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: The Santa Fun Run is coming up November 23rd, in
S3: Melbourne and debuting this year in Sydney on November 30th.
S3: It's going to be a great time where people can
S3: come and maybe walk, maybe jog, maybe run, even roll
S3: if they want to. A wonderful time to get into
S3: the Christmas spirit for a fantastic cause.
S2: Well, the secret's out. Welcome to Talking Vision. We've got
S2: a very special guest coming to you all the way
S2: from the North Pole. Later in the program, he's joined
S2: by Hasitha Hashim shame from the Children and Young People
S2: team at Vision Australia to talk to us all about
S2: the upcoming Santa's Fun Run, taking place in late November.
S2: But before you hear from them, I caught up with
S2: It's No Drama based in Leongatha, talking to me about
S2: their upcoming theatre production and a series of training programs.
S2: The company are running to make theatre more accessible for
S2: performers who are blind or have low vision. But that's
S2: not all. We wrap up with some news and information,
S2: and Francis joins the show for a reader recommended. I
S2: hope you enjoy this week's episode of Talking Vision. Samara
S2: Cunningham is the artistic director of It's No Drama, a
S2: South Gippsland based theatre company with a focus on accessibility
S2: and inclusion for performers of all abilities. She's here to
S2: chat to me all about melt, an upcoming production that
S2: it's no drama will be holding in November, as well
S2: as some training programs that will be run through the
S2: company over the coming weeks. Samara, welcome to Talking Vision.
S2: Thanks very much for joining us today.
S4: Thanks so much for having me.
S2: Now today, Samara, we're here to talk about it's no drama.
S2: So could you tell us a little bit about it's
S2: no drama.
S4: Yeah, sure. It's no drama is an arts company based
S4: in South Gippsland, in regional Victoria, and we work across
S4: multiple creative disciplines. We predominantly perform in stage productions, but
S4: we also work in Puppetry, visual arts, and we also
S4: work in dance and circus. So basically we try and
S4: tailor our creative programme to suit the needs of the
S4: participants who we work with.
S2: How long has its no drama been running for now?
S4: It's No drama started back in 2015 when our founding member,
S4: Emily Ardley, was advocating to local government for a performing
S4: arts programme for adults with disabilities. So em herself had
S4: been travelling to Melbourne to participate in performing arts programs
S4: with Ignition Theatre, with Movement Theatre, Raucous Theatre Company and
S4: other such performing arts organisations. But she really wanted something
S4: in her own regional town and felt that that should
S4: be accessible. And so she really advocated strongly to local government,
S4: who had an access and inclusion officer at the time
S4: by the name of Alicia Gilliland, who really helped M
S4: champion a program which M called It's No Drama, and
S4: they were lucky to get some funding support from Regional
S4: Arts Victoria to get a little eight week project off
S4: the ground that had a public performance outcome, and we
S4: could sort of really tell back then that we had
S4: something special. And after that eight week period, we applied
S4: for more funding grants, and the local government were really supportive,
S4: and they were sort of auspices and governing the project.
S4: And then just after the pandemic, we sort of separated
S4: from local government and set up as an independent arts
S4: company so that we could sort of build a profile
S4: for ourselves as an independent entity. And that's been really amazing,
S4: because it's meant that we can just take our program
S4: in all sorts of different directions. But it's largely thanks
S4: to Emily and her creative vision for the company.
S2: So you've become this permanent fixture and it's really gone
S2: from strength to strength. And that's really wonderful to hear
S2: that that's become a reality. So are you based in
S2: anywhere particularly, or do you sort of move a bit
S2: around South Gippsland? You sort of go around, I guess,
S2: you know, Leongatha and Drouin and Warragul and those sort
S2: of areas, or do you sort of stay put in
S2: one place?
S4: That is a really good question. So we try to
S4: think of ourselves as being without borders. So we do
S4: like to cross into other areas. Our regular Friday program
S4: is based in the Leongatha Memorial Hall, but we're also
S4: working on a community outreach project called dance of the
S4: leaves in the Fish Creek Memorial Hall. And we've also
S4: travelled up to Melbourne to collaborate with Back to Back
S4: Theatre on one of their rising festival programs. And recently,
S4: Emily and I were in Colac for a Making Change conference.
S4: So we try and get out and about as much
S4: as we can whilst we're trying to sort of build
S4: our profile, but yeah, we focus mostly on Gippsland, but
S4: we're happy to sort of explore going out into other
S4: regions as well.
