New Ground Commission 2022
Supported by the Sidney Myer Fund, the 2022 New Ground cohort have drawn on their connections to Casey, Cardinia and Dandenong to produce six unique projects. Through dance, spoken word, visual arts, media and film these artists reflect the depth, talent and experiences of the broader South East Melbourne arts community.
Amalgam: on feeling the future by Jessica Nikitina-Li, Ben Rohy, Fathiah Raihan and Jocelyn Montecinos.
Cascade by Gülsen Özer, Ania Reynolds and Vanessa White.
South East Collage presentation by Nicholas Tsekouras.
Portraits of artists in the South East panel discussion with Andrew Duong, Paulina Zamorano, Zia Atahi, Dee Wong and Corey Porter (aka Mr Congo).
Painfully Relatable, poetry so relatable it hurts excerpt by Amy Mead (content warning: frequent coarse language).
Old Sayings by David Nguyen and PDHT (Alexandra Danielle Lim, Crystal Yap, Janelle San Juan, Jimmy Nguyen, Khenji Ang, Kunal Aggarwal, Liam House, Nancy Tran, Neeson Paterno and Long Truong Doan).
4C's Cultivating Creative Cultures with Communities
This year, 4C’s celebrated 16 years of outstanding Secondary school and community performances. Together with Cranbourne East Secondary College, we have continued to build Community connections through the multicultural showcase that celebrates inclusivity, respect, and integrity.
The 4C’s program has engaged students from diverse backgrounds and given them the opportunity to celebrate their cultural backgrounds in a student-led project. The 4C’s performance night showcase the breadth of talent of students across 11 schools through cultural dances, fashion shows and the visual arts exhibition in Bunjil Place library.
The Australian Ballet Education and Outreach Program – The Story of Pommi and Gobba
The Australian Ballet Education and Outreach team, Casey Aboriginal Gathering Place and Cranbourne West Community Hub hosted a creative 4-day holiday workshop for children from prep to year 4. Children explored the world of dance and created an original dance routine from the contemporary adaptation of the Wiradjuri Dreamtime story ‘Gobbagumbalun and Pomingalarna’ which is local to the NSW city of Wagga Wagga. This adaptation explores current themes that are relevant Australia-wide but is grounded in connection to Wiradjuri Country.
Bandok Tati | Bunjil Place | NAIDOC Get up! Stand up! Show up! 2022
Bandok Tati, meaning ‘small ant brothers’, is a group of Aboriginal boys, aged 8-20 years old, who stay connected to their culture through traditional song and dance.
Bandok Tati was formed and is currently based on Bunurong (Boonwurrung) Country. The boys also have many ties to different parts of the lands of Central and Southern Victoria, including Gunaikurnai, Dja Dja Wurrung and Wurundjeri Country. They also have ties to Western Australia, South Australia and Southern NSW.
The boys are well educated in their culture as they have been around culturally knowledgeable people from a young age, by way of things such as dancing, events and families passing down stories. Bandok Tati is a family, a brotherhood. The members of Bandok Tati have known each other from a young age due to their families being close and the boys share blood ties with each other.
For more information search 'bandoktati' on Instagram.
Names /Mob
- Johnny Terrick Wurundjeri, Bidwell, Dja Dja Wurrung
- Malachi Thomas Noongar, Gunai Kurnai, Yorta Yorta
- Wundarra Thomas Yorta Yorta, Gunai Kurnai, Wiradjuri
- Jeremiah Nannup Noongar, Gunai Kurnai
- Joziah Nannup Noongar, Gunai Kurnai
- Nethiah Nannup Noongar, Gunai Kurnai
- Makai Havea Narrangga
- Tye Dow Gunai Kurnai, Wurundjeri
- Uncle Ringo Terrick Wurundjeri, Bidwell, Dja Dja Wurrung
Creative Directors
- Bandok Tati
- Nathan Taylor
- Anaika Havea
- Elvis Carter
Voice Over
- Johnny Terrick
Video, Sound Design & Editing
- Evolve Digital Media
Special Thanks
- Casey Aboriginal Gathering Place Team
- Uncle Ringo Terrick
- Uncle Kevin Harrison
- Ben McVeigh
- Zach Lovett
- James Henry
This video is proudly supported by the Casey Aboriginal Gathering Place, Bunjil Place and City of Casey as part of the Winter Arts Festival. BANDOK TATI includes other local First Nations dancers who didn’t feature in the video.
ADVOCATING FOR THE INNOCENCE DESTOYED IN WAR by Ali Sina
No one listened when we spoke, but we kept speaking anyway. Every day, innocent people die in Gaza, yet they’re still kept silent.
The Israel-Gaza war has broken out three times. The first was in 1948, which is when the conflict first began. The second was on the 8th of July 2014, and once again it led to major violence. The third and most recent war started on the 7th of October 2023, when fighting began in Gaza. Then on the 27th of October, Israel began a full invasion of the Gaza Strip.
Since the 7th of October 2023, more than 56,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 131,848 injured. That means in just the past four months—and over the past two years—around 187,848 people have been killed or injured. Out of those, 57,448 were innocent children, adults and elders who didn’t deserve to die.
Reports say Israel has stopped many aid trucks, planes and ships from entering Gaza, and some people believe they’re using starvation as a weapon of war. But it’s not just food being blocked—Israel has destroyed or damaged over 90% of homes in Gaza and has also blocked water, medicine, and other life-saving supplies.
Even before October 2023, the war didn’t start with Gaza. Before that, 250 Palestinians, including 50 children, had already been killed. And in September alone, around 1,100 Palestinians were kicked out of their homes and weren’t given a voice or a choice.
This war isn’t just between Palestine and Israel—it also involves other powerful countries. For example, the United States has given Israel $23.8 billion in military aid. But Palestine hasn’t received anything like that to protect its own civilians. How is that fair?
Even if our voices feel ignored, why should the people of Palestine be silenced too? Has the world just given up on them?
If one person does something wrong, they’re held responsible. So why isn’t Israel being held responsible for what’s happening to civilians in Gaza?
You can take action to help make change. I can take action to help make change. We can all take action to try and stop this war. If we don’t speak up now, it might never stop. This war has been going on for over 77 years.
When children are killed in Gaza, there’s often a claim that they were “too close to the border.” Did you know that some IDF soldiers are allowed to open fire on anyone they think is a threat—even women and children—just for being near the border? That doesn’t sit right with me.
Why is it that when a child is born in countries like Australia, Jordan, the USA, or France, they’re treated as innocent—but when a child is born in Palestine, they’re sometimes
