Awards
Fine Line: Film
Fine Line Terrain: Live Performance
Niche: Film
- Winner Il Coreografo Elettronico, Napolidanza, Italy 2004.
- Winner Reeldance Australia/NZ 2004.
- Winner Best dance film Australian Dance Awards 2003.
Fine Line Terrain: Live Performance
- Shortlisted for Outstanding Achievement in Choreography and Outstanding Achievement for performance by a company in 2004, Australian Dance Awards.
Niche: Film
- Finalist IMZ Monaco and Cinedans Holland, 2003.
- Highly Commended at the 2002 Reeldance Awards, Australia.
Reviews
Fine Line Terrain
Riveting elements of surprise and attack…a level of sophistication and sensitivity rarely seen.
NZ Artmonthly
Sensitive and beautiful. We should see more of Healey's remarkable choreography.
Francesca Horsley, Listener, NZ December 2003
Our most delicate and desperate dreams are the source of the tensions and rhythms from which the language of this dance is constructed. Strong arresting moments of high physicality give way to elusive intimacies… an impressive achievement.
Prof.Shirley McKechnie
Conceiving Connections research project, March 2003
Sue Healey’s passion for the idea of space permeates this subtle and enthralling work. Programme notes give us a key, suggesting that the fine lines and boundaries between the extremes of our experience are fragile at best. Our most delicate and desperate dreams are the source of the tensions and rhythms from which the language of this dance is constructed. Strong arresting moments of high physicality give way to elusive intimacies; connections dissolve into withdrawals, playfulness into gravity. And there is much more. The almost tangible spaces and places suggested by the fine lines of white cord which define the performing space become a world of separate realms. One imagines walls or windows, corners and hiding places - a niche for every fragile hope or fear, spaces inviting the imagination to enter. Indeed, the design for this work, created by Healey in collaboration with Michael Pearce is a powerful element in the coherent aesthetic which plays with perspective like a renaissance painting. But this is a three dimensional physical space, not a virtual one created in two dimensions; the sense of looking into another reality is evoked by a clever use of simple design combined with an unerring sense of timing and proportion. Darrin Verhagen’s electronic score, like Louise Curham’s delicate projections seems to flicker in and out of this imagined world for both are perfectly tuned to the sensibility of the whole. It is a world of spatial structures at once both static and fluid, spare and complex - the dancers emerge from it and are absorbed by it; we look through it and into a distance created by delicately contrived relationships between the dancers and the intricate ebb and flow of movement and stillness through spaces which are defined by their presence or absence in a shifting landscape of light and sound.
Sue Healey gives full credit to the collaboration she receives from her dancers, all of whom look as if they truly ‘own’ the work. This takes a special kind of choreographer and a process that involves the dancers at every stage of creation. Their commitment to the work is palpable and among this elite group of five the work of Shona Erskine deserves special mention. Fine Line Terrain is the fifth in a series which has evolved from the short film Niche, in which she was the solo performer. Her fine articulation and expressive presence are potent elements in the current work and her valuable collaboration in the development of the series is generously acknowledged by the choreographer. The Niche Series, a years-long work that traverses film, black box, installation, and international collaboration is an ‘investigation of the choreographed body and its intricate occupation of space.’ It is an impressive achievement.
Prof.Shirley McKechnie
Conceiving Connections research project
9 March 2003 Listener - NZ December 2003
An outstanding feature of the festival was Fine Line Terrain by visiting expat Sue Healey from Sydney. Her work explored the fragile spaces of individual lives and the boundary lines in relationships. A black walled set contained two geometric constructions of vertical and horizontal fine white cord. At various times these became cages, walls, playthings and communication lines for the dancers. Dressed in combinations of vivid pinks, orange, purple and green, the three women and two men danced in rectangles of spotlight. Healey's attention to detail is something not seen in New Zealand. Hands were splayed gecko-like on walls, and fingers finely etched space or wrote an invisible language on other dancers' bodies. She used arcs from shoulder and hip, sudden high kicks and rare, breathtaking leaps. The middle section was more optimistic, with sensual, tender and playful moments. The lines became a group cat's cradle, then a dangerous snare. Gradually, the white lines were deconstructed as the group became more chaotic and frenetic. It was sensitive and beautiful. We should see more of Healey's remarkable choreography.
