FIRESTARTER
*****
Directors: Wayne Blair and Nel Minchin
Principal cast:
Stephen Page
David Page
Russell Page
Frances Rings
Wesley Enoch
Graeme Murphy
Hunter Page-Lochard
Country: Australia
Classification: M
Runtime: 96 mins.
Australian release date: 18 February 2021.
When The Prodigy recorded I Am the Firestarter in 1996, they could have been singing about Stephen Page and his brothers, David and Russell. Firestarter, the documentary made by Wayne Blair and Nel Minchin, tells the story of the Bangarra Dance Theatre, which recently celebrated its 30th anniversary. It is a remarkable achievement and it’s still the only Indigenous major performing arts company in the country. Bangarra is a Wiradjuri word meaning “to make fire” and the troupe has, indeed, set Australia’s arts industry ablaze with its masterful fusion of Indigenous and contemporary Western dance styles.
The company began in Sydney in 1989, growing out of the National Aboriginal Islander Skills Development Association (NAISDA). It was started by the African-American dancer Carole Johnson, the visionary founder of NAISDA, together with Rob Bryant, a Gumbaynggirr man, and the South African-born Cheryl Stone. After two years, at the tender age of 24, Stephen Page was appointed Artistic Director, a position he has now held for 29 years. Before too long, Stephen got David and Russell to join him. Stephen was the gifted organiser and choreographer; David became Bangarra’s musical director. As ‘Little Davey Page’, he was the first Australian to sign with Atlantic Records, appearing on Countdown and The Paul Hogan Show while still a teenager; and Russell was a lead dancer of extraordinary ability. He is described in Firestarter as “our Nureyev, our Baryshnikov” and he really was on a similar level to those greats. Together, the brothers were a powerful combination and formed a unique collaboration.
Blair and Minchin cover the history of the company well, using some terrific archival footage, but more than that, they use the narrative of the Page boys to tell a much larger story about Australia. The brothers were part of a sprawling Queensland family comprised of Dad, Mum and 12 children. As youngsters, they were always performing, dancing and acting for their parents and each other, some of which we see in charming family videos. Firestarter goes on to cover the evolution of Bangarra, mentioning many of its great successes, like Ochres in 1995, Rites in 1997 and 2008 (in partnership with the Australian Ballet), the Indigenous section of the 2000 Sydney Olympics’ Opening Ceremony and the extraordinarily powerful Bennelong in 2017. These works reminded white Australia that they were the beneficiaries of 65,000 years of continuous Indigenous culture, an important act when, as Wesley Enoch says in the film, “Australia as a country wants to forget [the past].”
Firestarter doesn’t just tell a tale of success, however. Any examination of this country’s history is bound to unearth tragedy, especially in talking about the treatment of First Nations people. Stephen Page, Frances Rings and Enoch tell us, in incredibly sad and moving interviews, how Russell and David died heartbreakingly young, victims of a legacy of cultural deprivation and restriction. Through Stephen’s extraordinary work ethic and dedication, however, Bangarra lives on, going from strength to strength. The baton is being passed on to the next generation of young men and women and Frances Rings is now Associate Artistic Director, taking some of the load off Stephen’s shoulders.
In the final analysis, Firestarter is a very pertinent and strong documentary. It’s not only the story of Bangarra or the Page brothers - it’s the story of Aboriginal Australia. A story of tragedy but, most of all, a story of hope. See it.
Principal cast:
Stephen Page
David Page
Russell Page
Frances Rings
Wesley Enoch
Graeme Murphy
Hunter Page-Lochard
Country: Australia
Classification: M
Runtime: 96 mins.
Australian release date: 18 February 2021.
When The Prodigy recorded I Am the Firestarter in 1996, they could have been singing about Stephen Page and his brothers, David and Russell. Firestarter, the documentary made by Wayne Blair and Nel Minchin, tells the story of the Bangarra Dance Theatre, which recently celebrated its 30th anniversary. It is a remarkable achievement and it’s still the only Indigenous major performing arts company in the country. Bangarra is a Wiradjuri word meaning “to make fire” and the troupe has, indeed, set Australia’s arts industry ablaze with its masterful fusion of Indigenous and contemporary Western dance styles.
The company began in Sydney in 1989, growing out of the National Aboriginal Islander Skills Development Association (NAISDA). It was started by the African-American dancer Carole Johnson, the visionary founder of NAISDA, together with Rob Bryant, a Gumbaynggirr man, and the South African-born Cheryl Stone. After two years, at the tender age of 24, Stephen Page was appointed Artistic Director, a position he has now held for 29 years. Before too long, Stephen got David and Russell to join him. Stephen was the gifted organiser and choreographer; David became Bangarra’s musical director. As ‘Little Davey Page’, he was the first Australian to sign with Atlantic Records, appearing on Countdown and The Paul Hogan Show while still a teenager; and Russell was a lead dancer of extraordinary ability. He is described in Firestarter as “our Nureyev, our Baryshnikov” and he really was on a similar level to those greats. Together, the brothers were a powerful combination and formed a unique collaboration.
Blair and Minchin cover the history of the company well, using some terrific archival footage, but more than that, they use the narrative of the Page boys to tell a much larger story about Australia. The brothers were part of a sprawling Queensland family comprised of Dad, Mum and 12 children. As youngsters, they were always performing, dancing and acting for their parents and each other, some of which we see in charming family videos. Firestarter goes on to cover the evolution of Bangarra, mentioning many of its great successes, like Ochres in 1995, Rites in 1997 and 2008 (in partnership with the Australian Ballet), the Indigenous section of the 2000 Sydney Olympics’ Opening Ceremony and the extraordinarily powerful Bennelong in 2017. These works reminded white Australia that they were the beneficiaries of 65,000 years of continuous Indigenous culture, an important act when, as Wesley Enoch says in the film, “Australia as a country wants to forget [the past].”
Firestarter doesn’t just tell a tale of success, however. Any examination of this country’s history is bound to unearth tragedy, especially in talking about the treatment of First Nations people. Stephen Page, Frances Rings and Enoch tell us, in incredibly sad and moving interviews, how Russell and David died heartbreakingly young, victims of a legacy of cultural deprivation and restriction. Through Stephen’s extraordinary work ethic and dedication, however, Bangarra lives on, going from strength to strength. The baton is being passed on to the next generation of young men and women and Frances Rings is now Associate Artistic Director, taking some of the load off Stephen’s shoulders.
In the final analysis, Firestarter is a very pertinent and strong documentary. It’s not only the story of Bangarra or the Page brothers - it’s the story of Aboriginal Australia. A story of tragedy but, most of all, a story of hope. See it.
