In Development

Bunyi Bunyi Bumi

Image by T J Garvie Photography

We're thrilled to share new work in development Bunyi Bunyi Bumi, Co-Directed by raymond blanco (Yadhaigana and Erub) and Priya Srinivasan (Tamil) and Co-Devised with Alfira O'Sullivan (Acehnese), Murtala (Acehnese), Waangenga Blanco (Meriam and Pajinka Wik) and and Tyrel Dulvarie (Yirrganydji).

Bunyi Bunyi Bumi brings together our resilience, identity, and transformation in re-threading First Nations and Indonesian connections across the Indian Ocean. With powerful choreography and storytelling, Bunyi Bunyi Bumi delves into the impacts of colonisation, bringing together extraordinary talent from diverse cultural perspectives.

This journey began in June 2023, with the work undertaking three intensive development phases to date in Naarm at Abbotsford Convent, Malthouse, City of Dandenong and Walker Street Gallery, each building on the last to deepen the story and amplify its cultural layers. BlakDance proudly stewards this project as producer and cultural advocate, ensuring creative control, self-determination, and respect for cultural protocols.

We are stoked to welcome two new First Nations roles within our workforce development strategy: Luke Peacock as Associate Producer and Emma Holgate as Production Coordinator. Their expertise and perspectives strengthen our commitment to cultural integrity and representation.

 

Images from creative development August 2024, Dandenong

 

Commissioned by Bunjil Place and Asia TOPA, Arts Centre Melbourne.

Produced by BlakDance.

This project is supported through the Australian Government's Indigenous Languages and Arts program, through Creative Australia, its principal arts investment and advisory body and the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland.

Supported by Sangam, Suara Dance, the City of Greater Dandenong, Drum Theatre, Walker Street Gallery, Metro Arts and Thomas Dixon Centre.

 

Preparing Ground

Preparing Ground

By Marilyn Miller (Kukuyalanji and Waanyi), Jasmin Sheppard (Tagalaka and Kurtitjar) & Katina Olsen (Wakka Wakka and Kombumerri).

when Country is scarred

when language is silenced

when Indigenous Knowledges offer pathways to heal

when communities gather to lead change

when survival depends on care for the environment and each other.

About preparing ground

Preparing Ground began in 2019, and embodies years of dedicated practice, extensive community engagement, and an unwavering commitment to First Nations governance and agency.

Preparing Ground calls on us to come together, as communities and individuals, to care for the land and each other. In a time of environmental and social upheaval, this work offers a message of hope, resilience, and collective responsibility. It’s about honouring the Knowledges of First Nations communities, whose deep connection to Country has endured for millennia, and bringing that Knowledge into the present to guide us toward a shared future.

This work is an invitation for audiences to engage—to listen to the land, to witness the strength of community, and to actively contribute to the reclamation and protection of our environment. By centering local voices, Preparing Ground calls on all of us to reflect on how we can care for the land and its stories together. We are all connected to this place, and we all have a role to play in its healing and future.

Preparing Ground - the future Future

Preparing Ground envisions a “future Future”—a world where care for Country and community spans generations. It reminds us that our survival depends on an enduring relationship with the land, and that the path forward is one we must walk together.

Now, more than ever, is the time to work together—to unite in care, understanding, and action. Preparing Ground is a powerful reminder that through collaboration, we can create a sustainable and thriving future for all.

Watch the Community Engagement pilot - Kombumerri Country, October 2023

"There is a stronger elemental guidance influencing movement and how the body responds to Country that comes from such close association with, or being on, Country… It has been an extremely rewarding, renewing, and reinvigorating process. The realisation encapsulated as: 'we ARE Country'; we present the voice OF Country." Marilyn Miller

“Working on Country or being connected to Country has been the springboard from where every concept, creative ideas and information which makes the bulk of our content has come from. It has informed the decolonized process of our creative development in the studio.” Jasmin Sheppard

"Preparing Ground cannot happen without dedicated time on Country. Having this time researching and developing on Country means that our communities are involved in the making of our work right from the beginning and throughout the process of making the work. Therefore we are honouring our own protocol and duty to our communities, and the voice of community is then reflected in the work." Katina Olsen

