Stephen George Page is an

Aboriginal Australian Aboriginal Australians are the various indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, excluding the ethnically distinct people of the Torres Strait Islands. Humans first migrated to Australia 50,000 to 65,000 year ...

choreographer, film director and former dancer. He was

artistic director An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre company or dance company, who handles the organization's artistic direction. They are generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogu ...

of the

Bangarra Dance Theatre Bangarra Dance Theatre is an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dance company focused on contemporary dance. It was founded by African American dancer and choreographer Carole Y. Johnson, Gumbaynggirr man Rob Bryant, and South African-bor ...

, an

Indigenous Australian Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...

dance company, from 1991 until 2022. During this time he choreographed or created 33 works for the company, as well as several other major works, including segments of the opening and closing ceremonies of the Sydney Olympic Games. He was artistic director of the 2004

Adelaide Festival of the Arts The Adelaide Festival of Arts, also known as the Adelaide Festival, an arts festival, takes place in the South Australian capital of Adelaide in March each year. Started in 1960, it is a major celebration of the arts and a significant cultural ...

, and has also done work for theatre and film.

Early life and education

Stephen George Page was born in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

in 1965. He was the tenth of 12 children, raised in the Brisbane suburb of Mt Gravatt./> Page is descended from the Nunukul people on his mother's side and the Munaldjali of the

Yugambeh people The Yugambeh ( ''(see alternative spellings)''), also known as the Minyangbal ( ), or Nganduwal ( ), are an Aboriginal Australian people of South East Queensland and the Northern Rivers of New South Wales, their territory lies between the L ...

from southeast

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, on his father's, but his parents lived in a time where they were not able to celebrate their Aboriginal identity. Page has described his father as a "

jack of all trades "Jack of all trades, master of none" is a figure of speech used in reference to a person who has dabbled in many skills, rather than gaining expertise by focusing on only one. The original version, "a jack of all trades", is often used as a com ...

" and an excellent craftsman. Page attended the Cavendish Road State High School in Brisbane from 1994 to 1997, and felt fortunate to be able to do so, as all of his older sisters had to leave school at a young age to work and bring in income for the family. There he learnt music and some dance, although did not obtain a Higher School Certificate. He first worked as a trainee law clerk at the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island legal service, and he considered going on to study law at university, but was attracted by a poster about an Indigenous dance college. He moved to

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

when he was 16 and trained with the

Aboriginal Islander Dance Theatre Aboriginal Islander Dance Theatre (AIDT) was the first dance company used to train Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students on their dancing career, and grew into a performance group. Originating in the National Aboriginal and Islander ...

, which would later become the National Aboriginal Islander Skills Development Association (NAISDA). He graduated from NAISDA in 1983 after three years, gaining a certificate and diploma. In 1984, Page choreographed his first major work, ''Warumpi Warumpi'', for a choreographic workshop at NAISDA.

Career

Early career

In 1986 Page was offered work with

Graeme Murphy Graeme Lloyd Murphy AO (born 2 November 1950) is an Australian dancer and choreographer. With his fellow dancer (and wife since 2004) Janet Vernon, he guided Sydney Dance Company to become one of Australia's most successful and best-known d ...

's Sydney Dance Company, performing in ''After Venice'', ''Wilderness'', ''Nearly Beloved'', ''Shining'' (1987), ''Poppy'', ''Company of Wo/men'' and ''King Roger''. In their 1987 season, Page danced in ''Sheherezade / Late Afternoon of a Faun / Rumours 1 / Afterworlds'' at the

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue Performing arts center, performing arts centre in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive b ...

