Grants help community shine

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Tuesday, 21 February 2023

Celebrating its 21st anniversary this year, Fab Nobs Theatre at Bayswater is among 48 recipients of Council’s annual Community Development Fund grants program.

Fab Nobs Theatre president Sally McKenzie says the $15,000 funding will enable the group to buy its own stage lighting instead of having to pay for equipment hire and labour.

“The Council grants helped us survive during COVID,” she says. “We had another grant that funded our last pantomime — we had that outdoors on Council land at The Basin Triangle. Another grant funded our junior workshops, too, so that got some kids engaged at a time when there wasn’t a lot going on. Then there was another grant for keyboards — things that we otherwise wouldn’t have been able to afford.”

Sally says the theatre has become a place where strong community bonds are formed.

“So many kids have formed friendships and are still friends outside school through Fab Nobs,” she says. “A lot of the parents stay on board to help with other shows or join the committee or volunteer sewing costumes and other things. We’ve also got a lot of up-and-comers who help out with sound and lighting and that sort of stuff. Our audiences, who are mostly local, are likeminded people who love to see live theatre. We have a lot of people who come back to Fab Nobs time and time again.”

In 2022–23, $375,875 in Community Development Fund grants have been awarded, bringing the total over the past five years to $1.5 million.

This year’s grants support the upgrading of sports club equipment, community reconnection activities, cultural celebrations and early years’ play space revitalisation. They are also supporting several community welfare projects responding to mental health and family violence issues in Knox, sports programs for First Nations children and youth and migrant communities, gardening and sports programs for people living with disability, and local environment and community theatre groups.

Grants help community shine

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