The Backbone Ensemble

The Backbone Ensemble is an audition entry initiative to provide training and performance opportunities to young performance makers who wish to create work at the cutting edge of contemporary performance. Young people are at the forefront of experimentation and innovation in their need to express their story. The future is arriving through them. The Ensemble is placed to explore these exciting new developments in performance:

• outside the silos of classical actor/director/writer paradigms
• by exploring and defining new performance spaces and audience engagement
• by interfacing with contemporary and emerging technological platforms
• by utilising hybrid art modalities and site specific work
• by using physical and movement training as a core platform

The project is for performance/theatre makers who want to work collaboratively whilst gaining new skills in performance making.

The content of the training falls under three broad headings:

1. COLLABORATION- This block contains training in working as an ensemble, contemporary collaborative processes, improvisation and play and will be led by Andrew Cory, Lucas Stibbard and Xanthe Beesley. This block will involve a full time week of training with Backbone and Queensland Theatre Company in the Youth Partnership Residency Initiative.

2. SPACE- Performance techniques involved in activating a stage/space including the heightened use of a visual language, audience/performer relationships, site specific work, use of multimedia and digital technology led by Andrew Cory and Daniel Flood (The Edge).

3. STORY- The ensemble will create a performance in partnership with Backbone and The Edge called The Room. The Room is an immersive interactive installation & hybrid performance work that is partnered with a purpose designed online presence that will draw on elements of alternate reality game (ARG). This work will be based upon the concept of ‘Invisible theatre’ as used  by Augusto Boal in his work around the Theatre of the Oppressed, which underpins the area of Flash Mobbing & ‘prank’ works of the Yes Men. It is inspired by Rotozaa’s Austoteatro works (Etiquette and Wondermart) and performative works of Australian artist’s Spat+Loogie.

The Ensemble will work together for 12 weeks from 17th May to 2nd August, 2011.

Cost: $250

Please contact Backbone on (07) 3210 2666 or email info@backbone.org.au for more information including a detailed schedule.