Q&A with Company Artist Ines Hargreaves - Queensland Ballet

At the heart of gundirgan, wise woman is a story of love and sacrifice.

Here, Company Artist Ines Hargreaves shares her experience of the creation of the work, from Country to studio to stage.

Tell us about the experience of going on country with Katina and the rest of the team what did you do there? What did you feel?

It was such a privilege to have had the opportunity to experience such a special few days of togetherness and admiration for another culture. We were unsure of exactly what to expect of the trip, though we could sense the importance and deeply rooted significance of Ban Ban Springs through conversations with Katina and those close to her.

Upon arrival, the emotional energy was palpable. We removed our shoes and felt the earth under our feet, dipped our fingers into the bubbling springs, and shared stories of Aunty Maureen Williams - an Elder and significant figure of the Wakka Wakka and Kombumerri peoples, and whose story we are sharing - under the shade of an enormous gum tree. There was laughter, tears and almost everything in between, and I found myself feeling incredibly emotional all day.

We were lucky enough to have Chris Williams masterfully play his didgeridoo while we shared a few minutes of movement together; feeling the energy of the earth and sun and moving in whatever way felt right to us at the time. It was the second occasion we’d had Chris play for us, and it’s hard to put into words just how impactful and chill-inducing it is to dance to such hypnotically rich sound.

How collaborative has the choreography process been with Katina?

A rehearsal with Katina nearly always begins by checking in with each other and connecting to Country; something that I have found to be an incredibly grounding moment of mindfulness and awareness of your own body and the land on which we dance. From the get-go, it was total comfort and an even playing field. Kat has a distinctive ability to foster creativity and break down any personal barriers we find ourselves carrying, all while carefully and clearly articulating her own ideas.

In the early days of creation, Kat encouraged a lot of our own improvisation and building of phrases; something that certainly doesn’t always come naturally to ballet dancers, though the studio always seemed to be brimming with enthusiasm and ideas flowing out of every dancer. From here, Kat would seamlessly knit together our individual phrases and inject particular motifs and meaning, and before long we had created 20-minutes worth of dancing.

What are your impressions of the story?

From what we’ve heard about Aunty Maureen, both from her own family as well as Katina, she’s nothing short of exemplary.

Through unflinching altruism, she was willing to work tirelessly and make sacrifices to ensure her children were given an education to succeed in the white world. Hearing her children tearfully reflect on her life and their upbringings was a reminder of how important family is.

In this piece we explore some key elements of cultural significance, and delve into the timeline of Aunty Maureen’s life. Ban Ban Springs was a huge inspiration; a meeting place and sacred site to Wakka Wakka people, said to be guarded by the Rainbow Serpent.

Most importantly, it’s crucial that these stories are told. There is so much culture and history that must be shared, and being able to do this through dance is such a gift. Being Queensland Ballet’s first piece by a First Nations choreographer, I do hope this opens the door to many more opportunities to share stories like this in the future.

Final thoughts?

I think I’m most excited to see how those who were close to Aunty Maureen respond to the piece. Since we’re portraying a story that is deeply personal to so many, there’s definitely a sense of pressure to do it justice, which I know we’re all eager to achieve.

I’ve found the process to be really unique in its own way; perhaps the amalgamation of how collaborative it’s been, the nature of the storyline and just how great Kat is to work with. The creation as a whole has been overwhelmingly positive and inspiring.