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Bangarra Dance Company 'Mathinna'

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‘Analyse and reflect upon how the dance work, Mathinna, makes a powerful political and/or social statement regarding the Indigenous stolen generation in Australia.’ The contemporary dance work, ‘Mathinna’ by Bangarra Dance Company was inspired by a portrait of the same name by Thomas Bock depicting an Aboriginal girl in a red dress. The dance tells the true story of the short, confusing and tragic life of a young Aboriginal girl during the early days of Australia’s colonisation. Born on Flinders Island in 1835, Mathinna was taken from her family, alienated from her indigenous culture and placed in the home of a prominent white family, Governor Sir John and Lady Franklin. However, just a few years after her adoption, Governor and Lady Franklin returned to England and left Mathinna behind in the Queen’s Orphan School. At 16, Mathinna …show more content…

It effectively describes the story of Mathinna, a young Aboriginal girl removed from her family and raised as white girl and the problems and consequences of such an act. Bibliography Mathinna | Bangarra Dance Theatre. 2015. Mathinna | Bangarra Dance Theatre. [ONLINE] Available at: http://bangarra.com.au/performance/mathinna. [Accessed 17 November 2015]. Stolen Generations—effects and consequences - Creative Spirits. 2015. Stolen Generations—effects and consequences - Creative Spirits. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.creativespirits.info/aboriginalculture/politics/stolen-generations-effects-and-consequences#axzz3sJgfoA1L. [Accessed 21 November 2015]. The hidden story of Mathinna: spirited, gifted, utterly destroyed - ABC Hobart - Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 2015. The hidden story of Mathinna: spirited, gifted, utterly destroyed - ABC Hobart - Australian Broadcasting Corporation. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.abc.net.au/local/audio/2011/02/16/3140544.htm. [Accessed 19 November

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