. He also toured to Greece, Italy, Japan, Hong Kong, and Korea with the company, In 1988, during the bicentenary of Australia and the associated Indigenous activism, Page decided that he did not want to dance in a non-Indigenous company, so went back to NAISDA and became a teacher and choreographer. In that year, he toured with the NAISDA-associated

(AIDT) to Germany and Finland, and he was artistic director of the end-of-year college show, ''Kayn Walu'', in 1989, the year that

was founded. The following year, Page co-choreographed ''Djunba Woman'', presented by AIDT at

Belvoir St Theatre Belvoir is an Australian theatre company based at the Belvoir St Theatre in Sydney, Australia, originally known as Company B. Its artistic director is Eamon Flack. The theatre comprises two performing spaces: the Upstairs Theatre and the small ...

in Sydney on 1 November 1990. Raymond Blanco was artistic director at that time, and Page's brother David played music for the production. He did however do further work with Sydney Dance Company and Graeme Murphy, which he credits with teaching him choreography skills. In 1991 he choreographed ''Trackers of Oxyrhyncus'', as well as ''Mooggrah'' for the company's season, ''The Shakespeare Dances''. Also in 1991, he choreographed a sextet for

Opera Australia Opera Australia is the principal opera company in Australia. Based in Sydney, New South Wales, its performance season at the Sydney Opera House accompanied by the Opera Australia Orchestra runs for approximately eight months of the year, with t ...

's ''Marriage of Figaro''.

Bangarra Dance Theatre

In 1991, Page was appointed principal choreographer of Bangarra Dance Theatre, and at the end of the year became artistic director. His brothers Russell and

David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Dam ...

joined Bangarra around the same time. In 1992 he choreographed ''Praying Mantis Dreaming'', Bangarra's first full-length work, which toured widely that year and in 1993 (

Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...

, Central Western NSW,

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, Brisbane, China and Hong Kong, Sydney,

Cairns Cairns (; ) is a city in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. In the , Cairns had a population of 153,181 people. The city was founded in 1876 and named after William Cairns, Sir W ...

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

, North East

Arnhem Land Arnhem Land is a historical region of the Northern Territory of Australia. It is located in the north-eastern corner of the territory and is around from the territorial capital, Darwin, Northern Territory, Darwin. In 1623, Dutch East India Compa ...

, New York,

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, and London). Also in 1996 he made his creative debut with

the Australian Ballet The Australian Ballet (TAB) is the largest classical ballet company in Australia. It was founded by J. C. Williamson Theatres Ltd and the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust in 1962, with the English-born dancer, teacher, repetiteur a ...

, choreographing ''Alchemy'', its score composed by his brother David Page. The following year, he brought the Australian Ballet and Bangarra together in ''Rites'', set to

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ( – 6 April 1971) was a Russian composer and conductor with French citizenship (from 1934) and American citizenship (from 1945). He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century c ...

's ''

The Rite of Spring ''The Rite of Spring'' () is a ballet and orchestral concert work by the Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. It was written for the 1913 Paris season of Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes company; the original choreography was by Vaslav Nijinsky ...

''. His choreography for the piece was described as "an easy mix of the various contemporary dance vocabularies that Page had studied in the course of his career, juxtaposed against references to Indigenous dance", with Bangarra's cultural consultant Djakapurra Munyarryun one of the main performers. The

National Library of Australia The National Library of Australia (NLA), formerly the Commonwealth National Library and Commonwealth Parliament Library, is the largest reference library in Australia, responsible under the terms of the ''National Library Act 1960'' for "mainta ...

holds photographs of the rehearsals. He then co-choreographed ''Ochres'' (with then Bangarra assistant artistic director Bernadette Walong), telling the story of the earth and the power of the elements. ''Fish'' followed the themes of from ''Ochres'', moving onto water. The world premiere of ''Fish'' took place on 12 August 1997 at the

Edinburgh International Festival The Edinburgh International Festival is an annual arts festival in Edinburgh, Scotland, spread over the final three weeks in August. Notable figures from the international world of music (especially european classical music, classical music) and ...

. ''Fish'' was later adapted by Page for the screen, shown on

SBS Television The Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) is an Australian hybrid-funded public service broadcaster. About 80 percent of funding for the company is derived from tax revenue. SBS operates six TV channels ( SBS, SBS Viceland, SBS World Movies, SBS ...

in January 1999. He choreographed Bangarra's ''Skin'', which premiered at the Sydney Olympic Arts Festival in 2000. ''Skin'' consisted of two parts: ''Shelter'', inspired by the work of desert artist

Emily Kngwarreye Emily Kam Kngwarray (c.1914-1996) was born in her Ancestral lands, Alhalker located in the Sandover region of the Northern Territory, Australia. One of the world’s most significant contemporary painters to emerge in the twentieth century Kngw ...

