blakdance x strut dance

16—20 February | 10:00—16:00

King Street Arts Centre

Martha Hincapié Charry is a Colombian BIPoC choreographer, performer, researcher and decolonial curator. She is the Artistic Director of Plataforma SurReal in Berlin and has collaborated with BlakDance through the First Nations Dialogues at Tanzmesse in Germany.

Her recent work draws on Indigenous and ancestral knowledge systems to explore climate change, extinction and eco spiritual relationships between humans and more than humans.

In her deep dive workshop EARTH BODIES, participants enter a ceremonial space where ancestral, somatic and environmental knowledge is activated to examine the impacts of climate change on our physical, mental and social wellbeing.

The research/work EARTH BODIES – environmental grief (WT) deepens into the effects on the body created by the sense of grief around the constant onslaught of negative environmental change and human-made eco disasters. The research explores the environmental grief we feel when our ecosystem/home is altered or threatened due to global warming, nature disasters or other environmental crises. Specifically, the work approaches the impact of climate change and extreme weather conditions on physical, mental and social well-being. EARTH BODIES – environmental grief reimagines (environ)mental care with an ecofeminist perspective, through a decolonial approach to climate anxiety, by fostering biodiverse relationships and a regenerative movement. How are our bodies and relationships affected by environmental grief? The proposal opens channels of somatic, sensory and social recognition, generating awareness about the urgency of rewilding our wounded planet/home. Human and more than-human ancestral knowledge is invoked in a ceremonial space – hybrid, intimate, immersive.

Expressions of Interest close 27/11/2025
BlakDance encourages First Nations artists to apply

blakdance x strut dance First Nations Fellowships

Announcing the recipients of the BlakDance x STRUT Dance First Nations Fellowships

Early career artist: David Kila Biondi-Odo (Mamu / Kalkadoon / Mer Island’s)

Established artist: Olivia Adams (Wulli Wulli)

The Early Career Fellowship supported David to attend STRUT’s Sidi Larbi Cherkoaui two-week workshop in November. Now, both Fellows, David and Olivia, will join the cast of Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui’s Manifest, performing in Perth Festival in February 2025.

STRUT is so excited to welcome David and Olivia back to Boorloo, David having recently been here for the workshop and Olivia dancing in Perth Moves 2024 for Michele Rizzo’s Coalescing Towards. See ya soon!

We’d also like to celebrate Beau Dean Riley Smith (Wiradjuri / Gamillaraay) and Tamara Eve Bouman (Birrpai), who were both successful in auditioning for Manifest.

And finally, we’re super happy to announce two Perth Moves Bursary recipients with the GUTS Dance Bursary being awarded to Chandler ‘Cheeky’ Connell (Wiradjuri / Ngunnawal) and the STRUT Dance First Nations Bursary awarded to Bridgette Davies (Ngarrindjeri).

Image Credit: Duncan Wright

Dancer: Zakayyah Ibinoh MacLean (Nyiyaparli)

Fellowships supported by BlakDance, STRUT Dance, Eastman and Perth Festival

Bursaries supported by GUTS Dance and STRUT Dance