S1: From Vision Australia. This is talking vision. And now here's
S1: your host Sam Colley.
S2: Hello, everyone. It's great to be here with you. And
S2: for the next half hour we talk matters of blindness
S2: and low vision.
S3: I think it's incredible. You know, we've really created a
S3: safe and welcoming space. We're giving opportunity to those people
S3: that may have never been to a festival, never seen
S3: live music before. And, you know, one of the biggest
S3: takeaways that I find we go through is every year
S3: we increase our accessible features that we have on site.
S3: You know, we don't try and do everything all at
S3: once in the first year. We build on them year on,
S3: year on year to make sure that we're getting them
S3: correct and ensuring that why we're putting them on on
S3: site is working for those that need it.
S2: Welcome to the program. This week we catch up with
S2: Ashley O'Gara, event manager from untitled Group, who's in charge
S2: of Ability Fest, an inclusive music festival designed to be
S2: as accessible as possible for both spectators and musicians with disabilities.
S2: That conversation's coming up very shortly, so make sure to
S2: stick around. And then after you hear from us, it's
S2: my great pleasure to welcome back a regular of ours
S2: on Talking Vision. It's Liz Dalakouras, the editor of Foyer Information,
S2: otherwise known as FYI. And then to wrap up this week,
S2: we hear from Frances again. She's back with a reader recommended.
S2: I hope you enjoyed this week's episode of Talking Vision.
S2: Over the month of October. Music lovers in Melbourne and
S2: now Brisbane will be able to head along to Ability Fest,
S2: Australia's first and only completely inclusive music festival, striving to
S2: promote inclusivity and highlight the talents of musicians with disabilities.
S2: Here to chat with me all about Ability Fest. It's
S2: my great pleasure to be joined by the Event Manager
S2: of Ability Fest from untitled Group, Ashley O'Gara. Ash, welcome
S2: to Talking Vision. Thanks so much for your time.
S3: Thank you so much for having me. I'm excited.
S2: Today we're here to chat about Ability Fest. So could
S2: you tell us a little bit about the festival?
S3: Of course. It's a festival. A music festival like any other.
S3: We have two stages. Incredible lineup this year. Big, big
S3: thing for us is that we have more accessibility features
S3: on the ground than any other festival in the nation.
S3: We really pride ourselves on having accessibility at the forefront
S3: of our minds. And yeah, it's a great day out.
S3: We're creating really safe space for people with all abilities
S3: to come down. We've opened it up to 16 plus
S3: this year. Um, so we're really excited to see, you know,
S3: the next gen come through and really enjoy their day.
S2: And ash, I believe there's quite an interesting story about
S2: how Ability Fest was created involving none other than Dylan Alcott.
S2: So yeah. Could you tell us a bit about how
S2: that got off the ground?
S3: Of course. So the lovely Dylan Alcott, he is really
S3: passionate about music and experiencing it live. He sat down
S3: with untitled group directors, and they were in complete support
S3: of his vision for a music festival that raises money
S3: for the Dylan Alcott Foundation. So it's raising money for
S3: young Australians with disabilities and making sure that they can
S3: have the resources and education that they need in order
S3: to achieve their goals.
S2: Well, that's a fantastic initiative, ash. I'm very keen to
S2: get back to that later in the interview. But firstly,
S2: could you tell us a bit about untitled Group? Our
S2: listeners might be wondering who are they? What are they
S2: all about?
S3: Of course. So we are promoters and we run the
S3: likes of Beyond the Valley, Wildlands, grapevine. So the group
S3: started with the four directors, and they have a real
S3: passion for music and events, and they've grown into an
S3: incredible company. And we put on some of the best
S3: events and festivals that Australia has ever seen.
S2: Okay, cool. Love the confidence there. But in regards to
S2: the event that we're talking about today, Ability Fest. Tell
S2: us a bit about the lineup. There's quite a few
S2: exciting people out there. Quite a few artists and a
S2: lot of them also with lived experience of disability. So
S2: that's a fantastic aspect of that. To have all these
S2: people in one place and highlighting the great work and
S2: the talents of so many disabled artists out there.
