Endeavour Awards
The Endeavour Awards are part of the Australia Award initiative of the Australian Government’s internationally competitive, merit-based scholarship program providing opportunities for citizens of the Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Europe and the Americas to undertake study, research and professional development in Australia. Awards are also available for Australians to undertake study, research and professional development abroad.
Go the Australia Awards website for details and dates.
Summer dance residency in India
GATI Dance Forum's Summer Dance Residency will be held in New Delhi, 21 April – 23 June 2012. Applications are open now for emerging dancers and choreographers wanting to create new work.
Deadline for applications: 1 March 2012
ReelDance—call for submissions
ReelDance invites Australian and international filmmakers to submit dance film works made since 1 January 2010.
Deadline for submissions: 29 February 2012
Regional Arts Australia national conference
Applications are open now for presentations and projects to be included at the Regional Arts Australia National Conference (RAANC) in Goolwa, SA 18 – 21 October.
Deadline for submissions: 28 February 2012
IADMS annual meeting—call for presentations
The International Association for Dance Medicine & Science is now accepting abstracts for presentations at the meeting in Singapore, Thursday 25 – Sunday 28, October 2012.
You will need to identify which of the following categories your presentation belongs to:
- Intervention research
- Descriptive study
- Conceptual analysis
- Practitioner wisdom
- Movement session
Deadline for submissions: 1 March 2012. For more information go to the IADMS website
Dance conference in Sweden—call for papers
The University of Dance and Circus (DOCH) in Sweden is calling for submissions for its conference 'Contemporary Dance Didactics: Explorations in Theory and Practice' to be held 28 – 31 October, 2012.
Deadline for submissions: 26 February 2012
New job at QUT
The School of Media, Entertainment and Creative Arts (MECA) at Queensland University of Technology (QUT) in Brisbane seeks a strong academic leader and manager to head its dance department. Applicants need to have a doctoral qualification or equivalent with a demonstrated record of excellence in leading a studio program, and a passion for situating curricula within a broader framework of research and scholarship.
Deadline for applications: 1 March 2012
More evidence that dance benefits the elderly
There are some startling new figures that support dancing as a protective strategy in preventing dementia. A Stanford University report Use It or Lose It: Dancing Makes You Smarter makes the following comparisons:
... almost none of the physical activities appeared to offer any protection against dementia. There can be cardiovascular benefits of course, but the focus of this study was the mind. There was one important exception: the only physical activity to offer protection against dementia was frequent dancing.
- Reading—35% reduced risk of dementia
- Bicycling and swimming—0%
- Doing crossword puzzles at least four days a week—47%
- Playing golf—0%
- Dancing frequently—76%.
The same university offers other insights into the benefits of dance in Thoughts, philosophies and musings on social dance, a useful reference for community dance practitioners in Australia.
MyDance Alliance visitor from Malaysia
When the President of MyDance Alliance, Bilqis Hiijas, visited Canberra from Malaysia this week, we took the opportunity to introduce her to several of Australia's leading cultural institutions. We also heard about the artists' residency program she helps to run at her family's compound, Rimbun Dahan in Kuala Lumpur.
Bilqis is the new editor of Asia Pacific Channels, the newsletter we produce on behalf of the World Dance Alliance Asia Pacific. It's exciting to be sharing the task with her, and her visit to Canberra gave us a chance to meet her in person for the first time.
Bilqis was very interested in our partnerships with the National Library of Australia and the National Film and Sound Archive, so we organised tours of both institutions to meet the curators and get an idea of the great range of dance materials held by both institutions. She's hoping to form similar relationships with archives in Malaysia.
BlakDance choreographic showcase announced
A choreographic showcase that celebrates First Nation contemporary dance choreography from Australia, Canada and New Zealand will be held at the Queensland Theatre Company in Brisbane from 4 to 9 June 2012
The showcase will provide a platform for Australian and international First Nation contemporary choreographers to work together in a program of performances, post‐production forums, an artist symposium and master classes.
Australian artists will include Rita Pryce (Baiwa Dance Company), Jacob Boehme (Idja Dance Theatre) and Tammi Gissell (Figures of Speech).
