Performing arts
Drama principles and protocols
together brings a collaborative Indigenous
voice rather than just one voice to those
processes and decisions. Writing as a team
is a challenging creative process. In The
Dirty Mile for example, the Indigenous
writers brought a combination of dramatic,
historical/academic and theatrical skills to
the table. We felt it was a more Indigenous
way of working. We are in the process of
developing a contract which will set out the
legal position for this kind of collaboration,
so that everyone gets the correct share of
copyright, and is consulted before the play
is produced again.46
Case study: Yirra Yaakin
There are so many people making a
livelihood out of plagiarising the Indigenous
community – we butt up against that all the
time. For example, we had a very serious
problem when a non-Indigenous woman
wrote a story about the experiences of
Aboriginal people in the Pilbara. A major
theatre company came to Yirra Yaakin and
wanted to work with us, but we insisted on
following proper protocols for production of
the work. The non-Aboriginal woman set
herself up as the community liaison officer
and that situation created a lot of distress
because the real issues were not
communicated accurately between us in
the city and the Aboriginal people in the
Pilbara. Then they used our logo as a brand
of authenticity and we had to go to great
lengths at staff and board level to distance
ourselves from this production. At the
same time it caused unnecessary stress
and an increased workload on the
company. In addition to this we had to
re-establish a positive relationship with this
particular community, when invariably we
were the victims of a non-Indigenous
ambition to tell our Indigenous stories.47
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5. Secrecy and confidentiality
Some Indigenous material is not suitable for
wide dissemination on the grounds of secrecy
and confidentiality. It is the responsibility of
those putting together dramatic projects to
discuss any restrictions on the use of cultural
material with relevant Indigenous groups.
The secret and confidential nature of the
material may come from particular Indigenous
customary rules and practices. According to
these rules, a lot of Indigenous cultural material
can be known and passed on only by certain
people and under certain conditions. These are
a different and additional set of rules to those,
which govern access to information in the wider
community. So, even where someone might
get access to Indigenous material, there may
be strict rules about how, when and to whom
it can be passed on.
Just because you like Indigenous knowledge –
like stories or songs or you might hear, or want
to know more about Indigenous knowledge –
that does not mean you have the right to know
it or to use that knowledge.48
Use of a cultural consultant, good
communication, consultation and consent
procedures will help to avoid breaking these
rules and causing harm.
It is the responsibility of the project organisers
to discuss any restrictions on use with the
relevant Indigenous groups.
Secret and sacred material
The reproduction or unauthorised use of secret
and sacred material may be a transgression of
Indigenous law.
‘Secret and sacred’ refers to information or
material that, under customary law, is:
• made available only to the initiated
• used for a particular purpose
• used at a particular time
• information/material that can only be seen
and heard by particular language group
Performing arts
Drama principles and protocols
members (such as men or women or people
with certain knowledge).
21
attribution people may want, such as proper
wording and spelling of names.
Most material that is sacred has customary
law restrictions on its use. The consultation
process should clearly state the proposed
use and observe any restrictions according
to gender or other customs.
The moral rights provisions of the Copyright
Act require that individual authors are identified
as the creator of the work – the law requires
that the playwright or author is identified
and acknowledged.
Representation of deceased people
Some filmmakers include a warning at the
beginning of a film to alert viewers that the
film contains people who have passed away.
While dramatic works are not permanent and
fixed in the same way as films, representation
of deceased people may arise, and warnings
could be used in programs, published editions
of plays and announcements prior to
a performance.
Attribution can include:
• credit for the custodians of traditional stories
or motifs used in the work
• attribution of the community or
individuals who contributed through the
consultation process
• attribution of Indigenous cultural consultants
and others who have participated or
contributed cultural information during the
development and performance of the work.
Personal privacy
If you are planning to depict an identifiable
individual or community, ask the individual,
community or relatives of the individual for
permission and check whether the details are
correct. Personal or confidential information
must not be disclosed without permission from
the people who would be affected by the
disclosure. Ensure there is close consultation
around these issues.
Disclosure of personal information about
a person who has passed away should be
cleared with the family and community.
There are a few guiding principles for creative
development of contemporary works and
responsible representation of Indigenous culture.
• How will your work affect the Indigenous
person or group it is based on?
• Does it empower them?
• Does it expose confidential material?
• Does it reinforce negative stereotypes?
6. Attribution
Indigenous people should be attributed for the
use of their cultural heritage material in dramatic
works. It is important to consult on the form of
In the Kooemba Jdarra production of Going to
the Island, the participation of the community
was an important part of the publicity for the
production, and the community was
acknowledged in the program.49
7. Proper returns and royalties
Wages and conditions
An ongoing issue for Indigenous and nonIndigenous performers is that of fair rates of
pay and conditions. How do performers find
out about fair pay and conditions?
The Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance
(MEAA) provides advice and support for its
members on many different issues including
employment.50 See the: common issues
section in this guide for more information.
Case study: Yirra Yaakin
Yirra Yaakin is committed to advocating for
good wages and conditions for performing
artists. Indigenous performing artists should
be paid the equity rate at least. Yirra Yaakin
pays above the equity rate as part of our
commitment to fair pay.