After three years and as many cancellations, The Royal New Zealand Ballet’s Venus Rising programme is coming to feature four works by amazing female choreographers. Cityscape talks career and choreography with Alice Topp, the creator of Aurum.
Fourth time lucky for Venus Rising and Aurum! Why has the RNZB stuck by this performance, while others have been consigned to the losses of Covid-19? I think what’s special about the story we’re telling in Aurum is that it’s all about changing the way we see imperfections and learning to embrace our scars, bruises and history and find a way to see these perceived flaws as part of what makes us beautifully human. The past couple of years have been difficult and have thrown us a swell of emotion and I think this piece will only grow in its relatability. I think there’s no better to time to share a work like this because it’s all about finding beauty in the broken.
What are your memories of training with RNZB at the start of your career? I had two and a half wonderful, formative, rich, fulfilling, fun years with RNZB as my first job at the age of 19. I fell in love with the country, the company and the beautiful people of New Zealand. I was fortunate enough to tour with the company to London, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Bath and perform a vast range of extraordinary repertoire alongside contemporaries I now call family. I made friends for life and my creative voice was born in NZ. I hold my time in RNZB very close to my heart.
You’ve had an amazing career with the Australian Ballet – what is the highlight? It’s been a 14-year-long highlight reel! Touring and performing in Paris, Tokyo, San Fran, LA and New York are absolute highlights, along with having my work Aurum being performed at The Joyce Theater in New York would be right up there. Every performance and the opportunity to create art have been the greatest gifts and I’ve been very lucky to do both in abundance.
Is it good to be back with the old company? It’s been a beautiful full circle and kind of like slipping into a pair of old UGG Boots where you feel right at home.
How did you move from performance to choreography? I was fortunate enough to be encouraged to take a risk on creating a piece for The Australian Ballet’s choreographic season and from then on, I haven’t stopped creating. The experience was so rewarding and fulfilling for me and was a total revelation. The ten years that followed enabled me to continue creating whilst dancing, which meant I was able to discover and grow my choreographic voice whilst learning off the greats that I was lucky enough to dance for. I was able to work with a vast range of choreographers as a dancer and observe their creative processes, which inevitably have informed mine. I’ve been very lucky to gain experience throughout my dancing years that put me in the best possible position to launch into the choreographic realm. It’s always scary trying something new but I’ve been lucky to be surrounded by wonderful mentors and peers.
Is the tradition of male-dominated choreography breaking down? Absolutely. We’re slowly seeing more female choreographers emerge and more females in roles as conductors, CEOs and positions of leadership. Change takes time but it’s wonderful to see more and more women take the choreographic reigns and act as mentors to emerging female creatives.
What can you tell us about the art of kintsugi? Kintsugi is the Japanese art of repairing broken or damaged ceramics with gold or metallic lacquer. The philosophy behind it is that by repairing with gold it illuminates the fracture, rather than hiding it, and the object often becomes more beautiful than it was before for having been broken. It celebrates the object, its history and its unique imperfections.
How do you portray this through ballet? For me it’s all about collaboration with the artists and dancers. It’s the amalgamation of design, music, costume and artistry coming together to tell a story. I focus a lot on the composition of the work – whether it’s creating with a group or a solo or a duet and questioning what each element is saying so that the whole picture reads. It’s always a journey of discovery but it’s about finding ways of how best to capture the story through the movement and where the emotions you’re portraying sit in the body.
Having suffered your own injury and breaks in your professional dancing career, do you draw parallels between the kintsugi and your own life? I do, but quite often the injuries that hurt the most in life are unseen, and I think everyone can connect kintsugi with their own life. We all have a story and I find the concept of kintsugi healing as it looks at these injuries with a sense of transformation and illumination, rather than a blemish on our character.
What should the audience be keeping an eye out for when Venus Rising comes to Christchurch? The program is a wonderful mix of unique dance vocabularies. Each piece has its own flavour and aesthetic so I think audiences can expect an arresting, moving, exciting evening.
And what’s next for you? Any works in the works? I’m currently creating a new work for The Australian Ballet that premieres in September, and have six other projects up my sleeve. Feeling very lucky to be so busy doing what I love.
Will we see your work again with RNZB soon? I hope so! Every opportunity I get to create with the company is a gift and I cherish the strong ties I have with this beautiful organisation and country.