S3: Absolutely. So we this year we're actually branching out and
S3: hosting Ability Fest in Melbourne and Brisbane. So that's the
S3: first time that we've done that. We have incredible lineup
S3: for both shows. We've got the likes of Ocean Alley,
S3: Cub Sport, James James, James, Crybaby. We've really tried to
S3: support our local artists as well. So we do have
S3: a lineup that differs between Melbourne and Brisbane, but we've
S3: tried to really highlight our local artists in both states
S3: and of course backing those that have accessibility requirements as well.
S3: It's such an incredible day. I definitely vouch for anybody
S3: to come on down, buy a ticket and come and
S3: support and really experience live music.
S2: Now on that topic, ash of people heading along, heading
S2: down and buying a ticket. Let's get a few details
S2: about Ability Fest. Now, you've already mentioned that it's over
S2: two states this year, so it's the first time that
S2: that's happening. So you know that's quite exciting. So that's
S2: Melbourne and Brisbane. Let's grab some of the details around
S2: the dates and times and where exactly in those cities
S2: the festival will be taking place of course.
S3: So in Melbourne it's at Alexandra Gardens, smack bang in
S3: the city. It's on Saturday the 19th of October. Both
S3: shows will run from midday until 10 p.m. at night
S3: in Brisbane. It's the following Saturday, so Saturday the 26th
S3: of October and we're actually hosting at Victoria Park in Herston.
S3: Both are very close to public transport. We do have
S3: parking options. They're very central.
S2: Yeah. Okay. Now, ash, let's have a chat about the
S2: ticket prices for people to head along, both in Melbourne
S2: and Brisbane for the entire day. That's $60 across the board.
S2: Or are there other sort of prices as well that
S2: people can have a look at? No.
S3: So this year we wanted to make a really conscious
S3: decision to ensure that we're not only making the festival
S3: itself accessible, but we have an inclusive ticket price of $60.
S3: And last year, for example, our tickets were, I think,
S3: roughly about $100 more. And but we wanted to have
S3: a really big focus in building out our budget this
S3: year and wanted to make it our top priority to
S3: keep the ticket price as low as we possibly can. Yeah,
S3: so no tiered pricing. It's just $60.
S2: Ah that's fantastic. And no doubt included in that ticket price.
S2: There would be the usual bits and pieces that people
S2: can expect at a music festival, you know, food and
S2: drink activations and all that sort of thing, but also
S2: quite a few accessibility features which made mention of earlier
S2: in the interview. So tell us a little bit more
S2: about those.
S3: Of course. So we are working with commercial partners and
S3: our sponsors at the moment to create more activations on site.
S3: So we'll have a glitter station. We'll hopefully have a
S3: temporary tattoo station, potentially somewhere we can get massages. The
S3: opportunities are endless at the moment. We obviously have an
S3: increased amount of accessible features on site, as I mentioned earlier,
S3: so we'll have changing places, we'll have viewing platforms, flooring.
S3: We're working on a silent disco at the moment, so
S3: you can hire from us or get your hands on
S3: a haptic vest for those that are deaf or hard
S3: of hearing so they can feel the music, and then
S3: you'll have headphones as well. We partner with Bindi Maps,
S3: which is the navigational app, which is an incredible app
S3: that we have. Yeah, we've got some really exciting things
S3: this year and I think people will be very surprised,
S3: which will be very exciting.
S2: Yeah, sounds super exciting for sure. And just back on
S2: that ticket before, and I did want to talk about
S2: this because this is great. 100% of the proceeds are
S2: donated to the Dylan Alcott Foundation. Now that's a fantastic initiative.
S2: Has that been the case all the way through, all
S2: through the iterations of Ability Fest, or is that more
S2: of a recent thing?
S3: No, that's always been the goal of Ability Fest. So
S3: I think we've raised so far about 1.5 million.
S2: For, oh my God.
S3: Dylan Alcott Foundation. That's fantastic.