; and ''Spear'', a collaboration with singer-songwriter

Archie Roach Archibald William Roach (8 January 1956 – 30 July 2022) was an Australian (Gunditjmara and Western Bundjalung people, Bundjalung) singer-songwriter and Aboriginal Australian, Aboriginal activist. Often referred to as "Uncle Archie", Roach wa ...

. and won

Helpmann Award The Helpmann Awards are accolades for live entertainment and performing arts in Australia, presented by industry group Live Performance Australia (LPA) since 2001. The annual awards recognise achievements in the disciplines of musical theatre ...

s. The work looked at kinship ties across Aboriginal communities. Bangarra's triple bill ''Corroboree'', choreographed by Page and with music composed by his brother David and Steve Francis, toured internationally in 2001 and 2002, mainly in the US, but was also performed in China and Monaco. It sold out in the US, with performances at

Brooklyn Academy of Music The Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) is a multi-arts center in Brooklyn, New York City. It hosts progressive and avant-garde performances, with theater, dance, music, opera, film programming across multiple nearby venues. BAM was chartered in 18 ...

in New York and Kennedy Centre in

Washington DC Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

. The work earned Page a

for Best Choreography. In 2002, he choreographed ''Totem'' for The Australian Ballet's principal dancer, Stephen Heathcote. Also in 2002 came Bangarra's double bill, ''Walkabout'', which premiered at Victorian Arts Centre Playhouse in

. Page choreographed ''Rush'', while Frances Rings did ''Rations''. It also toured to the

Theatre Royal Sydney Theatre Royal Sydney (TRS) is a theatre in Sydney, Australia. Earlier theatres also called the Theatre Royal, on the same site, date back to 1833. The current building, designed by modernist architect Harry Seidler, was built in 1976 and has o ...

and the Playhouse, Brisbane. ''Bush'', co-choreographed by Page and Frances Rings, was staged in Melbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane in 2003; Washington, New York, and Hawaii in 2004 (where it sold out); Japan and New Zealand in 2005; and the UK in 2006. In 2004, after two performances in Melbourne in April and June, Bangarra returned to the

on 25 June another sell-out production co-choreographed by Page and Rings, ''Clan''. ''Clan'' was a double bill, comprising ''Unaipon'' by Rings (who also danced) and ''Reflections'' by Page. As for most Bangarra productions, music was by David Page. In 2005 Page choreographed ''Boomerang'', which was staged in Melbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane. On 17 March 2006, Page created ''Gathering'' for the Australian Ballet and Bangarra, a double bill consisting of a reworked ''Rites'' and ''Amalgamate'', staged at The State Theatre in Melbourne. In September/October 2007, he presented another sell-out season of ''Kin'' at the

Malthouse Theatre Malthouse Theatre is the resident theatre company of The Malthouse building in Southbank, part of the Melbourne Arts Precinct. In the 1980s it was known as the Playbox Theatre Company and was housed in the Playbox Theatre in Melbourne's CBD ...

in Melbourne. In 2008 he created a new, full-length work for Bangarra, entitled ''Mathinna'', inspired by the journey of a young Tasmanian girl between two cultures. ''Mathinna'' won a Helpmann Award in 2009 for Best Dance Work and Best Choreography. In September/October 2008, Page took ''Rites'' to London and Paris with the Australian Ballet, and Bangarra's ''Awakenings'' to Washington, New York, and

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

. In 2009, after returning from a tour of Germany, Hungary, and Austria with ''True Stories'' (choreographed by Elma Kris and Frances Rings), (first staged in 2007) Page and the dancers spent 10 days in

on a cultural exchange. In 2009 Page celebrated Bangarra's 20th anniversary with ''Fire – A Retrospective''. This work featured many highlights and memorable performances, from its modest beginnings to its status as a world-renowned dance company. In 2014, he directed ''Patyegarang'', for Bangarra's 25th anniversary, and in 2016, ''Nyapanyapa'', as part of a triple bill. In 2017 his work ''Bennelong'' (based

Bennelong Woollarawarre Bennelong ( 1764 – 3 January 1813) was a senior man of the Eora, an Aboriginal Australian people of the Port Jackson area, at the time of the first British settlement in Australia. Bennelong served as an interlocutor between ...

