Melanie Riley
FORMER local performer, Adrien Tucker has had his work recognised in Melbourne, recently being nominated for a Green Room Award.
The Green Room Awards are a Melbourne-based premier and peer-presented performing arts industry award with several categories and sub-categories.
Mr Tucker grew up in Mount Gambier/Berrin and began dancing at 14 years-old at Hype Dance, then made the move to Melbourne to pursue performing further in 2015, where he now works independently as a performer.
He performed the solo piece ‘The Unlearning,’ with centre for independent contemporary dance, Dancehouse as part of Melbourne Fringe.
“I haven’t always danced. One of my older brothers danced first, so I thought I would give it a go and I started with hip-hop,” Mr Tucker.
“Now, I make more contemporary dance or performance art, that’s where I spend most of my time.
“I still dabble with hip-hop, but professionally I mainly work in the contemporary space.”
Mr Tucker was nominated for Best Performer in the Contemporary and Experimental category of the awards, and said he was surprised to receive the nomination.
“To be honest it felt quite random, and I was also nominated against some pretty big dancers from other companies,” he said.
“At the start it was a little bit to digest, but it was super exciting and validating to be nominated.
“The work was quite intimate, and quite sensitive in a sense.
“I think it was a lot about me as an individual in the work, so maybe it felt quite personal and relatable as an audience member to watch.”
Mr Tucker said this recognition has been important to his performing journey, and has motivated him to continue on his artistic path.
“The work has obviously hit the right spot for some people that have come to watch it, which is exciting,” he said.
“This has been a big source of encouragement to keep making and generating future work.”
Mr Tucker said he had some performances in the works, and was excited to one day be able to bring his work to showcase back in the Limestone Coast.
“I’d love to bring a work back to Mount Gambier one day, and I think it would be interesting and different to everything else that has been presented there.”
