Deconstructing the Mask: Annabelle Lopez Ochoa on Fusing INXS, Pop Culture, and Ballet for 'Elegantly Wasted'

Inside Queensland Ballet's West End studios, two distinct eras are colliding in high gear. On one side is Belgian-Colombian choreographer Annabelle Lopez Ochoa—a prolific maker who has worked with 89 companies around the world, celebrated for full-length narrative hits like A Streetcar Named Desire and Queensland Ballet's 2024 sell-out Coco Chanel: The Life of a Fashion Icon. On the other is an ensemble of young dancers who initially confessed they knew the soundtrack not from their own playlists, but from their parents' record collections.

The soundtrack belongs to INXS, and the production is Elegantly Wasted—a 65-minute world premiere contemporary ballet commissioned in partnership with HOTA (Home of the Arts) on the Gold Coast, running from 10 to 12 September.

"I'm an older person, so I had a very long career," Lopez Ochoa laughs. "I grew up with INXS. When I listened to their music, it was on a Walkman and on the first CDs I ever bought. Those CDs travelled with me for twenty years. When the dancers told me they didn't know the songs, I felt very old. But after five weeks in the studio, they've fallen in love with it. I've been able to share a piece of my youth with this generation."

"There is your image on Instagram or TikTok, and then there is the real you. In the ballet, we peel that back." — Annabelle Lopez Ochoa

The Architecture of Artifice

Set within the polished anonymity of a luxury hotel foyer, Elegantly Wasted uses the transient nature of modern transit spaces to examine how digital natives curate identity, perform status, and navigate isolation. Six couches serve as modular objects across the stage, constantly dismantled and reconfigured by the cast to alter perspective as the performative masks begin to slip.

"A hotel lobby is an amazing place to meet because you never know the stories of all the people passing through at the same time," Lopez Ochoa says. "It's a junction where people remain distant yet stuck together. They start the piece well-curated, self-assured, and performing for the screen. But throughout the ballet, the masks fall off. They become more direct, vulnerable, and a real camaraderie emerges."

While the initial premise explored the mechanics of influencer culture, Lopez Ochoa broadened the narrative focus during rehearsals.

"I dropped the word 'influencer' and focused simply on modern youth," she explains. "We live in a culture addicted to likes, clicks, and views. People even curate their heartbreaks and illnesses to feed the algorithm. But eventually the screen goes black, you're left alone, and the physical need for authentic human connection has to surface."

Deconstructing the Jukebox

Translating iconic rock and funk-infused anthems like Suicide Blonde and Mediate onto a classical ensemble carries the danger of slipping into glossy commercial routine. To avoid the feel of a television dance competition, Lopez Ochoa grounded the dancers in pointe shoes early in the rehearsal process and worked closely with sound designer Jake Rodriguez to reimagine the tracks into theatrical compositions — additional music production from Nigel Butler rounds out the sound.

"Because those tunes are so famous, I was afraid it might look like a number from So You Think You Can Dance," Lopez Ochoa notes. "Putting the dancers in pointe shoes elevates the art form. We extended and reshaped the arrangements with atmosphere and texture so it wouldn't just be a standard radio jukebox performance."

The collaboration carries the direct endorsement of INXS founding member and composer Andrew Farriss, following the band's Ted Albert Award at the 2026 APRA Awards.

"INXS have always embraced exploring new ideas and the different ways our music can connect with people," Farriss said. "This ballet is a fresh artistic interpretation that stands in its own space. It's not about the band's story but shows how our music can inspire new forms of expression. Annabelle has brought her own artistic vision to the music, and we're looking forward to seeing how it comes to life."

The work represents Queensland Ballet's second major contemporary music-led commission at HOTA, following Garry Stewart's 2025 Sia collaboration Elastic Hearts. The creative team also features set and lighting design by Jon Buswell and costume design by Josh McIntosh.

Ensemble Vignettes and Artistic Goodbyes

Rather than tracking a single linear protagonist, Elegantly Wasted unfolds as a suite of vignettes highlighting company artists alongside newly appointed principal dancer Jun Masuda.

"I worked with Jun five years ago at Tulsa Ballet during the pandemic, and I didn't even realise he had joined Queensland Ballet until the first day I arrived in the studio," Lopez Ochoa says. "It has been wonderful to reunite."

Following opening night on the Gold Coast, Lopez Ochoa departs immediately for Lithuania to stage a new interpretation of La Dame aux Camélias with fifty dancers.

"I always get a little melancholic when choreographing the final seconds because then my work is done and it belongs entirely to the dancers," she reflects. "You have to be a bit of a Buddhist, learn to detach, and trust what you've built together."

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Season Details

• Production: Elegantly Wasted (Queensland Ballet in partnership with HOTA and Experience Gold Coast)
• Choreography & Concept: Annabelle Lopez Ochoa
• Music: INXS
• Creative Team: Sound Design by Jake Rodriguez | Additional Music Production by Nigel Butler | Costume Design by Josh McIntosh | Set & Lighting Design by Jon Buswell
• Dates: 10–12 September 2026
• Performances: Thursday 10 Sep (7:00 pm), Friday 11 Sep (7:30 pm), Saturday 12 Sep (1:30 pm & 7:30 pm)
• Duration: 65 minutes (no interval)
• Venue: HOTA, Home of the Arts, Gold Coast