S2: Yeah, that's a fantastic result.
S3: Yeah, definitely. We've been going. I think this will be
S3: our sixth year that we've put on Ability Fest. So yeah,
S3: all proceeds go towards the young Australians with disabilities.
S2: Wow. But in order for that sort of thing to
S2: be possible, the festival has grown no doubt over the
S2: last six iterations. So what's that been like seeing it
S2: get off the ground? Those, you know, 6 or 7
S2: years ago up to the festival it's become now.
S3: It's incredible to see from the first iteration to where
S3: we are now. We've really delved in and tried to
S3: challenge ourselves with the temporary festival sites that we do choose.
S3: You know, we ensure that we provide a challenge to
S3: ourselves to make sure that we can show other festivals
S3: and events how to do it best. You know, we
S3: push the boundaries on what an inclusive festival site looks
S3: like and encourages other event organisers that want to come down,
S3: and they want to learn a little bit more about accessibility.
S3: We're providing that guidance for them as well. I think
S3: it's incredible. You know, we've really created a safe and
S3: welcoming space. We're giving opportunity to those people that may
S3: have never been to a festival, never seen live music before. And,
S3: you know, one of the biggest takeaways that I find
S3: we go through is every year we increase our accessible
S3: features that we have on site. You know, we don't
S3: try and do everything all at once in the first year.
S3: We build on them year on, year on year to
S3: make sure that we're getting them correct and ensuring that
S3: why we're putting them on on site is working for
S3: those that need it. Yeah, so it's definitely been so rewarding.
S3: It's been a massive learning curve for us over the
S3: six years, and we've learned so much. We find it
S3: so important that we take our learnings from ability first
S3: and incorporate it into our other festival and events that
S3: untitled Group does, and make sure that we are the
S3: market leader in accessibility, and definitely proving a point to
S3: other event organisers to get on board and, you know,
S3: make an industry standpoint and guide other events on how
S3: to become more accessible and why they should become more
S3: accessible as well. It's so important.
S2: You've mentioned opportunities in there for quite a few festival
S2: goers to head along and Experience this sort of festival
S2: in an accessible way, but I want to go to
S2: the other side of that and have a chat about
S2: the artists themselves. And, you know, this is such an
S2: important opportunity for artists out there with disabilities to showcase
S2: their talents and really show the world what they can do,
S2: you know? So why are these sort of events like
S2: Ability Fest so important for the disability community and artists
S2: out there with lived experience of disability?
S3: The biggest thing is providing a space. It's giving people
S3: the opportunity to one, as mentioned, you know, those that
S3: may have never been or seen live music before, and
S3: especially those artists that have lived with disability, they potentially
S3: may never have the opportunity to be on a stage
S3: and showcase their talents to the world. You know, we're
S3: we're giving them a platform in order to do that,
S3: and we're supporting them. We're behind them every step of
S3: the way.
S2: Let's get some details about how people can register. How
S2: can they pick up a ticket? Or maybe they just
S2: want to find out a little bit more about Ability Fest.
S2: What's the best way for people to do that?
S3: Of course, I definitely encourage people to go to either
S3: ability Fest on their socials, or jump on the internet
S3: and jump onto our Ability Fest website. We do have
S3: a Melbourne and a Brisbane toggle that you can go
S3: and access. There's so much information on there. We're working
S3: on an accessibility guide at the moment as well, so
S3: you'll be able to download that. We do have tickets
S3: still available. Definitely encourage people if you are going to
S3: get a ticket get them whilst you can. Yeah. All
S3: the information you'll need is on the website and you
S3: can have a look at the lineup and check out
S3: the artists. Any FAQs? They'll be on there as well.
S2: And ash, let's get that web address in particular for
S2: people to check out the Ability Fest Test website.
S3: Yeah. So its ability facecamo. And then yeah you'll toggle
S3: between Victoria and Queensland wherever you are.
