Posted by KB on June 4, 2010
Since 2008, the Arts Bunker project has been giving emerging performance companies a gentle nudge to get their work out of the bedroom and into the professional sphere. The Seymour Centre provides these up-and-comers with free office and rehearsal spaces, as well as the mentoring they’ll need to produce a full-scale production. One eve of the 2010 launch, we spoke to Seymour Centre Artistic Director and GM, Tim Jones, about the program.
Danni Le Toullec: The Arts Bunker program is providing Australia’s future creatives with an incredible opportunity to grow and be mentored by some of the best in the business. How did you manage to put it all together?
Tim Jones: Well firstly the Seymour had some unused office space and I was keen to make best use of it. The Bunker program has been running in a small way since 2008 but we received some funding from the City of Sydney to expand the program to three resident Arts Bunker companies. This is excellent.
DL: Can you tell me a bit about your career history and how it led to your current position of Artistic Director and GM of the Seymour Centre?
TJ: I come from a practitioner’s background. I studied acting at NIDA and then spent 10 years acting, teaching and travelling. After returning from a dispiriting trip to LA I decided to make the shift into full-time arts admin work at the Australian theatre for Young People. Five years later I became the AD of that company and then after another five years I came here.
DL: Do you face many challenges in juggling the two roles?
TJ: Not so much “challenges”, more severe time management clashes! One minute I can be watching new work from an emerging company and giving advice on their artistic decisions. The next I can be discussing our cleaning contract. But it’s all part of it. And I really enjoy the mix.
DL: You have had extensive experience behind the scenes as a director and teacher as well as under the spotlight. Which do you prefer?
TJ: In truth I like it all – but only in specific doses. Directing a new play can be incredibly challenging and exhausting and acting is the same. So I am in the very lucky position of being able to mix that with administrative challenges of running a company. At the moment I am really enjoying assisting new artists to reach their goals – particularly through Arts Bunker.
DL: Before coming to the Seymour Centre, you were the CEO/Artistic Director for the Australian Theatre for Young People. Did your experience there inspire the Arts Bunker program?
TJ: Not really. That job really focused on the stage before Arts Bunker: giving young people skills to determine their career path. The Arts Bunker folk are a little beyond that.
DL: Skate featured at the Belfast Festival in Queens in 2005, what was a highlight from that experience?
TJ: That was a very hard but enjoyable experience. Twelve cast members aged 12-26 in a foreign country! I remember the Artistic Director of that show, Stella Hall, sobbing because she found the show so moving. It had that effect on a lot of people.
DL: Do you have a favourite production that you have been involved in so far?
TJ: I have loved working with emerging writer Maxine Mellor – I think she is a real star of the future. A few years ago I directed her play, Magda’s Fascination with Wax Cats - a great title and a great play.
DL: In 2010, the companies involved in the Arts Bunker program will showcase their work at the Seymour. What can audiences expect?
TJ: New music and innovative choreography. The companies are required to engage in a creative development this year so I am hoping a few boundaries are crossed!
DL: You’ve led other programs such as Fresh Ink, which also encouraged the progress of the next generation of creatives. What tips do you have to those trying to make it in the acting and writing industry?
TJ: In both cases I think two main tips:
• Think and act local and global – Australia is a tough place to work exclusively in the arts. The people I see making it work are developing connections with companies around the world – having their work produced in other English and non-English speaking countries.
• Secondly, only do it if you really don’t think you want to do anything else. It can be rewarding but also very tough.
seymour centre, tim jones, arts bunker