MEDIA RELEASE | IN.RESIDENCE GATHERING.1
19 May 2025
UNITY. RITUAL. HUMAN CONNECTION.
Co3 Contemporary Dance Australia gets the party started with its 10-year celebration of being on the stage with IN.RESIDENCE: GATHERING.1 from 18 to 22 June 2025. This immersive evening brings together Western Australian movers and makers featuring works by Mitch Harvey (HUH), Logan Ringshaw (The Rest is Noise), Kimberley Parkin (Tri-Hard), and Co3 Artistic Director Raewyn Hill, showcasing choreography in an intimate setting performed by five Co3 dancers and curated by Raewyn Hill.
Bringing Co3’s home for 2025 the Liberty Theatre alive with movement, the performance removes the divide between audience and performer, creating a space where connection can be explored. With live soundscapes from award-winning MOWGLI and DJ Aslan, and lighting and projection design by Mark Haslam, the Liberty is set to transform into an evolving, sensory experience.
Adding to the evening, LINK Dance Company will present show activations (with the exception of the Sunday performance), drawing audiences further into the themes of unity, ritual, celebration, and human connection. GATHERING.1 defines contemporary art with Co3’s unique signature.
IN.RESIDENCE is a Co3 pathways program, a space for experimentation, risk, and artistic growth and GATHERING: 1 is its fifth presentation. Co3 Artistic Director Raewyn Hill said, “IN.RESIDENCE nurtures the next generation of choreographic voices while challenging conventional formats. As Co3 enters its second decade, this platform will be central to evolving our identity that is anchored in WA, connected to the world, and committed to innovation through collaboration.”
“It celebrates a decade of risk taking, resilience, and growth while opening space for bold, new voices. GATHERING.1 is a living expression of Co3’s evolution, deeply focused on the community and driven by a commitment to collaboration and contemporary relevance.”
The themes of the work unity, ritual, and human connection emerged from the times we live in – fragmented, fast-paced and sometimes isolating. Raewyn said, “We wanted to create something that reminds us of the power of coming together, of being present. Rituals whether sacred or social offer structure, and unity brings purpose. In GATHERING.1, we return to the essential act of connecting through movement.”
Raewyn said that the three choreographers have distinct voices and a shared curiosity, “Mitch Harvey brings theatricality and precision, Logan Ringshaw is visceral and poetic, and Kimberley Parkin offers raw emotional intelligence. All three have the ability to listen to the room, the people, the moment. They are makers of the future, and I feel privileged to have the opportunity to curate their work.”
Audiences will step into an open, vibrant environment where performance spills into every corner. The Liberty Theatre will transform into a pulsating, responsive space part dance floor, part ceremonial ground where movement, music, and people coexist without boundaries.
“This dissolves hierarchy. There is no fourth wall, no passive viewing. Energy moves both ways, it is unpredictable, alive. Audiences are not just witnesses; they are part of the ritual, contributing to the rhythm and pulse of the evening. It demands presence and that is powerful. Music is the emotional anchor with DJs Aslan and MOWGLI’s soundscapes evolving in real time with the dancers, responding to shifts in energy and guiding the collective journey sometimes meditative, sometimes electric,” Raewyn said.
When asked what the audiences will feel or take away from being part of GATHERING.1, especially those who may not be familiar with contemporary dance Raewyn said, “I hope they feel welcomed, moved, and maybe even surprised by what dance can be, by their own reactions, by a sense of belonging. Contemporary dance does not have to be distant or obscure it can be immediate, embodied, and deeply human.”