S2: And you've got a pretty exciting project coming up in November.
S2: It's entitled melt. So tell us about melt. That's pretty cool.
S4: Yeah, melt is actually a stage production that's based on
S4: a mysterious local story and book by Richard. She is
S4: called The Lady of the swamp, and we wanted to
S4: take this story because we thought it might connect with locals.
S4: It's about basically, um, a woman, Margaret Clement, who had
S4: great wealth and a very privileged high society lifestyle. And
S4: then she actually purchased a mansion in Tarwin nearby to
S4: Fish Creek. And slowly, over time, people tricked her out
S4: of her wealth. And slowly over time, she lost everything.
S4: So it's sort of this riches to rags story. And
S4: so at it's no drama within the creative process. We
S4: decided to explore, you know, what happens when you have everything,
S4: and then all of a sudden you have nothing. And
S4: it sort of has raised ideas around the precariousness of life.
S4: And so that's sort of been our starting point. And
S4: we're telling it a little bit like a ghost story,
S4: because the mystery of Margaret Clement was never solved. They
S4: don't know what happened to her. She disappeared in 1952
S4: without a trace. So we want to sort of honor
S4: her story, but also give it a dramatic flavor to it,
S4: I suppose. So we've been working in shadow dancing and
S4: some shadow puppetry, and this time around, our performers really
S4: wanted to go working with scripts, which often we will
S4: just use physical theatre to tell the story. So very
S4: movement based and minimal dialogue. But this time the performers
S4: really wanted to start having a go at text. So
S4: I've used a bit of text and we've also collaborated
S4: with some local professional artists in sound design, film projection.
S4: We have a wonderful costume designer, Mayumi McPhee, who's sketched
S4: some really stunning costumes for our cast. And we've actually
S4: also been able to get Richard Valbray to do our
S4: lighting design. And he does a lot of work in Melbourne,
S4: so he has a bit of a Gippsland connection, and
S4: he's decided to come and plan our lighting design for us,
S4: which is really exciting.
S2: It's very exciting. Yeah. And Samara, in regards to when
S2: and where melt is going on, could you give us
S2: those details?
S4: Yeah, sure. We've got two shows of melt and they
S4: will be at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. on Friday
S4: the 29th of November, and both performances are at the
S4: Leongatha Memorial Hall.
S2: I'd love to go into the accessibility and inclusion side
S2: of it's no drama, just flesh that out a little bit.
S2: And from that origin that you were talking about, where
S2: you had that access and Inclusion Foundation. Could you tell
S2: us a bit more about how it's no. Drama has
S2: continued to be an accessible and inclusive theatre company for
S2: people around Gippsland.
S4: Yeah, so we're really interested in advocating for people from
S4: diverse lived experiences to be able to be involved in
S4: professionally supported arts projects. So anybody can be involved in
S4: our programs. We don't expect anybody to fit into any
S4: particular mould. And we're really our creative programs are really
S4: driven by the people who come along. So that's one thing.
S4: And then the second thing is that we're always trying
S4: to be as accessible as possible in all of our projects.
S4: So for melt, this will be the first time that
S4: we're having tactile tours for a stage production and audio
S4: description for a stage performance, so we're really lucky to
S4: be able to get support from Regional Arts Victoria for
S4: this melt project, and that is supporting us to be
S4: able to make sure that we've got those elements in
S4: place so that we can cater to audiences who are
S4: blind or have low vision. And yeah, it's exciting that
S4: that's the beginning of something that we can continue doing,
S4: and we've been able to work with Vita Veritas to
S4: be able to do the audio description and the tactile
S4: tours for all of the performances.
S2: I'll get some details about the audio description and the
S2: tactile tours at the end. But in the meantime, Samara,
S2: what I might do is just ask you a bit
S2: about the training programs that you've got set up that
S2: are coming up in the next few weeks. Tell us
S2: a bit about them.
S4: Yeah, well, we want to be able to offer new
S4: learning and professional development opportunities, not just for our small team,
S4: but also for anybody else in the Gippsland area who
S4: might be running venues for events or galleries or independent artists,
S4: people who might be, you know, working in performance, managing
S4: festivals and so on, that they might be able to
S4: invest some time in doing some training to improve the
S4: accessibility of their particular events. And so we've got an
S4: introduction to blind and low vision accessibility in the arts
S4: online training set up, which is going to be held
S4: on Thursday the 31st of October. And that training programme
S4: is going to be co-facilitated by Francois Jacobs and Nilgun
S4: Guven from Vita Veritas.
