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David Hallberg, Wild at Heart
TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

David Hallberg, Wild at Heart

Today I'm speaking with David Hallberg. We actually started this season with David McAllister who had just stepped down as Artistic Director of the Australian Ballet. We are now speaking with David Hallberg, the brand new Artistic Director of the Australian Ballet. David was born in a small American town called Rapid City in South Dakota. He started dancing at nine years old, after seeing Fred Astaire on the television. And he only started ballet when he was 13. But by 17, he was selected to do a year at the Paris Opera Ballet School before joining his dream company,...

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Alice Topp's Lucky Break
TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

Alice Topp's Lucky Break

Today, I’m speaking with the Australian Ballet’s resident choreographer, Alice Topp. Alice was born and raised in Bendigo, a small town in regional Victoria. She started dancing at the age of four and was destined for a career as a ballerina. While Alice’s career at the Australian Ballet is widely known, what many don’t know is that Alice’s journey to the Australian Ballet wasn’t like most. She didn’t train at the Australian Ballet School. Instead, she did a stint at the Royal New Zealand Ballet company. She broke her foot, and then worked in a Melbourne pub to continue her...

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ADT's New Director Daniel Riley
TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

ADT's New Director Daniel Riley

Daniel Riley is the newly appointed artistic director of Australian Dance Theatre. Daniel is a proud Wiradjuri man of Western New South Wales. He grew up around Canberra, inspired by the Tap Dogs, learning contemporary dance, ballet, and tap. But it was a chance encounter with ADTs founder, Elizabeth Cameron Dalman, which changed the direction of Daniel's life to one of pursuing dance as a career. He ultimately headed north to study dance at Queensland University of Technology and following graduation and various adventures building his craft around the globe, Daniel joined Bangarra Dance Theatre, where he spent the next...

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The Rise of Frances Rings
TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

The Rise of Frances Rings

The incredible Frances Rings, Bangarra's Associate Artistic Director, joins us on this episode of Talking Pointes. A descendant of the Kokatha people, Frances was born in Adelaide and spent her childhood traveling, dancing, and living all around Australia while her father worked on the railways. However, it was a teacher at her boarding school in Queensland that spotted her talent, and encouraged her to audition for NAISDA, the National Aboriginal and Islander Skills Development Association.

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Becoming Emma Wiggle
TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

Becoming Emma Wiggle

Many of you will know Emma Watkins as the supremely talented Emma Wiggle. Emma grew up like many aspiring dancers, dreaming of becoming a ballerina but her dreams took an unexpected change after sustaining an injury as a teenager. Her dreams changed direction and she embarked on a different path, one that led her to university, film editing, and to ultimately becoming the iconic Yellow Wiggle. In this wonderfully generous and personal interview, Emma talks about her years of ballet training in Sydney, how she auditioned to join the Wiggles first as a dancer, and then being selected to become...

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Mao's Last Dancer Speaks Auslan
TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

Mao's Last Dancer Speaks Auslan

Li Cunxin, artistic director of the Queensland Ballet, joins us for episode five of Talking Pointes. Most of you will know Li from his early life: he is Mao's Last Dancer. Li was born into complete poverty in rural China, where he was plucked from obscurity to join the Beijing Dance Academy. He was put through years of brutal training, up to 16 hours a day, to become a dancer.

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Marie Walton Mahon's Personal Best
TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

Marie Walton Mahon's Personal Best

On episode four of Talking Pointes, we speak with a woman many of you will know, Marie Walton Mahon. Marie, or Miss Marie, as many still call her, has taught and trained literally thousands of dancers here in Australia and around the globe. A dance prodigy in her own right, she was selected as a teenager to train in France with the great Rosella Hightower, and then danced professionally in Marseille, under the artistic directorship of the late, great, Roland Petit.

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Adam Blanch, the Real Billy Elliot
TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

Adam Blanch, the Real Billy Elliot

Today, I'm speaking with my lifelong friend, Adam Blanch. Adam's story has often been compared with Billy Elliot. He grew up in a tiny town in regional Australia called Weston. It's about an hours drive west of Newcastle. In this tiny town everyone can always remember that Adam was dancing. And so, at the age of six, Adam's mum and dad enrolled him in the local ballet class, held in a local hall. He was the only boy. And so, his life in dance began. In this very candid and courageous interview, Adam opens up about his childhood, the bullying...

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Lana Jones Gives Back
TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

Lana Jones Gives Back

Lana Jones' journey in ballet seems like the dream run for many aspiring youngsters. As a teenager, she won the silver medal at the international ballet competition, the Genée Awards in London, was accepted into the Australian Ballet School, graduated dux and was accepted straight into the company. From there, the dream continued. She rose through the ranks, won the Telstra Ballet Dancer of the Year Award, married a fellow dancer and was promoted to Principal.

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David McAllister's Finnish Odyssey
TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

David McAllister's Finnish Odyssey

David McAllister is probably the most well-known face of dance in Australia. He was born in Perth and he was accepted into the Australian Ballet School as a 17-year-old. He graduated and joined the company directly, wowing crowds across the globe. His final performance was in “Giselle” in 2001. And then, three months later, he was named Artistic Director of that same company.

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Talking Pointes
TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

Talking Pointes

Talking Pointes is a ballet and contemporary dance podcast that interviews some of the most extraordinary and famous dancers, artistic directors and choreographers. In our 2021 season we’re bringing together ten beautiful interviews to explore not just the inspiration and careers of our guests, but all the other stuff that surrounds dance—inspiration, regrets, bullying, body image, sexuality, retirement, lifelong friendships and even how to start a new career when the curtains finally close.

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Dance Dialogues
TALKING POINTES | Rachel Elderkin

Dance Dialogues

Join London-based dance artist and writer Rachel Elderkin for Dance Dialogues: A Podcast. Each episode a guest from the dance world will join us to discuss their life, work and what matters in the dance world right now. From artists and choreographers, to directors and critics, this lively, conversational podcast has the dance world covered. Listen to the latest episode here or find us on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.

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Featured Reads

REVIEWS | Rachel Howard
Starry Nights

Beneath blue California skies, manicured trees, and the occasional hum of an overhead airplane, Tamara Rojo took the Frost Amphitheater stage at Stanford University to introduce herself as the new artistic director of San Francisco Ballet.

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