PROGRAM
VALUE FOR MONEY
A NOTE FROM THE DIRECTOR’S
SARA BLACK
”Value for Money began its journey many years ago with what I thought would be explorations for a short solo. The concept came as I was traveling through the Middle East during the Arab Spring uprisings. The way I was treated or valued traveling throughout these places in relation to local or neighbouring people was stark and most apparent when I arrived in Israel. As a foreigner, but a non-practicing Jewish woman, I felt a warm welcome from the locals (not immigration) in a way that their neighbours did not. I always find this thin thread of commonality is enough to bring a strong bond with other Jewish peoples even though my direct family line with Scottish and English heritage is non-practicing for three generations. It sparked a fascination on how we choose to place our value, what makes us feel safe around others and what information we use to come to these conclusions? After two developments of Value For Money it was clear to me that the themes we were exploring were bigger than I could direct as a white woman. For our final development into presentation I asked the incredibly intuitive Jasmin Sheppard to come on board as co-director to thread her voice into this work and help us craft it into its final incarnation.”
JASMIN SHEPPARD
“What excited me the most about coming on as co-director for Value for Money was to work with Sara. We’ve known each other for well over a decade and our careers have almost existed parallel to one another. To bring this relationship into the room felt right. The conversation on human value spoke deeply to me, and as a First Nations woman with mixed heritage, I felt I could bring a different lens with which to view the creative process. There’s so much depth that can be explored conceptually, and the many rich discussions have led to a multi-layered work, which I believe can speak to audiences from a vast array of diverse human experiences.”
We all come from a common place- land, dust, molecule.
The human journey separates us from other animals by our drive to find our individual worth. What makes us a valuable and unique addition to this place? How do we value human life? Is it the calculable economic value or the intangible emotional and physical value of a person we should be considering? In addition, this human desire to discover our individual and collective value contradicts a human need to control and have dominion over other humans, animals and land; to project collective value onto objects, deities, other individuals: the polarity of power and vulnerability inherent within us all. Value For Money interrogates how relationships, community, proximity and place change our perception of a life’s worth.
Along this journey many people have shared their stories and voices in the making of this work, bringing their power and vulnerability and spilling their lived experiences into the process. From previous developments in London and Alice Springs we would like to thank Carl Harrison, Laure Bachelot, Megan Adair, Thomas E.S Kelly and Kelly Beneforti for being involved in the creation of this work.
The final cast of performers/collaborators/choreographers/creatives for Value for Money have been integral in this creation. Their voices are thread through this work and it would not be what it is if it was if not for their contribution. We thank Ashley McLellan, Gabriel Comerford, Waangenga Blanco, Tom Snowdon and Chris Mercer for all that they have given to this work. Thank you Lizzy Verstappen and Andrew Treloar for all of their work in the land of costumes and design, Jonny Rowden and Tessa Snowdon for their dramaturgical and research intelligence, and Letitia Firth for her support and drive of all things technical in the Araluen theatre and Amanda Harris for stepping up into a new role. We thank John and Yvonne Mercer for all of their support and care for our babies, we couldn’t have been here without you.
Finally, Frankie Snowdon and Madeleine Krenek are the reason this show has come to fruition at all. It is through their hard work and tenacity that these ideas have come to the stage. We thank them for all that they have done and continue to do for us in the many hats they have worn during this adventure, as performers, collaborators, producers and friends.
– SARA BLACK AND JASMIN SHEPPARD, CO-DIRECTORS VALUE FOR MONEY
CONCEPT & CHOREOGRAPHY
Sara Black and Jasmin Sheppard
COLLABORATING PERFORMERS
Waangenga Blanco, Gabriel Comerford, Madeleine Krenek, Ashley McLellan, Tara Robertson, Tom Roach and Frankie Snowdon
TOURING CAST Frankie Snowdon, Gabriel Comerford, Chandler Connell, Tara Robertson and Samakshi Sidhu
CAST CREDITS
SOUND DESIGN & COMPOSITION
Tom Snowdon
LIGHTING DESIGN
Chris Mercer
DRAMATURGE
Jonny Rowden
RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Tessa Snowdon
PRODUCTION MANAGER
Amanda Harris
COSTUME DESIGN & CONSULTATION
Elizabeth Verstappen and Andrew Treloar
PRODUCED BY
GUTS Dance // Central Australia
UNPACKING PROCESS
As part of the development of Value For Money, the Choreographers and Collaborating Performers undertook a series of tasks and creative experiments to flesh out their ideas, thoughts and understandings of the project. These have been shared for your own curiosity and understanding.
COMMISSIONED WRITINGS
ADVICE TO AUDIENCE
All evening performances contain scenes including full and partial nudity performed by a culturally diverse cast - audience discretion is advised.
FUNDERS
Value For Money was made possible with assistance from the Australian Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body, the Regional Arts Fund, The Northern Territory Government through Arts NT, Artback NT and through individual donations via Creative Partnerships Australia’s BOOST initiative. It has also been supported locally by the Araluen Arts Centre and Studio B school of dance.
GUTS would also like to acknowledge the Arrernte people, on whose country they are based and this work was created, and whose sovereignty was never ceded. They pay respect to their elders, and to all First Nations people and countries.
THANK YOU
GUTS and the team would like to thank our families, who have supported, endured and cared for us and our work throughout the days, weeks, months and years it has taken to get this show to this point. We are very lucky to be supported to do what we love, especially in these strange times. To the funding bodies, peers, partnering organisations, festivals and private sponsors whose support has made this work and season possible and our collaborators past and present for their generosity and prolific talent. Finally, to all the brave dance makers who continue to defy convention and unsettle the status quo - we are forever indebted to your contributions to our practices and the world at large - and to you, our audience, for sharing this with us.
Your donations make a huge difference to continuing the development and presentation of dynamic contemporary dance in Central Australia