NICA's Artist Residency Program

CALL OUT FOR CIRCUS & PHYSICAL THEATRE ARTISTS

Applications to the 2026 Residency Program are opening soon!

Starting in April 2026, we are opening our doors to independent circus artists and groups undergoing new act and/or show creation processes, to offer space for development.
In order to continue to create pathways for independent artist development we would like to share one major resource that is frequently identified as a need in the community: training space!

Our Goals for the Residency are to:
  • Assist independent artists with developing new works by providing an in-kind creative space.
  • Give our students connections to professional working artists by seeing how they train and create new work.
  • Offer our students an opportunity to see new work by the exciting artists in our community, at any stage of development.

KEY DATES

Applications Opening Soon

Term 2

  • 13 April – 24 April, 2026

Term 3

  • 13 July – 23 July, 2026
  • 27 July – 7 August, 2026
  • 10 August – 21 August, 2026
  • 24 August – 4 September, 2026

Term 4

  • 5 October – 16 October, 2026
  • 19 October – 30 October, 2026

The Details

Successful applicants will have FREE access to one-half of the Sidney Myer space, for two consecutive weeks: Monday to Friday, between 10am - 4pm.

Applications will be accepted until spots are filled in each term. Residencies will be programmed throughout the year, excluding school holidays and show production periods when the training space would be in higher demand with the NCC in performance mode.
 
Artists would be selected on the basis of the training space’s suitability to their project and intended outcomes, with a focus on those for whom hiring training space would be a financial barrier to new work creation.

To successful applicants, NICA will additionally provide access to the rigging points (pending an induction), acro mats (as requested), and a speaker. We cannot provide lighting or access to our main sound systems, so this opportunity would be good for shows that do not at the moment require a technical residency.

After the conclusion of the residency, the artists will be asked to give feedback on the process and create a short video promoting their work and their time at NICA, which the marketing team can share on social media to advocate the importance of programs like this.

Please note:

If written forms are not accessible to you, we will also accept answers in the form of a video recording, a video chat, or an in-person meeting with NICA’s Alumni & Industry Coordinator.

VISA support is not available.


Thank you to our 2025 Artists in Residence:
5 Angry Men, Sara Houbolt, Nihilistic Optimism on Trampolines (NOOT), Amy Nightingale-Olsen, Bonnie Blewitt, Suitable Circus, and Brett Franzi.

FAQs

Here are some quick answers to frequent questions. 

If you have other queries, please email connects@nica.com.au

There are two phases to the application process:

  • Phase One: details of what you’d like to do.
  • Phase Two: the documents to show how you’re doing to do it (safely and insured!)

 There’s a huge administrative load placed on independent artists that we acknowledge is often unpaid. So, we don’t want to ask for things like a detailed risk assessment if we know we won’t be able to offer you the time and space that works for your project. That’s why we’re breaking things into more manageable phases this year. 

 Please note that success in Phase One doesn’t guarantee we’ll be able to offer you a place in the residency for sure. We’re doing our best to wrangle lots of applications and interest. 


A: You need an idea for a show, a drive to make it happen, and the organizational skills to get us some of required documentation (more on this below). We are really open to a wide variety of shows and artists, skillsets and experience levels.

NICA is a university, so there may be a few extra levels of documentation needed, that you would not find at another circus training space. If you are accepted into the program, in order to confirm a residency slot you will need to provide:

  • PLI for either your organisation, or every individual within your collective;
  • A risk assessment for your residency that details all of the skills and acts you propose to work on during your time here;
  • A full list of collaborators who will be in the building with you;
  • And a prospective schedule for how you will spend your time at NICA, including when each of your collaborators will be in the building. 

 We will need these details from you at least 1 month prior to the start of your residency. 

This is a circus university, of course we’re maximising your (administrative) hoop diving training! You will also need to have all members of your team attend a site induction on the first day of your residency. ** No one will be allowed to join the residency without being present at this induction. ** If you are using aerial equipment and NICA’s rigging systems, a separate rigging induction will also need to be scheduled.

We're glad you asked! Being a university, you’ll be sharing space with current students. They’re going to be looking to you, the pros, to set an example. So we ask that all artists in residence:

  • Model best professional behaviours and training practices at all times in the building;
  • If you’re taking photos and videos for your own social media, please refrain from having students training in the background without their permissions and permissions from NICA’s marketing team;
  • On the final day of your residency (Friday, 4pm-5pm) welcome students to either a showing or an open rehearsal of what you’ve been creating here at NICA. It doesn’t have to be perfect or polished, what we are keen on is having students get further insight into your creative process. 

After the conclusion of the residency, the artists will be asked to give feedback on the process and create a short video promoting their work and their time at NICA, which the marketing team can share on social media.