ActNow Theatre

ActNow Theatre is a South Australian theatre company based in Adelaide.[1][2] The company creates “devised, interactive and issue-based”[3] theatre projects focused on social justice[4] using techniques such as Augusto Boal's Forum Theatre[4][5] and principles of Community Arts and Community Cultural Development.[6][7] It has been described as "one of the most innovative, inclusive and dynamic companies in Australia".[8] The company's projects focus on communities of LGBTIQ+, First Nations Australians, and culturally and linguistically diverse communities, including a number of programs in schools or for young people.[9] It has been compared to former theatre companies such as Melbourne Workers Theatre and Junction Theatre Company as an arts organisations working across multiple communities.[10]

Actors and musician rehearsing a theatre project in MakeSpace

The company was founded in 2007 by three high school friends, including Artistic Director Edwin Kemp Attrill. The company initially created street theatre performances, on political issues such as the incarceration of Adelaide-born Guantanamo Bay detainee David Hicks. Initial ensemble members were drawn from the Adelaide branch of Amnesty International Australia and local youth theatre company Urban Myth Theatre of Youth.[11] The company is controlled by a Board of Management and is registered as a charity with Australian Charity and Not for Profit Commission.[12]

In 2018 the company established a city based rehearsal studio, office and small arts venue called MakeSpace.[13][14][15] Previously, ActNow Theatre were supported by Carclew[14] through a base at Fifth Quarter,[16] a co-working space in Brompton, Adelaide. Initially the company was located in co-working spaces in UrText Studios and Format Collective.

Examples of projects include school safety program Expect Respect with the Legal Services Commission of South Australia,[17][18] anti-racism education program Responding to Racism with Reconciliation South Australia,[19][20] Queer Youth Theatre workshops,[21][22] the Game Makers program for kids and dads,[23] and workshop program for culturally diverse artists, the Theatre of the Global Majority (2018-2019).[24][25][26][27] The projects involve participatory theatre techniques, which empower audiences to change aspects of the performances and be active contributors and commentators to broader social movements.[28]

"ActNow creates participatory theatre, not just to engage our audience but also to empower them to be agents of social change within a project and in their own lives. We don’t want our audience to sit quietly in the dark. We want them active as contributors and commentators. Our work finds new ways to engage with our audiences, through technology and a deep relationship between artists and audiences. The simple act of storytelling can engage audiences and create positive social change. As such, our aesthetic is typically paired back and raw, using everyday environments and technologies to create life changing experiences." - Artistic Director Edwin Kemp Attrill[29]

Artists involved in the company include Artistic Director Edwin Kemp Attrill,[30][31] poet/writer/performer Manal Younus[20][32] and Associate Director Yasmin Gurreeboo.[33]

In 2014 ActNow Theatre received a Governor's Award for Multiculturalism.[34] in both 2017 and 2018, ActNow, together with Reconciliation South Australia, was a finalist in the Australian Human Rights Commission's Racism. It Stops With Me Award, for the programs jointly developed for schools.[35][36]

References
  1. Kuppers, Petra (2019). Community Performance An Introduction. New York: Routledge. p. 68. ISBN 9780367184360.
  2. The Hon. T.A. Jennings, Member of Parliament (23 June 2010). "CABARET FRINGE FESTIVAL". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Parliament of South Australia: Legislative Council. col. 23–34.
  3. "RealTime Arts - Magazine - issue 125 - In-theatre, online, public, private". www.realtimearts.net. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  4. "Rehearsing for the Real World with ActNow Theatre". The Adelaide Review. 30 August 2016. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  5. Kuppers, Petra. Community performance : an introduction (Second ed.). Abingdon, Oxon. ISBN 9780367184315. OCLC 1080248489.
  6. "Community Arts and Cultural Development | Australia Council". www.australiacouncil.gov.au. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  7. Cabinet, Department of the Premier and (26 June 2019). "Community Arts and Cultural Development". Department of the Premier and Cabinet. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  8. "100 SA tales to be shared in a bold new form of theatrical storytelling". InDaily. 10 June 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  9. "Our Artists | ActNow Theatre". Retrieved 25 July 2019.
  10. Brooker, Ben. "All at sea: the cannibalisation of the Australian arts industry". ArtsHub Australia. Retrieved 25 July 2019.
  11. "Our History | ActNow Theatre". Retrieved 25 July 2019.
  12. acnc_charity_api_user (2 October 2019). "ActNow Theatre Incorporated". www.acnc.gov.au. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
  13. "ICYMI: A wrap of this week's arts news". ArtsHub. 14 December 2018. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  14. "'Space is political': ActNow opens its doors with MakeSpace". The Adelaide Review. 7 January 2019. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  15. "TNA E-News Dec 2018 | Theatre Network Australia". www.tna.org.au. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  16. Russell, David (27 August 2015). "The co-working space transforming artistic flair into viable businesses". Brand SA News. Archived from the original on 26 April 2018.
  17. S.G. Wade, Member of Parliament (26 May 2010). Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Parliament of South Australia: Legislative Council.
  18. "Legal Services Commission of South Australia - LSCSA Expect Respect!: 2010 Premier's Award Finalist". web.archive.org. 22 April 2011. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  19. Cetta, Luca (30 October 2018). "Ceduna students get racism message". West Coast Sentinel. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  20. "Poet Manal Younus Tells it like it is". The Adelaide Review. 5 October 2016. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  21. Desk, BWW News. "ActNow Theatre Announces New Season Of Queer Youth Theatre Workshops". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  22. "TNA E-NEWS FEB 2019 | Theatre Network Australia". www.tna.org.au. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  23. "Blanket approach to old-school fun". www.adelaidenow.com.au. 14 May 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2019.
  24. Pickup, Jo. "Assembling the next generation of diverse theatre-makers". ArtsHub Australia. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  25. "TNA E-News July 2018 | Theatre Network Australia". www.tna.org.au. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  26. "theatre of the global majority". www.frankie.com.au. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  27. "An accessible guide to celebrating Pride Month in Adelaide". The Adelaide Review. 20 June 2019. Retrieved 2 July 2019.
  28. "About | ActNow Theatre". Retrieved 25 July 2019.
  29. "About | ActNow Theatre". Retrieved 8 October 2019.
  30. "Edwin Kemp Attrill". Edwin Kemp Attrill. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  31. Rodda, Paul. "Interview: Edwin Kemp Attrill". www.thebarefootreview.com.au. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  32. "Australian of the Year Awards". www.australianoftheyear.org.au. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  33. "Introducing Theatre of the Global Majority". CityMag. 29 July 2018. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  34. Cabinet, Department of the Premier and (28 March 2019). "Multicultural affairs". Department of the Premier and Cabinet. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  35. "2017 Human Rights Medal and Awards Winners". Human Rights Awards. 17 May 2018. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  36. "2018-human-rights-medal-and-awards-winners". Human Rights Awards. 16 October 2018. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
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