S2: That website again for people out there. Ability fest all
S2: one word.com dot a u okay. Well I've been speaking
S2: today with Ashley O'Gara from untitled Group. Joining me today
S2: to tell us all about the upcoming Ability Fest, which
S2: people can enjoy on consecutive weekends in both Melbourne and
S2: Brisbane over the month of October. Ash, great to catch
S2: up with you today and have a chat all about
S2: Ability Fest. All the best and look forward to seeing
S2: how it all goes.
S3: Thank you so much! It's been lovely chatting. Speak soon.
S2: I'm Sam Kelly and you're listening to Talking Vision. On
S2: Vision Australia Radio associated stations of the Radio Reading Network
S2: and the Community Radio Network. I hope you enjoyed that
S2: conversation there with ash O'Gara from untitled Group in the
S2: lead up to Ability Fest, taking place in October. If
S2: you missed any part of that conversation with ash or
S2: you'd love to hear it again, Talking Vision and the
S2: associated interviews will be available on our podcast feed. Or
S2: you can access the show through the Vision Australia Radio
S2: website at RVA radio.org. That's RVA radio.org or through the
S2: Vision Australia library. Coming up now to celebrate the new
S2: month as we head into September, it's my great pleasure
S2: to welcome back a regular of ours on Talking Vision.
S2: It's Liz Dalakouras, the editor of For Your Information, otherwise
S2: known as FII vision, Australia's fortnightly newsletter covering all the
S2: latest news in the blind and low vision community. Liz,
S2: welcome back to Talking Vision. Thanks so much for being here.
S4: Thank you for having me back, Sam.
S2: Now, there's quite a bumper edition of FYI this month
S2: for people to check out and find out a little
S2: bit more about what's going on around Australia. So let's
S2: head up to New South Wales first with some election news.
S2: Those local elections aren't far away, but there's some good
S2: news there on the accessibility front for voters who are
S2: blind or have low vision.
S4: Yeah, there definitely is. It's quite an addition. You're right.
S4: It's been announced that there's now telephone assisted voting for
S4: the New South Wales local government election. So that makes
S4: voting as someone who is blind or low vision a
S4: lot easier. You can visit the Elections New South Wales
S4: Gov website for more information.
S2: That is really pleasing news to hear. Those phone options
S2: are available for voters who are blind or have low vision.
S2: So tell us a little bit about the New South
S2: Wales local elections and voting by phone in this particular instance,
S2: and how people can cast their votes that way.
S4: Yeah. So the New South Wales local government elections are
S4: being held on Saturday the 14th of September. And for
S4: these elections, the telephone assisted voting is available for electors
S4: who are blind or have low vision. It's a two
S4: step process. So you call the New South Wales Electoral
S4: Commission to apply, and then you either stay on the
S4: line or call back to cast your vote, and you'll
S4: be transferred to the voting operator after applying. Super simple.
S2: That does sound pretty user friendly, but of course people
S2: can get in touch with the commission if they do
S2: encounter any issues. There have been some improvements there, so
S2: that's quite good to hear, but let's go a bit
S2: further north, heading up to Queensland. Now, could you tell
S2: us a bit about a series of accessibility upgrades which
S2: have been rolled out across the train network up in Brisbane? Um,
S2: that's fantastic news for passengers who are blind or have
S2: low vision to get around the network a little bit
S2: more safely and accessibly.
S4: Absolutely. It's such an important topic. There has been leads
S4: and some changes made to the accessibility upgrades on their trains,
S4: so that's very exciting because now the Queensland train fleet
S4: is now among the most inclusive in all of Australia,
S4: with all 75 new generation rolling stock trains fully upgraded
S4: for accessibility. The trains are now servicing the South East
S4: Queensland network and coincide with the six month trial of
S4: 50 cent fares. The upgrades were completed by Diana and
S4: additionally supported 80 local jobs in Maryborough and elsewhere.
S2: There's been some news with Ben Pettengill. He's been up
S2: to quite a bit lately. So tell us a bit
S2: about that.
S4: We've had who we've spoken to many times ourselves Ben Pettengill.
