Ali Kennedy Scott
Quick response funding was needed to tour a new Australian play about survivors of the Black Saturday bushfires to Edinburgh.
Ali Kennedy Scott in The Dy the Sky Turned Black. Photo by Michael Corridore.
The Day the Sky Turned Black, written and performed by Ali Kennedy Scott and directed by Adrian Barnes, is a one-woman play inspired by survivors of the Black Saturday bushfires in Victoria in 2009 which claimed 173 lives.
Opening at the Adelaide Fringe Festival in March 2010, the play had a successful season and was seen by a scout from the Edinburgh Fringe Festival which led to an invitation to perform at the 2010 festival. With only four months until the festival began, the show needed to raise around $10,000 to get to Edinburgh.
Given this short time-frame, sponsorship and government grants were not an option, so Ali approached Artsupport Australia for advice on ways the show could achieve its funding target through private donation.
‘The first step was to register with the Australian Cultural Fund [run by the Australia Business Arts Foundation] to enable us to receive tax-deductible donations,’ explains Ali.
‘Secondly, philanthropic individuals with a connection to the play were approached for a donation. Thanks to their generous support, the play reached its funding target, went on to enjoy five-star reviews in Edinburgh and was featured in the Australia @ the Fringe Showcase hosted by the Australian High Commission,’ adds Ali.
See: www.thedaytheskyturnedblack.com
Published 2011
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