The Australian Ballet and the indigenous company Bangarra Dance Theatre have traveled to France with their joint project, Rites, a new take on The Rite of Spring that pays tribute to 30,000 years of Aboriginal culture. What do the French make of it? Critic Rosita Boisseau, looking “somewhat shell-shocked,” said, “It’s very strange. It left me a bit confused. All the dancers suddenly appearing covered head to toe in mud… It’s a completely different approach, and we have to be very curious and open-minded towards this kind of composition.”