IMAGE: Some of the Kids Against Humanity with professional artist collaborators.
Who are we and what is the project?
We are Kids Against Humanity.
We are a mixed bunch of teenagers who gather every week on a Friday afternoon to make theatre. Theatre that matters. Theatre that says something. Theatre that is experimental and relevant and ours. Theatre that is a collaboration between young people and professional artists, and creates something for our community that neither of us could create alone.
We have been born from Carclew and City of Onkaparinga’s ExpressWay Arts initiative in the southern suburbs of Adelaide. We are supported and facilitated by Director Claire Glenn and Creative Producer Alysha Herrmann, but the ideas and projects come from us.
We are the lead artists and the vision is ours.
This crowd-funding campaign is for Losing Faith in Unicorns... a performance in the non-traditional theatre space of a real house. Each room of the house has a different theme showing real-life experiences of us and our friends. The shit things that are happening and we are going through that no-one believes or really understands.
Losing Faith in Unicorns presents the stories our community needs to hear about the young people living here. It’s the conversation we need to have. We’re making it with a bunch of Adelaide's professional artists who are helping us bring the ideas in our head to life. We have the support of Carclew and City of Onkaparinga who have applied for grants and put their own money and other support to make this happen, now we all just need a little bit more help with the dollars to pull this off.
Oh – and did we mention that we are presenting Losing Faith in Unicorns as part of the dreamBIG Children’s Festival! YEAH! We are part of a REAL. LEGIT. ARTS. FESTIVAL. So you know it’s going to be good.
IMAGE: An example cupboard from our October, 2016 work in progress.
What will Losing Faith in Unicorns be like for the audience?
Rather than just sitting in a chair in a dark theatre, watching actors on stage, Losing Faith in Unicorns is an immersive experience in a house. Like, a REAL house. The audience will walk around and be able to open drawers and fridges and microwaves, while performance and other things happens around them.
It’ll be funny and heartbreaking and it will make people think and question. We want audience members to go away thinking about the young people in their own lives and the young people in our community and how we all have a responsibility to each other. To do better. To listen more deeply. To love more. To forgive more. To believe in each other. To keep trying to understand and build connections.
We also want our peers, other young people, to come and see the show and feel like they are not alone in the things they are experiencing.
There are 8 school performances, 6 general public performances and 2 VIP performances scheduled for May 2017 as part of dreamBIG. We think Losing Faith in Unicorns will make parents, teachers, youth service providers and the wider community feel more connected with and understanding of the challenges facing us and other young people like us.
In our group we have people who have faced: gender and sexual discrimination, social isolation, family breakdown, low self-esteem, domestic violence and a range of mental health challenges. You’ll see all of these challenges and more represented in Losing Faith in Unicorns.
We hope to see you in the audience and you can buy tickets right now from the Carclew website: carclew.org.au
IMAGE: Some of the Kids Against Humanity watching a scene rehearsal with director Claire Glenn
What does Losing Faith in Unicorns mean to us?
Kids Against Humanity is a place where we don’t need to fit in, but we belong.
Losing Faith in Unicorns is our opportunity to share with the world (well, our local community anyway) the things we struggle with and what being part of Kids Against Humanity means to us.
Why we come to Kids Against Humanity and why Losing Faith in Unicorns is important:
- When I come to KAH I have a more creative attitude, a better mood and improved artistical skills
- LFIU is important for the community to understand what teens of our day may be going through or experiencing
- You constantly complain about the mannerisms of teens. Maybe you should come along and learn something!
- I come to KAH because it’s fun and to learn. I have made friends here and we learn so much.
- This project (LFIU) can make people more aware of the struggles facing those around them and help them treat others with consideration and respect
- I come to this group in order to interact with my peers. As an opportunity to create art on a larger scale. And also just because it’s fun!
- As a piece of performance art, this has a message. And if that message is heard it will have a positive effect on how teenagers are perceived.
- I come to KAH because I love hanging with great people and to do stuff that matters. It means a lot to me because I get to come to a place where I can be myself.
- Coming to KAH is important to me because I have found a purpose and something to do with my future. I love the community within my group.
- KAH – it means to me: family, support, love.
Kids Against Humanity is a safe place for us to tell our stories, to explore, create and find our people.
What will your money be used for?
Your money will be used to finish the Losing Faith in Unicorns installation and production side of the performance. Your money will make sure that the show is ready to go and looks the way we envision it, ready for opening night 18th May 2017.
So this is a pretty big project right? Ambitious. Risky even. IT’S GOING TO BE AWESOME.
We’ve got most of our money secured but we just need a little bit more to make sure that we have all the equipment and materials we need to make this show BLOW YOUR MIND.
