YCulture Metro 2015 Projects
Drug Aware: Fracture
Harriet Roberts & Lucy Clements | $3000
Fracture, proudly presented by Drug Aware YCulture Metro, opened its six-night season on 23 June at The Blue Room Theatre. The season was the culmination of an eighteen-week project development. This was a brave new work and the first public production for new writer Lucy Clements. All artists involved collaborated and defined their own creative boundaries as well as new connections and skills.
“This was an incredibly organic process for both writer and actors, producing a collaborative effort and providing an ideal forum for Lucy to experiment as a first time scriptwriter.” - Harriet Roberts
Auspice Organisation: The Blue Room Theatre
Perth Jazz Society Big Band
Luke Minness & Marc Osborne | $3000
With a direct reach of well over 100 people, the Perth Jazz Society Big Band project was a lively addition to the Perth International Jazz Festival, performing the compositions of renowned local composer Vanessa Perica, including a commissioned work written for the PIJF. The PJS Big Band is an exciting project founded by enterprising local artists, and supported by the Perth Jazz Society.
“The interaction with my mentor was very positive and constructive. The extensive rehearsal period allowed for plenty of time to absorb each concept taught to me, which meant that each technique surfaced to a greater extent at the festival performance.” - Harry Winton, musician and participant
Auspice Organisation: Perth Jazz Society
Drug Aware presents: It's Getting Awkward
Ezgi Gungor & Sarah Chaffey | $3000
Drug Aware Presents It's Getting Awkward has been a strong professional and creative success for all artists involved. The team leading this project was attentive and committed to their process. The production has since continued its development, being shown within the 2016 Fringe World Festival and being picked up for the 2016 Joondalup Festival.
“We are thrilled to share that since our Propel residency in October 2015, we were successful in our application for the Summer Nights program as part of the 2016 Perth Fringe World. This will give us the opportunity to present It’s Getting Awkward as a full length work.” - Ezgi Gungor and Sarah Chaffey, project organisers
Auspice Organisation: Ausdance WA
Drug Aware: Sound Expansion
Quindell Orton & Nicole Ward | $3000
Sound Expansion engaged with 30 young dancers directly across six weeks of workshops. The project then had an additional reach estimated at over 100 online audience members and growing. The workshops developed within this project were of great value to participants and identified areas of desired skill development for young dancers and artists that is otherwise under-serviced.
“This is definitely an area that dance artists would benefit from more training to be able to support their own creative practice. I feel like I came away satisfied but also intrigued to investigate further. I would definitely do something like this again if the opportunity arose, to further my skills and understanding of the program.“ - Amy Wiseman, dancer and participant
Auspice Organisation: Ausdance WA
Drug Aware presents Tiny Dancer
Kathleen Szalay & Elise Reitze | $3000
The Perth Cultural Centre was inhabited for four evenings in October with an exquisite dance work created by Kathleen Szalay in collaboration with film artist Fionn Mulholland, composer Elise Reitze and 3 young dancers. Drug Aware presents Tiny Dancer was an exploration into digital media and dance and where these align. In addition to the performance, a workshop was held to allow more young dancers the experience of choreographing with “dance film”. This work is expanding its working life and will be redeveloped into more performances in the coming years.
“We have learned a lot through this process about the organisation required to develop such a layered multimedia site-specific work. ...There are details of the work that we am excited to add in a next development to further enrich the visual experience of the work and its conceptual journey, but we couldn’t be happier with this first version of Tiny Dancer.” - Kathleen Szalay and Elise Reitze, project organisers
Auspice Organisation: Ausdance WA
Drug Aware Manon Theme
Jaimie Ford & Jacob Nobel | $3000
A full-length devised dance theatre production, this project had an inspiring and successful workshop period and was brilliantly received by an audience of 450+, bringing many of them to tears. Liam Green from the West Australian Ballet created this work for Certificate III and IV students at Charlesworth Ballet Institute.
