EDGE White Bay: Force Majeure

Nate Gilkes, Composer & Performer

Nate Gilkes is a Helpmann award winning musician, arts educator and artistic director working across disciplines of theatre, music and community arts. Nate’s artistic practice sits at the colliding points of music, theatre and opera, often using multi modes and artforms to convey story. He works primarily in new music / theatre, Arts Education and Training and Community Works. He composed the score for the Helpmann Award winning production, Robot Song with Arena Theatre Company (Best Production for Children and Young People), as well as works appearing with companies like Big hART, Melbourne Festival, Ten Days on the Island and the Fairfax Youth initiative His training is in music and theatre direction and is currently completing a masters degree in Cultural Leadership at NIDA.

Elle Evangelista, Associate Director and Performer

Elle Evangelista loves dancing.

Elle is an Artistic Associate at BELVOIR and choreographed The Master & Margarita, The Cherry Orchard, Boomkak Panto and The REP Season and A Midnight Summer’s Dream with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. Her other theatre choreography credits include Twelfth Night (Bell Shakespeare), A Very Expensive Poison (NIDA) and How To Catch A Star (Australian Chamber Orchestra).

As a dancer she has worked for Force Majeure, KAGE Physical Theatre, Opera Australia, Ghenoa Gela, Matt Cornell and she has been awarded residencies to create new work by Ausdance NSW, DirtyFeet, Critical Path, March Dance, Brand X, Supercell Festival of Contemporary Dance and DRILL Performance Company. From 2019 – 2021, Elle was an Artist Representative on the Board of Critical Path.

Elle has a Bachelor of Arts in English from UWA and a Bachelor of Arts in Dance from WAAPA. She is proud to have an ongoing career in the arts, navigating the complex structural and cultural barriers that exist with this decision.

Elle was raised in Boorloo/Perth by her Filipino and Burmese family and currently lives on Garigal Land in Sydney with her partner and their young son. Away from the stage and studio Elle really, really, enjoys knitting and asks the question “How do you keep your creative practice AND your child(ren) alive?” on her podcast MUM in development.

Mym Kwa, Performer

Mym Kwa is an actor, dancer and theatre-maker of Chinese and Scottish heritage, living and working on Gadigal land. She graduated from Ed5International in 2020 with an Advanced Diploma of Performing Arts.

Mym’s theatre credits include Saturday Girls (25A Belvoir), Dumb Kids (KXT) –nominated for ‘Best Independent Production’ in the 2023 Sydney Theatre Awards, Moon Rabbit Rising (Little Eggs Collective x 25A Belvoir) – nominated for ‘Best Ensemble’ in the 2022 Sydney Theatre Awards, Much Ado (Flight Path Theatre), Lady Precious Stream (Slanted Theatre x The Flying Nun Brand X) and The Park (New Theatre).

Mym made her professional screen debut in 2022 as the lead in ‘Asexy’, a queer coming of age short film (dir. Kylie Aoibheann McDonnell).

Most recently, Mym created and performed her own work through Shopfront’s Artslab residency: The Girl is/a Glitch – a 3+ hour movement and installation performance.

With a passion for movement and ensemble-work, Mym also collaboratively devises and delivers workshops for young people. Facilitating HSC Theatre Devising workshops at the Seymour Centre and Regional Arts Workshops in Maitland with award-winning theatre company, Little Eggs Collective.

Danielle Micich, Director

Danielle is a highly awarded choreographer, director, intimacy director and performer of dance theatre and is currently Artistic Director of Force Majeure. She makes new work for festivals, theatre productions, opera and film, alongside site-specific and community work. After graduating from the Victorian College of the Arts and relocating to Perth as a company dancer for 2 Dance Plus, she was appointed Artistic Director of STEPS Youth Dance Company. Her independent work extends nationally and internationally, working with companies such as Sydney Theatre Company, Belvoir, Black Swan State Theatre Company, Perth Theatre Company, Night Train Productions, Steamworks Arts Productions, Dwhani Dance Company (India), Barking Gecko Theatre Company, Pinchgut Opera and Monkey Baa Theatre. As an intimacy director she has worked across live performance, film and television, with her credits including BUMP (Roadshow/Stan), SET PIECE (Performing Lines) Titus Andronicus (Bell Shakespeare) and Berlin Syndrome (Cate Shortland/ Aquarius Films). She has been Artistic Director of Force Majeure since 2015, based at Carriageworks in Sydney. Danielle’s ambition is to contribute to making new Australian work through storytelling that reaches audiences by exploring themes and issues relevant to contemporary culture; reflecting, embracing and challenging community attitudes and ideals.