The incredible legacy of retiring Australian Ballet artistic director David McAllister
When David McAllister steps down as artistic director of The Australian Ballet next year, he will leave behind 38 years of magic he has wove both on and off stage. But it won’t be the last you see of him.
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Having been a dancer since he was seven, any suggestion that dance may not be on David McAllister’s horizon as he prepares to show his final season as artistic director of The Australian Ballet is quickly scoffed at.
“Even when I was dancing, I thought I’d step away from dance at some point and reinvent myself, but it’s the thing that makes me tick,” he says.
“I’m such a tragic bun head. I absolutely love the art. It’s such a wonderful expression and, for me, it’s the outlet as a performer and with that, the great honour of being the director of the company for so long.
“It’s been such a fantastic opportunity to support and facilitate the art form and the artists.”
He leaves the Melbourne-based company he joined 38 years ago — dancing in it for 18 years — next year on a high.
It’s in great shape financially but, more than that, it has become a company of international standing, creating solid ground for his replacement, who will be announced next year.
McAllister has pulled back the curtain of The Australian Ballet to widen its view.
He’s always believed ardently in its depth of talent and has brought in star international choreographers and performers to help our dancers grow and also show them off to the broader market.
It’s to his credit that the most in-demand choreographer of our time, Alexei Ratmansky, has made The Australian Ballet a priority, creating a new version of Harlequinade especially for the company in 2020.
Graeme Murphy had to be part of McAllister’s final season, having been the first choreographer he commissioned with his hallmark version of Swan Lake, returning next year with The Happy Prince.
“There’s a lot of full-circle moments for us next year and it continues that great relationship we’ve had with the Murphys (Graeme Murphy’s partner is dancer Janet Vernon),” McAllister says.
“And I’ve been working on getting the co-production of Yuri Possokhov’s Anna Karenina since 2014. It’s the most beautiful production in the world today.”
But the relationships he’s fostered always began with the dancers.
As a former principal dancer himself, his sympathies always lent towards the dancers who tour more than any other ballet company in the world.
“I’ll never ask the dancers to do anything I didn’t do. I’ve been lucky that such wonderful dancers have joined the company and there are eight beautiful new dancers joining next year. The talent is so inspiring,” he says.
WHAT OTHERS SAY ABOUT DAVID MCALLISTER’S LEGACY:
STEVEN HEATHCOTE
Ballet master, regional touring associate and former principal artist
“There are many positives which David will leave behind as his legacy. The company is in a healthy position and through him, has developed very positive working relationships with many dancers, choreographers, designers and composers from home and abroad.
One of the achievements I feel sure David is most proud of is the introduction of a properly thought-out parental-leave policy, allowing us to retain the talents of our mature female artists while giving them latitude to start a family.
David has brought many special qualities to the AB. From the very first year, he approached his job with the same vigour, dedication, discipline and energy that characterised his dancing career.
David is a wonderful connector of people and has an ability to visualise how creatives might work together towards a common project.
Importantly, David’s focus is always on the repertoire, the company and the people within it. This generosity and selflessness is the mark of an artist with his feet and his ego firmly on the ground.”
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CHENGWU GUO
Principal artist, The Australian Ballet
His ability to identify high-level quality dancers is what made us a very international company.
Throughout the years, David has continued to expand the multicultural nature of The Australian Ballet in order to create a safe, fair and genuine environment for the company.
We are from all over the world — China, New Zealand, Japan, Britain, French, the US, Russia, Italy, South Africa and Cuba.
David has always been very proud of Australia and he knows how important it is for us to be seen on international stages to make sure our company name is known around the world.”
AMBER SCOTT
Principal artist
“During David’s time at the helm I’ve seen a big push by him to develop Australian work using the skills of our homegrown talent from dancers and creatives.
His philosophy to engage a company of healthy, fit and athletic dancers felt like a really positive new era and this coincided with the mighty evolution of our medical team that now draws international attention for its succession rehabilitation and conditioning.
David has been a wonderfully warm, generous and human director. compassion and understanding will he missed by us greatly.
He has an infectious enthusiasm for dance and a great sense of humour that I’ve loved witnessing over many years in the company.”
ALICE TOPP
Resident choreographer and coryphée
“David has fostered some vital dance education programs and choreographic platforms.
He introduced the popular Story time Ballet program and was a supporting force behind the Bodytorque platform, which uncovered and enabled choreographers to develop their artistic voices and gain invaluable experience.
Through these programs, young voices of today are being nurtured and the future of dance is a brighter place.
Young artists now have a greater opportunity to pursue their dance dreams. His love of the art form and the company is infectious. (He’s) an extraordinary ambassador.”
MAINA GIELGUD
Former artistic director, The Australian Ballet
“He has continued and elaborated on the legacy of previous artistic directors, by giving audiences a well-distributed mix of classical and contemporary works, including creations by well-known and emerging choreographers.
Dancers thus have been able to hone their craft in various ways and continue their technical, musical and artistic development.
His medical team continues to explore the best injury prevention possible, while updating the injury care when it happens.”
FIONA TONKIN
Artistic associate, principal coach and former dance partner
“One of the truisms of David is that he doesn’t have a constant need for the spotlight and the job hasn’t changed him.
He will embrace what needs to be done, and it is done with a quiet acknowledgment of the position’s privilege and responsibilities.
He maintains an approachability that benefits the dancers and engages with the wider community.
There is very much an accessibility factor which prevails around the company today, and this is a good thing.
Also what David has not lost is the joy of performing, of which he has done in ballets such as La Fille Mal Gardee, The Merry Widow, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and in this year’s Sylvia.
And I think it’s a wonderful demonstration of leadership in the sense of how precious
it is to be onstage and entertaining people.”
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