Interplay
"[Night Path is] exquisitely danced by the ethereal Madeleine
Eastoe." The Age, 2 September 2008
"[Night Path is a] ..credit to the dancers, led by Madeleine Eastoe.
There’s a fearlessness and bloody-minded belief in the choreography." Herald Sun, 2 September 2008
"Eastoe’s feet rarely touch the ground as her fellow
dancers manipulate and move her across the stage in a series of seamless lifts. She portrays a delightful sleeping beauty
and her moving in and out of consciousness is most elegantly marked as she falls to the ground and then with an arch of her
back, slowly rises to be taken off once more. Only when the objects of her dreams dance off into the night for the final time
do the audience take a breath." Australian Stage Online, 30 August 2008
Symphonie Fantastique
"The image of the perfect couple, sees a sweet Madeleine Eastoe
partnered with a gentle Remi Wörtmeyer in a pastoral duet." Danse Light, October 2008
"...The next scene was one of the most successful, featuring Madeleine
Eastoe and Remi Wortmeyer as the Pastoral Couple. Their duet was sympathetically danced and their connection strong,
embodying the care and love of a deep relationship. Their pale costumes soaked up the warm lighting, allowing them to blend
in with the swaying ears of wheat in the backdrop and making them seem a part of nature... Eastoe's solo after losing
her partner was brief, but memorable for the tension and sadness it contained, without falling into melodrama." Danceinsider.com, October 2008
"...Madeleine Eastoe and Remi
Wörtmeyer portray a more realistic relationship between a young couple – a shepherd and a shepherdess." Dance Europe, October 2008
Graeme Murphy's Swan Lake
"The Australians, led by the Odette of Madeleine
Eastoe – who is a superb dancer, with feet that ripple like water in a stream – were mightily impressive."
Ballet.co.uk, November 2008
"...Madeleine Eastoe and Robert Curran
danced with great skill and poetry in the white swan pas de deux which brought atmosphere and distinction to the production."
Manchester Evening News, 17 October 2008
"Central
roles were performed with real chemistry. Madeleine Eastoe as Odette, Danielle Rowe as the Baroness and Robert
Curran as Siegfried made the tortured love triangle work with superb, strong performances both in dance and portrayal. The
night belonged to Eastoe, though, rarely off stage, a poignant, unforgettable Odette." Chester Chronicle, 16 October 2008
"Undoubtedly the star of this
show is Madeleine Eastoe who is simply stunning as Odette. Not only is her dancing technically brilliant
but her acting skills are of an exceptionally high standard and she is extremely believable as the fragile and unstable maiden.
Eastoe’s act 3 pas de deux with Curran is a real highlight of the evening but their performances in the final scene
are masterful and they convey the tragedy of the closing moments wonderfully." Manchester, 15 October 2008
"...the company’s most successful ballet ever, Graeme Murphy’s award winning
Swan Lake, made its French debut. Principal Artists Madeleine Eastoe, Robert Curran and Danielle
Rowe led an emotional performance that brought audiences to their feet during the curtain call." London, 2 October
2008
"(Jill Sykes) praised the dancing of the two first cast female principals, Madeleine
Eastoe and Danielle Rowe.
For this writer, the three principals of the two casts in Paris, Eastoe, Rowe and Robert
Curran, and Amber Scott, Adam Bull and Olivia Bell, pulled out all the stops to give powerful performances at a significant
moment in Australian dance history." Paris, 6 October 2008
"Madeleine Eastoe has developed technically and dramatically in the central
role of Odette, using the gift of Murphy's choreography to evoke character and emotion as well as storytelling." SMH, 8 April 2008
"Eastoe is a marvellous Odette. She manages to project a hurt disappointment
and youthful wisdom. Her third-act transformation is breathtaking. Her dancing is fearless and utterly assured. She rides
the rest of the cast like a feather on an updraft...And the audience gave it a standing ovation." Herald
Sun, 19 March 2008
"...the experienced, and stellar, trio of Madeleine Eastoe, Robert Curran
and Lynette Wills and they were, as expected, splendid." The Australian, 18 March 2008
Bodytorque. To the Pointe.
