Follow your creative IMPULSE: A free dance performance invites Canberrans to join the artistic action
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Australian Dance Party is marking its 10th year with IMPULSE – a unique live performance blending dance, music and visual art in Woden and Gungahlin, where the audience becomes part of the creative process.
What happens when dance spills out of theatres and into town centres – and the audience is invited to create alongside the performers?
That’s the idea behind IMPULSE, a free, multidisciplinary performance from Canberra’s own Australian Dance Party that will transform Woden and Gungahlin into vibrant spaces for artistic collaboration.
Image: O&J Wikner Photography
Celebrating the company’s 10th anniversary, IMPULSE blends contemporary and street dance with live music and visual art, creating an improvised performance that unfolds in real time. But the twist is that audiences aren’t just watching the show –they’re invited to respond creatively as it happens.
Bring a sketchbook, notebook or camera, or use materials provided on the day, and let the performance spark your own artistic reaction. Whether you draw, write, paint or photograph, your response can become part of a pop-up exhibition celebrating the creative pulse of the Woden and Gungahlin communities.
According to Australian Dance Party Artistic Director Alison Plevey, the project is about building connections across Canberra’s town centres and inviting more people into the creative process.
“Much of our past works have been city-based, so we are thrilled to be supported by the Regional Arts Fund for IMPULSE, to engage with the town regions that make up our city,” she says. “We want to encourage artist collaboration and participation in the arts across these areas.”
The performance brings together a dynamic lineup of dancers from Australian Dance Party – including Ashlee Bye, Gabriel Sinclair, Pat Hayes Cavanagh and Jahna Lugnan – alongside musicians Creswick and Alex Voorhoeve.
The project also sparks new collaborations with artists connected to the Woden and Gungahlin communities, including Kojo Ansah, Mason Higgs, Robbie Karmel and Rachael Thoms.
Image: O&J Wikner Photography
Co-directed by Alison Plevey and Sara Black, IMPULSE has been developed in partnership with organisations including Tuggeranong Arts Centre, Gungahlin Arts and the Celebrate Gungahlin Festival.
For audiences, the result is something a little different from your typical performance. Instead of sitting back and watching from a distance, you’re encouraged to lean into the moment and let the creativity around you guide your own response.
And there’s no pressure to be an expert.
“You don’t have to be trained in any way,” the team says. “Just have a go and let the performance inspire you to draw, paint or write.”
By bringing together artists and audiences in shared public spaces, IMPULSE aims to capture the spontaneous, collaborative energy that makes Canberra’s creative community so special.
So if you’ve ever felt the urge to sketch a moment, write down a thought or capture a performance through a camera lens, this is your invitation to follow that creative instinct.
THE ESSENTIALS
What: IMPULSE
When: Woden – Saturday 14 March, 10 am and 12:30 pm; Gungahlin – Saturday 21 March, 12:30 pm
Where: Woden Town Square and Gungahlin Town Square (as part of the Celebrate Gungahlin Festival)
Web: Register for Woden here and Gungahlin here.
IMPULSE is presented by Australian Dance Party and supported by the Regional Arts Fund, artsACT, Gungahlin Arts, Belco Arts, Celebrate Gungahlin Festival, Tuggeranong Arts Centre, Creative Australia and Quantum Leap Australia.
Feature image: Image: O&J Wikner Photography
