Gurambilbarra (Townsville)-based contemporary dance company Dancenorth Australia will farewell its co-Artistic Directors, Kyle Page and Amber Haines, in 2027.
After 11 years as Dancenorth’s driving artistic forces, Page and Haines have announced that current work-in-development – due to premiere in 2027 – will be their last with the Company.
Dancenorth Australia Chair, Dr Judith McLean said Haines and Page had led the Company through a decade of incredible artistic achievement.
“As a company, as a community, and as a globally-connected collective of dance-lovers, we have been so very fortunate for the boundless creativity, care and commitment that Kyle and Amber have poured into Dancenorth,” said Dr McLean.
“Their exceptional artistic output – 21 mainstage works, reaching a live audience of almost 200,000 – has been matched by passionate dedication to fortifying the future of dance by creating opportunities for independent and emerging artists; and connecting regional communities with the joy of art and movement.
“On behalf of the Board and staff at Dancenorth, I extend deepest gratitude to Amber and Kyle for the love and energy transmitted in everything they do,” said Dr McLean.
“Over the past 11 years we have had the extraordinary privilege of sharing studios, stages and creative journeys with the most remarkable humans. We have been shaped, challenged and inspired in ways that will stay with us for the rest of our lives. Our time with Dancenorth has fundamentally transformed us both,” said Haines and Page.
“We remain deeply devoted to this place and this community. Regional Australia is truly where our hearts are, and we are not leaving Gurambilbarra (Townsville). We look forward to supporting the next chapter of Dancenorth as devoted fans and audience members.”
“We have given this place every fibre of our being and, in return, it has given us a life richer and more meaningful than we could ever have imagined,” said Haines and Page.
“Working alongside Kyle and Amber over the last eight years has been, without question, the highlight of my working life and I am immensely proud, inspired and humbled by what we have been able to create together,” said Dancenorth’s co-CEO Hillary Coyne.
“Their artistry and depth of care for the Company, its people and the community it serves is a rare and precious thing I will be forever grateful for being a part of. The lasting impact of their powerful creative leadership will reverberate through this building and in the hearts and bodies of all with whom they have connected for many years to come,” said Coyne.
The early announcement of Page and Haines’ departure, coupled with the Company’s pipeline of confirmed projects, provides ample time and space for a thoughtful transition of leadership.
Dancenorth’s 2026 season includes a National Tour of Lighting the Dark; a European Tour of Wayfinder; a remount of RED for Rising Festival’s inaugural Australian Dance Biennale; and seasons of Alisdair Macindoe’s Plagiary and new work by Michelle Heaven, commissioned by Dancenorth, presented at home in Gurambilbarra (Townsville).
Recruitment for the new creative leadership will commence in the second half of 2026.
For more information about Dancenorth Australia, visit: www.dancenorth.com.au for details.
Image: Amber Haines and Kyle Page – photo by Pippa Samaya