Sometimes, there is no retiring. We may be in our 60s, long past our dancing peak and officially ex, former, etcetera; yet the passion remains. And then there’s all our experience; the insights, the understanding. Which makes you wonder: what if…?
Enter, David McAllister. Since leaving his post as the Artistic Director of The Australian Ballet at the end of 2020, he has reinvented himself as part of a trio of ‘international ballet consultants’ and found himself parachuted into interim-AD roles with two companies. Indeed, as we speak, he is at home in his native Perth holding the reins at the West Australian Ballet, preparing to hand the baton to one of his former charges, Leanne Stojmenov.
Reflecting on the company-hopping trajectory of his post-Australian Ballet life, and of his glad homecoming, he says, with a smile in his voice, “It’s been a captivating coincidence, actually.”
Right here, although, we have to disentangle coincidence from luck, as a result of the course McAllister has plotted since leaving the nation’s main dance trade put up has been removed from haphazard. Certainly, the so-called ‘retirement’ pivot started nearly immediately. Throughout a 2021 stint in Finland engaged on a manufacturing of Swan Lake, he bought along with two equally skilled colleagues and created To The Pointe.
As he remembers, “We didn’t significantly need to be administrators anymore, however we nonetheless needed to have a bit of fuel within the tank. So, we began up this little firm, and went about excited about how we might assist the subsequent technology of administrators and assist firms to search out them. Curiously, that kind of morphed into serving to the Finnish Nationwide Ballet discover a new director, and it went from there.”
There’s a quick pause, earlier than he provides, “This entire fifo ballet director factor was kind of a sideline to that.”
Along with Cynthia Harvey and Madeleine Onne, McAllister has been placing his data and expertise to work throughout the dance universe. Not like the extra typical organisational evaluate course of, the place firms invite companies “like KPMG or Deloitte” to seek the advice of, To The Pointe is extra inventive. “It’s very exhausting to search out individuals who can are available in and do an creative evaluate,” McAllister notes.
Quick ahead to 2023, and he discovered himself consulting with the Royal New Zealand Ballet (RNZB). “I used to be really requested to assist them search for an interim particular person, however as we have been speaking, they kind of mentioned, ‘Really, would you love to do the job?’ I hadn’t actually considered it, however, yeah.”
Because it occurs, he was protecting the seat heat for one more of his outdated Australian Ballet principals, New Zealand born Ty King-Wall, now the serving AD of RNZB.
“After which, whereas I used to be in NZ, I bought the decision from WA,” McAllister reveals. “The considered spending a yr or so in Perth was fairly interesting.”
Now, within the austral spring of 2025, nearly 5 years after initially retiring, he’s getting ready to step again as soon as extra; this time for Stojmenov.
“The coincidence of each Ty and Leanne being appointed was extra about what each these [company] boards needed.”
There may be, McAllister concedes, no hiding the Australian Ballet alum connection in each handovers. “There was some hesitancy as a result of, , there was this thought that I used to be simply going to go spherical and discover jobs for all my former dancers,” he explains. “However that was really not the purpose in any respect. In each organisations, we did some good, throughout the board consulting, and we additionally checked out what sort of director every organisation needed. From there, we kind of helped them make their selections.”
Nevertheless, the fifo life will not be restricted to put holding. Being an interim AD is a fancy function. “In the beginning, you’re taking care of the dancers and the creative vibrancy of the organisation; and in addition delivering this system of the earlier director. Mainly, protecting issues artistically ticking over.”
Greater than merely staying related to the trade, McAllister and his co-founders at To The Pointe share a deeper mission. Unpacking this, he begins, “It’s bizarre however…you don’t realise how a lot you be taught in these jobs till you’re not doing them. If you’re in them, it seems like there’s all the time a lot extra to know. But in addition, you must be actually cognisant of the truth that if you happen to maintain doing these jobs, the subsequent technology don’t get their alternative. So, I really feel like I’m within the section of being, like, the champion of the subsequent technology.”
As he prepares to make means for the West Australian Ballet’s newly appointed Inventive Director, the Perth born ballet boy is as soon as once more considering life after. “I’ve actually loved it, however…I kind of really feel now that I’ve closed the virtuous circle by coming again to WA and handing over to Leanne. So, I really feel prefer it’s my time to truly drift off into the ether.”
(Insert pleasant reminder that he mentioned a lot the identical once we spoke in December 2020. Cue, realizing laughter.)
“I don’t suppose I’m going to be heading to the subsequent ballet firm. I’m wanting ahead to an excellent retirement,” he assures me.
That is adopted by a beat of silence, earlier than, unsurprisingly, “Then once more, if any person asks me to do one thing actually thrilling, I’m not going to say no.”
All of which suggests…watch this area.
By Paul Ransom of Dance Informa.
