BANKSTOWN:LIVE kicks off as part of Sydney Festival tomorrow, showing off an eclectic program over four days. To find out a bit more about what we can expect from the event, we caught up with the event’s curator – Urban Theatre Project’s Artistic Director Rosie Dennis.
Tell me a little bit about how you came to be involved in this project as the curator.
I’m the Artistic Director of Urban Theatre Projects, the Company producing BANKSTOWN:LIVE
What was the best thing about the curation process?
Watching all the works come together.
Was there anything you were hoping to make happen that you weren’t able to?
Thankfully, everything has fallen into place. We have four fantastic houses which are the locations for half of the BANKSTOWN:LIVE program (the other half are staged on the street), a brilliant group of local resident volunteers to help us realise it over the 4-nights and a really great line-up of work. So it’s all come together very well.
Taking over streets of a suburb is no easy task – Was there anything that surprised you about what you have been able to make happen?
I have done something similar to this before, so thankfully no major surprises. It always helps to have the support of local council who share your enthusiasm for the event and a great team on the ground to deliver.
What are you most excited about the event?
Hard to say. At this stage, two days before opening, I would say I am most excited about sharing this with an audience.
What sets this event apart from other Urban Theatre Projects events?
To date we’ve not produced anything of this scale with multiple works site specifically. Largely, in the past, we would produced a single show, site specifically. So this is something new for the Company. What I love about programming a number of different works (across different artforms) is that allows us to present multiple perspectives about contemporary suburban Sydney.
How would you recommend audiences tackle the eclectic program?
The way we’ve put the program together is that audiences will be able to see 8 of the 9 works so punters will have a really fully experience.
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BANKSTOWN:LIVE kicks off tomorrow, as part of Sydney Festival. For tickets and more details, head here: http://www.sydneyfestival.org.au/2015/bankstown-live