S2: And to find out a little bit more about those
S2: tactile tours and audio description organised through Vita Veritas, you
S2: can head to the Vita Veritas website at Vita Veritas.
S2: Com.au that's Vita e v e r I t a
S2: s.com dot a u. And um, just to wrap up. Samara,
S2: I'd love to get some details about how people can
S2: perhaps get in touch with its snow drama. Or perhaps
S2: there's a couple of places they can head to to
S2: find out more.
S4: If people are interested in finding out about coming along
S4: to the show, they are welcome to email me at
S4: Samara at it'sno drama.com or to phone me on 04394743.
S2: Okay. I've been speaking today with Samara Cunningham from It's
S2: No Drama, talking to me today about the upcoming productions
S2: held through its snow drama, including melt, as well as
S2: some training programs coming up very shortly for people out
S2: in the Gippsland area. Samara, thank you so much for
S2: your time today. Great to catch up with you and
S2: chat all about. It's no drama.
S4: Thanks for the opportunity, Sam.
S2: I'm Sam Coley, and you're listening to Talking Vision. On
S2: Vision Australia radio, associated stations of Reading Radio and the
S2: Community Radio Network. I hope you enjoyed that conversation there
S2: with Samara from It's No Drama, talking to us about
S2: the upcoming things in store for people in the South
S2: Gippsland region. If you missed any part of that conversation
S2: with Samara or you'd love to hear it again, Talking
S2: Vision is available on the podcast platform of your choice
S2: or through the Vision Australia library. You can also find
S2: the show on the Vision Australia Radio website at VA radio.org.
S2: That's VA radio all one word.org in a month's time
S2: from now, in the lead up to Christmas, Vision Australia
S2: will be holding the Santa's Fun Run over two cities
S2: on November the 23rd in Melbourne, followed by the November
S2: 30th event taking place in Sydney. To have a chat
S2: with us about the Santa's Fun Run to raise vital
S2: funds for children and young people who are blind or
S2: have low vision. I'm very pleased to be joined by
S2: Hasitha Hashim from the Children and Young People team in Melbourne,
S2: as well as a very special guest joining us all
S2: the way from the North Pole, Santa Rosita. Welcome to
S2: Talking Vision. Thank you very much for joining me today.
S2: Thank you.
S3: It's good to be here.
S2: Great to have you both. Now, Santa, I'm going to
S2: start with you. Tell us a little bit about what
S2: you'll be up to at the Santa Fun Run coming
S2: up later this year.
S3: Well, I'm glad you mention it. The Santa Fun Run
S3: is coming up November 23rd, in Melbourne and debuting this
S3: year in Sydney on November 30th. It's going to be
S3: a great time where people can come and maybe walk,
S3: maybe jog, maybe run, even roll if they want to.
S3: A wonderful time to get into the Christmas spirit for
S3: a fantastic cause, and it's.
S2: Great to hear all about it. So what is the
S2: Santa Fun Run all about?
S3: Well, the Santa Fun Run is a great opportunity raising
S3: money for blind or low vision young people so they
S3: can have a wonderful Christmas.
S2: After the run. I understand the fun doesn't stop, does it, Santa?
S3: You are right indeed. After the run, there will be
S3: an event. We're going to set up a Christmas village
S3: where you can unwind and enjoy the festivities of Christmas.
S3: There'll be singing, there'll be some sausages to eat. There'll
S3: be a good time for all. We have a special
S3: guest joining us this year. Do you know musician Bonnie Anderson? Oh, well,
S3: she will be there and there'll be an interactive children's
S3: activity hub. Some delicious food. I know you love that.
S3: Live festive tunes and the adorable Seeing Eye dogs. And
S3: I'll be there giving out some wonderful giveaways from our partners, Brooks.
S2: And if people would love to register for this event
S2: to head along Santa, what are those dates for people?
S3: Well, for those early birds who want to get in early,
S3: if they register by the end of the month, it
S3: will be great, but you can register any time up
S3: to the day. It will be great time you come
S3: and you visit Santa fun run Wargo and you can
S3: register there.
S2: Why is taking part in the Santa Fun Run so
S2: important center?