“It was amazing that we were given the opportunity to develop our own skills and artistic abilities through working with Liam, and we also developed many life skills through working with Propel. I want to see more opportunities like this given to more young dancers, as I really believe it has helped our growth beyond belief.” - Lauren Perrett, Dancer and Participant
Auspice Organisation: Youth Ballet WA
Drug Aware presents: A Selfish Act
Georgia Ivers & Chelsea Crow | $1485
Drug Aware Presents: A Selfish Act developed a great deal throughout its project. Georgia and Chelsea were attentive, committed and hungry for newfound skills. They engaged with Propel more than in previous projects and we were happy to assist them wherever possible. The performance was received very well throughout the Fremantle Festival and they had a solid social media campaign, reaching over 2,500 likes on Facebook.
“We were able to fulfil our vision of creating meaningful, important work of a high standard that commented on society and got positive feedback from most people.” - Georgie Ivers and Chelsea Crow, project organisers
Auspice Organisation: John Curtin College of the Arts
Drug Aware Open Flower Day (Anthologia)
Alina Tang & Johanna Acs | $2917
Alina and Johanna’s Open Flower Day was a beautiful exploration into the power of flowers within our cultural and self-identity. This project was a historical look at the significance of certain flowers and in turn how these flowers and their meaning could potentially gift the world with a new language and poetry. Part workshop, artist talk and exhibition this event was an honest and creative education to all who attended.
“Workshops like these are magic. They help lift me out of a funk, help me through a creative block. And when I’m creating I am in general much happier. And being in a group, I get to talk with creative people and get ideas from them.” - Em Mycoe, participant
Auspice Organisation: Paper Mountain
Drug Aware presents: Clowns vs Ninjas
Michael Speranza & Caitlin Pearce | $2674
The title of this project alone excited the entire Propel team: Clowns and Ninjas, together at last! As well as a great title, this project had a great team, plan, and implementation. Clowns vs. Ninja’s held a total of twelve circus skills and performance workshops with over 30 direct participants to each event.
“For all of the direct participants a new level of confidence was seen from everyone and a sense of pride in the hard work that was put into each act and trick from the direct participants.” - Michael Speranza and Caitlin Pearce, project organisers
Auspice Organisation: Disco Cantito
Drug Aware presents: The Secret Garden
Sean Guastavino & Zoe Street | $3000
Taking place in a suburban Fremantle garden, this team created a new site-specific work that will be sure to delight Fringe audiences. This team went above and beyond, building a very strong following amongst their peers, and online, all the while promoting the Drug Aware message. Not only has Drug Aware YCulture Metro assisted these young artists in developing a new work, but also in developing their new artist collective, called Those Who Love You.
“The experience of presenting a work-in-progress showing and facilitating a discussion session was an important learning opportunity to all creatives involved. It was the first development showing any of us had been directly involved in and getting comfortable with the concept of presenting work that isn’t complete was a vital part of the learning process for us as young artists.” - Zoe Street and Sean Gustavino, project organisers
Auspice Organisation: PVI Collective
Drug Aware: The Name That Destroyed Us
Maja Liwszyc & Peter Townsend | $3000
The Name That Destroyed Us saw a new auspice partnership and performance venue – Cathedral Square. This project nurtured the relationships within an emerging but highly successful collective The Emergence Co. with the development of their second new work. While the project and its development was a great success, its 2016 Fringe World season had to be cancelled as the director was given a place with the Directors course at the National Institute of Dramatic Arts in Sydney.
“Our aims of this development were to test some of our ideas re: the form and staging of the production with an audience. There was a general sense (both intuitive and in feedback) that the site specific city of the piece read well. The cathedral transcended mere backdrop and assumed residence as a fifth character.” - Maja Liwszyc and Peter Townsend, project organisers
Auspice Organisation: St George’s Cathedral Foundation for the Arts
Drug Aware: Tank
Daley King & Krista Tanuwibawa | $3000
Drug Aware: TANK saw young writer and director Daley King develop a new script in collaboration with leading industry mentors and performers. This presented the organisers with a chance to extend their creative skills and develop directorial, dramaturgical and arts management practices. The development closed with a work in progress showing to university politics students; bringing a new audience to theatre and to the Drug Aware message.
“I worked with a team of designers to help realise the project visually and had various conversations with Perth theatre makers about my ideas and where I wanted the script to go, and we scheduled a read through of the first 20 minutes to get some feedback from a live audience, which proved useful and resulted in an in-depth 50 minute discussion.” - Daley King
Auspice Organisation: The Blue Room Theatre