Tim Harbour's Wa
"Wa is the standout work on the program, propelled partly by the skill and commitment
of its dancers: Gina Brescianini, Madeleine Eastoe, Kevin Jackson, Andrew Killian, Ty King-Wall and Leanne
Stojmenov." Sydney Morning Herald, 27 February 2008
Les Présages
"Madeleine Eastoe (captured) the spirit, fluency and varied character
of the movement that is rich in eye-catching details." SMH, 9 November 2007
Peter Wright's The Nutcracker
"Wright’s Clara Stahlbaum, danced on opening night with
fleet lightness and wide-eyed wonder by Madeleine Eastoe, is an adolescent ready to fall in love with her
adoring dancing partner, an eager Kevin Jackson." The Adelaide Review, October 2007
"Madeleine Eastoe as Clara was all bright eyed
wonder, light and girlish in her steps and confident with her repertoire." Australian Stage
Online, 24 September 2007
"Madeleine Eastoe has a dreamy, floaty quality that’s perfect for
Clara." The Australian, 20 September 2007
"Madeleine Eastoe gave a delightfully danced and characterised portrayal
in the central role of the teenage Clara, young enough to get a doll for Christmas but old enough to fall in love."
2007
Paquita
"Pocket rocket Madeleine Eastoe flies through the air with
the greatest of ease and elegance in Spring Waters." mX, 14 June 2007
"Madeleine Eastoe flowed like a leaf on a stream." The
Australian, 11 June 2007
Symphonie
Fantastique
"...the ballet is worth seeing for the duet of
the young lovers in Part 3, the poet’s wish-fulfilment dream, imaginatively choreographed and ravishingly danced by
Madeleine Eastoe and Remi Wörtmeyer." The Adelaide Review, June 2007
“Remi Wörtmeyer and Madeleine Eastoe
are exceptional.” Herald Sun, June 2007
Constant Variants
"Eastoe steals the show with her impeccable control from her high lifts
to her slides across the floor." Australian Stage Online, 5 May 2007
"Madeleine Eastoe was outstanding as
she floated through her movements, making the most difficult of partner work look so light and easy." Dance Informa,
June/July 2007
Les Sylphides
"Madeleine Eastoe captures the exquisite simplicity of her choreography
and the innocent longing of her character." SMH, 10 November 2006
The Sleeping Beauty
"(As the Canari Fairy) Madeleine Eastoe was magical." Danz
Quarterly, Auckland, 27 October 2006
Graeme Murphy's Swan Lake (UK Tour 2005)
"Madeleine Eastoe as Odette
is an outstanding artist of extraordinary range and unfailing power." London Dance.com, July 2005
"...On this showing, they are in very good shape with exemplary performances at all levels, but in an outstanding
cast it will be Madeleine Eastoe’s tragic, porcelain princess that will live in my memory the longest.
This was without doubt the finest work to new classical choreography I have seen in a very long time." Ballet-Dance
Magazine, August 2005
"...Murphy’s spirited choreography gives
strong opportunities for this big, talented company, and in the first scene the action is taut with fluctuating emotions....
Madeleine Eastoe’s compelling Odette whirls round the stage dementedly." The Sunday Times,
24 July 2005
"Eastoe’s Odette was vulnerable and pure, incredulous at the
broken vow of her husband, and her arms were simply perfect. For such a strong, muscular dancer, beautifully graceful arms
came as a bit of a surprise, but beautiful they were. She was technically neat but also pulled off all the ‘tricks’
necessary, and is a wonderful actress. I believed her, and her final flying leap into Siegfried’s arms, just when the
music changes from a minor to a major key, could not have failed to bring a tear to anyone’s eye." Ballet
Magazine, 22 July 2005
"4 stars...The sure proof of (Murphy’s) success is in the
security of the Australian ensemble, their style frank, bright-cut, and in the fine trio of principals. Madeleine
Eastoe as Odette is an outstanding artist of extraordinary range and unfailing power; Lynette Wills is a darkly glamorous
Baroness; Steven Heathcote is a commanding dramatic artist as Siegfried, with every feeling true, and a sublime partner....
The entire company performance spoke of dedication and heartening achievement." Financial Times, UK, 22 July 2005
"5 stars... Graeme Murphy and his team have created
a truly sensational show that proved a smash hit with the Cardiff
audience – a standing ovation no less. The dance is wonderfully creative and imaginative, the standard of acting something
we rarely see in ballet and the interpretation bold while perfectly acceptable. The frail form of Madeleine Eastoe
rose to the demands of this Odette with electrifying results; she’s intensely emotional and technically accomplished."
