Contributor Profile: Vicki Van Hout

Vicki Van Hout in Briwyant

photo Garth Oriander

Vicki Van Hout in Briwyant

Biography

I am an Indigenous independent choreographer with Wiradjuri, Dutch, Scottish and Afghan heritage. I trained at NAISDA Dance College and the Martha Graham School in New York. It was my extra curricular studies that influenced my approach to performance making, living on the fringes of the punk scene, as a part- time squatter in the infamous Woolloomooloo Gunnery in the 80s, while still in high school, with various interdisciplinary acts travelling to play in one of its many spaces, and then working for Tish and Snooky’s Manic Panic (a punk and hair dye store in the East Village, run by the first back up vocalists for Blondie, later forming their own band The Sick F#cks).

Expose

I am interested in the unexpected and realise the great achievement, in making the smallest of inroads, toward charting new territory.
I have shamelessly used my obsession with dance as a vehicle for exploring other creative disciplines including dabbling in the creation of simple interactive installations, writing monologues and simple non-linear narratives. I try to embed my work with practical activities that affirm my identity, for example, creating a song cycle in Wiradjuri to promote speaking and hearing local language, creating a large dot painting made from playing cards, encouraging the cast and crew to participate in preparing the dance ground, and a wall of tall grass utilising traditional basket weaving and other techniques live onstage to represent the inherent interdisciplinary nature of Australian indigenous cultures.

I am inspired by the human imagination and those who wield it deftly. To grasp a sense of the ridiculous and recognise the need to make time for play; to watch it and be involved is important. To be given the opportunity to access, articulate and share the pleasure derived from cultural expression is a bonus.

Selected articles

brilliance, shimmer & shine
Keith Gallasch: Vicki Van Hout, briwyant
RealTime issue #103 June-July 2011 pg. 32

the power & magic of juxtaposition
Martin del Amo, interview: choreographer Vicki Van Hout
RealTime issue #103 June-July 2011 pg. 31

burning issue – authenticity: heritage and avant-garde
Vicki Van Hout: dancer, choreographer
RealTime issue #111 Oct-Nov 2012 pg. 5

The intricacies of dance and history
Vicki Van Hout: Bangarra Dance Theatre, Patyegarang
RealTime issue #122 Aug-Sept 2014 pg. 33