Even if we don’t care to admit it, we love our comfort zones. We silo them, guard them, sometimes jealously. Yet, we also love to break out. Reach out. In the arts, we see both tendencies magnified. Tradition and invention are always in dialogue, and creative collisions are commonplace.
One such fusion event is set to explode on the boards of the Joan Sutherland Theatre at the Sydney Opera House in June, when the circus crashes into the orchestra pit. LOUDER is a barrier breaking duet between Adelaide based acrobatic ensemble Gravity & Other Myths and the German fine music institution, Brandenburger Symponiker.
At first glance, it seems like an eyebrow raising marriage of high and low culture; but in the details, the union starts to make more sense. As dancer-turned-circus performer, Isabel Estrella, observes, “When you look at the history of each artform, they do seem to be sitting on two extremes; so it does very much feel like a meeting of the minds at this new middle ground.”
Indeed, Estrella’s journey to LOUDER roughly traces the same arc. Born and initially trained in New Zealand, she soon found herself in Australia, and with a desire to explore how her dance skills might be expanded into other realms. “I started branching out, working in physical theatre,” she recalls. “I started working for Legs On The Wall, and that sort of got me into an aerial movement space. Then, in 2023, I got the opportunity to audition for Gravity & Other Myths.”
The dance/circus nexus is well known. Both are elite physical disciplines. Athletic and artistic. Having embodied the intersection, Estrella notes, “There’s a lot of cross-pollination because there are people doing a lot of the same moves, but also opposite moves. So yeah, I think it’s been really interesting how my dance career has been able to speed up the learning curve. Like, a lot of it is kind of similar, but not the same.”
At the level of technique, of choreographic minutiae, she explains, “If I have questions, they’ll be like, ‘Hold your body this way,’ and I’ll be like, ‘Right.’ Then I can take that and apply it myself.”
For the meeting of Gravity & Other Myths and the Brandenburger Symponiker, the translation was more complex. Although both artforms are necessarily rigorous, the exact nature and expression of their specific languages did not instantly coalesce.
Thinking back to the rehearsal process, Estrella reveals, “In the early stages, there was a lot of play; which is quite normal for movers and acrobats…but you could tell that it was something quite new to the orchestra. That was nice because you could see a lot of the members of the orchestra getting quite into it. It was a chance for them to stretch this new muscle. It wasn’t just repertoire.”
With a cast of eight acrobats and over 20 musicians, LOUDER requires not only a bond of trust but a difficult blend of exactness and latitude. For circus performers and orchestral players alike, a clear reference point is required.
“That really comes down to the conductor,” Estrella points out. “They become that sort of conduit between the two; which is also quite tricky because the conductor is facing the orchestra, but away from us. But they still need to be aware of what’s going on behind them.”
In order for the music and the movement to sync, to be a unified whole, special emphasis is placed on timing. Estrella confirms that “a lot of negotiation” between the acrobats and musicians was required. Fortunately, the high end skillset of the Brandenburger Symponiker smoothed the path. The players, Estrella elaborates, are trained to “drill that timing,” and it is to this anchor point that the natural variations of the circus show returns throughout.
“The beauty of acrobatics, especially the ‘big’ skills, is that it doesn’t always have that exact timing,” she adds. “Then it becomes this kind of balancing act with the conductor. Like, ‘you might have to just hold it a little bit while we prep.’ So yeah, it becomes this mix of really set rigidity and also a lot of fluidity to go with the bodies.”
Although easy to imagine the challenges of fusing two historically disparate artforms into a coherent whole (whilst also avoiding the pitfalls of mere novelty), when LOUDER debuted in Brandenburg in May 2025, it was also a stretch for the audience.
“It was quite a curious mix,” Estrella confirms. “You could definitely tell at least half of them were orchestra season ticket holders; you know, they go every year, maybe every season. But then the other half was more interested in the circus portion…It was really interesting to see their kind of opposite journeys.”
Having bridged perceived divides in her own practise, Estrella knows both the hurdles and the rewards that come with clearing them. With a hint of wry laughter, she declares, “But as the performance goes on, you can see people getting more on board, more invested. I think this is the beauty of the collaboration between the circus and the orchestra. It gives multiple ways for the audience to relate.”
Bach and backflips? For some, this may seem a bridge too far. For the rest of us, a chance to span the supposed chasm. Perhaps, after all, we are louder together.
Gravity & Other Myths will present LOUDER at the Sydney Opera House from 25 – 28 June. For bookings and more information, visit www.sydneyoperahouse.com/comedy-circus-magic/louder.
By Paul Ransom of Dance Informa.
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