Horizon 2026: Lucky Lartey’s Exoticism
Presented as part of Horizon Festival 2026, Exoticism forms one half of a strong double bill alongside Kuramanunya at the Old Ambulance Station in Nambour. Created by Ghanaian-Australian choreographer and performer Lucky Lartey, the work offers a focused and uncompromising examination of identity, masculinity, and cultural perception in contemporary Australia.
Image credit: Lucky Lartey, Exoticism, 2022. Photo: Zan Wimberley
Blending West African movement traditions with contemporary dance, Exoticism draws on Lartey’s lived experience and broader conversations with culturally diverse communities to unpack the complexities of representation and ‘otherness.’ Through choreography, installation, and moving image, the work challenges inherited ideas of multiculturalism, shifting the lens from passive observation to active authorship.
In this conversation, Lartey reflects on the development of Exoticism, the role of collaboration in shaping its visual and physical language, and how dance can operate as a space for both resistance and connection.
What inspired the creation of Exoticism, and how did the concept develop?
Exoticism was inspired by my lived experiences of living and working in Australia as a performer from an African background. The work reflects on how cultural identity is often shaped by external perceptions and how artists from culturally diverse backgrounds are frequently framed through ideas of difference or ‘otherness.’
The concept developed through conversations and interviews with artists and academics from culturally and linguistically diverse communities, revealing shared experiences of visibility, representation, and belonging. These exchanges shaped the work into a broader exploration of power, gaze, and agency. Through choreography, installation, and visual imagery, Exoticism reclaims authorship over representation, creating space for vulnerability, resistance, and new ways of being seen on stage.
How did your personal story shape the ideas of identity, masculinity, and resistance in this work?
My personal journey as an African artist living in Australia shaped this work by confronting stereotypes placed on my body and identity. It explores masculinity through vulnerability and strength, and resistance through the reclamation of space, voice, and cultural presence, transforming lived experience into movement, imagery, and collective storytelling.
What does ‘exoticism’ mean to you in 2026, and how does your work challenge the clichés attached to it?
In 2026, exoticism to me is about recognising how we often label what we don’t understand as “other.” It invites deeper curiosity rather than generalisation. Through my work, I challenge clichés by encouraging audiences to move beyond stereotypes, fostering awareness, empathy, and genuine understanding of cultures instead of reducing them to simplified or romanticised images.
If the audience could feel only one emotion after seeing Exoticism, what would you want it to be?
If the audience could feel only one emotion after seeing Exoticism, I would want it to be openness. Dance is a powerful way to begin conversations; it invites people in without judgment. Through Exoticism, I hope to create a space that encourages acceptance, curiosity, and deeper understanding rather than simply talking about the subject.
How do you translate cultural complexity and personal history into dance?
I translate cultural complexity and personal history into dance by working from lived experience rather than fixed movement styles. My body carries memories of migration, tradition, and everyday encounters, and choreography becomes a way of unpacking those layers. I draw from African rhythmic foundations, contemporary movement, and personal gestures to create a physical language that reflects both belonging and displacement.
Image credit: Lucky Lartey, Exoticism, 2022. Photo: Zan Wimberley
You and Vishnu Arunasalam bring different cultural and physical languages. What did you discover in the gaps between your styles?
Vishnu and I come from very different training backgrounds and cultural movement languages, but we share similar lived experiences of being artists in Australia. In the gaps between our styles, we discovered a space of mirroring where difference became a tool for dialogue rather than separation. Our process was guided by both experimentation and traditional knowledge systems, allowing us to move between contrast and connection. I focused on embracing our differences and similarities in physicality, movement language, and culture, creating a shared space where our stories could coexist equally and honestly.
If the visual elements could ‘speak’ back to the dancers, what would they say?
Working with Nathaniel Nelson’s video, animation, and tape installation expanded the choreography beyond the physical body and into a visual dialogue. Through our collaboration in animation, we explored dance gestures and costumes in black-and-white imagery as a form of celebration and reflection. The projected visuals became another performer in the space, influencing timing, rhythm, and movement choices. The video contrasts with Vishnu and me as we physically dismantle and reframe images on stage, allowing the choreography to respond directly to projection, texture, and space. This process inspired movement that questions representation and actively challenges stereotypes, creating a layered conversation between body, image, and audience perception.
