Sydney Dance Company's Rafael Bonachela Turns Dance Into A Political Movement

The choreography of Sydney Dance Company artistic director Rafael Bonachela doesn't deal in traditional narratives, but that's not to say the Spanish-born dance maker isn't a skilled storyteller.

While there may not be any tutu-clad swans or star-crossed lovers in his productions, Bonachela's movement tells a human story through the ineffable potency of emotion. His work resounds with the echoes of age-old questions about who we are and where we've come from. "I've always been motivated by a desire to move an audience, to touch them in some way. I think that's why any artist creates. We want to make connections. We want to make people think," Bonachela shares. "It's about discovering how to communicate aspects of our humanity. It's a gut feeling, living in that moment, acknowledging what's going on around us, and then exploring how those emotions can be interpreted through dance."

Navigating the space between boundary-busting innovation and easily accessible drama has become a hallmark of Bonachela's choreography, producing a canon of works that have cemented his reputation as the nation's most important dance maker. However, the inspirations behind his award-winning productions have almost unanimously remained in a timeless hinterland, unattached to any specific historical or cultural anchor.

Until now, that is. For his latest work, Ocho — being presented as part of part of Orb, a double-bill with Taiwanese choreographer Cheng Tsung-lung's Full Moon — Bonachela has joined the ever increasing number of artists around the world who are responding to the turbulent geopolitical climate. By his own admission, this new work, which marks his eighth year leading SDC, is still "very abstract", but at its core is a subtext about the rich, multicultural makeup of Australia, under threat from the dog-whistle isolationist rhetoric creeping its way into mainstream politics.

But rather than being an enraged act of protest, Ocho is a celebration of the power of unity. Set to an original score by Bonachela's regular collaborator Nick Wales, the music features a combination of surging electronica and indigenous vocals. Performed by celebrated Mangalili singer Rrawun Mymurur, this bold fusion of polarised styles poetically links Australia's ancient past with its cosmopolitan present.

The eight dancers who will perform the work come from a range of cultural backgrounds, reflecting the diversity of our modern society. "I'm not going to lie, this was new territory for us, but it just made sense," Bonachela admits. "It was a beautiful, very organic process. In our choices of the music and the set, the way the dancers exist in that space, it's all very connected to what's happening today in the world, and how people are reacting to those situations. There are many ways you might read it - for some people it could be connected to the refugee crisis. For others, it could be connected to how cultures are being displaced or taken over. There are so many meanings to it; they're subconscious but still so important to the way this work communicates."

Bonachella's creative practice is highly collaborative, working closely with his dancers through a process of improvisation and gradual refinement in the studio. Given the inescapable, near hysterical media coverage of the unfolding political maelstrom, both in Australia and overseas, the influence of odious figures like Donald Trump and Pauline Hanson was inevitable, Bonachela says. "I don't force narratives on my work, but this piece is full of meaning. We didn't set out for it to make those statements, but even without making a choice when we began making this piece, the fact that we wake up every day and we read the news and are bombarded by frightening headlines, those things become unavoidable I think. We just couldn't ignore those elements when they were everywhere we looked."

Far from projecting a specific political message, Bonachela hopes the uncluttered honesty of Ocho's symbolism will prompt a range of responses. "My pallet was so rich with the eight very different individuals who are performing in this piece. All of them have different looks, different backgrounds, different outlooks. What's interesting for me is that although the audience will, of course, connect what they see with what feels right for them, depending on their worldview and their experiences, I've encouraged each of the dancers to be entirely themselves. They're not representing characters or ideologies - they are just people," Bonachela explains. "I hope the audience feels that connection. I think there's real humanity in this work because of this aspect and this focus. There is a lot in Ocho that is pretty intense and hard-core and absolute. But ultimately it goes to a positive place - a place of acceptance and togetherness."

Sydney Dance Company presents Orb, 26 Apr — 13 May at Roslyn Packer Theatre, Sydney, 17 — 20 May at Arts Centre Melbourne, and 25 — 27 May at Canberra Theatre Centre.