Image credits: Samuel James, Katina Olsen, Jade Ellis Photography

Community Engagement pilot images feature Kombumerri Rangers from Ngarang-Wal Gold Coast Aboriginal Association Incorporated

 

PROJECT TIMELINE

2019 - Project conception as part of BlakForm market development program 

Feb 2020 - Pitched at AsiaTOPA APAM 

May 2020 - Research and Development (online)

Mar 2021 - 3 x 1-week on Country Research and Developments (Tagalaka, Yalanji and Wakka Wakka)

Apr 2021 - 3-week Research and Development at Bulmba-Ja Cairns

Sep 2021 - 4-week Choreographic Development at Brisbane Powerhouse & The Art House

Apr 2022 - 2-week on Country Research and Development (Yalanji)

Jul 2022 - 2-week on Country Research and Development (Tagalaka) 

Mar 2023 - 2-week on Country Research and Development (Wakka Wakka) 

Apr 2023 - 1-week Research and Development (Kombumerri) 

Oct 2023 - 3-week Creative Development at HOTA (Kombumerri)

Nov 2024 - 3-day Creative Development (online)

Dec 2024 - 2-week Creative Development at NAISDA (Darkinjung)

Feb 2025 - Design Collaborations (online)

May 2025 - Pre-Production at NAISDA (Darkinjung)

May 2025 - Premiere season at The Art House (Darkinjung)

CREATIVE TEAM

Co-Directors: Marilyn Miller (Kukuyalanji, Waanyi), Jasmin Sheppard (Tagalaka, Kurtitjar) & Katina Olsen (Wakka Wakka, Kombumerri)

Performers: Marilyn Miller (Kukuyalanji, Waanyi), Jasmin Sheppard (Tagalaka, Kurtitjar) & Katina Olsen (Wakka Wakka, Kombumerri) 

Collaborative Understudy: Audrey Goth-Towney (Wiradjuri) 

Dramaturg: Victoria Hunt (Te Arawa, Ngati Kahungunu, Rongowhakaata Maori, English, Irish, Finnish)

Lighting Designer: Karen Norris 

Set and Projection Designer: Samuel James

Sound Designer: Samuel J Pankhurst

Costume Designer: Aleisa Jelbart

Production Manager: Simon Cook (Mamu), BlakDance

Production Coordinator: Emma Holgate (Mandaburra), BlakDance

Stage Manager: Zara Thompson 

Executive Producer: Merindah Donnelly (Wiradjuri), BlakDance

Senior Producer: Nicole Reilly (Wiradyuri), BlakDance - previously Tom Pritchard and Emily Wells (Kamilaroi)

Associate Producer: Luke Peacock (Samsep/Meriam), BlakDance

Early Collaborators: raymond blanco (Yadhaigana and Erub), Yolande Brown (Bidjara), Tammi Gissell (Muruwarri). 

On-Country Collaborators: 

Kukuyalanji: Uncle John Hartley and Juan Walker 

Tagalaka: Patrick Wheeler and Victor Steffenson 

Wakka Wakka: Uncle Max Chapman, Aunty Yvonne Chapman, Shirley Olsen, Natalie Chapman, Corey Appo, Shannon Bauwens, Aunty Lurlene Henderson

Kombumerri: Uncle John Graham, Shirley Olsen, Justine Dillon, Maxwell Dillon, Clinton Brewer

Yuggera, Birri, Bindal and Warranghu: Raelene Baker

Presented by The Art House Wyong.

Produced by BlakDance. 

Preparing Ground is co-commissioned by Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC), BlakDance and Brisbane Festival, with support from NAISDA Dance College, The Art House Wyong. 

It is supported by the Australian Government’s Indigenous Languages and Arts program, and the Major Festivals Initiative, managed by Creative Australia, its arts funding and advisory body, in association with Brisbane Festival and Sydney Festival, with additional project funding from Creative Australia. Preparing Ground is also supported by the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland, Sunshine Coast Council and the City of Gold Coast. Additional support has been provided by Bulmba-ja Arts Centre, HOTA (Home of the Arts), Brisbane Powerhouse and Judith Wright Arts Centre.