How do you hope the audience will see themselves reflected or challenged through Exoticism?
I hope the audience can recognise parts of themselves in the work, whether through moments of familiarity, discomfort, or curiosity. Exoticism invites people to reflect on how we perceive others and how we ourselves are perceived. I want audiences to question assumptions they may carry about culture, identity, and difference, while also finding empathy and connection. Rather than giving answers, the work creates space for self-reflection, encouraging viewers to confront stereotypes, reconsider perspectives, and see diversity as something shared rather than distant.
Are there moments designed to make viewers uncomfortable? How do you navigate that tension?
I think, as artists, our role is to create a space where conversation can begin. Exoticism is a fully charged work with striking visuals, especially the play of shadows that draws viewers in. Rather than forcing discomfort, it opens a space for reflection, letting tension emerge naturally and encouraging audiences to engage with their feelings.
Dance is ephemeral. How do you capture or communicate social and cultural narratives through it?
Dance is ephemeral, but its power lies in how it embodies stories, histories, and emotions in the present moment. I communicate social and cultural narratives through movement vocabulary, gestures, spatial relationships, and dynamics that reference lived experiences. Music, costume, and visual elements can amplify context, while repetition, contrast, and improvisation allow audiences to feel, reflect, and connect. Even though the performance fades, the experience sparks dialogue, memory, and understanding; creating a living archive of culture and society that exists in both the bodies performing it and those witnessing it.
How has your own cultural background shaped the movements, rhythms, and energy of the work?
My cultural background is central to the way I move and create. Growing up in Ghana and being part of the African diaspora in Australia has given me a deep connection to grounded, rhythmic movement, storytelling through the body, and communal energy. These experiences shape the gestures, rhythms, and intensity of the work, creating a dialogue between my heritage and contemporary expression. My movements carry the weight of personal and collective histories, while the energy I bring reflects resilience, joy, and resistance, allowing audiences to feel both the intimacy of my story and the universality of the cultural narratives I embody.
Which artists, performances, or music haunt your imagination as you create?
“I’m often drawn to artists and performances that blur boundaries, those who combine music, movement, and visuals in unexpected ways. I think about performers like Siri Larbi, Akram Khan, for their emotional depth, Pina Bausch for her theatrical intensity, and contemporary experimental artists who play with rhythm, identity, and space. In music, I’m haunted by jazz improvisations, African rhythms and electronic textures that create tension and release. These influences linger in my imagination as I create, shaping the gestures, energy, and emotional landscape of the work.”
If Exoticism could leave one mark on contemporary Australian dance, what would it be?
It would be to open up a space for nuanced cultural dialogue, challenging stereotypes, celebrating difference, and showing that experimental, boundary-pushing work can emerge from the intersections of diverse experiences. It would leave a mark of curiosity, connection, and inclusivity.
Imagine Exoticism five years from now, what has evolved or changed?
Five years from now, I imagine Exoticism evolving into a more immersive and collaborative work. The piece will continue to explore cultural perception and identity, but with new technologies, interdisciplinary collaborations, and deeper audience engagement. It might incorporate more live interactive elements, expanding beyond traditional performance to create shared, transformative experiences that challenge assumptions in real time. The core ideas of understanding, reflection, and dialogue will remain, but the work itself will grow with each context, responding to global conversations about culture, identity, and connection.
Has creating this work shifted your understanding of yourself as a choreographer or performer?
Creating Exoticism has definitely shifted my understanding of myself both as a choreographer and a performer. I’ve learned to embrace the spaces between collaboration and individuality, to trust experimentation, and to let vulnerability guide movement. It’s deepened my awareness of how my identity and experiences shape the work, and how dance can be a tool to challenge perception while celebrating complexity.
If you could perform Exoticism anywhere in the world, where would it be, and why?
I feel like Exoticism could be performed anywhere in the world. It’s a timeless work that speaks to shared human experiences, and now more than ever, it offers a space to learn about each other, challenge assumptions, and celebrate cultural understanding.
Lucky Lartey’s Exoticism is presented with Kuramanunya at the Old Ambulance Station, Nambour, from 1–10 May 2026.
