Queer Theatre Program

Since its inception in 2007, ActNow Theatre has been run, led, by and engaged with queer artists from all walks of life. We have queer community members represented across all our programs, and continue to advocate for and consult on queerness in the theatre industry — locally and across the world.

Our queer-specific programs have evolved through the years, in line with the changing needs of the community and the world at large. Scroll down to see a timeline of our queer programs over the years…

The final in-schools performances of Speak Out are delivered, with the artists involved reworking the script to include a discussion on biphobia. For the first time, the performing team are majority queer.

This same year, Queer Youth Theatre workshops are officially launched, and coordinated by Program Coordinator, Chiara Gabrielli and Associate Artist Teddy Dunn, and assisted by Sarah-Jayde Tracey. Two blocks of workshops are delivered on Wednesday evenings between May and July, and September and November for LGBTQIA+ people aged 18-30. The workshops include scenework, discussions, writing tasks, and general queer joy. This group creates a Queer Manifesto, attempting to answer questions including “How to make queer theatre” and “Are some things inherently queered or do they need to be queered?

2020

In a hugely ambitious collaboration, with funding from Arts South Australia, ActNow Theatre teams up with State Theatre Company SA to create Decameron 2.0 — an online theatre project involving over 100 artists designed to create work for artists to mitigate the impact of the covid-19 pandemic. Each week for 10 weeks, a new 10-story episode is written, filmed, edited and then released on YouTube. It is a huge undertaking involving the bulk of the theatre industry in Adelaide, representing a wide diversity of artists from different backgrounds and identities.

As part of this project, an invitation-only group of 17 community artists is formed, selected from past participants of Queer Youth Theatre. The group, called Queer 2.0, is coordinated by past Queer Youth Theatre participants and lead artists Annabel Matheson and Lachlan Barnett. Queer 2.0 meets once a week for the period of the project, creating monologues, characters, relationships and brainstorming ideas prompted by the theme given to them each week by the Decameron 2.0 directors, Yasmin Gurreeboo and Anthony Nicola — all through the lens of their queer lived experience.

Many participants are included as writers and performers in the episodes, with some making their professional debut as playwrights or performers. The atmosphere of Queer 2.0 is supportive, creative, and unique — clear evidence that we as a community rally together in the face of adversity.

The prolific body of work created by Queer 2.0 is hard to ignore and a live presentation of these pieces is performed at Rumpus Theatre to an audience of friends, family, and industry professionals at the conclusion of the program.

During Feast Festival in December, all the queer Decameron 2.0 stories are screened at the Palace Nova as a fundraiser.  

Virtual Intimacy is presented again in Taiwan, with ActNow artists joining the performance through pre recorded videos and live streaming and video calls.

2021

Community Arts & Cultural Development consultations take place with past participants of Queer Youth Theatre. These consultations eventually inform the future of queer programs at ActNow Theatre.

New MakeSpace Residencies are awarded, with 3 out of 4 residents identifying as LGBTQIA+.

Funding is secured to implement Drag Troupe in 2022 and 2023.

A queer podcast, Next Stage, is in development.

2023

Associate Artist Annabel Matheson joins the team and manages the development and delivery of Drag Troupe between February and September, alongside Assistant Producer and drag artist, Arran Beattie aka Marian Westfield.

We secure funding from the City of Adelaide to support a relaunching of the Queer Theatre Program — now welcoming everyone LGBTQIA+ aged 18 and older. The program includes a range of skills building sessions in acting, writing, devising, and dramaturgy, and participants are provided with dinner at each workshop. Facilitating artists include Ashton Malcolm, Katherine Sortini, Teddy Dunn, Philip Kavanagh, Connor Reidy, and Anthony Nicola.