), which won another Helpmann Award for Best New Australian Work. In 2018, Page co-created ''Dark Emu'', with former Bangarra dancers Daniel Riley and Yolande Brown, danced by the current Bangarra ensemble. The work was inspired by Bruce Pascoe's book of the same name, and became the most successful production in Bangarra's history, and was highly critically acclaimed. In June 2021, Page and Rings choreographed ''Sandsong'', the first public production by the company since the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

shutdown in March 2020. The piece honours the legacy of Ningali Josie Lawford-Wolf, who had been a friend and cultural consultant to Bangarra, bringing stories of her Country as a Wangkatjunga woman, the

Kimberley Kimberly or Kimberley may refer to: Places and historical events Australia Queensland * Kimberley, Queensland, a coastal locality in the Shire of Douglas South Australia * County of Kimberley, a cadastral unit in South Australia Ta ...

region of

. In early December 2021, Page announced that he would be stepping down from the role of artistic director of Bangarra at the end of 2022, handing over to Frances Rings from 2023. Bangarra's last performance with Page as director was ''Wudjang: Not the Past'', which premiered at the

Sydney Festival Sydney Festival is a major arts festival in Australia's largest city, Sydney, that runs for three weeks every January since it was established in 1977. The festival program features over 100 events from local and international artists and inclu ...

in January 2022 before touring to

Hobart Hobart ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, it is the southernmost capital city in Australia. Despite containing nearly hal ...

, and then

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

as part of the Adelaide Festival. He left Bangarra at the end of 2022. He had choreographed or created 33 works for and with Bangarra. During his time with Bangarra, Page also spent time nurturing young talent through Bangarra's "Rekindling" youth program, a program led by retired senior dancers.

Other work

In 1996 Page choreographed the flag handover ceremony for the Atlanta Olympic Games, and in 2000 co-directed segments of the opening and closing ceremonies of the Sydney Olympic Games. In the opening ceremony, he co-directed, with Rhoda Roberts, and co-choreographed a segment called ''Awakening'', narrated by

Ernie Dingo Ernest Ashley Dingo Member of the Order of Australia, AM (born 31 July 1956) is an Indigenous Australians, Indigenous Australian actor, television presenter and comedian, originating from the Yamatji people of the Murchison (Western Australia), ...

. There were discussions in the Sydney Aboriginal community about whether to boycott the Olympics, but it was Page's vision that "we needed a presence within the stadium and a true spirit to awaken the ground/ceremony especially for the rest of the world", and he met with Charlie Perkins, Isabel Coe, and others at

Redfern Town Hall The Redfern Town Hall is a landmark sandstone civic building located in the heart of , New South Wales, Australia. built in 1870 and designed in the Victorian Regency style by George Allen Mansfield. It was the seat of the Municipality of Red ...

to thrash out the issues. In the end, the ceremony included 380 women from

Central Desert Deserts cover about , or 18%, of the Australian mainland, but about 35% of the Australian continent receives so little rain, it is practically desert. Collectively known as the Great Australian desert, they are primarily distributed throughout ...