The international choreographers will include Sandra Laronde from Canada (Red Sky), and Jack Gray and Cathy Livermore from New Zealand (Atimira Dance Collective).
Other Australian First Nation contemporary dance choreographers, dancers and artists are invited to participate. For more information contact BlakDance or call +61 (0)7 3220 3377
2012 Australian Dance Awards—nominations close 29 February
You can nominate any time during the year on the Australian Dance Awards website.
Select the most appropriate category (read the Selection Criteria first) and say why you think this performance, person or composition is worthy of consideration for an Australian Dance Award.
Remember: the number of nominations for a particular work or person or company is not a deciding factor — it is the reason for the nomination that is important.
Performances being nominated for outstanding achievement and outstanding performance awards for 2012 must have premiered during 2011.
Nominations for 2012 awards must be submitted before 29 February 2012.
Australian Ballet’s 50th year sees new star rising
In its 50th anniversary year, The Australian Ballet is celebrating a new rising star in its ranks, Chinese Australian dancer Chengwu Guo.
The ABC's 7.30 program profiles his work and interviews his mentor Li Cunxin, the teenage dancer Chen played in Mao's Last Dancer, the hugely successful film based on Li's autobiography.
PhD scholarship at Deakin University
Deakin University is offering a 3–year full-time PhD scholarship in conjunction with the new ARC Discovery project 'Building innovative capacity in Australian dance through new visualization technologies'.
This is a terrific opportunity for someone interested in dance and technology to join the team at Deakin.
Details at Deakin Motion.Lab PhD Scholarship in Dance, Deakin University.
Deadline for application: 31 March 2012.
Australia Council opportunities
The Australia Council has some exciting new initiatives on offer this year—
- 2012 Music and Dance Initiative
- Western Australia Contemporary Dance Initiative
Churchill Trust Fellowships open
Applications for Churchill Fellowships are open now until 29 February. They've provided many Australian dance artists in the past with the opportunity to explore their ideas overseas and share their experiences with the Australian dance community.
To apply you’ll need to be an Australian citizen over the age of 18 years, and these FAQs will help you decide whether you're eligible.
Competition is high for these fellowships, so make sure you articulate your project clearly and with passion!
Dance people receive Australia Day Honours
Former balleriona Josephine Spaull, respected ballet teacher, Tanya Pearson, and Judith Anderson, formerly General Manager of The Queensland Ballet, have today been awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM).
Josephine was recognised for “for service to the performing arts, particularly dance, as a teacher and administrator". Tanya's citation was "for service to the performing arts, particularly ballet, as a teacher and mentor to young dancers". Judith's citation was "for service to the Queensland Ballet and to women". We congratulate Josephine, Tanya and Judith for their outstanding achievements.
The website It's an Honour has all the information you'll need to nominate more dance people for Australia's highest Honours!
Celebrating our Australian of the Year
There have been celebrations around the country today for our new Australian of the Year, actor Geoffrey Rush.
We congratulate him on his acceptance speech that placed the arts at the centre of Australian life and culture. He acknowledged the role of the First Australians, and said he was sure "that my colleagues will see this as an endorsement of our national story of creativity".
Senior Australian of the Year is Laurie Baymarrwangga, an extraordinary elder from the island of Murrungga in East Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory.
The Australian of the Year Awards were announced last night by the Prime Minister.
New research with dance and the elderly
New research by the University of Western Sydney is demonstrating that folk dance has clear benefits for the health of the elderly. You may have missed this great report from the ABC’s 7.30 program on 4 January.
We’re very interested in research that proves the links between dance and health, and have been in touch with the researchers to find out more. We’ll keep you posted.
Visit by American Dance Abroad director
Andrea Snyder is co-director of American Dance Abroad, a new initiative in the US that promotes the export of American dance. Andrea was formerly CEO of Dance USA, and is a valued colleague of Ausdance.
Andrea will be visiting Australia for the Australian Performing Arts Market (APAM) in February, so we’re putting her in touch with the Australia Council and dance producers in Sydney and Melbourne before she goes on to APAM. She'll see a lot of Australian dance while she's here and importantly will be establishing Australian networks for possible future exchanges.
