2020 Undercover Artist Grants Program

Spanning the art forms of theatre, physical theatre, dance, circus, music, cabaret, new writing and poetry, Undercover Artist Grants Program enabled performing artists with disability and/or who are D/deaf to develop skills and create new work.

The work created through this program was exhibited on a virtual platform at Undercover Artist:Online, viewed by industry leaders and peers across Australia in early December 2020.

INCUBATE $5,000 grant recipients:

• Marissa Ker, Denis and the Deets
  • a satirical comedy about cinema managers who don’t screen movies with open captions.
• Alexandra Ellen, Conversations with My Walker
  • exploring themes of internalised ableism, shame and disability pride.
• AHA Ensemble, Yolk
  • a collaborative dance-theatre work exploring relationships, connectedness and inter-dependence.

INCUBATE $2,000 Grant recipients:

• Jacqueline Marshall
• David Waldie
• Aspy Jones

UNITE $2,000 Grant recipients:

• Isabel Stankiewicz
  • Isabel will be mentored in playwriting by Ladyfinger, and marketing with Harmonie Downes in support her new play, Necklace.
• Oliver Hetherington-Page
  • Oliver will be mentored by Matilda Award-winning producer Alex Woodward to support his new cabaret, The No Bang Theory.

Undercover Artist Festival 2020 personnel – Steering Group 

Upholding Access Arts’ commitment to a disability-led process and program, the Steering Group comprised six sector leaders with lived experience of disability:

• Chair: Associate Professor Bree Hadley (QUT)
• Irene Clelland (CEO, Arafmi)
• Morwenna Collett (arts, access and inclusion consultant)
• Julie Lyons (Deaf Sports and Recreation Queensland, artist)
• Peter Vance (singer-song-writer, Access Arts Life Member).

Undercover Artist Festival is presented by Access Arts