, most of whom had never been to the city before; 500 people from the Kimberley, NE Arnhem Land, and elsewhere; 500

Torres Strait Islander Torres Strait Islanders ( ) are the Indigenous Melanesians, Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal Australians, Aboriginal peoples of the res ...

students, and 500

Koori Koori (also spelt koorie, goori or goorie) is a demonym for Aboriginal Australians from a region that approximately corresponds to southern New South Wales and Victoria. The word derives from the Indigenous language Awabakal. For some people ...

children from secondary schools in NSW. Page was artistic director of the 2004

, for which he received acclaim. In 2006, the

Queensland Art Gallery The Queensland Art Gallery (QAG) is an art museum located in South Bank, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The gallery is part of QAGOMA. It complements the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) building, situated only away. The Queensland Art Galle ...

director asked him to create a new dance work for the opening of the Gallery of Modern Art. Along with his son Hunter Page-Lochard and nephews, he created ''Kin'', a special project that opened Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art. In the evening of Sunday 18 March 2007, Page directed a traditional smoking ceremony in honour of the historic celebration marking the 75th anniversary of the

Sydney Harbour Bridge The Sydney Harbour Bridge is a steel through arch bridge in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, spanning Port Jackson, Sydney Harbour from the Sydney central business district, central business district (CBD) to the North Shore (Sydney), North ...

, after a day-long celebratory event. In August 2007 he directed

Victorian Opera Victorian Opera is an opera company based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The company was founded in 2005 by the Victorian Government as a replacement for the Victoria State Opera. It commenced operations in January 2006 with Richard Gill a ...

's ''Orphée et Eurydice'' in

: "An Italian opera by a German composer, based on a Greek myth, translated into French and directed by an Aboriginal man". In 2018, Page directed or choreographed work for the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. He has also choreographed works for the

Australian Football League The Australian Football League (AFL) is the pre-eminent professional sports, professional competition of Australian rules football. It was originally named the Victorian Football League (VFL) and was founded in 1896 as a breakaway competition ...

. ''Waru – journey of the small turtle'', directed by Page and written by his son Hunter, premiered in Sydney in 2023, and ran for two seasons before going on tour from 26 June to 9 November 2024. It was the first children's work performed by Bangarra, and won Best Production for Children in the

Sydney Theatre Awards The Sydney Theatre Awards are annual awards to recognise the strength, quality and diversity of professional theatre in Sydney, Australia. They were established in 2005 by a group of major Sydney theatre critics. The awards recognise mainstage and ...

in 2023. The 2024 Adelaide Festival commissioned Page to create a work to open the festival, ''Baleen Moondjan'', which was performed on a huge stage in front of huge specially-constructed "

whalebone Baleen is a filter-feeding system inside the mouths of baleen whales. To use baleen, the whale first opens its mouth underwater to take in water. The whale then pushes the water out, and animals such as krill are filtered by the baleen and ...

s" on the beach at Glenelg. It was Page's first major work since leaving Bangarra, and portrayed the relationships between

baleen whale Baleen whales (), also known as whalebone whales, are marine mammals of the order (biology), parvorder Mysticeti in the infraorder Cetacea (whales, dolphins and porpoises), which use baleen plates (or "whalebone") in their mouths to sieve plankt ...

s and First Nations

totem A totem (from or ''doodem'') is a spirit being, sacred object, or symbol that serves as an emblem of a group of people, such as a family, clan, lineage (anthropology), lineage, or tribe, such as in the Anishinaabe clan system. While the word ...

systems. With music composed by Steve Francis, the performance combined contemporary dance, storytelling, and songs in English, Jandai, and Gumbaynggirr/Yaegl languages. Rapper DOBBY narrated, and actor Elaine Crombie played Gindara. The stories are drawn from his mother's Ngugi, Nunukul, and Moondjan heritage, from Minjerribah/Stradbroke Island in Queensland.

Theatre and screen

Page's theatre credits include directing his own brother, musician David Page, in the one-man show ''Page 8'', which toured Australia and the UK and was produced many times between 2004 and 2014. Late in 2008, he went to

Broome, Western Australia Broome, also known as Rubibi by the Yawuru, Yawuru people, is a coastal Pearl hunting, pearling and tourist town in the Kimberley (Western Australia), Kimberley region of Western Australia, north of Perth. The town recorded a population of 14,6 ...