National touring framework
Rick Heath and Harley Stumm of Push Management have been commissioned by the Australia Council to develop a framework for national touring.
They have now completed a wide-ranging consultation process with the sector, interviewing about 300 people representing over 285 arts organisations and practitioners. You can read the results of their first report, Summary of Sector Consultations.
The project is still in its early stages, with the final report due on 30 April. This will affect the ways in which dance is toured, and there's still an opportunity for you to have your say, so email Rick Heath or phone 08 9298 8822 if you have further comments.
Brolga in 2012
Brolga 35 (December, 2011) is the final edition that Ausdance will be printing. It will be published on our website and available for purchase either as a complete volume (PDF) or as individual articles. All you need to do is create an account and become an Ausdance customer.
By the end of 2012 we intend to have all back issues of Brolga online. We believe that this collection of articles will be a valuable resource for students, researchers and dance lovers all over.
Moving the National Cultural Policy forward
This week there were some major ministerial announcements around the development of the National Cultural Policy (NCP), including a review of the Australia Council. It is widely expected that the Government will announce new ideas and programs that the Australia Council will deliver as part of the NCP.
The Australia Council has welcomed this opportunity to review its programs, and we all look forward to positive outcomes, not only for the organisation itself but for artists, especially those struggling in the small to medium dance sector. This assumes, of course, that the Australia Council will be properly resourced to deliver any new programs.
Also announced by the Prime Minister—and in our opinion, not so positive—is the removal of the Arts portfolio from the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet to the Department of Regional Australia, Regional Development and Local Government. When we enquired about the rationale for this change to ministerial arrangements we were told that it was 'a positive step for the Arts that would assist the delivery of the National Cultural Policy'.
If you want to know more, we suggest you ring either Angela Dorizas on 0408 685 557 or Glen Atwell on 0403 949 599.
Dance training in Australia
One of the great advantages of working with Ausdance National is the opportunity to see performances and appreciate some of the excellent dance training we have in this country.
In Perth recently for the Ausdance directors’ meeting, I was lucky enough to catch Summerdance, the end-of-year performance by WAAPA students who premiered Balanchine’s great classic, Serenade, staged by Balanchine Trust repetiteur Eve Lawson. The work was beautifully performed, as WA’s 7.30 program reported, and the students also gave outstanding performances of works by Gabrielle Nankivell, Xiao-Xiong Zhang and Natalie Weir.
This week we’ve seen On Course in Canberra, QL2’s program of student work from a range of tertiary dance courses in Australia. Apart from exceptionally strong technique, the students’ maturity in communicating their ideas made for an entertaining and thought-provoking program.
I’d also been lucky enough to see the Paris Conservatoire student season in November in a program that included Noces by Angelin Preljocalj, and works by Hofesh Shechter and Thomas Lebrun. These students were also outstanding, but it's no surprise that it confirms Australian dance training as being up there with the world’s best!
Canadian cultural policy researcher visits
This week we hosted Shannon Litzenberger in Canberra as part of her research into Australian cultural policy. Shannon is a Canadian dance artist, writer, director and advocate who we first met at the 2009 Dance Congress in Hamburg.
Shannon is particularly interested in the political process of developing a national cultural policy; the ways in which new funding models might be developed; the cultural diplomacy strategies of the government; the National Cultural Policy Discussion Paper and the various (and many) responses received by the government as part of its consultation.
Tanja Liedtke digital archive
In news that will particularly interest Australian dance researchers, educators and students, the Tanja Liedtke Foundation has announced that it has created the Tanja Liedtke digital archive, now freely accessible to anyone who is interested in knowing more about Tanja’s life and work.
The Foundation has also announced that one of Tanja's works, construct, has been voted by The Monthly magazine as one of 20 Australian masterpieces, across all art forms, since the year 2000. The work was declared the masterpiece in the category of contemporary dance, a great achievement!
2012 Australian Dance Awards in Perth
"Ausdance WA is absolutely delighted to host the Australian Dance Awards in September 2012. It is a real coup for the city and one which we are excited to be part of," said Michelle Saunders, Director Ausdance WA.
