On Friday, 2 June I went to the Opera Theatre at Sydney Opera House with my mate Danny to watch the Sydney Dance Company, under the choreographer Graeme Murphy, perform The Director’s Cut.

In 1976 Graeme Murphy had a vision to create works that were Australian, mixing Australian composers and choreographers to express their own culture. The Director’s Cut captures the spirit of Graeme Murphy’s 30 years at Sydney Dance Company and takes us on a journey of his 1976 vision.

The Director’s Cut is essentially four pieces of work, with the first being presented entitled Gossamer. Very contemporary, this piece of dance once again blew me away with just how flexible dancers are. Graeme Murphy says of Gossamer that it “explores the symbolic connection between water and the human psyche”.

Following Gossamer there was a retrospective video collage providing a glimpse at the work of Sydney Dance Company over the last 30 years under the influence of Graeme Murphy. I surprised myself at just how many of these performances I had actually seen in the last few years since I have been in Sydney.

The video was followed by Glimpses - a Glance at Norman Lindsay’s World. Glimpses was created by Graeme Murphy when he was 25 years old for the Australian Ballet in 1976, and was premiered at the Canberra Theatre. This work was very erotic with satyrs and nymphs playing havoc with Victorian morality. This piece of work was theatrical, heavily costumed and very enjoyable.

After the interval we all shuffled back into our seats, the house lights went down and as the final part of the evening’s program started my eyes were fixed on the stage and my head working over time at a hundred miles an hour trying to comprehend what I was seeing on stage. The set for Cut was creative, minimalist and absolutely stunning. It took me a while to actually work out what was on stage, but then it all came clear to me, and I was gob-smacked, not just because of the set, but how it was matched seamlessly and perfectly with the dance.

Cut is a work that is new, but draws on Murphy’s 30 year history with Sydney Dance Company and key motif that have emerged in his choreography over the years. All nine movements of Cut had me pinned to my seat with my eyes fixed on the stage – a stunning piece of work, that I am pleased I got to see.