S4: He's taken on the challenge to run 3000km to help
S4: raise funds for a counselling service. So being blind and
S4: low vision himself and still wanting to help others, it's
S4: just an amazing story.
S2: Certainly is. And we love chatting to Ben, as you've mentioned.
S2: So I think a lot of people will be very
S2: keen to hear about that one. But there's also quite
S2: a few things going on closer to home. There's a
S2: morning tea that's being set up.
S4: Yeah, absolutely. So the Honourable Lizzie Blandthorn, the Minister for children,
S4: has invited blind and low vision parents to share their
S4: experiences on raising children aged less than 12 years old.
S4: Just head down to the Flemington hub in Flemington, where
S4: morning tea will be provided. You can bring your kids
S4: and you get to talk directly to Lizzie on your
S4: thoughts on education. The service gaps and ways to enhance
S4: support for your family. It's a great opportunity.
S2: And Liz, there's quite a lot of stuff happening in
S2: the world of audio description as usual. But tell us
S2: a little bit about one of the really exciting premieres
S2: for people to look forward to. Well, it's.
S4: Very exciting to say that we have a world premiere
S4: heading our way in New South Wales. That's right. So
S4: the Queen. Yeah, the Queen's nanny super well known and
S4: love story is coming to the Ensemble Theater in Kirribilli
S4: in New South Wales. So you don't want to miss
S4: this one. That's being audio described.
S2: There's quite a few audio description offers out there. So
S2: if people want to hear a little bit more about
S2: audio description, there's plenty of info on the Vision Australia website.
S2: Vision australia.org. That's Vision australia.org. And if you just search
S2: up audio description you can find out a lot more
S2: about that and all the other offers, including the Queen's nanny,
S2: as we've mentioned there. Now, we've talked to Jason about
S2: our new podcast that's just kicking off Mindful Minutes. Tell
S2: us a bit about that.
S4: Basically, it's a wellbeing podcast. It's a seven part series
S4: designed to support the wellbeing of older Australians who are
S4: blind or have low vision, and through these episodes we
S4: explore the emotional impacts of vision loss. We share personal stories,
S4: highlight the importance of social wellbeing, mindfulness, staying active and
S4: practicing self-care all guided by experts and those experts we
S4: have here at Vision Australia. But also we spoke with
S4: the CEO of Mindspot Australia and the CEO of Grief Australia.
S4: So there is just some simply amazing information in that
S4: podcast series.
S2: Oh yeah, that sounds like it's got something for everyone.
S2: So we do look forward to hearing from people out
S2: there when they've had a listen to the podcast and
S2: you know what? They've gotten out of it and the
S2: sort of feedback they might have. So yeah, I'm really
S2: looking forward to seeing how that all goes. Now. Finally, Liz,
S2: we've got a couple of other exciting things happening in
S2: the children and young people space. With the opening of
S2: the Leap programme for 2025, for Expressions of Interest, we
S2: have a chat about that with, um, Belinda Wilson from
S2: the Children and Young People team a little while ago
S2: on Talking Vision a week or two ago, but yeah,
S2: tell us a bit about that.
S4: Yeah. So leap it's it's actually a very exciting programme
S4: because it's tailored for young people who are 14 to 18,
S4: so about to finish high school or towards the end
S4: of high school, ready to begin the career. And Leap
S4: helps to foster essential life skills and confidence with their
S4: future successes in life. So to be able to empower
S4: young people with independence and confidence that they need to
S4: just hit life head on is amazing and the activities
S4: are driven by the participants themselves. So straight up they're
S4: learning responsibility both at home and in the real world.
S4: So it's a great program.
S2: We've also got some other amazing news that's very exciting
S2: with the new launch of the foyer Information sign up page.
S2: Tell us a bit about that exciting news. How can
S2: people access that?
S4: Yeah, it's very exciting. It's something that's been in the
S4: works for a little while. So again, some very exciting
S4: news you can now subscribe to FYI super simply just
S4: visit our website Vision Australia. Org and search sign up
S4: to FYI in the menu bar. Pop in some details
S4: and every fortnight you'll get this newsletter directly to your inbox.
