Everybody NOW! specialize in socially engaged, contemporary arts practice with a focus on performance-driven projects, created with and for communities. Led by Co-Directors Ian Pidd, Bec Reid and Kate Baggerson, Everybody NOW’s purpose is ‘To Move Communities’. Aiming to generate movement in peoples lives, socially, emotionally, physically and culturally, they create inclusive, democratic and creative spaces for communities to Move Together - celebrating the everyday; real people, real stories, everybody now! Established in 2015 Everybody NOW! have since been creating large-scale social dance projects, that have awarded the company a dynamic, national reputation for a distinct, inclusive and joyful brand of participation. They have been commissioned by some of Australia’s major festival’s including Bleach* Festival, Brisbane Festival, Darwin Festival and Festival 2018 for the GC2018 Commonwealth Games, dancing with over 25,000 people as audiences and participants between the ages of 3 – 93.

Curatorial Statement:

Our organization is a performance company working in the space of artist led, community engaged practice. Dance has, to date, been an important mode of sharing community stories and a strong inspiration behind our purpose, To Move Communities. Dance development, dance participation and community engagement in movement practices remains a critical part of our Strategic Vision. More and more our work is sitting both in a presentation and touring space but also in a sector development space. For example, we are in conversations with Aus Dance QLD about a state-wide dance participation engagement plan and are working with other partner orgs for regional dance activations. Connecting with the industry and sector more broadly and importantly the contemporary, multi-arts and experimental dance communities remains vital to the development and placement of our work. We are very interested in ensuring community-based practice has a relevance and connection to contemporary practice with opportunity to build audiences, engagement and artist development.

In 2020 we launch a new Artist in Residency program on the Gold Coast, harnessing the Cities cultural investment in the being a hot spot for practice development. The program will have strong connections to dance, movement and the body. We intend to utilize our time at Dance Massive to initiate conversations around this particular program among others, including public programming and audience development. We are currently triennially funding through the City of Gold Coast.

Dates attending Dance Massive: 14 - 17 March 2019