Blacktown Arts Centre is proud to announce the first recipients of its 2012 Performing Arts Residencies. “The Elephant in Manila Zoo? is a collaborative project by writer Martin Ponferrada and performers Valerie Berry and Felino Dolloso, to be in residence at the Blacktown Arts Centre from 7th May.
The script explores political corruption in the Philippines through the relationship between an isolated ex-President and his young visiting nurse. Based on the life of ex-Philippine president Joseph Estrada, the play is a satirical interrogation of the political history of the Philippines and its effect on the diaspora community.
“The Blacktown Arts Centre Performing Arts Residency programme is a fantastic opportunity to develop and incubate new work” stated Mayor of Blacktown City Cr. Alan Pendleton “by selecting work by local artists or work that demonstrates a strong connection to the region, this initiative invests in local talent and ensures the continued creative development of the Blacktown community.”
Martin Ponferrada is a Blacktown resident and experienced director and short-film maker, “The Elephant in Manila Zoo? represents his first foray into playwriting. During his residency, he intends to use access to the Blacktown Arts Centre theatre space and the $5,000 budget awarded to him and his collaborators to workshop this script into a performance work. This exciting two-week residency will take a raw script and manipulate it and will culminate in a showing of the work on Saturday, 19th May, at 3pm.
Martin, Valerie and Felino will be mentored by experienced writer and dramaturge Paschal Berry. Paschal has a long relationship with Blacktown Arts Centre, developing theatre-work “The Folding Wife? here in 2007 and staging the hugely popular performance “Within and Without? at Blacktown Arts Centre in 2011. Berry states, “Martin Ponferrada has created a fast paced, dynamic and politically timely work in this draft of “The Elephant In Manila Zoo.? I’m fascinated in where he would go as a young writer and I believe he has chosen the right collaborators to bring life to what he has created.”
The Blacktown Arts Centre Performing Arts Residency programme was established in 2008 and aims to fund and provide space for the development of new performance works. The residencies give priority to local or Western Sydney artists, work that has strong thematic links to the Blacktown area or projects that directly engage the local community. Past artists in residence include Marian Abboud and Vicki Van Hout, Weizen Ho and Garth Paine, and Jonathan Nanlohy.
Blacktown Arts Centre Performing Arts Residency 2013 applications will open in September 2012. For more information contact Blacktown Arts Centre, 78 Flushcombe Rd Blacktown, www.artscentre.blacktown.nsw.gov or 9839 6558.