Sensorium Theatre, produced by Performing Lines WA
Australia
Sensorium Theatre is Australia’s only company making live performance specifically designed to spark the imaginations of young audiences with disabilities. Based in Western Australia and formed in 2010 by co-Artistic Directors Michelle Hovane and Francis Italiano, we have enchanted thousands of young people with the magic of live theatre. Our shows and programs are developed in collaboration with our target audience to ensure they are tailored to their specific needs.
In Australia, we have been a passionate agitator for accessibility and inclusion in our national conversation, encouraging change through practice in the arts industry. With producers Performing Lines WA, we have created innovative delivery models with deep audience engagement, encouraging presenters to reconsider how they tailor their offer for audiences with disabilities. This has already provoked cultural shifts in venue programming for a growing audience base that is often ignored.
Sensorium Theatre tours regionally, nationally and internationally; our Helpmann-nominated work Oddysea had benchmark seasons at Sydney Opera House and Arts Centre Melbourne before visiting Regional WA (2016) and four states nationally (2017). In 2019, we premiered ambitious new work Whoosh! with a tour through WA and successful seasons at Arts Centre Melbourne and the Sydney Opera House.
Internationally, Sensorium is gaining a reputation as a world leader in inclusive theatre making. In 2018, we presented a 3-week season of Oddysea at the world’s first festival for children on the autism spectrum, ‘Big Umbrella’, at the Lincoln Center, New York, and a season at Singapore’s purpose-built arts centre for children The Artground. In 2019, we returned to The ArtGround to begin a new cross-cultural collaboration with artists from Singapore commissioned by the National Museum of Singapore, Welcome to the Forest. Whoosh! will tour nationally in 2021 and is seeking partners for international touring in 2022.