Registrations now open for ‘Dance, Young People & Change’
It's time now to register for 'Dance, Young People & Change'. This is an international event where youth dance practitioners and educators can share ideas about the relevance of dance in young people's lives and in communities.
There will be an amazing program of performances, workshops, master classes and panel discussions for people of all ages, hosted by Taipei National University of the Arts from July 14—20 2012.
'Dance, Young People & Change' will be the World Dance Alliance Global Summit, held in partnership with dance and the Child international (daCi).
Dance support organisations meet in Paris
Last week 25 dance support organisations met in Paris for three days of talks, presentations and performances. As we are members of the World Dance Alliance Asia Pacific, we had also organised for WDA people to provide this mainly European group with more information about its activities.
These annual meetings are an opportunity to share dance support strategies, ideas and visions for the future. We were invited on the first day to share this year’s achievements, a challenge for many European organisations that face severe funding cuts. Despite funding difficulties all round, presentations were inspirational and visionary for dance, and we came away with many ideas for collaborations and future planning with now-familiar colleagues such as Madeline Ritter and Ingo Diehl (Germany), Caroline Miller (Dance UK) and our French colleagues Agnès Wasserman and Frédéric Moreau.
Delegates at Paris meeting of dance support organisations. Ingo Diehl (centre) is the Tanzplan Deutschland Educational Program Director. Ausdance directors meet in Perth
Ausdance network directors usually meet twice a year to share ideas, update one another on projects and work toghether on plans for the future.
Last week it was Ausdance WA's turn to host the directors' meeting, and it was great to be back in the purpose built dance spaces at the King St Arts Centre where the meetings were held. While not all directors could be present this time, we heard about many excitinfg national projects, including plans for dance in the new Australian Curriculum, the 2012 Australian Youth Dance Festival to be held in Sydney next Easter, the launch of the Live Performance Training Package, the World Dance Alliance festival to be held in Taiwan next July, and, of course, the 2012 Australian Dance Awards to be held at the Heath Ledger Theatre in Perth on 1 September.
Australian Dance Week 2012
The Ausdance network celebrates and promotes dance in all its forms every year during Australia Dance Week.
Each state and Territory hosts a variety of events from book launches to free performances and community classes, and encourages its dance community to promote their own activities throughout the week.
Youth dance—where does it fit?
In responding to our suggestion of a campaign to support the smaller key dance organisations, Ruth Osborne, artistic director of QL2 Dance, came in to discuss some of the issues youth dance companies are experiencing.
Dance medicine conference in Singapore
Singapore will host next year’s International Association for Dance Medicine and Science (IADMS) conference, the first time an IADMS conference has been held in Asia.
This is a great opportunity for Australia's dance medicine practitioners to get involved in an IADMS conference so close to home. Sharing our research and learning about new developments in dance medicine and science will boost our knowledge and raise the profile of our best dance teachers and scientists.
For more information, email Hollis Johnson or visit the IADMS website.
Time for a funding review of smaller dance companies
Recent funding decisions across all sectors of the small to medium performing arts sector have highlighted the widening gap between what was considered to be 'adequate' funding for these companies five years ago, and the reality of their existence today. While we highlighted the issues in our contribution to the National Cultural Policy discussion paper, we also plan see the Arts Minister, Simon Crean, to again draw his attention to the parlous state of funding for smaller key organisations, especially in dance.
Restless Dance Theatre’s Junction project
Junction is an artist exchange program initiated by Restless Dance Theatre to support and promote the development of new independent work. Piloting this program is independent artist Tobiah Booth-Remmers who is being mentored by Carol Wellman Kelly through the national JUMP mentoring program.
Our new website is here
Hello. Thanks for joining us. Finally we're alive. Bet you were wondering what we've been doing!
Well, last year we talked to our dance partners and contributors about what information they wanted, needed and expected from our website. We also looked at the amazing work they had written and we'd published over the last 10+ years. A lot of it was very interesting and answered many questions, but it was trapped on paper collecting dust on the shelf. We also realised that we spent a lot of time making things happen with not much time left to tell you about it along the way.