S3: It's a great time where you can have fun, get fit,
S3: but also raising some money for low vision and blind
S3: children in our community to give them a wonderful Christmas.
S2: And this is where you come in, because I understand
S2: the Santa Fun Run is also directly supporting Vision Australia's
S2: Life Ready program. So how does this sort of thing
S2: help our services in that way?
S1: That's right. So the Life Ready program is designed to
S1: equip children with who are blind or have low vision,
S1: with the foundation skills, the tools and the resources and
S1: the confidence they need to thrive. It provides the critical
S1: support helping these children navigate everyday challenges and building a
S1: strong foundation for their future.
S2: And Santa will go back to you. Just to wrap up,
S2: what are some final messages you have for all the
S2: kids and all the Christmas lovers out there?
S3: Well, I would say register now get on the internet
S3: at Santa Fun Run. Com.au and register now either for
S3: Melbourne on November the 23rd or for Sydney, November the 30th.
S3: Come along, it will be a great time. There's opportunities
S3: to donate and if you want to, you could even
S3: get a lovely Santa Fun Run t shirt.
S2: Oh, lovely. Okay. And somebody who's wearing that Santa Fun
S2: Run t shirt and looks.
S3: Very good, I must.
S2: Say, is Harshita from the Children and Young People program.
S2: Understand the funds raised through the Santa Fun Run will,
S2: as you've said, make a direct impact by allowing Vision
S2: Australia to continue offering these essential services. So why are
S2: those services so essential for children and young people around
S2: the country who are blind or have low vision?
S1: So raising a child who is blind and has low
S1: vision can come with its unique set of challenges. And
S1: so here at Vision Australia, we provide a provide holistic support,
S1: not only working with the child who has blindness and
S1: low vision, but also working with the families, helping them
S1: to navigate everything from early intervention, independent skills, social skills
S1: orientation and mobility. Technology skills, Braille skills. So there's a
S1: whole raft of skills that we we want to try
S1: and ensure that the children have those foundation skills to
S1: set them up for, for later life, as well as
S1: ensuring that they have a emotional well-being.
S2: And at the Santa Fun Run Hachita, as Santa mentioned,
S2: there'll be an activity hub. So tell us a bit
S2: about that.
S1: Yeah, we'll have some fun for the kids of all ages.
S1: So there'll be some Christmas decorations. So a bit of
S1: art and craft with some tactile Christmas decorations that you
S1: can make, either to take home and put on your
S1: Christmas tree at home, or there will also be a
S1: tree at the Tan in Melbourne. And also, I believe
S1: in Sydney. So you could choose to share your Christmas
S1: decoration with the tree on the tree. We'll also have
S1: some opportunities for kids and adults to to do a
S1: bit of brailling and really have a better understanding of
S1: what Braille looks like and feels like. And you might
S1: be able to make yourself a Braille bookmark.
S3: And also there will be the Seeing eye dogs there
S3: as puppies. They're not they're not fully trained yet, but
S3: they will be there. So you can come down and
S3: have a pat of a seeing eye dog in training.
S3: It'll be a great time.
S2: Everyone loves puppies, so that's a surefire way to get
S2: quite a few people interested and heading along. Of course,
S2: this event is a fantastic opportunity for families to get
S2: together and get into the Christmas spirit, isn't it? Yeah,
S2: it sure is.
S1: It's a great opportunity for families to meet other families
S1: who have a child with vision impairment, share, share their experiences,
S1: and be inspired by the incredible children who are taking part.
S1: By joining the Santa's Fun Run, you're helping to support
S1: these children and make a lasting difference in their lives.
S3: Making friends for life.
S1: That's right.
S2: Absolutely. Oh well, thank you very much to you both
S2: for having a chat with me today and highlighting all
S2: the fantastic activities in store for people as they head
S2: along to the Santa's Fun Run in Melbourne on November
S2: the 23rd, or in Sydney on November the 30th. Thank
S2: you very.
S1: Much. Thank you for having us.
S2: And before we go, we've got a very special quick
S2: final message from Santa himself.
S3: Ho ho ho. Merry Christmas. Thank you for helping light
S3: up the lives of children who are blind or have
S3: low vision this Christmas. Merry Christmas!
S2: Over the past few weeks, you've probably heard that Vision
S2: Australia Radio 2024 listener survey is underway. There's still a
S2: week to go, so if you'd love to have your
S2: say and you haven't yet, please feel free to get
S2: in touch. We want to hear from you. What do
S2: you love about our service? What can we do better?
