We have been discussing ideas and collaborative opportunities with the renowned Centre for Stories. In 2024, our focus is towards creating pathways and opportunities to seed development of universal stories for the stage – underpinning Centre for Stories’ commitment to support playwriting. We’re excited to announce two workshops in the first half of 2024, which will include breakout group activities to engage participants in creative ways. 

Workshop #1 – Journey of a Playwright & Devised Storytelling 

• Location: Centre for Stories 
• Date: 6 March 2024 
• Time: 5.30-7pm 
• Lead Artists: Jay Emmanuel and Karthika Nair (Online) 
• Up to 15 pax 
• Booking Link: Journey of a Playwright & Devised Storytelling Workshop – Centre for Stories  

Workshop #2 – Ethics of Stories and Representation 

• Location: Centre for Stories 
• Date: rescheduled. Date to be announced soon.
• Time: 5.30-7pm 
• Artist: Mararo Wangai and Jay Emmanuel
• Up to 15 pax 

Hot Desk Fellowships

We are excited to announce we have three (3) $5,000 Booster Grants to be awarded in the first half of 2024. This is a one-off opportunity, made possible with support from DLGSC tied to the 2022 Kolyang Program. Due to this, it is a very quick turnaround for this opportunity. 

 This opportunity is geared towards Kolyang alumni artists and/or groups (2020-2022) for seed projects and collaborations initially explored or born of that period. Although not a huge amount, it’s a gesture to further progress these, which could include enabling a one-week development with collaborating artists, or a pre-arranged artist residency to further develop a new work. We are keen to try this idea and gauge its usefulness in the first instance, to then consider if this is something Kolyang should continue to offer the independent WA sector in future years. We’re keeping the application format simple – it’s mostly an exercise in you planning for your project and how you would best use this grant. No overthinking necessary! 

Expressions of interest for this opportunity are not closed.

Find out more about the successful recipients and their projects:

• Crystal Nguyen
  Crystal Nguyen will develop ‘Baseline,’ a solo work exploring physical recovery after rupture seeded during the Kolyang Labs 2021 and 2022. Collaborating with Sam Fox and composer Peter McAvan, she’ll blend text, movement, projected imagery and music to explore the concept of a person’s baseline.

• Ella Hetherington
  After her residency at PICA, Ella Hetherington will use the Booster Grant to reimagine her ‘Golden Hour’ set design into an art installation for non-traditional performance spaces. Commencing collaboration with Bruno Booth, whom she met at Kolyang 2022, they’ll craft a unique habitable sculpture lit by Mark Haslam and paired with Tilman’s accompanying album.

• JC
  Expanding on their residency at Fremantle Arts Centre, JC will use the insights gained to develop an immersive performance about society’s fear of falling. To support audience engagement, JC, along with collaborators Melissa Cantwell and Bernadette Lewis, will use the Booster Grant to bring in four more performers, leveraging existing funding and opportunities. Together, they’ll explore ideas for responding to falls as a group.

The International Society for the Performing Arts (ISPA) with hosts PAC Australia have launched registration details for the Perth 2024 ISPA Congress and Anthony Field Academy from Monday 29 April to Friday 3 May.  

The ISPA Congress is held twice a year, with one in New York and a second congress in a selected location around the world. These congresses bring together global leaders each year to discover the next great idea, and strengthen relationships, fostering connection and exchange. Delegates are presenters, festivals, producing companies, artist managers, consultants, government and cultural leaders. Congress programming is geared towards both established and emerging leaders from various genres and disciplines within the performing arts. 

The Perth 2024 ISPA Congress will spotlight Australian performance works and artists on an international platform. With the theme of Breakthrough, this congress will focus on real-time examples of new international models of artistic and industry transformation. This gathering of international and national delegates in Perth will be a unique and invigorating opportunity for WA artists and arts workers to connect, listen, learn and share amongst a global industry network. 

In support of this, Performing Lines through Kolyang will provide registration bursaries to enable Kolyang and Producer Forum alumni to participate in this renowned market and professional development program; 

• 5 x Registrations in the ISPA Anthony Field Academy on Mon 29 April (full day) and Tues 30 April (half day) – Valued at $184 AUD each. 
• 2 x Registrations in the full Perth ISPA Congress, including the Anthony Field Academy and all performance ticketing from Mon 29 April to Fri 3 May – Valued at $1,074 AUD each. 

Expressions of interest for this opportunity are now closed.

Successful applicants include:

Under Fluoros is an exciting new concept by creative producer Libby Klysz, to be piloted and supported by Performing Lines in 2024 as part of Kolyang.  

The best week of any project is the first week in the room, where brilliant ideas spark and joyful discoveries abound. 

We gather a group of creatives together with a script – director, designers, performers, stage manager – 10 people max, and we do just this first week.  

It’s all about dreaming big instead of small… in a theatre with expandable scale.  

The week ends with a table read complete with design ideas presented and maximum imagination engaged by our audience.

Under fluoros, on trestle tables, with a tin of International Roast available afterwards.  

The intention of this format is to give mid-career artists a chance to dream big – performers, directors, designers and writers. To extend on ideas around creative developments, practice-sharing and constructive critical discourse methodology investigated during Kolyang in previous years, as we shift towards an evolved program that builds capacity and progresses new works and collaborations.

This is not a script development initiative but more an ideal 1st week of rehearsal process – putting text into performance practice towards a visualised staged production. We hope to support Libby in extending on this idea in future and will seek feedback from creatives involved to evaluate the format.