, as choreographer for the film adaptation of ''

Bran Nue Dae __NOTOC__ ''Bran Nue Dae'' is a 1990 musical set in Broome, Western Australia, that tells stories and of issues relating to Indigenous Australians. It was written by Jimmy Chi and his band Kuckles and friends, and was the first Aboriginal Aust ...

'', directed by

Rachel Perkins Rachel Perkins (born 1970) is an Indigenous Australian film and television director, producer, and screenwriter. She founded and was co-director of the independent film production company Blackfella Films from 1992 until 2022. Perkins and the ...

. He worked on the contemporary operatic film '' Black River'', and adapted the 1997 Bangarra work ''Fish'', with the film shown on

in January 1999. Page directed the chapter "Sand" in the 2013 feature film '' The Turning'', and also choreographed the feature film '' The Sapphires'' (2011). In 2013, he was associate director on the

Sydney Theatre Company Sydney Theatre Company (STC) is an Australian theatre company based in Sydney, New South Wales. The company performs in the Wharf Theatre at Dawes Point in The Rocks area of Sydney as well as the Roslyn Packer Theatre (formerly Sydney Theatre ...

's production of Andrew Bovell's play ''

The Secret River ''The Secret River'' is a 2005 historical novel by Kate Grenville about an early 19th-century Englishman transported to Australia for theft. The story explores what might have happened when Europeans colonised land already inhabited by Aborigi ...

'', which had its world premiere as part of

in August 2013. In 2015 his directorial debut feature film, ''

Spear A spear is a polearm consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with Fire hardening, fire hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable materia ...

'', was shown at the

2015 Toronto International Film Festival The 40th annual Toronto International Film Festival was held from 10 to 20 September 2015. On 28 July 2015 the first wave of films to be screened at the Festival was announced. Jean-Marc Vallée's ''Demolition'' starring Jake Gyllenhaal and N ...

. His son, Hunter Page-Lochard, played the lead role as Djali.

Personal life

Page's brother musician David Page (1961–2016) was composer for Bangarra, and younger brother

Russell Page Montague Russell Page OBE (1 November 1906 – 4 January 1985) was a British gardener, garden designer and landscape architecture, landscape architect. He worked in the UK, western Europe and the United States of America. Biography Montague ...

(1968–2002), was a dancer and "the

muse In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, the Muses (, ) were the Artistic inspiration, inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the poetry, lyric p ...

" for Bangarra. He was deeply affected by their deaths, as shown in the 2020 feature documentary film ''Firestarter – The Story of Bangarra''. He later said that his job "and my creative skills and spirit was probably what saved me through the journey of my brothers both passing", and sees art as medicine. His son is actor Hunter Page-Lochard (born 1993) whose mother, Cynthia "Sabine" Lochard, is African-American and was a dancer for the

New York City Ballet New York City Ballet (NYCB) is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company. Léon Barzin was the company's fir ...

. He also has a stepdaughter, Tamika Walker, daughter of ex-partner Cynthia/Sabine. Page and Lochard separated in around 1998, which he attributes partly to the stress of frequent overseas tours, building Bangarra into a major company, and preparations for the Sydney Olympics. However they have always maintained a respectful relationship. For two years sometime later they lived in a large share house together, co-parenting when they could, with several other women who also stepped in to help. In May 2023, Page's family history was revealed in an episode (S14.E5) of '' Who Do You Think You Are?'' on

. In it, he met family previously unknown to him, who are South Pacific Islanders. In November 2023, he was a guest in a podcast by parenting expert Maggie Dent, called ''The Good Enough Dad'', in which he spoke about how being raised by women made him a good father.Transcript
/ref>

Recognition and honours

His alma mater, Cavendish Road State High School, named one of its school houses "Page" in his honour. The house colour is purple, and members call themselves the "Page Pythons". On 1 January 2001, Page was awarded a

Centenary Medal The Centenary Medal is an award which was created by the Australian Government in 2001. It was established to commemorate the centenary of the Federation of Australia and to recognise "people who made a contribution to Australian society or g ...

