Peta Murphy (Dunkley, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Last weekend, I went to the matinee performance of the Mount Eliza Community Pantomime's Cinderella. It was extraordinary. It has to be said that I don't think I'll ever look at Reverend Cameron McAdam the same way again, having seen his performance in the pantomime! What was extraordinary was not just the talent of people from Dunkley and further down the peninsula who were performing in the pantomime; it was the level of interaction and sheer joy from the children and the adults that were in the crowd. It took one instance of a character looking out into the crowd and saying, 'Yes, I am,' for the kids to work out that they had to say, 'No, you're not,' in response. It took one slightly ribald innuendo for the parents and other the people, like me and my husband, to work out that there was going to be enough in the performance to keep the adults entertained as well.

What it all added up to was a feeling of community—a feeling of engagement, belonging and people being there to be part of something together. To me, that's what the arts and culture mean. Sure, sometimes they mean going to a gallery or a performance in the city at the arts centre. But more often than not arts and culture mean being part of a joyous exhibition, pantomime, play or live music performance in your local community with others who are either indulging in their hobby or performing in their profession in a way that makes you feel connected to the rest of the community.

To me, that's why our new national cultural policy, Revive, is so important. It acknowledges the different roles for the arts and culture. It recognises that portfolios other than the arts are intrinsically involved and use the arts and culture to benefit communities. When last month the Department of Social Services announced more than a million dollars in funding for arts projects, one might have thought, 'Why?' It was because these arts projects serve policy objectives in that portfolio. It's funding for projects to support young people aged 12 to 18 years, people with disability and mental health issues, vulnerable women or unemployed people to express themselves and to get capabilities, confidence and engagement.

One of the grants went to Big hART for a First Nations program for youth aged 12 to 18 in outback Western Australia—a long way from Dunkley. But in Dunkley Big hART have run Project O, which was a project for young women in Frankston North to understand that they could be leaders and change not just their lives but the lives of others around them and their community. It's a program about resilience, strength and leadership, and it's an arts program. That's the sort of funding that will come under Revive, which is so important for communities.

The terrific Special Envoy for the Arts spoke about visiting services for people with disability and how the arts have the power to fundamentally change people's lives and build a stronger, more inclusive society. We see that with BAM Arts in my electorate. More than once I've tried to keep up with the dance moves of Buster and other adults with intellectual disabilities and have failed—as the video, which my staff may have put up online, would show. It's just sheer joy and engagement from the parents and the adults who perform at BAM. Recently, BAM graciously invited the minister to come and talk to locals about the value of the arts. One of the things that came out of a roundtable I held was the need for better community theatres and facilities in my electorate so that community groups could put on performances like Strictly Ballroom, which is coming up. I will be working with the community to get those facilities as fast as we can.

See this speech in context