Dancing in the Streets [05.05.2009]
A grant of $10,000 was made in the April round for an innovative Victoria-wide contemporary dance initiative to be staged by Melbourne Fringe. REVERB, The First Dance Project is a public contemporary dance project that pushes the boundaries of dance practice in Australia and creates significant opportunities for emerging and semi-established dancers and choreographers to present work in a variety of urban and regional contexts.
It will partner ten mid-career choreographers with 35 recently graduated dancers resulting in a variety of new site-specific contemporary dance works. These will be performed for free during the three week Fringe Festival, which runs from late September to mid October, and will take place in unexpected outdoor spaces that naturally draw people together – from city laneways, tunnels and train stations, to a laneway in Bendigo, Dookie’s main street, Shepparton’s main plaza, Frankston’s waterfront, Dandenong High School or a skate park in Swan Hill, to name a few. Each choreographer will work with a sound artist to create an integrated soundscape for each project.
The performances will be coupled with extensive community engagement programs to include workshops, masterclasses, mentoring, discussion panels and networking opportunities.
Melbourne Fringe is the premier organisation for the independent arts in Victoria. Melbourne Fringe Festival, the principal activity of the organisation, aims to bring the most contemporary, innovative and trend-setting work created and presented by independent artists to the broader Melbourne and Victorian audience.