We are seeking the following minimum requirements in the text’s selection; 

• Final or late draft of script. 
• 4 performer roles at minimum. 
• New work, or has not been presented on the mainstage. 
• Preference will be given to WA-based writers and artists. 

If you have a script or love the sound of this idea and keen to talk more, please contact Libby Klysz or Jen Leys; 

• Libby Klysz – libbyklysz@gmail.com  
• Jen Leys – jen@performinglineswa.org.au 

Final selection of script to trial this pilot will be announced in April, following which we will reach out directly to WA artists and Kolyang alumni to get involved as a collaborator.  

Look out for more information on this cracking new initiative to be released in coming months, but take note of the dates! 

• Dates: Monday 17 – Saturday 22 June 2024
• Venue: State Theatre Centre of Western Australia

Kolyang is an innovative initiative consisting of the Kolyang Creative Hub and the Kolyang Artist Lab. These programs are developed and delivered by Performing Lines WA (PLWA) in collaboration with the independent performing arts sector in Western Australia. In response to the global impact of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, PLWA reached out to independent artists and producers to understand their needs. The resounding request was for flexible, artist-led time and space to come together without the pressure of performance outcomes.

Successfully executed in 2020, 2021, and 2022, these programs have continuously adapted to address the evolving needs of the sector. A core principle of the Kolyang methodology is ensuring that all participants are paid salaries for their engagement.

In 2021, a name was sought for the Creative Hub that celebrated the diversity of experiences and knowledge brought to the table by participants, the connectedness that was created and honoured the land on which the events were held. With guidance from Clint and Kylie Bracknell (language revivalists and researchers) of Boomerang and Spear, Kolyang (pron: Kol-yong), the Noongar name for the Western Australian Golden Wattle, was selected.

The Department of Local Government, Sports and Cultural Industries, through the Arts Organisation Investment Program, confirmed their ongoing support of the new look Kolyang Program of Industry Development Initiatives from 2024-27. This is great recognition of the impact the program has had across its inaugural three-year cycle. Performing Lines WA will release future plans in early 2024, and will ensure delivery will continue to happen in close collaboration with the arts sector – maintaining relevance and servicing need.

The Kolyang Creative Hub is a three-week responsive program facilitating interdisciplinary artistic practice sharing, creative developments, panels and conversations.

The Kolyang Creative Hub aims to:

• Bring artists and industry professionals together.
• Provide dedicated time and space for reflection, questioning, learning, and sharing.
• Create a future-focused platform that breaks down barriers and facilitates knowledge-sharing within the sector.
• Foster critical thinking and the development of innovative new approaches to artistic work.

Fees

Creative Hub participants are paid a stipend, which varies each year in accordance with the shape and duration of the program.

Held in conjunction with the Kolyang Creative Hub, the Kolyang Artist lab offers a safe, creative environment for WA’s emerging and early-career artists to explore ideas, build new relationships and unpack performance-making processes.

In the initial years, the Labs focused on emerging artists from First Nations and culturally diverse backgrounds. In 2022, the Lab expanded its reach to include ten early-career disabled artists working in any genre or medium.

Participants in the Lab are supported to join the Kolyang Creative Hub cohort after completing the one-week Lab.

The Artist Lab aims to:

• Bring together a cohort of emerging and early-career artists with diverse lived experiences.
• Connect artists with mentors and allies in their respective artforms.
• Provide dedicated time and space for exploring ideas, building relationships, and understanding performance-making processes.
• Support the development of innovative approaches to artistic practice.

Fees

Artist Lab participants are paid a stipend, which varies each year in accordance with the shape and duration of the program.

To ensure that the Creative Hub and Artist Lab remain artist-led, PLWA introduced an Artist Advisory Group in 2021, which continued with refreshed membership in 2022. Comprised of previous program participants, this group plays a crucial role in assessing expressions of interest, guiding programming decisions, and providing mentoring and support throughout the course of the Creative Hub. The members of the Advisory Group are re-assessed and selected by the PLWA team each year.

2021 Artist Advisory

Alex Desebrock
Daley Rangi
Grace Chow
Melissa Cantwell

2022 Artist Advisory

Melissa Cantwell
Bruno Booth
Janine Oxenham
Daisy Sanders

Reports

PLWA concluded the first trilogy by engaging Tracker Development and Black Iris Consulting to create a comprehensive set of resources that assess and showcase the remarkable outcomes and impact of this ground-breaking program. Our resources consist of a 44-page evaluation and impact report, along with two highlight reels – one for the Creative Hub and one for the Artist Lab.

Public Program Podcast

Each year, the Kolyang Creative Hub features a thoughtfully curated public program of engaging events, including small-group discussions, long tables and panel conversations. These sessions are centered around topics put forward by the cohort, ensuring their relevance and significance. To provide wider access to these valuable conversations, selected sessions from both 2021 and 2022 were recorded and are now accessible through our public podcast channel. You can listen to them at https://anchor.fm/kolyang.

Sector Conversations

A key focus of Kolyang in 2021 was to strengthen the sector by engaging in sector-wide discussions and bold conversations, and collectively suggest actions to make our industry stronger and more cohesive. Dr. Shona Erskine compiled a comprehensive report that highlights the significant findings and recommendations derived from the Kolyang Sector Conversation. This report was presented to the wider sector in collaboration with the Chamber of Arts and Culture Western Australia, solidifying our commitment to fostering a thriving industry.

>> Read Kolyang Sector conversation report