Nominate for 2012 Australian Dance Awards
You can nominate a professional choreographer, dancer or company for an Award any time during the year. Simply go to the Australian Dance Awards website and select Nominate. The Selection Criteria will help you to choose the best category for your nomination. Nominations for next year's Awards in Perth close 29 February 2012.
Tap Dogs 1998. Dein Perry won Outstanding Achievement in Choreography this year for Steel City, Hot Shoe Shuffle and Tap Dogs. Photo: Courtesy HLA ManagementOur contribution to the National Cultural Policy discussion paper
We joined the many artists, companies and community organisations and made a submission to the National Cultural Policy discussion paper.
Because we think it’s important for the dance voice to be heard as part of the wider arts industry, we also coordinated the submissions from ArtsPeak and the National Advocates for Arts Education.
You can keep in touch with the development of the National Cultural Policy by joining the Arts Minister’s e-news.
Writing the Australian Curriculum in the arts gets underway
Last week we joined other advisers and writers of the new Australian Curriculum in the Arts for a three-day induction meeting with ACARA (the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority). We worked intensively together to understand cross-curriculum, Indigenous and disability priorities, and in our own art forms to look at various aspects of the new curriculum.
Art form writers now have a tight timeline to complete first drafts, and advisers will have opportunities to review them in November and December. It’s anticipated that work will then continue into January and February before broader consultation begins.
Making an Australian arts curriculum work
When the National Advocates for Arts Education (NAAE) met in Sydney last month, we identified some of the things that all governments—Federal, State and Territory—will have to provide if they're to resource the Australian Curriculum in the Arts.
With the arts curriculum to begin trialling next year, we've lobbying for:
- Upgraded teacher training and professional development in each art form, especially for primary school teachers.
- Curriculum materials such as science's Primary Connections.
- Space within schools for safe learning environments.
- Clarification of the role of specialist teachers, artists in schools and arts companies.
Diversifying dancers’ careers
We want dance artists to be able to diversify their careers, get more training if they need it and earn a realistic income.
Because we want to work with governments to reinvent a program that worked so well, we’ve commissioned Shane Carroll to review the SCOPE (Securing Career Opportunities and Professional Employment) program and provide us with the evidence we need to make the arguments. Shane has been one of the program’s leading advocates and drivers.
Take part in ‘Dance, Young People & Change’
We want Australian youth dance groups to be well represented at next year's 'Dance, Young People & Change' festival in Taipei, so we're looking for new presentations for the Showcase program.
The deadline for submissions is 10 December 2011.
Postcard from the future
The Prime Minister, in her role as chair of the standing committee on the arts, today announced a significant program of research and development for dance that she said would provide Australia with a major advantage over France, its nearest rival in recognising dance as its most important cultural export. The ABC interrupted its sports broadcast to bring this contemporary dance update direct from the Prime Minister's office.
This was how we interpreted a request from ABC Radio National for a 'postcard from the future' during an interview about the arts and cultural policy in Australia. The program will go to air early next year, and the intention is to "reflect ... the broad policy shift from a vision about Australia developing and presenting a unique Australian cultural identity, to that of a sustainable arts and cultural industry or sector".
We'll let you know when the program is due to go to air.
Upgrading our insurance products
Aon representative Emma Keegan is in town this week, so we've been talking about ideas for making our insurance products cheaper and more flexible. We're hoping to announce some new products in November.
ArtsPeak and ABC arts programming
The two program that most often profile Australian dance and its creators are still in danger of being axed—so we were pleased when ArtsPeak's submission to the Senate inquiry into ABC programming was profiled in the Sydney Morning Herald arts pages.
Ausdance NSW director Cathy Murdoch will represent us at a meeting to be convened by our ArtsPeak colleague, Tamara Winikoff, with the ABC's Managing Director, Mark Scott. We'll update you after the meeting.
WDA Asia Pacific meeting in Kuala Lumpur
This week I've been representing Ausdance at the Asia Pacific International Dance Conference and yesterday's World Dance Alliance AGM in Kuala Lumpur, where a new Executive Board was elected and the role of the networks reviewed.
