Moonlite’s Dance is part of The Raconteur’s ‘Where Love Lives” collection; an emotionally driven addition to the brand. Exploring the different states that love can exist – secrecy, rebellion, resilience, adventure, listening to your heart, or perhaps, the universe. Where Love Lives is a cinematic trio that strives to feel emotionally intelligent, devastatingly human and atmospheric rather than classically romantic.
As always, The Raconteur has their unique Australian perspective throughout the collection. Historical references help to shape each fragrance through ingredients, mood and characteristics.
Moonlite’s Dance is an ode to hidden love and, as such, uses ingredients that are hidden in the ground or concealed within bark.
Inspired by the story of Captain Moonlite; the notorious Australian bushranger whose forbidden relationship with fellow outlaw James Nesbitt became one of Australia’s great hidden love stories. Captain Moonlite, an Irish-born New Zealander, immigrated to Australia to become a bushranger, eventually becoming a figure of folklore, as well as a queer icon.
After losing his lover in the Wantabadgery siege in 1879, Captain Moonlite was heartbroken and when he was finally caught and executed 3 years later, his dying wish was to be buried next to Nesbitt. Sadly, that wish was denied.
Over a century later, historians uncovered the depths of Moonlite and Nesbitt’s relationship through Moonlite’s letters and final writings. The Gundagai community petitioned for Moonlite’s remains to be exhumed and reburied alongside Nesbitt. In January 1995 (115 years after Moonlite’s execution) Captain Moonlite’s final wish was granted.
Moonlite’s Dance is a fragrance of love hidden in the shadows.
Love doesn’t always live in the light. Sometimes it waits patiently in the shadows – dares you closer.
NOTES
Ginger, Vetiver, Orris, Frankincense, Myrrh
PERFUMER
Craig Andrade
HOW IT WEARS
Moonlite’s Dance opens with a spicy blast of ginger – like Captain Moonlite’s rifle firing through the bushland. It transports you to a moment in history, the smell of the Australian bush in all its glory; dry green grassy notes, woody earth and then this refreshing spice floating through the air. Moonlite’s Dance captures this scent while simultaneously smelling incredibly modern and far from nature, like a ginger-infused cocktail, sipped while an earthy candle burns beside you in a quiet, hidden laneway bar. We love the way Moonlite’s Dance settles on the skin, opening as a green, earthy, grass-like fragrance with a spicy kick. It settles into something more mysterious, more of the earth – as orris root and the resins of frankincense and myrrh come alive, we get gentle, sweet warmth with a green (almost a hint of smokiness) dampness creating a truly unique and evocative fragrance.
LORE LOVES
We love the heartbreaking love story of Captain Moonlight and James Nesbitt, and also the way that Craig has managed to mirror the theme of this love story perfectly with ingredients. Moonlite’s Dance wears like a love story on the skin; initially, it is full of spice and fresh, lively energy, yet soon it settles into something even more special than that. Something familiar, something comfortable…something that is only for those in the story themselves. The hidden nature of the ingredients used feels special, in the way that only you and your partner know your innermost secrets. As Moonlite’s Dance wears on the skin, the fragrance has a sensual darkness, a resinous warmth that glows like a lovers magnetic pull.
ABOUT THE BRAND
Founded in 2019 by Craig Andrade, The Raconteur (“The Storyteller”) is an artisanal luxury fragrance brand specialising in Australian native botanicals and plant extracts.
Having attended one of the world’s most prestigious fragrance schools in Grasse, France, and trained by Elise Pioch Balzac, Andrade knows his perfume. Working with world leader in natural perfumery, Mandy Aftel, he has created Australian botanical extracts and fragrances for use in collaboration with Troye Sivan for Tsu Lange Yor, Paspaley and Cult Design.
“My perfumery practice straddles beauty, art, history, science, botany, geography, and physiology. It comprises rich layers of storytelling and meaning. My focus is on making natural fragrances that combine these elements and provide both pleasure and purpose.” – Craig Andrade
As a fragrance house, The Raconteur is about telling the story of the scent of Australia – a story about the quiet beauty of what was always there. They aim to not only showcase the better-known Australian botanicals (sandalwood, boronia, lemon myrtle, etc) but the rarer ones too – Australia has over 18,000 unique native botanicals, and new ones are being discovered all the time!
All of The Raconteur fragrances are plant-derived, comprised of of a blend of natural and safe synthetic ingredients, and are all vegan and cruelty free.
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