As part of the Sydney Festival, Christopher Wheeldon’s new contemporary ballet company comes to Australia for the first time. Formed in 2007, Morphoses has quickly established itself as a major creative force in the dance world. 

The ensemble had the goal of introducing a spirit of innovation to classical ballet, fostering collaboration among choreographers, dancers, visual artists, designers and composers. The company has dual bases in London’s Sadler’s Wells and the New York City Center.

Wheeldon is one of the most celebrated figures in contemporary ballet, creating works for leading companies including New York City Ballet (where he was the first ever Resident Choreographer from 2001 to 2008), The Royal Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, Bolshoi Ballet, The Metropolitan Opera and The Australian Ballet. The scope and originality of his work has won him an unrivalled international reputation, with several of his works acclaimed as modern masterpieces.

For each performance, Wheeldon invites different dancers to join his ensemble. In Sydney the program will feature a number of Principals from The Australian Ballet alongside some of the world’s foremost ballet dancers.

For its Sydney Festival season Morphoses brings four acclaimed works to the Theatre Royal, including Wheeldon’s new work, the profoundly beautiful Fools’ Paradise, accompanied by live chamber orchestra; and USA choreographer William Forsythe’s Slingerland Pas de Deux, tautly engineered to Gavin Bryer's music for string quartet.

Desert Island Dances is described as a ‘darkly humorous and incisive performance that tackles notions of absence and presence. Devised by Wendy Houston, in association with John Avery, Desert Island Dances is inspired by a long-running BBC radio program, Desert Island Discs. The work incorporates dance and the spoken word into a warm-hearted and often funny exploration into things that make us who we are.

Wendy Houston is London-based and is a movement/theatre artist whose work combines movement with text and meaning with humour. She has worked extensively as a solo performer, most notably with her shows Haunted and Flaunted and Happy Hour. She has won many awards including the 2003 Jerwood Choreography Award and the 2004 Australian Dance Award for Choreography. Most recently, she choreographed The Fondue Set’s No Success Like Failure at the Sydney Opera House in 2008.

For full details of both shows see What’s On