Presented by NT Dance Company and Darwin Entertainment Centre in association with Darwin Festival

Gary Lang fuses traditional lore with contemporary movement to share his poignant experience of grief and joy.

At the moment of death, the waŋa (spirit) takes a journey that follows the sunset and the morning star back to the East, where it’s meant to be.

Waŋa is an evocative new dance work created by Larrakia man Gary Lang, Rirratjŋu lore man Banula Marika and MIKU Performing Arts, together with Darwin Symphony Orchestra’s String Quartet.

Opening with an expressive interpretation that touches on the funeral rites of the Yolŋu people, Waŋa moves between ceremonial dance and Gary Lang’s own unique style of contemporary ‘Indigenous ballet’. This moving and epic production exquisitely captures both the pain and relief of a spirit’s passing, and shares solace in the sorrow of those left behind.

“When the soul leaves the spirit world and is conceived to this world, the spirit world sheds tears of sadness. When the soul is born to this physical world, we shed tears of joy. Likewise, when the soul leaves this world, there are tears of sadness and when it steps back into the spirit world there are tears of joy…”

– Gary’s Grandmother

Performance warnings
Contains references to the funeral rites of the Yolŋu people of Arnhem Land