2 June 2025
UNTOLD: Momentum Leaders
This Friday, musicians of the Australian Youth Orchestra (AYO) and alumni of the National Institute of Dramatic Arts (NIDA), come together for the final intensive week of Momentum Leaders, a bold cross-artform collaboration, to present UNTOLD. This pilot program is the first of its kind among these organisations: a space where innovative young artists lead the charge.
UNTOLD heralds the unseen and unheard stories that these artists have been deeply moved or alarmed by, and in some instances, stories that are entirely personal to them. This work invites its audience to listen gently, hungrily, furiously to these stories that have, until this moment, remained untold. Across five acts, this original multimedia work produced in its entirety by the Momentum Leaders, negotiates improvisation, composition, drama, oratorio, poetry and song. From a World War Two lullaby, a comfort to the walls of concentration camps, to stories of migration, of safe havens, of homemaking; love stories, Swiss-army knives, childhood memories, the universal elements of human existence.
This work is the culmination of five months of collaboration. The nine artists developed their ideas in in-person workshops and navigated the challenges of remote communication, producing a narrative arc that is as personal as much as it speaks to the commonality of humankind: the stories that each belong to us and are shared with others. Stories that move, trouble, shape, evoke, become.
In the final act, audiences are invited to participate, sharing their own stories – at first a noisy combination of mobile phones: social media notifications, notifications, calls, podcasts, sound. Then, the finale – what might happen when all these stories weave together? And when those unheard are given their voices?
This work is the product of a handpicked group of creative visionaries, composed of NIDA alumni Sudip Sauden (Director/Actor) and Lily Thomson (Dramaturg) and AYO musicians Abigail Lui (Violin/Composition), Paul Nicolau (Harp/Composition), Kit Millais (Trombone), Jet Chong (Percussion), Julia Magri (Double Bass), Elliot Plumpton (Violin) and Jessica Scott (Flute).
As NIDA CEO, Liz Hughes says of the collaboration: “Momentum Leaders nurtures the collaboration and adaptability required in today’s arts sector, ensuring success for graduates in an ever-changing creative landscape.”
This adaptability is under the guidance and mentorship of some of Australia’s leading arts innovators, including Tim Munro, John Babbage, Christa Powell, Deline Briscoe, Yaron Lifschitz, Jacqui Somerville and Samuel Cairnduff, helping them not only shape UNTOLD into its final form, but providing guidance across skillsets beyond performance and composition, and providing these artists with the skills to lead a fulfilling, entrepreneurial career in Australia’s cultural landscape.
Acknowledging the diversity of skills required to navigate a 21st century artistic career, AYO CEO, Kimbali Harding reflects: “Momentum Leaders is a bold step forward in how we prepare young artists for their careers. By bringing together musicians, composers, and theatre-makers, we are fostering a generation of creative leaders equipped to shape Australia’s cultural future with confidence and originality.”
On Friday 6th June, 5pm and 8pm, the culmination of this process takes to the stage at NIDA’s Studio Theatre. Momentum Leaders is the result of collaboration, community and adaptability. A work generated through experimentation, and a democratic approach to music-making. Don’t miss this opportunity to witness this personal work, a rare space in which young artistic voices are given full expressive reign.