QL2 Dance, Canberra's youth dance ensemble, has bred many of Australia's prominent dance artists. One of those is Melanie Lane, who has returned to the company this year to create a new work as part of a triple bill called "Terra Firma".
Lane's work is called Metal Park, which "contemplates how we have become a part of the material world in which we operate and questions our desire for material necessity".
Her work will be presented alongside Tides of Time, by Steve and Lilah Gow (Synergy Styles), which investigates "our relationship with time in an era of constant change; how we project ourselves in the future or live in the past, exploring ways to remain in the present, onto solid ground, to fulfil our lives".
Also on the program is Cadi McCarthy's Shifting Ground, which explores "the physicality of solid versus shifting ground as concepts, embodying the strength and connection that holds us to our world in these uncertain times".
All three works promise to "explore the diverse ways we perceive our changing world".
QL2 Dance is dedicated to diverse, challenging and rigorous youth dance which nurtures and develops the next generation of dance-makers in the ACT.
Lane will be represented again in Canberra later in the year in a triple bill, "Three", by Australasian Dance Collective in June. Another alumnus is Daniel Riley, who is now artistic director of Australian Dance Theatre. He is presenting his Savage at the Canberra Theatre Centre in September.
'Terra Firma' runs from May 26 to 27. More info here.