Sydney Dance Company is a legendary force in Australian contemporary dance. Its performances have appeared on the great dance stages of the world, from the Sydney Opera House in Australia, to the Joyce Theatre in New York, the Grand in Shanghai and the Stanislavsky in Moscow.

Its dancers have left audiences breathless, it has presented Australian art to the world, and brought the world to Australia.

Dance in Australia would be inconceivable without it.

Actively creating and touring new work under the Artistic Directorship of Rafael Bonachela, the Company maintains an ensemble of 16 exceptional dancers. Programs of dance include works by Bonachela and by guest choreographers including Jacopo Godani, Alexander Ekman and Gideon Obarzanek, as well as collaborations with the Australian Chamber Orchestra and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and with composers 48nord and Ezio Bosso.

Sydney Dance Company has its origins in a group founded in 1969 by dancer Suzanne Musitz. Soon known as The Dance Company (NSW), from 1975-1976 the Company was directed by Dutch choreographer Jaap Flier, before the appointment of Australian choreographer Graeme Murphy in 1976. In 1979 Murphy and his partner Janet Vernon instituted the defining name change to Sydney Dance Company and proceeded to lead it for a remarkable 30 years. Murphy and his collaborators created work that enthralled audiences in Australia and in extensive international touring, including being the first western contemporary dance company to perform in the People’s Republic of China.

Sydney Dance Company has been led since 2009 by Spanish-born Artistic Director Rafael Bonachela. Over the past five years the Company has cemented its reputation as a creative powerhouse, with an acclaimed group of dancers presenting new work by Bonachela and other choreographers, designers, composers and musicians. The Company has expanded its reach into the towns and cities it visits with work for schools and local dancers.

Since 1985 the Company has been a resident of the purpose-built studios at The Wharf in Sydney’s Walsh Bay, minutes from the city’s famed Bridge and Opera House. Its studios offer the largest public dance classes in Australia, with nearly 80,000 attendances annually. In 2014 a Pre-Professional training course will offer students the chance to work with some of Australia’s most successful and award winning choreographers and educators.

In 2014, Sydney Dance Company’s DancED program was launched. DancED is a national initiative supporting dance education for all ages, through strategic curriculum relevant programs for primary and secondary students and career focused study for pre-professional dancers and university graduates. DancED connects schools, teachers and students to leading professionals in the dance industry, providing invaluable insight, opportunities and role models.