Dancehouse – The Compositions Commission 2025 EOI open

Dancehouse’s Compositions Commission has been created to inspire collaborations between music/sound artists and choreographers to create new kinds of sonic/choreographic works. 

The Commission’s emphasis is on innovation: new sonic/movement forms, brave experimentation, new collaborations, cross arts fusion and practice and deepening creative relationships to evolve what we hear, see, and experience in live performance works. 

The Compositions Commission is offered annually and provides an equal commission to both a music/sound artist, and a choreographer, alongside an additional project budget to spend on their work. The project budget may support collaborators (performers, dancers, musicians, equipment or design), production and technical equipment, or travel support.

One project will be commissioned by Dancehouse from expressions of interest and will be selected by a panel of independent sound and dance artists.

The Compositions Commission is open to any partnership between a movement artist and a sound artist. Both must be named and confirmed when applying. Both new and existing collaborations are welcome.

The invited project will outline how sound and choreography inform and influence each other. All artists applying for the Commission will be able to evidence a body of live performance work for audiences.

The Composition Commission must explore something new and innovative. This innovation may include either: A new collaboration and relationship between sound and dance artists; or an existing collaboration and relationship but working with new experiments, fusions, evolutions, or territories in both sound and choreography.

The Compositions Commission can be for any stage of a new project. Ideally, the project will have ambitions for future presentation at Dancehouse. All dance forms and practices, and all music and sound forms and practices are welcome. Projects that will appeal to both dance and sound/ music audiences are encouraged.

The Commission will receive: A $5,000 commission for a choreographer; A $5,000 commission for a music/ sound artist; An additional project budget of $3,000 to be allocated as required i.e. dancers, musicians, equipment hire, travel costs; Superannuation on all fees; Up to 2 weeks of in-kind space at Dancehouse; and priority consideration for the work for Dancehouse presentations.

Dancehouse will work with the selected project team to contract, budget, and project manage the Commission under the selected artists’ direction. Any presentation opportunities following the Commission at Dancehouse will be negotiated on top of the Commission.

EOI for the 2025 Commission close 7 November, 2024. To learn more and apply, click here.

Dancehouse Compositions Commission, “A Book of Hours” (2023), Image by Darren Gill