A solo performance work by dancer and choreographer Floeur Alder and sculptor and writer Virginia Ward. The work evolved from a creative journey on Menang Noongar Country in south-west Western Australia, celebrating Djilba — the Menang Noongar season of transition, emergence and growth.
Inspired by the Rainbow Coast in WA’s Great Southern region and First Nations stories from that area, the work holds a playful and meditative connection with nature.
Floeur and Virginia were honoured to work with local Traditional Owners Larry Blight and Aunty Vernice of the Menang Clan, Noongar Nation, Albany. Through these relationships, local cultural knowledge was generously shared and, with their blessing and approval, respectfully woven into the work.
In Djilba, Floeur expresses the season through dance, while Virginia responds with words and imagery. Virginia’s evocative poetry celebrates four Western Australian locations that shaped the work: Waychinicup, Many Peaks, Porongurup (Tree in the Rock and Devil’s Slide), and Little Beach/Waterfall Bay.
As Alder notes, the work was created shortly after the passing of her father, Canberra born Alan Alder, in 2019. In part, Djilba reflects on how immersion in nature can guide us gently through grief.
“Playful and meditative, Floeur Alder’s solo work Djilba (Spring): A Moment in Time leaves the viewer immersed in the tranquility of its bush setting.”
— Kim Balfour, Seesaw Arts Magazine (WA), 2021
“Floeur has family dancing roots deep in the ACT and magical Mirramu on the bank of Lake George, is the perfect setting for Djilba’s dance in nature aesthetic”
— Dr Cathy Adamek, Ausdance ACT, 2026
DJILBA was first developed during a residency at the Vancouver Arts Centre in Albany in September 2019 and premiered in Bayswater, WA in 2021.
This work is site‑specific and reshaped each time to suit its surroundings. At Mirramu, it will be reinterpreted to respond to the landscape.
Presented by Ausdance ACT for Australian Dance Week.
Staged with the support of Mirramu Arts Centre and Australian Dance Party.
Produced by Kiri Morcombe.
View the full 2026 Australian Dance Week calendar here AUSTRALIAN DANCE WEEK | Ausdance ACT
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