The Shepherds: A Darkly Comedic Dance About Lost Sheep

Carly Sheppard and Alisdair Macindoe will premiere their choreographic work "The Shepherds" at the inaugural Australian Dance Biennale, part of the Melbourne arts festival Rising, from June 5-7 at Arts House, Melbourne.

How It Began

Sheppard and Macindoe met at a golf course in Torquay during an event for the 100th Sidney Myer Fellowship. Past recipients were invited to apply for funding for new works. Macindoe approached Sheppard with a proposal to collaborate, noting they share the surname Sheppard on their maternal sides.

The Work

"The Shepherds" is a darkly comedic piece about two lost sheep in a slaughter paddock.

For Sheppard

A descendant of the Takalaka people of North Queensland, Sheppard explores themes of being a visitor on others' land, growing up off Country, and feeling like an "orphan of the colony."

The concept of a "shepherd" is linked for Sheppard to the Judaeo-Christian biblical concept and her upbringing in a cult, reflecting trauma and connections to missions and missionaries.

For Macindoe

He also explores his own place as a settler in Australia.

Structuring the Ideas

To bring these layered concepts together, Sheppard and Macindoe created a fictional cult and ceremonial event—a framework to house the work's themes of displacement, belonging, and inherited history.

In Their Own Words

"The collaboration is a blessing and aligns with my commitment to return to dance and choreography" after years of focusing on experimental performance and acting, Sheppard said.

She noted that Macindoe's mathematical approach to choreography complements her own style, and that they share a similar sense of humor.

Sheppard expressed gratitude for being programmed in the first Australian Dance Biennale, while acknowledging her position as a visitor to the Kulin Nations and the complexity of representing First Nations as a settler.

She also voiced hope for greater diversity of Indigenous dance practitioners in future biennales.