bio

Juliet Widyasari Burnett is an internationally recognised Indonesian-Australian dancer, choreographer, actor, writer and founder-director of A_PART, connecting Indonesian and Australian artists and communities. 

She was born on Gadigal land (Sydney), and after graduating from The Australian Ballet School danced for 13 years (2003-2015) at The Australian Ballet, where the roles of Giselle, Odette in Graeme Murphy’s Swan Lake and abstract classical works by the likes of George Balanchine, Glen Tetley and Stephen Baynes became her signature, as well as her versatility in the contemporary repertory of choreographers such as Wayne McGregor, Stephen Page and Jiri Kylian. Juliet left to pursue a freelance career, working with contemporary choreographers such as Melanie Lane and guesting with Chunky Move, Dutch National Ballet and West Australian Ballet. In 2016 she moved to Europe to take up a role as dancer with Opera Ballet Vlaanderen in Belgium, where she danced the repertory of Pina Bausch, William Forsythe, Akram Khan (in the title role of his contemporary production of Giselle) and Trisha Brown amongst others, and had creations made on her by Édouard Lock, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and Alain Platel. In 2022 she returned to Australia as a freelance artist, and is based on Kombumerri country (Gold Coast). 

In 2021 Juliet was named winner of the Arts and Culture category of the 40 Under 40 Most Influential Asian-Australian Awards to recognise her international achievement as an Indonesian-Australian diaspora artist, and for her work connecting Indonesian and Australian dance through her community work and advocacy; Most Outstanding Dancer in Dance Europe 2020 for her performance Edouard Lock’s ‘The Heart of August…continued’ at Opera Ballet Vlaanderen; and Standout Solo Performance in Portland Dance Film Festival 2021 for her performance in Belgian filmmaker Sam Asaert’s short film ‘Exaltation’; alongside numerous nominations for performance and choreography.

Juliet choreographs and directs her own creative projects across film and stage: CYVASA 2.0 (2025) - in collaboration with Indonesian dance artist Ishvara Devati with original music by Yogyakarta feminist noise duo Metatesis - at Temperance Hall Melbourne 2025 and Bleach Festival, HOTA Gallery Gold Coast 2026; Roro Xeno (2025) - with original music by Indonesian electronic music artist Kasimyn (Gabber Modus Operandi, Björk, Samsara film) at MONA/HOTA Gallery at Bleach* Festival 2025 and Insitute of Modern Art’s MONO at Ipswich Art Gallery 2026; in situ (2019) - a solo work for actor/dancer Victor Polster (Girl by Lukas Dhont) with music by Australian experimental percussionist Will Guthrie - for Opera Ballet Vlaanderen; MOUNTAIN (2026) - in collaboration with Iranian-Australian drone guitarist Sam Saljooghi for the inaugural A_PART LIVE_01; Ketok, Ora Ketok (2025) - with music by Indonesian artists Metatesis and Deathless - at ALOW Gallery Gold Coast; dance film for MONA at Dark MOFO, Letting Blood (2016); Elektra (2025), a response to Anselm Kiefer’s Elektra installation with music by experimental chamber music composer Nick Tsiavos, commissioned by MONA; as well as choreographing and performing in music clips for Australian indie band Cool Explosions (2018), and Icelandic artist Gyda Valtysdottir (2022). She is currently in development for new cross-disciplinary work Kasekten in collaboration with fellow Indonesian diaspora, extreme metal vocalist Karina Utomo; and new dance theatre work Miasma with music by Australian experimental composer Dylan Sheridan.

In her practice Juliet explores a hybrid of Javanese dance and arts with Western classical and contemporary forms, navigating the confluence of dance, theatre, film and music. Coming from a rich artistic heritage through her Javanese bloodline, this culture is the pulse of her work, in particular the meditation techniques and philosophies passed down to her from her uncle, renowned poet, playwright and activist W.S. Rendra. Juliet’s work in her mother’s country of Indonesia includes performance, classes for local dancers and in 2015 founding a series of community workshops for marginalised children called Ballet Goes To… in collaboration with Ballet.Id and the Australian Embassy in Jakarta. Juliet has been trained in her grandmother’s art of Javanese classical dance, and other traditional Javanese dances and art forms including the martial art of Pencak Silat. 

Juliet has also worked as an actor - in 2024 she garnered critical acclaim starring in Indonesian film Samsara, a silent movie by iconic director Garin Nugroho, and in 2019 a Dutch language stage play adaptation of Petroesjka at the Royal Concertgebouw, Amsterdam.

She teaches ballet and improvisational contemporary dance workshops and classes in Australia, Europe and Indonesia, as well as company class for The Australian Ballet, Sydney Dance Company, Queensland Ballet, West Australian Ballet, Bangarra Dance Theatre, Australasian Dance Collective and Karul Projects, and is currently completing a Master in Leadership online at Deakin University.

Juliet is founder and director of A_PART, a platform connecting Australian and Indonesian artists and communities, which since 2021 has produced films featuring First Nations dance artist Yolanda Lowatta, Javanese dance artist Razan Wirjosandjojo, filmmaker Cass Mortimer-Eipper and composers Alyx Dennison and Cahwati Sugiarto; facilitated two community workshops in Indonesia, one with Kitapoleng, a Balinese community dance organisation working with Deaf dancers; initiated the ongoing Pleiades Project for Indonesian and Australian female and femme artist exchange; and in 2026, presented its first live shows - A_PART LIVE_01 - in Kombumerri Country/Gold Coast and Bundjalung Country/Byron Bay, which also facilitated the creation of the new work MOUNTAIN between Juliet and Sam Saljooghi.

Juliet is passionate about the role of art as a mirror to the world we live in.