatre, and the country's best young dancers ended up rehearsing in hallways and backyards. The Telstra Ballet Dancer Awards were about to reach their 17th year with no stage to hold them on and no audience allowed in the room. Telstra was not willing to let a whole cohort of emerging dancers lose their moment to a closed venue.

Close-up portrait of a model with slicked-back hair wearing a black fashion piece
Close-up portrait of a model with slicked-back hair wearing a black fashion piece

So we un-staged it. We built custom eight square metre dance floors and designed the sets vertically, in 9:16, so the performance was composed for the phone rather than cropped down to fit it. Artistic Director David McAllister choreographed for the new dimensions, and the six nominees, Nathan Brook, Imogen Chapman, Jasmin Durham, Corey Herbert, Serena Graham and Cameron Holmes, each danced to camera instead of to a hall.

Model reclining on a transparent chair wearing a black fitted ensemble
Model reclining on a transparent chair wearing a black fitted ensemble
Full-length studio image of a model posing in a black high-gloss outfit
Full-length studio image of a model posing in a black high-gloss outfit
Fashion advertisement display featuring a model in a black dress at a subway platform
Fashion advertisement display featuring a model in a black dress at a subway platform

Ballet Un-staged reached more than two million viewers, making it one of the most-watched Australian ballet performances of all time, and drove 240,000 votes, a record for the awards. Nathan Brook took both Rising Star and People's Choice.