Elements of Freestyle…spotlights superb physical skills and celebrates the joy of excellence. It is a mixture that is bound to delight all ages.”
London Living Large
In an explosion of extreme urban sports, dance, music and theatre laced with adrenaline, the Netherlands’ ISH Dance Collective will make its Australian premiere with Elements of Freestyle. Transforming the Joan Sutherland Theatre into an adventure playground from 25 – 29 June, this high-energy collision of form is directed by Marco Gerris, best known as a judge on So You Think You Can Dance (NL).
A spectacular feast for the senses, Elements of Freestyle fuses urban sports styles – inline skating, skateboarding, freestyle basketball, free-running and BMX – with breakdance, hip-hop, and live cello and violin. Showcasing 12 elite boundary-pushing artists who merge the traditional with the street, this electrifying hour is jam-packed with heart-pounding excitement and gasp-worthy tricks.
ISH has been bringing hip-hop dance and urban sports to the theatre for almost 25 years. Led by a vision to free themselves of boundaries and limits, the experimental company takes a bold approach to blending artforms.
Artistic Director of ISH Dance Collective, Marco Gerris says: “Elements of Freestyle is about those redeeming seconds that make a complicated trick ultimately succeed; about the freestylers’ total focus, the feeling of complete and total freedom, and the ecstasy when they land it. This show is a liberating and uplifting experience that we’ve been lucky to share with people all around the world. Our collective is so excited to bring our bold vision to one of the most famous theatres on the planet and shake up everyone’s expectations of what happens inside the Sydney Opera House!”
Sydney Opera House Head of Contemporary Performance, Ebony Bott, says: “ISH Dance Collective are world-leaders in inventive and unexpected live entertainment for all ages, and we’re thrilled to present their Australian premiere at the Sydney Opera House. These performers are incredible talents in their chosen disciplines – with Olympian level skill, they showcase the pure artistry of extreme sport. I can’t wait to experience the audience reaction when they see a skate ramp has taken over the stage in the Joan Sutherland Theatre and feel the energy unleashed by this epic show.”
EVENT DETAILS
WHAT: Elements of Freestyle
WHEN: 25 – 29 June 2025
WHERE: Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House
PRICES: From $69.90 + $8.95 booking fee
PRE SALE BEGINS: 9am Tuesday 25 February 2025
GENERAL PUBLIC ON SALE: 9am Friday 28 February 2025
Contemporary Performance at the Sydney Opera House
Contemporary Performance at the Sydney Opera House offers audiences entertainment in all its forms. From jaw-dropping circus and spectacular magic to side-splitting comedy, stories that capture the imagination told through dance or sung by powerful voices, to immersive experiences and cabaret that will get the heart-rate racing – the program guarantees a great night out for any occasion. Curated by Ebony Bott, it presents boundary-pushing performances, contemporary retellings of the classics and the productions and icons at the heart of popular culture – all brought to life by the crème-de-la-crème of artists, performers and directors from Australia and around the world.
Currently playing is the epic live adventure DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: The Twenty-Sided Tavern where no two shows are the same and the darkly hilarious one-person-show Feeling Afraid As If Something Terrible Is Going To Happen. Up next are cinematic favourites In The Mood For Love and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse live in concert as well as the mischief and mayhem of global sensation The Play That Goes Wrong.
