Rori's Creative Entrepreneur Internship

Hello! My name is Rori and I am an actor located in Adelaide, South Australia.

I have had the exciting opportunity of being accepted into one of the ten places for the Zen Zen Zo's Creative Entrepreneur Internship up in Brisbane! Zen Zen Zo is a physical theatre company that has been creating incredible art for over 30 years. I first came across Zen Zen Zo when I did their STOMP intensives back in 2023. STOMP is designed to help anyone reconnect with their creatives selves through their specialty physical theatre training forms. Basically a very intense, physically exhausting (in a good way!) week filled with physical theatre from 9am-5pm! I immeditaly connected with the work and with Lynne's teaching style, finding it revitalised not only my creative self but my own soul (not to be dramatic but for real) after its death during the pandemic. Turns out trapping an artist in a small Sydney apartment for 2 years is detrimental! They need lots of sun, humidity, and TLC which is what is promised up in Brisbane!

This innovative program provides one of the few opportunities in Australia for artists, including actors (that's me!), directors (that's gonna be me - said like Justin Timberlake), producers (one day!), visual artists (that's my stepmum!), teachers (that's my dad!), and administrators (that's my mum!), to acquire essential skills and network connections needed to transition into the professional performing arts industry.

During the five-month program, I will undergo intensive ensemble training under the guidance of the company’s Founding Director Dr Lynne Bradley, Associate Director Indiah Morris, and First Nations Producer Ebony Webb, along with guest sessions by industry professionals. The program is structured into four comprehensive units that cover acting, physical theatre, fitness training, directing, producing, auditioning, marketing, grant writing, administration, finance, sports psychology, and collaborative devising for an end-of-year show. The whole shebang one might say! Access to these subjects will refine my skills from my three years studying Acting at Adelaide College of the Arts and address gaps in my performance and business knowledge.

Unit one, "Laying the Foundations", focuses on mental and physical preparedness. This will delve into the values that inform my practice, assessing strengths and weaknesses, and establishing an exercise and nutrition regimen. Following this foundational phase, Unit Two, "Sustainability," will guide me in refining my grant writing skills, developing administration practices, and culminating in the pitching of a project to an industry panel.

The program's core performance techniques, encompassing Suzuki Method of Actor Training, Butoh Dance Theatre, Viewpoints, and Composition, will be woven seamlessly throughout all units. Unit three, "Making Your Own Work", and four, "Acting", will allow me to apply these techniques to craft my own work, prepare for auditions, and participate in a public performance with the company. My goals for this course are twofold: to establish collaborative partnerships and artistic mentorship and to propel my development beyond the internship, launching the production of my own work in South Australia.

By donating, you will help me eat a meal that isn’t two minute noodles, and perhaps get an 8 hour sleep here and there, meaning I can spend more time investing my energy into the internship and not having to work my good looking butt off on the side.

Other ways your donation will be spent:

Any help would be appreciated and I thank you in advance from the bottom of my heart for providing any form of a deep breath of relief.