The City of Yarra Room to Create Fund has granted a total of $22368 in funding for vital infrastructure upgrades for two Yarra based arts organisations, Dancehouse and Agency Projects.

The Room to Create Fund is a charitable fund account in partnership with the Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation. The fund will support the enhancement of infrastructure at Agency’s First Peoples cultural hub and a lighting upgrade at Dancehouse to energy efficient and low-cost lighting. The Room to Create program and Charitable Fund support artists and creative organisations to thrive in Yarra, enshrining Yarra’s identity as a creative municipality.

With assistance from the Room to Create Fund Grant, Agency will create custom fitted seating and shelving to facilitate library access and host a program of First Peoples-led talks, events, research projects and gatherings throughout the year. Agency is an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander not-for-profit organisation with a dedicated exhibition space and Knowledge Centre in Easey Street, Collingwood. The Knowledge Centre hosts a significant library of written, visual, and audio materials related to First Peoples arts and culture. The fit out assists Agency with the establishment of an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander owned "hub" in the City of Yarra that will contribute to the artistic and cultural vibrancy of the City of Yarra and beyond.   

Dancehouse is a multi-generational community based in Carlton North committed to the expression, development, and celebration of dance. The Room to Create Community Fund grant will assist Dancehouse in steps toward their carbon neutral 2030 plan, through the replacement of theatrical lighting infrastructure to LED technology. Artists working with Dancehouse will have access to state-of-the-art technology that will facilitate innovation and progression in artistic practice. Through this vital infrastructure upgrade, Dancehouse will be redirecting and sharing their significant energy savings with artists and audiences. The Room to Create program provides opportunities to support and grow the arts in Yarra. The program recognises the value the creative sector offers the Yarra community to participate or benefit from creative space activation and arts activity. Find out more about Room to Create and the Fund.