Flora (Australian Ballet & Bangarra Dance Theatre) ★★★★

Choreographed by Frances Rings and the dancers of Bangarra Dance Theatre and The Australian Ballet. A co-production between The Australian Ballet and Bangarra Dance Theatre, commissioned by The Australian Ballet. Sydney Opera House. 7-18 Apr, 2026.

There is something beautifully optimistic about the promise of rebirth after disaster that Flora, the new full-length collaboration between The Australian Ballet and Bangarra Dance Theatre, delivers. As 35 dancers take us through the story of birth, life, death and renewal in our native Australian landscape, the message is clear: fires can be cleansing, life will continue.

Flora gives us a potted (pun intended) history of Australia through its plant life. From existential first seeding to practical application, invading species, controlled burning and rebirth. Across twelve chapters, this genealogy unfolds, blending The Australian Ballet’s corps with Bangarra Dance Theatre’s members to William Barton’s cinematic score.

Dr Grace Lillian Lee’s costumes straddle the mythic/fashion divide, from grass skirts to bold floral dresses. Craig Wilkinson’s video work and Elizabeth Gadsby’s set design stay restrained until given their own moments to let loose.

The choreography by Bangarra Artistic Director Frances Rings serves up Bangarra at its best — a synthesis of classical forms with uniquely earthen movement. The seamless blend of the two companies is a celebration of both their individual strengths and versatility.

Of the twelve movements, the stark opening of Act 2, “10 Days” — marking Joseph Banks’ removal of native species — stands as a real highlight. Its tonal shift is both refreshing and exciting, with Elizabeth Gadsby’s design finally coming to the fore.

I was less enamoured with the more seeminly didactic pieces: “Hooves Are Coming,” depicting the colonisation of local lands by European animals trampling the soil, and “Golden Wattle” which, while delivering a powerful message about Australia’s ongoing inequality, felt like a tangent from the show’s dominant ecological theme.

Flora is a gorgeous work — not just for what it achieves artistically, but for what it represents. To see two of Australia’s great companies move together with such fluency is quietly thrilling. Rings has given us a work that shows us, through art, the long history of our nation, and our connection to country.