The fundraiser helping Canberra’s young dancers to keep following their own beat
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It’s been on the Canberra arts and education calendar since 1984, but as Ausdance ACT’s Youth Dance Festival celebrates 40 years, its future is looking uncertain.
A remarkable local success story that began as a mission to get dance into the Australian Curriculum, the Youth Dance Festival (YDF) has a legacy that goes beyond inspiring young people to dance. In fact, with a proud alumnus of over 50,000 students, it’s made a significant impact on the lives of thousands.
“Everybody who has lived in Canberra and grown up in Canberra knows about the Youth Dance Festival, or has participated in it. There’s a huge amount of affection for the festival but also a lot of knowledge about it,” says Ausdance ACT Creative Director Dr. Cathy Adamek.
“It’s in the fabric of the DNA of the territory…there’s an extraordinary amount of people who dance in Canberra. And I think the fact that the YDF has been going for 40 years has kept a lot of that enthusiasm, passion, and engagement in dance.”
Currently holding a fundraiser to help keep YDF alive for the next 40 years, Cathy and the Ausdance ACT team are calling for locals to help them continue to give inclusive access to all students who want to perform.
As a small-non-for-profit arts organisation, she says that it’s only thanks to generations of people giving their voluntary time to build YDF that have kept it going for the past four decades – but this expectation is no longer sustainable.
“Dance has really lost a lot of funding…we don’t want to put the prices up so people can’t afford to come and see their kids,” says Cathy.
“Post-COVID expenses have skyrocketed. Canberra Theatre Centre is home to YDF and we want to be able to continue to provide the capacity and professional setting for the next generation of young performers.”
As they count down the days to the end of the 2024 YDF on Friday 8 November (which is also the day the fundraiser closes), Cathy says that any money raised will make a positive difference.
But with a goal of $10,000, Ausdance ACT hopes to be able to meet the growing demand of students who want to express themselves through dance and music.
With 800 students participating in this year’s festival – which has seen it expand to three nights – it’s a small step to keep supporting and encouraging the next generation of young performers.
“On a local level, it’s an integral part of Canberra’s culture, but it’s also spread outside of Canberra in terms of pathways. It’s about being able to preserve this as a pathway for young people in the next generation to continue being able to work in the performing arts, because it gives them that experience,” says Cathy.
“We want to be able to continue that.”
For more information or to donate, visit artists.australianculturalfund.org.au
Feature image: Ausdance ACT Youth Dance Festival Melba Copland Senior Secondary School. Photo: Art Atelier Photography.