, "for service to Australian society and dance". In 2008, Page was named New South Wales

Australian of the Year The Australian of the Year is a national award conferred on an Australian citizen by the National Australia Day Council, a not-for-profit Australian Government-owned social enterprise. Similar awards are also conferred at the state and territor ...

, "for his efforts to bring cultures together through art, and his role in mentoring the next generation of Indigenous storytellers and dancers". He received the award from Deputy Premier John Watkins in a ceremony at the

Art Gallery of NSW The Art Gallery of New South Wales (AGNSW), founded as the New South Wales Academy of Art in 1872 and known as the National Art Gallery of New South Wales between 1883 and 1958, is located in The Domain, Sydney, Australia. It is the most import ...

. In 2015, Page was awarded an

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...

of Creative Arts by the

University of Technology Sydney The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) is a public university, public research university located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The university was founded in its current form in 1988, though its origins as a Institute of technology, ...

. In 2016, Martin Portus (former director of marketing and communication at the

Australia Council for the Arts Creative Australia, formerly known as the Australia Council for the Arts and the Australia Council, is the country's official arts council, serving as an arts funding and advisory body for the Government of Australia. The council was announ ...

) conducted an interview with Page, who discussed significant periods in the history of the Bangarra Dance Theatre, beginning with the nature of his access to traditional cultures, especially in north-east

. In the 2017 Queen's Birthday Honours (12 June), Page was appointed

Officer of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

(AO) "for distinguished service to the performing arts and contemporary dance, through enriching Australia's cultural environment, and by presenting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander arts to the world". In 2023 Page was invited to deliver the Andrew Sayers Memorial Lecture at the

National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to: * National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra * National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred *National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C. *National Portrait Gallery, London ...

in Canberra. On 27 April 2023 he gave his address, entitled "Clanship", in which he spoke about cultural connections relating to family, Aboriginal kinship, Aboriginal identity, and relationships with the wider world, including Native American Indians and Canadian First Nations peoples. The lecture was streamed live.

Awards and nominations

Bangarra Dance Theatre has won numerous awards for their performances, including many

Helpmann Awards The Helpmann Awards are accolades for live entertainment and performing arts in Australia, presented by industry group Live Performance Australia (LPA) since 2001. The annual awards recognise achievements in the disciplines of musical theatre ...

. Page himself has also won several, including Best Choreography in a Ballet, Dance or Physical Theatre Production as well as Best New Australian Work for ''Bennelong'' in 2018. Helpmann and other prominent awards are listed below, followed by a list of other personal awards won by Page.

Australian Dance Awards

The Australian Dance Awards recognise excellence and promote dance in Australia. They are awarded under the auspices of the Australian Dance Council (Ausdance) for performance,

choreography Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which Motion (physics), motion or Visual appearance, form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A chor ...

, design, dance writing, teaching and related professions. (wins only) ! , - , 1997 , Stephen Page (Artistic Director of Bangarra Dance Theatre) , Outstanding achievement in choreography , , , - , 2010 , Stephen Page , Services to Dance , , , -

Deadly Awards

The Deadly Awards, (commonly known as The Deadlys), was an annual celebration of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander achievement in music, sport, entertainment and community. They ran from 1996 to 2013. (wins only) ! , - , Deadly Awards 2008 , Stephen Page and

, Outstanding Achievement in Entertainment , , , - , Deadly Awards 2009 , Stephen Page and

, Achievement in Theatre or Live Performance , , , -

Helpmann Awards

The

are a series of awards celebrating live entertainment and performing arts in Australia, presented by industry group ''Live Performance Australia'' since 2001. Note: 2020 and 2021 were cancelled due to the

. ! , - , rowspan="2",

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

, rowspan="2", Stephen Page for ''Skin'' (Bangarra Dance Theatre) , Helpmann Award for Best Choreography in a Ballet or Dance Work , , rowspan="2", , - , Helpmann Award for Best New Australian Work , , - , rowspan="2",

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

, rowspan="2", Stephen Page for ''Corroboree'' (Bangarra Dance Theatre) , Best Choreography in a Ballet or Dance Work , , rowspan="2", , - , Best New Australian Work , , - , rowspan="3",

