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| Ngapartji Ngapartji | |
|---|---|
| Name | Ngapartji Ngapartji |
| Genre | Theatre project, community arts |
| Location | Alice Springs, Ngukurr, Arnhem Land, Australia |
| Years active | 2005–2010s |
Ngapartji Ngapartji is a bilingual arts project and touring theatre production originating from Indigenous communities in Central Australia and Arnhem Land. The project combined Pitjantjatjara language and Yolngu language storytelling with contemporary theatre practices drawn from collaborations with Australian theatre companies and community organisations. Ngapartji Ngapartji aimed to interweave oral history, spoken word, music, and film to address wartime history, Indigenous displacement, and cultural exchange across remote and urban sites.
Ngapartji Ngapartji emerged from collaborations between Indigenous elders from Mutitjulu, Alice Springs, and Ngukurr and urban arts practitioners linked to Big hART, Black Swan State Theatre Company, and the Belvoir (theatre). The initiative drew on narratives connected to the Bombing of Darwin, postwar migration patterns to Alice Springs, and the histories of patrol officers in Alice Springs Telegraph Station regions. Early development involved partnerships with Australia Council for the Arts, Northern Territory Government, and community organisations such as Tangentyere Council and Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation.
The title invoked a Pitjantjatjara/Yolngu expression meaning "I give you something, you give me something" and reflected principles seen in reciprocity within Indigenous customary law and cross-cultural exchange exemplified by agreements like the Roper River Land Claim and practices at the National Native Title Tribunal. The work referenced intergenerational testimony connected to events including the Stolen Generations, the Warlpiri and Yolngu ceremonial exchanges, and the aftermath of World War II in northern Australia, particularly narratives associated with No. 2 Squadron RAAF and the broader Pacific theatre.
Ngapartji Ngapartji developed a stagework blending autobiography, documentary theatre, and community performance, premiering in venues like Adelaide Festival Centre, Sydney Opera House Studio, and touring to regional festivals such as the Tennant Creek Festival and the Melbourne International Arts Festival. The production integrated film elements produced with crews familiar with remote production protocols seen in ABC Television commissioned documentaries, and staged segments referencing material culture housed at institutions like the National Museum of Australia and the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory. Collaborations adopted ensemble methods akin to those used by Eryn Jean Norvill and companies such as Company B.
Key participants included elders and actors from communities in Central Australia and Arnhem Land alongside creative staff from Big hART led by Anita Heiss-adjacent networks, directors who had worked with Belvoir and Black Swan State Theatre Company, dramaturgs connected to Griffin Theatre Company, and musicians affiliated with artists from Yothu Yindi and Garma Festival circles. Production teams worked with producers experienced in Indigenous cultural protocols like those from CAAMA Music, and legal advisers aware of Native title processes and artists who had contributed to projects supported by the Australia Council and Foundation for Young Australians.
Reviews and audience responses appeared in national outlets such as The Age, The Australian, and The Sydney Morning Herald, and the project generated scholarly attention from researchers at Charles Darwin University, Australian National University, and the University of Melbourne. Ngapartji Ngapartji prompted public debate intersecting with policy discussions led by ministers from the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly and parliamentary inquiries into Indigenous cultural funding administered through the Australia Council for the Arts. Community screenings and workshops engaged partners including Tangentyere Artists, Desart, and regional arts centres like Araluen Arts Centre and Barkly Regional Arts.
The project received nominations and awards through state and national arts bodies such as the Helpmann Awards, the Deadly Awards cultural recognitions, and grants from the Australia Council for the Arts and Arts NT. Individuals associated with Ngapartji Ngapartji were shortlisted for prizes administered by institutions like the Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards and acknowledged in festivals including the Perth International Arts Festival and the Adelaide Festival.
Ngapartji Ngapartji informed subsequent community arts models employed by organisations like Big hART, Remote Area Music Industry initiatives, and programs supported by the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (Australia) Indigenous cultural policy units. The project's methodologies influenced academic curricula at Charles Darwin University and program development at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies and seeded ongoing exchanges involving cultural centres such as Nganampa Health Aboriginal Corporation partner networks and regional arts hubs like Pormpuraaw Arts and Ngukurr Arts.
Category:Australian theatre Category:Indigenous Australian culture Category:Community arts projects