The Australia Council has announced the latest recipients of residencies offered in partnership with the UKARIA Cultural Centre in the South Australian Adelaide Hills.
Composer Fiona Hill heads to UKARIA later this year, joined by collaborators including director/choreographer Sue Healey (Australia Council Award for Dance 2021), and Churchill Fellow and internationally renowned dancer/choreographer Christopher Hill. They will use the residency to work on a site-specific short film.
“The film will draw on our response to being in and resonating with a specific place, in this instance the grounds and buildings of UKARIA. We will also collaborate with the acclaimed Seraphim Trio, workshopping and recording the score for the film during the residency,” said Fiona Hill.
Composer Paul Castles will use the residency to develop a new work of immersive music-driven multisensory theatre being created for Light Adelaide. He will be joined by an interdisciplinary team of collaborators including pianist and creative producer Nicole Brady, sound designer and engineer Bob Scott, several musicians, writer Victoria Saxton, experiential designer Meg Wilson, chef Brendan Wessels, technical director Ryan Grobbins, and director of photography Alex Smith.
“We’ll be exploring and recording music, capturing 360 audio and visuals from the surrounding South Australian landscapes, and preparing an initial workshop presentation to be shared at UKARIA.” said Paul Castles.
Residents will spend 10 days at the prestigious UKARIA Cultural Centre at Mt Barker, with exclusive access to facilities including a state-of-the-art recital centre, and adjacent accommodation in the picturesque Adelaide Hills.
UKARIA CEO Alison Beare congratulated the latest recipients. “As we wrestle with the devastating impact of COVID-19, and the loss of live performance, supporting creativity, and encouraging artists to find new pathways into the future is imperative at this time,” said Ms Beare.
Australia Council Head of Music Kirsty Rivers thanked UKARIA for continuing to provide an ideal setting for Australian artistic teams to collaborate. “We are delighted to again partner with UKARIA to offer this unique residency for Australian musicians and composers,” she said.
The residency enables groups of artists to collaborate and develop new work, and we look forward to seeing the results of these collaborations,” said Ms Rivers.
The residency recipients will have exclusive access to UKARIA, including the state-of-the-art auditorium and Twin Peaks accommodation facilities adjacent to the Mount Barker Summit, as well as financial support to assist with the development of their new works.
The residency program between the Australia Council and UKARIA is proudly supported by Ulrike Klein AO. For more information, visit: www.australiacouncil.gov.au for details.
Image: Paul Castles (sourced) | Fiona Hill – photo by Deep Hill Media