Fairfax Youth Initiative is a series of workshops, activities and performances specifically for young people aged between 12 and 17 from regional and remote Australia.
Beginning in Swan Hill, in 1997, the Fairfax Youth Initiative is held annually in memory of George Fairfax, who grew up in Nangiloc, a small town in the Mallee region of Victoria.
He was well known for his support and encouragement of activities that involved young people in the arts, especially through places like Melbourne University, the Victorian College of the Arts and St Martin’s Youth Arts Centre.
The Fairfax Youth Initiative has three distinct phases:
- Four days of in-community workshops to assist secondary school students to create a 10 minute micro performance piece.
- Two and a half days of rehearsals and workshops in Swan Hill, Victoria.
- A final community performance at the Swan Hill Town Hall showcasing the new works created, as well as any new specialist skills learned during the week.
The Fairfax Youth Initiative connects professional arts practitioners with youth and their leaders to develop practical performance skills, technical understanding and to create diverse and professional quality theatre work.
The event process promotes skills development, access and inclusion across a wide range of social demographics and communities for young people and their leaders.
The Fairfax Youth Initiative’s philosophy has always been that no child should miss out on this life changing experience because they don’t live in a big city, come from a low socio-economic background or have physical or learning disabilities.