S2: And where are you listening from? your feedback can shape
S2: our future. Plus, you'll have a chance to win one
S2: of eight Amazon Echo Pop with Alexa smart devices so
S2: you can listen to Vision Australia Radio hands free. Terms
S2: and conditions apply. Visit VA radio.org and click the home
S2: page link to take part. That's VA radio.org. And in
S2: other news, we're excited to share that we've won three
S2: incredible awards at the recent CB Double-A Community Radio Awards night.
S2: We're thrilled to congratulate Peter Greco from our Adelaide team
S2: on winning the Outstanding Presenter, News and Current Affairs Award.
S2: Peter has been a beloved voice on Vision Australia Radio
S2: for over 33 years, generously volunteering his time and sharing
S2: his personal experiences as a blind Broadcaster. His passion for
S2: community broadcasting has touched countless lives across Australia and his
S2: with his work shining a spotlight on issues that truly matter.
S2: The second award was for best program talks taken out
S2: by the Happy Pants team from our Perth studios. The
S2: team's dedication to supporting the learning and developmental needs of
S2: children who are blind or have low vision is as
S2: inspiring as it is important. We couldn't be more grateful
S2: for their contribution. And finally, in Best Program News and
S2: Current Affairs, this recognition highlights the importance of ensuring that
S2: stories about disability and inclusion reach a wider audience. We're
S2: so proud of the Studio One team of Sam Rickard
S2: and Lizzie Eastham for their incredible work in bringing their
S2: lived experience to the program each week to highlight the
S2: wide range of issues that blind and low vision people experience.
S2: All three of these award winners speak to the hard
S2: work and passion of the entire Vision Australia radio team,
S2: showcasing the quality and consistency of our content. It shows
S2: our commitment to amplifying voices, representing diverse experiences and ensuring
S2: accessibility remains at the forefront of everything we do. A
S2: huge thank you to all of our Vision Australia radio
S2: teams for their continued excellence, and to the TBWA for
S2: such an incredible night of recognition. And now here's Frances
S2: Kelland with her radar recommended.
S5: Thank you Sam. This week's reader recommended is Come on
S5: Papa by Ryan Knighton. This book describes Knighton's voyage to
S5: the first year of fatherhood, made more daunting by his blindness.
S5: He wonders how he will get to know his pre-verbal
S5: bundle of coos and burps when he can't see her
S5: smile or look into her eyes. Tackling these hurdles with
S5: grace and humour, Ryan is determined to do his part
S5: as a father despite the pitfalls. Let's hear a sample
S5: of Come On Papa by Ryan Knighton. It's narrated by
S5: Bruce Roney.
S6: Our first home was an eyesore. The kitchen alone was
S6: a pastel pink, peach yellow and minty green sampler. The
S6: day we took possession, my wife Tracy shaded her eyes
S6: and started to paint. I didn't. As with so many situations,
S6: I stood around and watched. Sort of. By that point
S6: in our lives, I'd been going blind for reasons unrelated
S6: to our kitchen's color scheme for more than a decade.
S6: My condition is called retinitis pigmentosa. Poorly behaved genes programmed
S6: my retinas to painlessly self-destruct. Very, very slowly. Seems like
S6: they just bored themselves to death. Sometimes my blindness feels
S6: that way. Consider that Tracy had to describe hundreds of
S6: paint chips to me before picking one. I loved her
S6: for trying to include me and felt blinder for having listened.
S5: And that was Come On Papa by Ryan Knighton. Just
S5: one of the many over 40,000 audiobooks that you can
S5: borrow from the Vision Australia library. To call the library,
S5: the number is 1300 654 656. That's 1300 654 656. Or email them at
S5: library at Vision Australia. Org that's library at Vision Australia.
S2: Org and that's all the time we have for today.
S2: You've been listening to Talking Vision. Talking vision is a
S2: Vision Australia radio production. Thanks to all involved with putting
S2: the show together every week. And remember, we love hearing
S2: from you. So please get in touch any time on
S2: our email at Talking Vision. At Vision australia.org. That's talking
S2: vision all one word at Vision australia.org. But until next
S2: week it's Sam Kerley saying bye for now.
S7: You can contact Vision Australia by phoning us anytime during
S7: business hours on 1300 847 406. That's 1300 847 406 or by visiting Vision australia.org.
S7: That's Vision australia.org.