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

, rowspan="2", Stephen Page for ''Walkabout'' (Bangarra Dance Theatre) , Best New Australian Work , , rowspan="3", , - , Helpmann Award for Best Original Score , , - , Stephen Page and Steven McTaggart "Rush" for ''Walkabout'' (Bangarra Dance Theatre) , Best Choreography in a Ballet or Dance Work , , - , rowspan="1",

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

, Stephen Page for ''Bush'' (Bangarra Dance Theatre) , Best Choreography in a Ballet or Dance Work , , rowspan="1", , - , rowspan="1",

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

, Stephen Page for ''Mathinna'' (Bangarra Dance Theatre) , Best Choreography in a Dance or Physical Theatre Production , , rowspan="1", , - , rowspan="1",

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

, Stephen Page for ''Fire'' (Bangarra Dance Theatre) , Best Choreography in a Dance or Physical Theatre Production , , rowspan="1", , - , rowspan="1",

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, Stephen Page for ID from ''Belong'' (Bangarra Dance Theatre) , Best Choreography in a Ballet or Dance Work , , rowspan="1", , - , rowspan="1",

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

, Stephen Page for ''Patyegarang'' (Bangarra Dance Theatre) , Best Choreography in a Dance or Physical Theatre Production , , rowspan="1", , - , rowspan="2",

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

, Stephen Page, Bernadette Walong-Sene, Djakapurra Munyarryun for ''Ochres'' (Bangarra Dance Theatre) , Best Choreography in a Dance or Physical Theatre Work , , rowspan="2", , - , Stephen Page , JC Williamson Award , , - , rowspan="1",

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

, Stephen Page for ''Bennelong'' (Bangarra Dance Theatre) , Best New Australian Work , , rowspan="1",

NAIDOC Awards

The

NAIDOC Awards The NAIDOC Awards are annual Australian awards conferred on Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individuals during the national celebration of the history, culture and achievements of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ...

are annual Australian awards conferred on

Australian Aboriginal Aboriginal Australians are the various indigenous peoples of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland and many of its islands, excluding the ethnically distinct people of the Torres Strait Islands. Humans first migrated to Australia (co ...

and

individuals during the national celebration of the history, culture and achievements of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples known as

NAIDOC Week NAIDOC Week ( ) is an Australian observance lasting from the first Sunday in July until the following Sunday. The acronym NAIDOC stands for National Aboriginal and Islanders Day Observance Committee. NAIDOC Week has its roots in the 1938 Day o ...

. (The name is derived from National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee.) (wins only) ! , - , 2012 , Stephen Page , Artist of the Year , , , - , 2016 , Stephen Page , Lifetime achievement award , , , -

Other awards

Page was also the recipient of many other awards, including: * 1993: Mo Award for Dance Performance of the Year * 1993: Paris Opera Screen Award, Grand Prix for '' Black River'' (film) * 2002: Matilda Award for Contribution to the Arts in Queensland * 2003: Sidney Myer Performing Arts Award, Individual Award * 2004: Sidney Myer Performing Arts Award, Individual Indigenous Award * 2017: Australia Council Dance Award * 2022: Red Ochre Award * 2022: Inaugural Wendy Blacklock Industry Legend Award, presented by PAC Australia * 2022: Global Sydney Award

Footnotes

References

External links

Stephen Page
on

AusStage AusStage: The Australian Live Performance Database is an online database which records information about live performances in Australia, providing records of productions from the first recorded performance in Australia (1789, by convicts) up unt ...

*
Bangarra Dance Theatre

(archived)
"Stephen Page interviewed by Martin Portus"
24 February 2016. ranscript of interview, 2:17:08 (State Library of New South Wales) {{DEFAULTSORT:Page, Stephen Australian male dancers Australian choreographers Helpmann Award winners Indigenous Australian filmmakers 1965 births Living people Officers of the Order of Australia Indigenous Australian dancers Musical theatre choreographers