Q&A with Choreographer Annaliese Macdonald

Originally from Warrane/Sydney Annaliese trained at The Australian Ballet School before joining The Australian Ballet in 2019.

She moved to New Zealand in 2020 to dance with the RNZB, where she choreographed Limerence, later adapted for the 2022 Ballet Bites digital season.

Now freelancing and studying across Europe and Australia, she continues to expand her dance and choreographic practice, drawing inspiration from artists such as Ohad Naharin, Paul Lightfoot, and Lucy Guerin.

Tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got your start as a choreographer.

I grew up in Sydney and I have Scottish and Ukrainian background. Choreographing has always been quite instinctual for me. My first memories of ‘choreographing’ was in my living room performing my interpretation of The Nutcracker and Nikki Webster’s Strawberry Kisses, and on the school bus, I’d stare out the window, listening to my hot pink iPod Nano, crafting dance numbers in my head.

At The Australian Ballet School, we had to choreograph solos as part of the Dance Perspectives course. Both years, my solos were selected for the school’s public access day. Later, when I joined RNZB in 2020, an email was sent out inviting dancers to create for an in-house choreographic season. I hesitated at first, but I felt a pull toward it. That was how Days of Yore, my first choreographic work on other dancers, came to life. It was an intense experience, choreographing on senior dancers with limited time, but that pressure meant I had to trust my instincts. The following year, I created again for RNZB, where I created Limerence.

What was the inspiration for Limerence?

At the time I created Limerence, I was grappling with my own identity in relation to ambition. I was stuck between longing for something I loved; something that had once defined me, and the fear that chasing it in the same way would consume me. I felt a deep conflict. The drive to prove myself, the guilt of wanting more, and the realisation that my self-worth couldn’t hinge on external success. This work was a way to process those contradictions, to embody the tension between fantasy and reality, desire and restraint, nostalgia and truth.

You first developed this work for an RNZB studio showing and later adapted it into a film for RNZB’s 2022 digital season, Ballet Bites. What has it been like revisiting this work?

It’s been both challenging and deeply rewarding. Working with the dancers again has been a privilege, and seeing how they have grown, both as artists and as people, has been inspiring. Each cast has brought something unique, and while it has been demanding to work with three different groups, it has also been so inspiring and exciting to see how the movement translates onto different bodies and interpretations.

Returning to Limerence also meant revisiting the mindset I was in when I first created it. Some of the themes in the work; ambition, longing, loss; are things I now see with more clarity. I’ve had moments in the studio where I’ve felt overwhelmed, not just by the work itself, but by the memories it holds. But that has also deepened my connection to the piece and allowed me to engage in meaningful conversations with the dancers about its themes.

"Your imagination has no limits, but in the studio, you must embrace what’s real, the dancers, the energy, the space. That tension is part of what makes the creative process so exciting."

Annaliese Macdonald

Tell us more about your creative process

My process usually starts with walking; letting thoughts and ideas filter through as I listen to music. Sometimes, visuals appear quite clearly, and other times, I start with only a feeling. With Limerence, the images came quickly: I could see the jackets, the dual states of the protagonist’s psyche, the interplay between the characters.

When I get into the studio, I improvise a lot, recording myself to find movement vocabulary. The process of shaping the work means balancing the vision I have in my mind with the reality in front of me. Your imagination has no limits, but in the studio, you must embrace what’s real, the dancers, the energy, the space. That tension is part of what makes the creative process so exciting.

How did your music choice influence the choreography in this piece?

Schubert’s Trio for Piano, Violin, and Cello No 2 in Eflat major, Op. 100 is a piece that carries its own story. It has this incredible sense of ebb and flow; push and pull; which mirrors the emotional journey of the work. It builds and collapses, surges forward and hesitates, much like the internal struggle of the protagonist. The music gave the structure for the movement and informed the emotional pacing of the piece. Schubert is one of my favourite composers for that reason; his music moves like a narrative.

What has it been like returning to work with the RNZB dancers?

It has been amazing. I’m in awe of their artistry and the way they’ve evolved. Being in a studio environment again has reminded me how much I love the collaborative nature of this work; sharing ideas, seeing dancers bring movement to life, and witnessing their growth. And I hope I’ve been able to pass on some of the things I’ve learned since being away.

Since 2022, you have expanded your dance and choreographic practice, freelancing and studying in Europe and Australia. How did this journey transpire? Tell us about some of your memorable experiences

After leaving full-time company life, I needed time to rediscover my relationship with dance. I explored different movement practices, took time to reflect, and allowed myself the space to create without pressure. Studying and freelancing in Europe and Australia exposed me to different ways of working, different artistic philosophies, and new ways of approaching choreography. Some of the most memorable experiences have been working with artists from different disciplines, where movement isn’t just about steps but about intention, energy, and presence. This journey has assisted a broader perspective, both as a dancer and as a creator, and I feel more connected to the kind of work I want to make moving forward.