Francesca Horsley
Riveting elements of surprise and attack…a level of sophistication and sensitivity rarely seen.
NZ Artmonthly
Sensitive and beautiful. We should see more of Healey's remarkable choreography.
Francesca Horsley, Listener, NZ December 2003
Our most delicate and desperate dreams are the source of the tensions and rhythms from which the language of this dance is constructed. Strong arresting moments of high physicality give way to elusive intimacies… an impressive achievement.
Prof.Shirley McKechnie
Conceiving Connections research project, March 2003
Sue Healey’s passion for the idea of space permeates this subtle and enthralling work. Programme notes give us a key, suggesting that the fine lines and boundaries between the extremes of our experience are fragile at best. Our most delicate and desperate dreams are the source of the tensions and rhythms from which the language of this dance is constructed. Strong arresting moments of high physicality give way to elusive intimacies; connections dissolve into withdrawals, playfulness into gravity. And there is much more. The almost tangible spaces and places suggested by the fine lines of white cord which define the performing space become a world of separate realms. One imagines walls or windows, corners and hiding places - a niche for every fragile hope or fear, spaces inviting the imagination to enter. Indeed, the design for this work, created by Healey in collaboration with Michael Pearce is a powerful element in the coherent aesthetic which plays with perspective like a renaissance painting. But this is a three dimensional physical space, not a virtual one created in two dimensions; the sense of looking into another reality is evoked by a clever use of simple design combined with an unerring sense of timing and proportion. Darrin Verhagen’s electronic score, like Louise Curham’s delicate projections seems to flicker in and out of this imagined world for both are perfectly tuned to the sensibility of the whole. It is a world of spatial structures at once both static and fluid, spare and complex - the dancers emerge from it and are absorbed by it; we look through it and into a distance created by delicately contrived relationships between the dancers and the intricate ebb and flow of movement and stillness through spaces which are defined by their presence or absence in a shifting landscape of light and sound.
Sue Healey gives full credit to the collaboration she receives from her dancers, all of whom look as if they truly ‘own’ the work. This takes a special kind of choreographer and a process that involves the dancers at every stage of creation. Their commitment to the work is palpable and among this elite group of five the work of Shona Erskine deserves special mention. Fine Line Terrain is the fifth in a series which has evolved from the short film Niche, in which she was the solo performer. Her fine articulation and expressive presence are potent elements in the current work and her valuable collaboration in the development of the series is generously acknowledged by the choreographer. The Niche Series, a years-long work that traverses film, black box, installation, and international collaboration is an ‘investigation of the choreographed body and its intricate occupation of space.’ It is an impressive achievement.
Prof.Shirley McKechnie
Conceiving Connections research project
9 March 2003 Listener - NZ December 2003
An outstanding feature of the festival was Fine Line Terrain by visiting expat Sue Healey from Sydney. Her work explored the fragile spaces of individual lives and the boundary lines in relationships. A black walled set contained two geometric constructions of vertical and horizontal fine white cord. At various times these became cages, walls, playthings and communication lines for the dancers. Dressed in combinations of vivid pinks, orange, purple and green, the three women and two men danced in rectangles of spotlight. Healey's attention to detail is something not seen in New Zealand. Hands were splayed gecko-like on walls, and fingers finely etched space or wrote an invisible language on other dancers' bodies. She used arcs from shoulder and hip, sudden high kicks and rare, breathtaking leaps. The middle section was more optimistic, with sensual, tender and playful moments. The lines became a group cat's cradle, then a dangerous snare. Gradually, the white lines were deconstructed as the group became more chaotic and frenetic. It was sensitive and beautiful. We should see more of Healey's remarkable choreography.
Francesca Horsley