Australian Theatre for Young People

Australian Theatre for Young People (ATYP) is a Sydney-based theatre company for young people.

Workshop program

Their workshop program is Australia's largest and most comprehensive workshop program for young people. The workshop program at atyp includes school holiday workshops and a semester ensemble program.

Up to 12 workshops are offered per week ranging in ages from 5 to 18 years old during NSW school term times. Semester Ensemble classes focus on a foundation of skills, creativity and storytelling, finishing with a theatrical performance at the end of semester.

atyp’s holiday workshops run during every school holidays – 4 weeks in Summer, and 2 weeks during every other break. They include acting, physical theatre, music theatre, design, playwriting, camera performance, circus, clown and many other specialist areas.

atyp has a masterclass program for young people aged 18 to 26, and in 2012 atyp introduced the signature series masterclasses - opportunities for young adults to spend time with theatre practitioners. atyp also offers specialist workshops for schools, community groups, organisations and arts companies.

Production Program

atyp mounts up to eight productions a year. These might be radical versions of classics, new plays by young writers, devised performances, physical theatre, or plays written for the company by leading Australian writers, such as Alana Valentine's Grounded, Kate Mulvany and Ann-Louise Sarks' Medea and Max Remy Super Spy by Deborah Abela, adapted by Jo Turner.

These productions have featured in major Festivals such as the 2000 Olympic Arts Festival (Stephen Sewell's version of Aristophanes' Birds), 2002 Sydney Festival (Kinderspiel, a collaboration with Theater an der Parkaue, Germany's largest theatre for children and young people), 2003 Shell Connections festival for the National Theatre, London (Brokenville by Philip Ridley), and 2004 Sydney Festival (The Musicians/Eclipse, a co-production with the National Theatre's Young Company [UK]). Productions have toured regionally, nationally and internationally; and regularly involve many of Australia's leading directors, designers and writers.

Under the Wharf

Under the Wharf is a platform to help emerging professional theatre makers help themselves. Established in response to feedback from artists in their first five years of practice, the program provides practical opportunities to apply theatre skills in the real world.

The Under the Wharf season presents three new productions selected by a panel of young artists. Each play is driven by a character under 26 and staged by an independent theatre company. The season provides companies the opportunity to present their work in a celebrated cultural precincts at minimal expense. For atyp’s audiences it is a chance to see new productions tailor-made for young adults.

Fresh Ink

Fresh Ink is atyp’s development program for emerging playwrights.

Across the year, through a range of master classes, workshops, one-to-one mentoring opportunities and their annual National Studio, atyp works with young writers to develop their work and their appreciation of the craft of writing for the stage.

They also provide new writers with opportunities to meet key figures of the Australian stage, while on the Fresh Ink blog, they post regular new writings from leading playwrights and theatre-makers about their creative process.

Alumni

Many significant Australian artists have spent formative time at atyp. They include Nicole Kidman (atyp's Patron), Toni Collette, Baz Luhrmann, Michael Gow, Rose Byrne, Rebel Wilson, Beejan Land, Aden Young, Tom Long, Felix Williamson, Rupert Reid, Adam Cook, Katherine Thomson, Bianca Moon, Lisa Hensley, Victoria Longley, Phoebe Tonkin

External links

• Official website