S2: There's also another way that you can access all the
S2: information about FYI. Simply head to Vision FYI that's Vision
S2: australia.org/fyi to sign up and find out more information about.
S2: For your information, I've been speaking today with Liz Dalakouras,
S2: the editor of For Your Information, otherwise known as FYI,
S2: the fortnightly newsletter from Vision Australia, with all the latest
S2: news of particular interest to the blind and low vision community. Liz,
S2: thanks so much for your time today. It's great to
S2: catch up with you and chat all about FYI.
S4: Not a problem at all. I agree, I always look
S4: forward to these chats.
S2: And now here's Frances Kelland with her radar recommended.
S5: Thank you Sam. It has been 60 years since Mary
S5: Poppins first hit our cinemas, so I thought it'd be
S5: good to have a sample of Julie Andrews book home,
S5: her memoir. Over the years, Julie Andrews has been much
S5: interviewed in the press and on television, but she has
S5: never before revealed the true story of her childhood and
S5: upbringing in home. She vividly recreates the years before the movies.
S5: An idyllic early childhood in Surrey was cut short when
S5: her parents divorced and her mother remarried. The family moved
S5: to London and there are vivid scenes of life during
S5: the Blitz. Her mother went into musical theatre with her stepfather,
S5: who encouraged Julie to have singing lessons, which led to
S5: the discovery that her voice had phenomenal range and strength
S5: for someone her age. Before long, she was appearing on
S5: stage with her parents. She soon realised how much she
S5: enjoyed looking out into the black auditorium with the spotlights
S5: on her. By the time she was a teenager, she
S5: was supporting her whole family with her singing. A London
S5: Palladium pantomime led to a leading role in The Boyfriend
S5: on Broadway at 19 parts in My Fair Lady opposite
S5: Rex Harrison and Camelot with Richard Burton, soon followed, and
S5: there are wonderful anecdotes about the actors and actresses of
S5: her day. But this is far more than a collection
S5: of show stories. Home is an honest, touching and revealing
S5: memoir of the early life of a true icon. Let's
S5: hear a sample of Home by Julie Andrews, narrated by
S5: Julie Andrews.
S6: I am told that the first comprehensible word I uttered
S6: as a child was home. My father was driving his
S6: second hand. Austin seven. My mother was in the passenger
S6: seat beside him, holding me on her lap as we
S6: approached our modest house. Dad braked the car to turn
S6: on to the pocket handkerchiefs, square of concrete by the gate,
S6: and apparently I quietly, tentatively said the word home. My
S6: mother told me there was a slight upward inflection in
S6: my voice, not a question so much as a trying
S6: of the word on the tongue with perhaps the delicious
S6: discovery of connection, the word to the place. My parents
S6: wanted to be sure they had heard me correctly, so
S6: dad drove around the lanes once again, and as we returned,
S6: it seems I repeated the word. My mother must have
S6: said it more than once upon arrival at our house,
S6: perhaps with satisfaction or relief, or maybe to instill in
S6: her young daughter a sense of comfort and safety. The
S6: word has carried enormous resonance for me ever since. Home.
S5: So that was home by Julie Andrews. If you would
S5: like to borrow that book, or if you would like
S5: to find out more about Vision Australia Library, just give
S5: them a call on 1300 654 656. That's 1300 654 656. Or you can
S5: email the library at Vision Australia. Org that's library at
S5: Vision Australia, dawg.
S2: And that's all the time we have for today. You've
S2: been listening to Talking Vision. Talking vision is a Vision
S2: Australia radio production. Thanks to all involved with putting the
S2: show together every week. And remember, we love hearing from you.
S2: So please get in touch any time on our email
S2: at Talking Vision. At Vision australia.org. That's talking vision or
S2: one word at Vision australia.org. But until next week it's
S2: Sam Collins saying bye for now.
S1: You can contact Vision Australia by phoning us anytime during
S1: business hours on 1300 847 406. That's one 308 474106 or by
S1: visiting Vision australia.org. That's Vision australia.org.