The networks are a particularly valuable way for Australian dance people to get involved with WDA, so if you're interested in knowing more about them (see below), please contact us at Ausdance National. All Ausdance members are automatically members of WDA Asia Pacific and it's a great opportunity to extend your own networks and participate in new culturally diverse opportunities at the annual WDA conferences and festivals.
Australian & New Zealanders at the World Dance Alliance conference. L to R: Jeff Meiners, Ralph Buck, Tina HongNew Australian dance book launched
Shaping the Landscape: Celebrating Dance in Australia was launched by high profile Malaysian architect Hijjas Kasturi yesterday at the World Dance Alliance conference in Kuala Lumpur, in the presence of the Australian High Commissioner to Malaysia, Miles Kupa, and other dignatories. This is a new Routledge publication which I've co-edited with Stephanie Burridge, so it was exciting to see it launched along with the Malaysian edition, Sharing Identities. These volumes are the third and fourth in the Celebrating dance in Asia and the Pacific series.
Sharing our view about the National Cultural Policy
The National Cultural Policy discussion paper is creating lots of discussion! Today we were called by several people who wanted to hear what we thought as we develop our response. It's exciting to hear what others think, and we'll be consulting about our own draft response in mid October.
In the meantime, don't forget to send your own ideas to the Government—it's important to have your say!
Live Performance Training Package workshops
Industry Business Skills Australia (IBSA) today announced industry information sessions to support the launch of the new CUA11 Live Performance Training Package in November. IBSA will also hold professional development sessions for Registered Training Organisations (RTOs).
In June 2011 the new training package for the cultural industries was endorsed, the first qualifications to cover dance performance, dance teaching and management and cross sector qualifications in community dance and theatre, musical theatre and community culture. These information and professional development workshops will be a valuable complementary addition to the new qualifications, so if you're a dance teacher, make sure you're there!
Ausdance supports submission into ABC arts programming
We've just signed a submission to the Senate Inquiry into recent ABC programming decisions, a move led by our ArtsPeak colleague NAVA (National Association for the Visual Arts).
We've been concerned by announcements lately that the ABC plans to axe some arts programs, but we're also keen to see regular arts news integrated across the news rather than as a token 'what's on' item at the end. ArtsPeak also made the point that the ABC's other arts programming should not be left under-resourced or dumbed down for the sake of ratings.
New dance course in NSW
A new BA in Performing Arts is planned for 2014 at the University of New South Wales. It will include majors in dance, music, film, media, writing and performance. This sounds like a great program, and one that will greatly to enrich the local dance scene in NSW.
SCOPE wound up
As SCOPE board members formally wound up the program in Sydney on Friday, we reflected that there was much to be proud of. We developed a model for dancers' career development and management and, with Australia Council support, we've been able to assist 99 artists to realise their dreams through professional career advice and small retraining scholarships.
We are continuing with online advice and support, and we're also planning an evaluation of the program to help us find new funding partners to bring back the scholarships and professional career guidance.
New User Guide for the Live Performance Training Package
The Training Package will be launched in November, and the User Guide with the section on dance organisations and national qualifications is now available online. It will form the basis of the Innovation & Business Skills Australia (IBSA) free information sessions around Australia and online starting in November.
The information sessions will be advised by IBSA, but we'll keep everyone informed about the schedule.
Launch of the Shape of the Australian Curriculum: the Arts
The final version of the The Shape of the Australian Curriculum—The Arts was launched by School Education Minister Peter Garrett and Arts Minister Simon Crean in Sydney on 2 September, after more than two years of consultation by ACARA. It's so exciting to see dance there with the other art forms as part of the new Australian Curriculum!
Curriculum writers and an advisory panel have been appointed, and will meet with ACARA for an induction week on 18 October. We will be talking with teachers in schools as the writing progresses, but ACARA has said they will not be announcing publicly the names of the curriculum writers for privacy reasons.
2012 World Dance Alliance Global Assembly
WDA and daCi met for two days in August to plan for next year’s big event, and it was an impressive team that got together for the first time. Yunyu Wang is head of dance at the Taipei National University of the Arts, and she has assembled team of her colleagues, students and graduates to work on a festival that will welcome up to 1,000 young people, teachers, students and academics.
