The Display

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The Display is an Australian ballet produced and choreographed by

Adelaide Festival of Arts
.

Background

Superb Lyrebird in courtship display

The inspiration for The Display came to Robert Helpmann in a dream in which he saw his friend,

Victoria's Dandenong Ranges to see his first lyrebirds in their natural surroundings. Helpmann was "fascinated for hours" by the birds' fanciful mating dance, referred to in ornithology as a courtship display, which Helpmann chose for the ballet's title. Helpmann eventually dedicated The Display to Hepburn.[1]

The Display draws parallels between the courtship rituals of the lyrebird and the

bush picnic. The men play a game of Australian rules football, a sequence for which Helpmann invited VFL great Ron Barassi
to coach the dancers.

Australian author and playwright Patrick White was originally approached by Helpmann to write the scenario for The Display, however, the two artists had a falling out over White's interpretation of Helpmann's vision, and White's libretto was rejected. For decades, it was assumed lost until dance historian Michelle Potter chanced upon a copy in the National Library entitled A scenario for a ballet by Patrick White.[2]

Cast

The first cast was:

Synopsis

Further reading

  • Grove, Robin (March 1965). "Robert Helpmann's ballet 'The Display'". Meanjin Quarterly. 24 (1): 125–128.

References

  1. , p. 183
  2. ^ Potter, Michelle (7 July 2012). "Helpmann's ideas soared above White's flights of fancy", The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved on 12 July 2012.