Restless Dance Theatre Gets Golden Opportunity at Festival 2018

Adelaide's award winning Restless Dance Theatre will present 20 performances of its acclaimed 2017 Adelaide Festival production Intimate Space at the Hilton Surfers Paradise from 4 to 7 April as part of Bleach* at Festival 2018 within the arts and culture program of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games.

The Company will also perform a section of Intimate Space at the Australian Performing Arts Market (APAM) in Brisbane this February. It will be the first time that Restless has performed interstate in more than 17 years.

Restless Dance Theatre Director Michelle Ryan said, 'I am excited Restless is touring Intimate Space twice to Queensland. It is an honour the production was chosen for Festival 2018 and APAM where national and international audiences will be flocking. As a born and bred Queenslander, who is now happy to call Adelaide home, I believe the tours are fantastic opportunities to share our work and showcase our amazing, engaging and professional artists. Restless is a unique company in the Australian arts industry and we want as many people as possible to know who we are, what we do and to celebrate diversity on stage'.

12 Restless Dancers will travel to Queensland and be joined by three performers from Brisbane's IndelABILITY ARTS and seven performers from Gold Coast Recreation and Sport Inc. for the Intimate Spaces season.

Michelle said, 'I have been working with the Queensland performers via video and Skype using the same process I use with the Restless dancers whereby I set tasks, the performers respond and I use their unique responses to re-imagine the scenes. This gives the local performers a creative voice in the work. Both organisations have been amazing to work with; both are recognised as having best practice in the disability sector. We are also thrilled to be able to work with Hilton Surfers Paradise; Peer Norsell from Hilton Adelaide (where Intimate Space was originally performed) kindly brokered the relationship'.

Festival 2018 Gold Coast Co-Creative Director Yaron Lifschitz and Artistic Director of Bleached Arts Louise Bezzina saw Intimate Space in Adelaide in 2017. The Gold Coast season has been made possible through support from Arts South Australia and James and Diana Ramsay Foundation and is co-presented by Festival 2018 and Bleach* Festival.

Restless is Australia's leading dance theatre company working with young people with and without disability to collaboratively create outstanding inclusive dance theatrical performances informed by disability.

Restless Dance Theatre is supported by the Dance Board of the Australia Council, the Federal Government's arts funding and advisory body, and by the South Australian Government through Carclew, Arts South Australia and the Department for Communities and Social Inclusion. The company is also supported by the James and Diana Ramsay Foundation and the Sidney Myer Fund.

The Company's recent awards and nominations include:

Winner Ruby Award • Arts Innovation and Enterprise
Winner Adelaide Critics Circle Award • Group Award (Professional Theatre)
Nomination Helpmann Award • Best Dance Production
Nomination Ruby Award • Best New Work

www.restlessdance.org

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