Finale Dances - All Years
2005 Milpirri - Jardiwanpa
Desert People Finale Dance
Dance Story
Youth with Men and Women
Youth version of Jardiwanpa. This finale dance celebrates the youth and the elders and the layering of old and new, and all things Warlpiri. As the song by the North Tanami Band says - We are the desert people, we are the Warlpiri Tribe, we are the people of the desert. The North Tanami Band feel it is important to keep their language and culture alive. This dance reinforces the notion that there is a place for everyone in Warlpiri society.
Choreography
Tracks Dance Company - Nick (Japanangka) Power, David (Japaljarri) McMicken and Jessica (Nangala) Rosewarne
2007 Milpirri - Kurdiji
Desert People Finale Dance
Dance Story
Youth with Women
This finale dance celebrates the youth and the elders and the layering of old and new, and all things Warlpiri. As the song by the North Tanami Band says - We are the desert people, we are the Warlpiri tribe, we are the people of the desert. The North Tanami Band feel it is important to keep their language and culture alive.
Music: North Tanami Band remixed by Matthew Cunliffe (Marine Boy) to include Jardiwanpa sections of dance and song.
Choreography
Tracks Dance Company - Nick (Japananagka) Power with Caleb Japanangka Patrick and Jenelle (Nakamarra) Saunders
2012 Milpirri - Pulyarani
Pulyarani, Winds of Change Finale
Dance Story
Youth and Tracks Dancers
Mass youth finale beginning with dance by Tracks Dancers
The Tracks dancers, including Caleb, represent the four winds coming together to gently drive the fire forward.
Choreography
Tracks Dance Company - Nick (Japananka) Power, Kelly (Napurrula) Beneforti, Jess (Napangardi) Devereux and Caleb Japanangka Patrick.
2014 Milpirri - Jarda Warnpa
Desert People Finale Dance
Dance Story
Youth with Women
This finale dance celebrates the youth and the elders and the layering of old and new, and all things Warlpiri. As the song by the North Tanami Band says - We are the desert people, we are the Warlpiri Tribe, we are the people of the desert. The North Tanami Band feel it is important to keep their language and culture alive.
Choreography
Tracks Dance Company - Nick (Japananagka) Power, Kelly (Naparula) Beneforti and Caleb Japanangka Patrick
2016 Milpirri - Kurdiji
Coat of Arms / Kurdiji (Shield) Dance
Dance Story
Youth with Men
Symbols found in the Australian Coat of Arms are also found in the Kurdiji Ceremony. The Kangaroo belongs to the red group, Witi Poles to the yellow group Emu to the blue group, and the Kurdiji Shield to the green group. The dance also reinforces key Milpirri concepts - directions, sky and earth, the stars as a place to learn. It is written in the land, and the sky.
Direction
David (Japaljarri) McMicken and Tim (Jampijinpa) Newth
Youth choreography: Kelly (Napurrula) Beneforti and Aaron (Jangala) Lim
2018 Milpirri - Jurntu
Jurntu Youth Finale and Yankirri (Emu) Fire Sculpture
Dance Story
This section starts with the closing youth dance for the Milpirri performance. It reiterates the four themes explored across the youth choreography and celebrates the strengths of the dancers.
It starts by calling the four colour groups into the space where the dancers strike shapes that represent Justice, Discipline, Responsibility and Respect. The chorus choreography is simple and strong, performed by each of the colour groups to show that they all play a part in the community and have responsibility for different elements of Yapa culture.
The dancers then divide into two circles, the Earth and Sky groups. They circle in opposition, representing the movements of the Earth and Sky and the interconnectedness of the two elements.
On the cue to ‘look up’ in the music, the youth dancers watch as a large Yankirri (Emu) sculpture enters the space and is set alight, which represents the passage of the Yankirri (Emu) as it flies through the Milky Way. The sculpture is surrounded by burning stars. The Yankirri (Emu) is the symbol of knowledge and it’s pathway follows the changing of the seasons and the movement of the stars in the night sky.
Direction
David (Japaljarri) McMicken and Tim (Jampijinpa) Newth
Youth choreography: Kelly (Napurrula) Beneforti and Aaron (Jangala) Lim
2021 Milpirri - Yinapaka
Warlawurru and Yankirri (Eagle and Emu)
Description of Dance
This final dance reveals the Eagle and the Emu coming into camp together to jointly declare that the Emu is the right teacher for all the little birds. All dancers move into camp with a strong rhythmic step and the phrases demonstrate strong wing lines making fires, looking down at the little birds and the little birds looking up to the Eagle in the sky. The Emu shows it is the right teacher with a repeated uprock sequence. Teased by the little birds the Emu leaves camp sad with the repetition of the first rhythmic step. The Eagle movement finishes the dance by repeating the wing phrase and directional hunting. This was taught to the Eagle by the Emu. The Eagle tells the little birds the Emu is the right teacher.
*Milpirri 2021 was reimagined to suit the current COVID circumstances. The dance in this video is from a showing at Lajamanu school. They are not complete dances.
Choreography
Kelly Beneforti, Madeleine Brown and Jordan Bretherton
Men's and Women's Dance
The traditional Jardiwanpa dance shows celebrating each other by jumping. The Yankirri (Emu) and the Wampana (Spectacled Hare Wallaby) started jumping up and down when they saw each other. Jardiwanpa is often the finale dance for the men and women in Milpirri.
