Scratch Night

Come together and be there at the beginning. Up Late at The Embassy – our late-night artist club is the place to be and the home for Scratch Night. Two nights, six performers, 15 minutes, infinite ideas. 

In the spirit of Perth’s indie champions, The Blue Room Theatre, this night is primed for your ideas. Present your unpolished pieces across any and all art-making genres in this year’s Festival. Western Australian emerging and established artists – we want you! Experimenting in a new discipline? Yep, you too. No genre is off-limits. 

The unconventional, collaborative and conceptual merge in this late-night variety show. Scratch Night at Perth Festival is a community-minded and laidback performance that gives you a spot to present and test your new ideas, try out a new genre or trial a new project. Whether you have a seed for a solo show, give us a tight five of surreal comedy, debut a bold dance work or play out a puppetry piece – it all tracks.  

Our joyful host and your performance advisor is Adriano Cappelletta. If selected, you’ll have the option to check in and rehearse your piece ahead of the February Scratch Nights. So come test your new ideas with a group of like-minded people and special guests all set to be surprised, inspired and entertained. We’re looking for truth tellers and mischief makers – you never know who’ll be in the audience.  

The Blue Room Theatre are excited to receive your ideas. All six acts will receive a $300 honorarium (+ 11.5% superannuation) for time spent preparing and performing your idea. 

Key info

Fri 22 Nov | Applications open 

Mon 2 Dec | Applications close 

Mon 16 – Fri 20 Dec | Open rehearsal times available at The Blue Room (more info on their website) and option to book an advising touchpoint with Scratch Night host and mentor, Adriano Cappelletta 

Sun 16 & Sun 23 Feb | Scratch Nights at Up Late at the Embassy 

The Blue Room Theatre is your space to rehearse. Successful applicants will have the chance to utilise their spaces to work on your unpolished piece. During that week, you can also book a one hour advising session with Scratch Night host and mentor, Adriano Cappelletta. 

More rehearsal space at alternate venues may be able to be arranged in January depending on performers’ needs.  

Available times for one hour touchpoint with Adriano Cappelletta:  

Mon 16 Dec | 10am – 2pm 

Tue 17 Dec | 10am – 2pm 

Wed 18 Dec | 10am – 2pm 

If successful, you will contact the Blue Room to book in your rehearsal time. 

Key word: unpolished. Ideas, concepts, anything you’ve been itching to explore. You can present something a bit outside your sphere, something you're working on or maybe something in another discipline than your usual. Anything goes: stand-up, burlesque, music, comedy, spoken word, breaking, improv – what do you do? Surprise us! 

 Successful applications will present ideas that are: 

  • minimal tech

  • lo-fi

  • don’t require drum kits or projections

  • no more than three performers (if applying as a collective/group)

  • performances must be approx. 10 minutes

Be prepared to provide a description of your idea. You can submit either: 

  • 400-word description 

  • 2-minute video description 

If you’re a Festival Lab alum, please note the year you were a part of Lab in your description. 

You can submit one attachment (image, drawing, video, etc.) to support your application. 

You will also be asked for a preference of dates for presenting your work (16 or 23 Feb). This is not a guarantee, so it is advisable to leave your schedule free for both days. 

Submit all above requirements by Mon 2 Dec to: [email protected]  

Read more on The Blue Room website. 

Presented by Perth Festival with The Blue Room Theatre. 

Adriano Cappelletta is an actor, writer, director and producer working across stage and screen. He is the creator and writer of the Logie and AACTA nominated ABC drama series In Our Blood adapted from his play detailing Australia's radical response to AIDS in the 1980s. An alumnus of master clown Philippe Gaulier, Adriano has presented his original cabaret, comedy and clowning all over the world from serious festivals to seedy Berlin bars.