Western Mail, Wales, 15 July 2005
"...(Swan Lake) is in a class of its own... a thrilling mix
of athleticism and expertise... Madeleine Eastoe (Odette) brought out all the heartbreaking emotions of an
innocent bride betrayed, with Lynette Wills (Baroness von Rothbart) as the mistress providing a great contrast with her boldness
and passion...this is a Swan Lake
full of spectacle, story and surprise." South Wales Echo, 15 July 2005
"...As a concept this is ingeniously
packaged... the choreography is all Murphy’s own. He’s coined a clean-limbed, assertive style of ballet that he
works hard - building up clever set pieces (like the seesawing trio for the Prince and his rival women) and always flattering
his dancers (Stephen Heathcote a handsomely susceptible Prince, Madeleine Eastoe a finely strung Odette and
Lynette Willis a glamorously predatory Baroness)." The Guardian, UK, 15 July 2005
"...Murphy
has adapted it to the original story most beautifully. The choreography is very much Murphy’s own but always leaves
you with a sense of the original. The leading roles were danced beautifully by Madeleine
Eastoe, Lynette Willis and Steven Heathcote whose strong partnering was a pleasure to watch. The performance drew
a much deserved standing ovation from the audience." Ballet.co.uk, 21 July 2005
"...The welcome for
the Australian company was exceptional - the result of choreographer Murphy’s storytelling, the passionate Tchaikovsky
score, played by the Birmingham Royal Ballet’s orchestra, the Royal Ballet Sinfonia, under the baton of Nicolette Fraillon,
and the commitment of Madeleine Eastoe as Odette. She is a senior artist with the Australian Ballet but her
promotion to the principal ranks can’t be far away after this week’s performance as the heartbroken princess."
Sydney Morning Herald, 15 July 2005
"It's Madeleine Eastoe's night as Odette.
She is small but a naturally expressive communicator who could move an eye a millimetre and we'd notice and know exactly what
was meant. She reminded me of a young Viviana Durante... Eastoe, 8 years in the company, is not yet a
Principal and based on this performance that seems implausible." Ballet Magazine, July 2005
"...Madeleine
Eastoe’s Odette begins as a bashful bride, but quickly slips into her own fantasy world once she realises that
her groom is two-timing her. Confined to a sanatorium, she conjures up the swans as a kind of safety net. These aren’t
enchanted creatures so much as Odette’s alter-egos. The heart of Eastoe’s performance is her deranged plummet
from reality into delirium." The Times Online, 15 July 2005
"Madeleine
Eastoe danced the role of Odette with great pathos and beauty." Stagediary.com, 24 February
2005
"Madeleine Eastoe and
Steven Heathcote are a sensationally strong couple. Eastoe is particularly remarkable throughout in a very demanding and varied
role." M/C Reviews, 24 February 2005
La Sylphide
"At the next day’s matinee, the leading roles of the Sylphide and James were danced
by Madeleine Eastoe and Tim Harbour. Eastoe caught easily the feathery and insubstantial nature of the Sylphide
but she also conveyed a bit of artifice in her dealings with James. She hovered. She darted. She was here. She was there.
Her bourrees were as delicate as the wings of the butterfly she catches for James in Act II. But when she wept at the window
in Act I, when she melted with grief as she rebuked James that he loved another, and when she capriciously snatched the ring
meant for Effie from his hand, we knew that James was trapped not by love but by the trickery of a fey person. Here was the
beautiful danger. This was Eastoe’s debut performance as the Sylphide and she showed all the technical and dramatic
strengths that mark her as one of the Australian Ballet’s true stars." Canberra Times, 22 April
2005
Australian Ballet Gala
"The fiery Don Quixote followed,
danced by Madeleine Eastoe and Marc Cassidy... the majority of their sequence was delivered with snappy style
and effervescent energy." Chloe Smethurst, 2 November 2004
"The Don Quixote and Black Swan
pas de deux, (was) danced with maximum commitment by Madeleine Eastoe and Marc Cassidy." The
Australian, 29 October 2004
Continuum
"Madeleine
Eastoe and Marc Cassidy whirled around the stage with lightning-quick footwork in their short solos and pas de deux."
2002
