First Nations Australian Theatre for Health Equity : Healing Stories

Abstract

ILBIJERRI Theatre Company is Australia's longest established First Nations theatre company, producing powerful works for over 30 years. This open access book documents and critically reflects on their Social Impact stream of performances, aimed at health promotion and education around issues that disproportionately affect First Nations communities in Australia. Over the past 16 years, these works have reached over 25,000 audience members across the country. Productions include 'Chopped Liver' (2006-2009), 'Body Armour' (2011-2013) and 'Viral' (2018-2019)—all dealing with Hepatitis C; 'North West of Nowhere' (2014-2016), which deals with sexual health and healthy relationships; and 'Scar Trees' (2019), which addresses family violence. A new work, ‘Aunty Flo’ (2022) addresses menopause for First Nations women; and a pilot project addressing sexual health for First Nations young people—The Score (2022)—represents a new participatory approach to the Social Impact works, which places community members at the centre of the storytelling process. This book documents this important body of work for the first time, examining the impact on audiences and the cultural, aesthetic, and educational implications of a unique form of theatre for health education and promotion.