Sensory theatre show for babies with disabilities among six finalists for $100,000 grants

A first-of-its-kind sensory theatre show for babies with disabilities is among six WA projects vying for two $100,000 grants from Arts Impact WA.

The Sensorium Theatre, which offers multi-sensory and interactive shows for children, is hoping to make a show called Snuggleplay to enable babies to explore using sound, movement, visual stimuli, smell and even taste.

Sensorium Theatre co-artistic director Michelle Hovane said she wanted to create something special for babies but also make it like a warm hug for their families.

“It’s a hard journey when you first become a parent and when your baby has additional needs it’s an even more challenging time,” she said.

“The idea is to make it at the same theatre level as our other shows but totally making it about the babies feeling comfortable and safe, and inspiring them to play with different senses.

“Hopefully it can be really nurturing for parents and stimulate new responses in their babies they may have not seen before.”

If the Sensorium Theatre receives the grant, Ms Hovane said they would make the show lo-fi so it could be moved around to disability specific playgroups but also create a hi-fi version for theatre venues that could welcome all sorts of families and babies.

She said the $100,000 grant would mean the difference between the theatre realising its dream or not.

“Even though Sensorium has generous funding, we don’t have money to make new work. We need assistance to make it happen,” she said.

“There is not a lot of theatre work for babies in general so I feel like this would be a first of its kind in WA. An Arts Impact grant means we can fill this ambition.”

Other finalists include Community Arts Network for an immersive exhibition on Noongar culture, STRUT Dance which hopes to hold a dance festival, WA Youth Theatre Company for a work on missing persons of Australia, artist JC for queer monuments, and Encounter for a performance installation in partnership with the Fitzroy Crossing community.

The six shortlisted applicants will pitch their projects to donors, who will vote to decide which two projects will receive grants of $100,000.

The four finalists who don’t win a major grant will take home $10,000 each.

Arts Impact WA co-founder and chair Paul Chamberlain said the grants supported new talent and helped grow the WA arts sector.

“We are in our third year and the calibre of the applications we received this year shows that the sector is embracing this initiative,” he said.

“The ongoing impact of our grants will continue to create great outcomes for the communities and arts organisations of WA, reflecting the State’s passion for the arts.”