Border Crossers is the first collaboration between Valerie Berry and Ben-Hur Winter.

VALERIE BERRY

Valerie Berry is an Adelaide trained actor and performance maker. Throughout her practice, she has focused on collaborative and interdisciplinary processes.

She has worked with, National Theatre of Parramatta (Swallow, 2016), Cake Industries (Superbox Friends: Sydney Festival 2016, Robotronica Festival 2015), Polyglot Theatre (Paper Planet: Sydney and Norway), Blacktown Arts Centre (Disaffected, 2016), Performance Space, Theatre Kantanka, Urban Theatre Projects, Campbelltown Arts Centre, Branch Nebula, Belvoir, Jigsaw Theatre Co, ATYP/Version 1.0, Sydney Theatre Company (Ur/Faust and Attempts on her life. Dir. Benedict Andrews). Performing Lines (Tour Germany and Adelaide Festival, Ur/Faust; and National tour of The Folding Wife), Bell Shakespeare/Canute Productions (Theatre in Education tour of Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes), and co- directed/facilitated Shopfront Theatre’s 2015 Junior Ensemble show Chasing your Shadow.

Currently, Valerie is one of the mentors for CuriousWork’s Beyond Refuge program and has also worked as a theatre educator for the company.

Valerie has had an ongoing collaborative partnership with multimedia artists, Anino Shadowplay Collective (Manila, Philippines) along with Paschal Daantos Berry and Deborah Pollard since 2005 (The Folding Wife and Within and Without). Their third major work ‘Arkipelago’ was presented in Jakarta, Indonesia (World Puppet Festival, 2013) and was part of Papermoon’s Pesta Boneka 4 (International Biennale Puppet Festival, 2014) in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.

Currently, the Australia/Manila collaborators, now named LabAnino, is developing a new experimental work, This Here Land, which will make its debut in Sydney, late 2017. Valerie has also worked in film, television and radio.

BEN-HUR WINTER

Ben-Hur Winter is a Cultural Production Specialist, Performing Arts Professional, (CALD) Community Arts Worker, Stylist and Arts Projects Manager undertaking Directorship roles. His work draws on organic processes, collaboration across art forms and Community Cultural Development.

Of Filipino heritage, he has been shaping a dialogue of cultural exchange through *Anahata or ‘heart centre’ -a primary chakra in yoga. Ben is also a cultural and contemporary dancer, choreographer, teaching artist and stage make-up practitioner. He has performed with Outlet Dance (1993-95); the State Opera of South Australia (1992-93) and the touring company of ‘Cats’ (1995-1996) under the Artistic Direction of Joanne Robinson. In the Philippines (2002-2011) he worked with renowned Philippine dance companies Airdance, Seven Contemporary Dance Company, Locsin Dance Workshop, AlunAlun Dance Circle and St. Benilde Romancon Dance Company. He aspires to enrich his arts practice and management repertoire through this endeavour.

He has mounted work in Manila for Wi-Fi Body Contemporary Dance Festival, Blue Wave Mall, Asia Pacific College, Worldnet Business Centre, Alphaland Corporation, UNDP (Philippines) and the Pasay City Council. In Adelaide (2011-present) Ben has researched, planned, facilitated programs and implemented numerous highly artistic presentations for the Department of Education and Child Development (DECD), Council for International Trade and Development SA (ASEAN Network), Ausdance SA, OzAsia Festival, Multicultural SA, City of Port Adelaide Enfield, the Filipino Settlement Coordinating Council of SA (FSCCSA), Adelaide Fringe, Feast Festival, Every Generation Festival, Chinatown Association, the Vietnamese Community in Australia SA Chapter, Port Festival, Australia Day Council, the Filipino Communities Council of Australia (FILCCA), Asia in SA, Kurruru Youth Performing Arts, Carclew Youth Arts, Movement Electronic Music Festival, and the Australian Institute of Classical Dance.

Ben-Hur was the recipient of the 2014 Governor’s Multicultural Award for Arts and Culture presented at Government House. An arts baccalaureate (BA Dance, University of Adelaide), he is currently completing post-graduate studies (MA Arts and Cultural Management) and fashion entrepreneurship (Colour Cosmetica, The Fashion Darling).

*Anahata Community is a volunteer led, artist run association engaged in professional artistic practice, community arts and cultural production through peer support and collaboration, cultural exchange and Community Cultural Development.