Belvoir St Theatre has announced entries for the 2026 Balnaves Foundation Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Fellowship Program have opened.

The Balnaves Fellowship is a paid residency which provides the opportunity to work at Belvoir as a resident artist to create a work for the stage.

As well as providing funding to create a new work, the Fellowship provides an individual with the opportunity to work at Belvoir over a two-year period from January 2026 to December 2027 as a resident artist.

The Fellowship is open to both playwrights to write a new play and to directors or writer/directors which can lead the creation of an Indigenous-led new stage work, whether that be a new play, an adaptation or through a devised process. It also includes an invitation to have a voice in Belvoir's artistic decision-making processes.

From its origins as the Balnaves Foundation Indigenous Playwright Award, the Balnaves Foundation Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Fellowship is recognised as one of the most prestigious awards in Australia, attracting entrants of the highest calibre.

Previous recipients - including Hannah Belanszky, Leah Purcell, Nakkiah Lui, Thomas Weatherall, Nathan Maynard and Dalara Williams, whose play 'Big Girls Don't Cry' premiered in Belvoir's 2025 season - have submitted exceptional works which consistently affirm the depth of talent amongst our nation's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander theatre-makers, whilst bringing extraordinary works to the Belvoir stage.

"The Balnaves Fellowship has been an incredible opportunity to not only develop a new play with the company but also to become enmeshed in the Belvoir team and community," 2025 Balnaves Foundation fellow Hannah Belanszky said.

"It's been a welcoming and inspiring experience that has given me space and support to go deeper into my craft as a playwright."

Balnaves Foundation chief executive officer, Hamish Balnaves, said the Foundation has been privileged to partner with Belvoir St Theatre in the advancement of Indigenous theatre.

"For more than a decade, The Balnaves Foundation has been privileged to partner with Belvoir St Theatre in the advancement of Indigenous theatre," he said.

"Together, through The Balnaves Foundation Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Fellowship, we have supported 13 extraordinary artists in the creation of new works.

"We are pleased to renew our commitment alongside Belvoir St Theatre to provide opportunities for Indigenous theatre makers to develop and share their original works."

Applications, which are now open, close 6pm Monday 10 November.

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