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Five dancers wear pink and stand in a diagonal line caught in movement.

Joshua Monten Dance CompanyGame Theory Term 2

14 – 17 May 2024

In the Studio

International Dance Week for students | Stages 2 - 6 | Arriving directly from Switzerland is Game Theory – a fast-paced, funny and playful dance celebration of play, sport, big emotions, and the highs and lows of playing games! This season of performances and workshops will have students looking at dance from a whole new perspective.

The performance is exclusively about play — it is in fact a game itself…

Richard Peter, Dewezet

Before dance became art, it was a game. Everyone loves a game…

Game Theory comes to Australia for the first time after delighting students across Europe. In this playful and joyous dance performance, students will recognise the building blocks of play and games - big emotions, freedom and rules, and adrenaline and flow.

Gaming is a source of inspiration for Joshua Monten and his dancers. For the creation of Game Theory they focused on the spontaneous beauty of movements that arise in the flow of an intensely played game. Be inspired by the language of sport and competitive games – with the dancers playfully moving through capoeira, table tennis, and Twister!

The games we like the best are often the ones we probably shouldn’t be playing in the first place. Games that have consequences and risks, games that are more than just a game, games that make our heads spin and can break our hearts.

Younger students will delight in the highs and lows of dance inspired by play, whilst students studying dance will be inspired by the fun and aesthetically rigorous choreography.

Sydney Opera House presents a Joshua Monten Dance Company production with support from the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia, the Canton of Bern, the City of Bern and Corodis

Curriculum links

Game Theory explores themes surrounding play and its intrinsic ties to human emotion, dynamics and experience, and connections between physical exertion and emotional well-being. Collectively, these themes underscore the transformative power of games, emphasising their influence on individual emotions, societal norms, and group dynamics.

The performance supports general capabilities and cross curriculum priorities curriculum across personal and social capability, and critical and creative thinking.

Game Theory supports learning across Dance, Drama, PDHPE, and the Creative Arts.

Learning resources

The Opera House’s learning resources provide inspirational activities to watch, listen and read for students in the classroom or learning at home.

Find learning resources

Watch the trailer

Hear from Joshua Monten

Game Theory choreographer on the performance and the workshop

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Other information

Excursions at the Opera House

A Day Out at the House

Offer your students to an unforgettable day out at the Sydney Opera House with our new curated program. Students can attend a Creative Learning Performance or Workshop onsite accompanied by a Walking Tour of our internationally renowned performing arts centre, all in time to back by the final school bell.

A group of girls wave at the camera in school uniform. The Sydney Opera House sails are seen blurry in the background.

Arts Assist

Does your School need financial assistance to attend a Sydney Opera House excursion?

Schools Tour

Filled with stories that demonstrate the power of creativity, students join a guided tour to learn how architect Jørn Utzon created a sculpture on Sydney Harbour that changed the course of 20th century architecture.

A young girl wearing a school uniform stares out a window in a Sydney Opera House foyer. The Sydney Harbour Bridge is seen in the background.

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