To be working on a new play in a new city could have been an intense proposition but with the help of La Boite and APT, I felt supported and challenged in all the ways. The fully-equipped three-day nature of the workshop enabled me to do the kind of quick, intense work that really makes a play come to life. The script has taken massive leaps forward and I’m much clearer on what it is and how it functions. The opportunity to be in a room with world-class creatives, creatively dismantling and reassembling a very difficult script was a heaven-send and after a few years of COVID-enforced isolation (we playwrights say we're introverts but please put us in more rooms with humans). Seeing it come to life briefly in front of an audience was the perfect end to the week and has started the conversations that will see the work brought to a stage soon
This commission is transformative for my work. It allows me to gather a body of research I’ve been doing and put it into practice. It’s also introduced my work to a leading producer in Performing Lines. This is the kind of company you want your work to be noticed by, but as a solo artist it can be hard to appear on the radar. APT widens the radar and helps make you visible. I’m grateful for the support APT has shown me and wish many more playwrights were able to get this leg up. You don’t have to look far to find great writers that deserve it.
As a regional writer one can feel quite disconnected from the playwriting community, especially during early development of a project. Sometimes it can be hard to keep going. Being the recipient of the Erin Thomas Playwriting Fund and having Mary Anne Butler as a mentor has brought momentum back to a play I have been struggling with. As a playwright this program is both project and career building. At the end of the program I will have learnt skills and writerly wisdoms from one of Australia’s best playwrights. I will also have a draft of a play I can send to theatre companies for their consideration and a sense of connection to the playwriting community in Australia. Without this fund I could still be searching around the wilds of the Northern Rivers trying to find a way forward on my own.
APT has provided me with financial support to create realities I thought were only dreams - to tell stories in a professional capacity but also develop them in order to do it right, and respect culture in a nuanced and thoughtful way. As a company, the support provided to me has allowed for a continuous collegial relationship, and ensured that my voice is prioritised in support. They have also ensured that the right producing partners have come on board to engage with the future of the work.
The Max Afford Prize and the support of APT mean so much to me. The opportunity to have a creative development for my play will allow me to test opportunities for humour and impact that aren’t possible under the pressure of a short rehearsal period. And the money means a lot to my family - I make most of our money and my husband does most of the kid caring but the prize money gives us a little buffer so that we can try to rearrange our lives a little and give me a bit of time to write. I’ve already told my office job that maybe I’d like to cut back a day or two.
APT is creating space and opportunity for playwrights to be at their best as they tell the stories of our rapidly changing world. This means seeking new voices for new times, developing plays that reflect our unfolding national story, linking them to production, publishing them, promoting them, and licensing them for future productions here and globally.
APT believes in a theatre culture that is responsible and responsive to the world in which we live. Right now, the world is in flux. Massive global shifts are happening and we are seeing the collective potential for seismic and long-term change. We believe theatre plays a vital role in articulating and shaping this change for good.
APT believes in a world made more just, curious and enjoyable by Australian plays. Help us make this dream a reality.
Why donate?
The Australian theatre faces deep uncertainty. What we do know for certain though is that:
- there is a swelling desire for new work (an existing trend boosted by the pandemic);
- these shifting times require daring Australian stories that are told by a plurality of voices;
- there is a burning need for a national body that extends resources to many, building the sustainability of our theatre companies, championing playwrights, and rejuvenating our cultural landscape.
This is where APT comes in. For the first time, a national organisation will travel with playwrights through the entire life cycle of a work – from the earliest spark of an idea, to development, to pathways to production, to publication, licensing and out into the world. This long arc of connection will generate:
- inspiration for fresh voices, encouraged by the potential of long-term outcomes.
- engagement with experienced playwrights, through the improved capacity for career continuity and development.
- dexterity for those in charge of publication and licensing, for they will be directly attuned to how the play has come about.
- a new sense of cogency around the life story of new plays, giving them the best chance of profound impact as narratives for the nation, and for the world.
APT has a critical role to play in the future of Australian playwriting. We will be a principal instrument of transformation and better representation, creating space and opportunity for playwrights to be at their best.
We want the world to be the stage for Australian playwrights.
Please consider making a tax-deductible donation so we can make this happen. Every dollar makes a difference.
If you are interested in supporting APT through a large gift or bequest or would like to discuss how your donation can contribute to APT’s specific programs, please contact Executive Producer, Erin Taylor, at erin@apt.org.au.
