For Australian-born dancer Zachary Healy, joining Cape Town City Ballet has come at exactly the right moment. After training at the New Zealand School of Dance, performing with Royal New Zealand Ballet and later spending two-and-a-half years with Singapore Ballet, the 24-year-old arrived in Cape Town looking for something many young dancers spend years chasing: opportunity. “I felt I could do more,” he says candidly. “I wanted to go somewhere where I could really perform principal roles and grow.”
That growth has happened quickly. Since joining the company shortly before its Johannesburg season of Swan Lake, Zachary has steadily moved into increasingly prominent productions, including Alice in Wonderland, Swingtime, and the critically acclaimed Dracula, which he describes as “the best thing I’ve ever been a part of”. Working alongside celebrated creatives including David Nixon, Gerard Charles and Sean Bovim has accelerated both his confidence and artistic maturity.
Now, audiences will see a very different side of him as he prepares to take on the role of Pluto in South African choreographer Veronica Paeper’s Orpheus in the Underworld, which opens at Artscape in Cape Town on 12 June 2026. It’s a production he describes simply as “fun”.
Inspired by Jacques Offenbach’s iconic comic operetta, the production is “very exaggerated, very cartoonish,” he explains. “A lot of ballets are beautiful and exciting, but they’re still serious at heart. This is about amusement. It’s cheeky, over the top, and made for audiences to relax and laugh.”
When Eurydice runs off with the charming Pluto, Orpheus is hardly devastated. But the meddling gods have other plans, setting off a wildly entertaining romp through Olympus and the underworld packed with comic chaos, extravagant personalities, and spirited choreography.
That theatricality clearly suits him. Offstage, Zachary is thoughtful and analytical about performance, but once he steps into character, something shifts. He speaks about finding movement first, in the walk, the posture, and the physicality, before allowing the personality to emerge.
“If I can embody the character physically, then everything else follows,” he says. “Pluto is confident, calm, and completely sure of himself. That’s probably what I connect with most.”
There is also an unmistakable sense of gratitude underpinning his experience in Cape Town. He repeatedly emphasises the collaborative spirit within the company, praising fellow dancers and coaches for fostering an environment in which performers genuinely support one another. “It feels like everyone really gives themselves to the work,” he says. “You’re building something together.”
That commitment extends beyond rehearsals. Zachary openly admits that major roles still bring nerves, sleeplessness, adrenaline, and the physical jitters that accompany opening-night pressure. But he also recognises that those feelings are part of the growth process.
“You jump higher with adrenaline,” he laughs. “You just have to learn how to control it.”
As Orpheus in the Underworld prepares to open, Zachary seems perfectly positioned between youthful excitement and emerging artistic confidence. And while Pluto may be mischievous, flamboyant, and larger than life, the dancer bringing him to the stage appears refreshingly grounded.
Then again, perhaps that balance is exactly what makes great performers so compelling to watch.
• Tickets from R250 are available through Artscape Dial-A-Seat on 021 421 7695 and via Webtickets.
There are only six performances this season, from 12 to 21 June 2026, all accompanied by the orchestra except for 13 and 14 June at 2pm. Evening performances are at 7pm.