This partnership will be a first for daCi, an organisation that has never before met in an Asian country. Their team was equally impressive, and the two days were managed with skill and lots of patience by the planning committee of Yunyu, Ralph Buck, Jeff Meiners and Ann Kipling-Brown. We heard about the planned opening and closing events, and helped to plan an amazing program of masterclasses, workshops, keynote addresses and performances. There are also and plans for cultural tours of Taiwan before and after the festival, all of which will be available to groups wishing to come early or stay on afterwards.
Registrations, details of accommodation and the full program will be announced shortly. Keep an eye out on the WDA-daCi website.
WDA/daCi meeting, Taiwan 2011. Top left: Anna Chan, Yeh Chingwen, Ann Tai, Ping Heng. Top right: Ralph Buck, Ann Kipling-Brown, Jeff Meiners, Yunyu Wang. Bottom left: Jeff Meiners, Charlotte Svendler Nielsen. Bottom right: Pan Li-chun, Yeh Chingwen, Lee Hung Fu, Jeff HsiehWorld Dance Alliance Global Executive meeting
What used to be referred to as "the WDA Presidents’ meeting" has now become the WDA Global Executive, a name change decided at the meeting headed by WDA Secretary-General Cheryl Stock. Others at the meeting included Jin-Wen Yu, President of WDA Americas, Yunyu Wang, President-elect of WDA Asia Pacific, Urmimala Sarkar, WDA Asia Pacific Vice-President elect, and Ralph Buck, Vice President of the Pacific region (and convenor of the 2012 Global Assembly in Taipei). I was also present as Secretary of the Asia-Pacific region, with apologies from current WDA AP President Anis Mohd Nor and WDA Europe President Joseph Fontano.
Following up the National Cultural Policy ministerial meeting
ABC Radio National is preparing a series of programs about the arts and cultural policy from 1968 to the present day in a series will go to air within Artworks, their Sunday morning arts program.
On Friday the ABC called us to discuss what's in the National Cultural Policy and how it might impact on the dance sector. They also asked about major historical moments in contemporary dance in the last 25 years, so it was good to be able to pinpoint several positive moments, and to say why we thought it was important to have a national cultural policy.
2012 Australian Youth Dance Festival
The 2012 Australian Youth Dance Festival (AYDF), is presented by Ausdance NSW and hosted at NAISDA, Australia’s national Indigenous dance training institution, at Mt Penang Parklands, near Gosford, NSW. The AYDF will take place during the NSW Easter school holidays from 8 to 14 April 2012.
World Dance Alliance meetings in Taipei
The World Dance Alliance Asia Pacific will be meeting in Taiwan this week to plan two major events. We'll be there, leading plans for the first meeting of international dance support organisations in November, and helping to plan the second – the WDA Global Summit in Taipei in July 2012 in partnership with dance and the Child international (daCi).
National Cultural Policy meeting outcomes
The meeting was facilitated by Ausdance National President, Professor Susan Street, and included organisations from a diverse range of the arts, education and creative industries. Sue worked with co-convenors of ArtsPeak, Julie Dyson (Ausdance) and Tamara Winikoff (National Association for the Visual Arts) to create a framework of four major principles from the National Cultural Policy that could be agreed to by all arts sectors and would be inclusive of their views. These were: 'Mainstreaming' the arts; the impact of technology; artists' career pathways, and Australia's position in the world, including the promotion of our cultural diversity. This framework gave voice to various views which were shared with the Minister.
National Cultural Policy meeting with Arts Minister
With the recent release of the National Cultural Policy discussion paper, there has been a flurry of interest in understanding its content and the ways in which it might impact on artists and on Australian society generally. Ausdance National has organised a meeting between Arts Minister Simon Crean and the CEOs of 30 arts service organisations on August 17, an event that will see an extremely diverse group coming together in Canberra for a Ministerial briefing. They include members of ArtsPeak and the National Advocates for Arts Education (NAAE), and their portfolios range across copyright law, Indigenous arts, arts and disability, literature, publishing, visual and performing arts and arts education.