Community
Having settled into the Company’s new home at the State Theatre Centre of Western Australia in 2011, Black Swan is now looking beyond Perth to ensure the Company becomes a true state theatre company for Western Australia.
As part of Black Swan’s regional engagement strategy, Black Swan aims to
- develop strong, long-term, reciprocal relationships with regional and remote Western Australia;
- embed theatre in the lives of all Western Australians, regardless of location;
- support vitality, pride and strength in regional and remote communities.
Black Swan’s regional engagement is based on three pillars:
Touring Regional and Remote Western Australia
Black Swan is thrilled to be back on the road in 2012 and the best news of all is that audiences in regional Western Australia will be seeing Tim Winton’s second play, Signs of Life, before those in Perth! Signs of Life will have its world premiere performance in Albany, then undertake an extensive tour of the state before the play’s three week season at the State Theatre Centre in Perth. The tour will also see outstanding artists venturing into communities and schools for workshops and talks.
Live Broadcast from the State Theatre Centre
Thanks to support by Lotterywest, Black Swan was able to present a phenomenally successful live broadcast pilot in 2011, when a performance of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream was beamed live across the state via satellite and seen by up to 4,000 viewers in regional and remote Western Australia. Broadcast via satellite over the Westlink network into major regional towns, Community Resource Centres and living rooms across Western Australia, the broadcast was supported with school and community workshops before the event.
Black Swan is aiming to present another live broadcast in 2012 of our final production of the year, Managing Carmen by David Williamson.
Developing deep relationships with local communities
In addition to theatre performances presented in regional and remote Western Australia, Black Swan will present a range of workshops in order to build consistent and longterm interaction and reciprocal relationships with local communities. Workshops will include companion workshops presented in the lead-up to touring or live broadcast performances and in-depth, week-long workshops. Black Swan will also offer workshops to develop and transform a community’s own stories into works for the stage, working with local communities through a comprehensive creative development process. Some of the stories unearthed in regional and remote Western Australia might even find their way onto the mainstage in Perth!
Black Swan has also appointed regional ambassadors to act as a conduit between the Company and regional communities.
All workshops will be tailored to suit the specific needs of each regional area and will be delivered by professional artists and tutors. All local communities have to do is provide some local knowledge and help Black Swan fill the available spaces in the program!
Contact Alena Tompkins at Black Swan on ph (08) 6212 9310, fax (08) 6212 9318 or email alena@bsstc.com.au to find out more about regional workshops and other elements of Black Swan’s regional engagement program.
