The Other Side of Me Gary Lang NT Dance Company

  • First Nations
  • Dance
  • Studio
  • Run time: 60 minutes, 45 minute performance and 15 minute facilitated Q+A with cast Subject to change

An aching dance duet of a man’s struggle with identity, loss and otherness and the redemptive beauty of singing his spirit home

One mother’s love, another’s loss. Between them the child that grows to a man who can never return home. The Other Side of Me by Gary Lang shares the tragedy of Stolen Generations through the heartbreaking story of one man stranded between two families, continents and cultures. This achingly intimate duet confronts the destruction still felt by First Nations people, but offers the redemptive beauty of singing his spirit home. At the conclusion of the work is a 15 minute in-conversation for audiences.

Choreographed by industry leader, Larrakia man, Gary Lang, this international, cross-cultural collaboration with Northumbria University (UK) communicates a story of the Stolen Generations. With care and compassion, it poses questions about relationships between country of origin, identity, adoption, the criminal justice system and psychological health.

The Other Side of Me translates into dance the true-life story of a young Aboriginal man, born in the 1960s in the Northern Territory, adopted by a white English family and raised in the English countryside. Drawing on a collection of personal letters and poems, it offers insights into the mind of a man struggling with his belonging from the other side of the world.

The Other Side of Me is a powerful healing work that takes its audiences on a profound journey. 

We ask you not to come with any preconceived ideas. Come for the journey and see where it takes you.
 
The Other Side of Me is produced and toured by BlakDance. The tour has received financial assistance from the Australian Government through Creative Australia, its principal arts investment and advisory body.

Presented by Sydney Opera House

Event details

A tough story, powerfully told

ArtsHub

Credits

Co-Creator, Choreographer, Director
Gary Lang  
Larrakia

Cultural Consultant, Songman
Banula Marika 
Yolŋu

Co-Creator, Dramaturg, Writer
Laura Fish (dec)

Co-Creator, Dramaturg
Liz Pavey 

Cultural Consultant
Josephine Crawshaw 
Kalkarindji

Cultural Consultant
Jesse Norris 
Torres Strait Island

Voice Artist
Janet Munyarryun 
Yolŋu

Sound Designer
Arian Pearson 
Yolŋu

Rehearsal Director
Noelle Shader

Performer
Chandler Connell 
Wiradjuri and Ngunnawal

Performer
Alexander Abbot

Lighting Designer
Joseph Mercurio

Costume Designer
Jennifer Irwin 

Composer/Sound Designer
Samuel Pankhurst 

Projection Designer
Samuel James 

Producer
BlakDance

You may also like

Now You See Me Live

19 Dec 2025 – 4 Jan 2026

  • Magic
Four magicians face the camera, cards fall in front of them and they are lit by blue light.

Duck Pond

9 – 12 Jan 2026

  • Circus
  • Dance
  • Acrobatics

Pride & Prejudice (sort of)

16 Jul – 30 Aug 2026

  • Theatre
  • Comedy
  • Musical Theatre
Five women stand staggered on a staircase in regency era gowns, with musical instruments for Pride and Prejudice (sort of) as confetti falls around them.

Attending this event

Plan your visit

Address

Sydney Opera House
Bennelong Point
Sydney NSW 2000
Australia

Getting to the venue

The Opera House is a 7-10 minute walk from Circular Quay, and is easily accessible by car, train, ferry, lightrail, bus, bike and on foot.

Location and access

Studio

The Studio is located in the north-western corner of Sydney Opera House, best accessed through the Western Foyers.

Checking availability