Acknowledgment of country

Polyglot acknowledges that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which we live and create, and we pay our respects to Elders past and present. For more than 65,000 years, children and families have created and played here, and we are grateful to make our art on this country too.


16 Dec 2021 E-News

Polyglot’s December e-news

A behind-the-scenes We Built This City photo. 7 Polyglot artists wearing blue overalls, red t-shirts and red hard hats pose for the camera with Polyglot’s Artistic Director Sue Giles, who wears all black. They are in front of a white picket fence that surrounds the We Built This City site, filled with thousands of cardboard boxes. Tall buildings and blue sky are visible in the background.

A bright end to 2021

The 20th anniversary season of We Built This City was a glorious way to end another unusual year. Presented by Melbourne Fringe and Metro Tunnel Creative Program in University Square, it was a truly joyous and momentous weekend. We loved welcoming children and families back into our original Play Space, and the energy, chaos and FUN was electric. A huge thank you to everyone who came along and built and created and played with us – we treasured every single second. We are very grateful for the support from our presenting partners, and it was a treat seeing our cardboard box structures alongside the Metro Tunnel Parkville Station build site.

We are delighted to share that Polyglot has received Australia Council for the Arts project funding for some of our 2022 activities. This vital support ensures that we can further the creative development of innovative projects that centre children, families and their communities. Stay tuned for more updates in the new year. 

Polyglot is also very excited to be part of the Victorian Department of Education & Training Positive Start in 2022 initiative. The Victorian Government is re-engaging primary and secondary students and boosting their physical and emotional health and wellbeing in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. After two years of disruption to their schooling, friendships and connections with learning, the initiative will help students in government or low-fee non-government schools to bounce back into the world and experience the richness of Victorian life and culture. Polyglot has received funding to continue taking Paper Planet into specialist schools in both regional and metropolitan areas.

We’re hiring! Are you Polyglot’s new Development Manager? We’re looking for a great communicator with excellent written and verbal skills, someone who is highly organised with outstanding attention to detail. The Development Manager has primary responsibility for delivering the company’s fundraising strategy and works closely with our Executive team and Board to support the company’s strategic vision. This is a 0.6-0.7 EFT (3-3.5 days/week) role, commencing late January for an initial 12-month contract with a view to renewal. Applications close Wed 12 Jan 2022.

Our team has been very busy with the creation of a new, accessible website which was made possible by the extraordinary and generous support we received in our mid-year fundraising campaign. We are working with Freerange Future, a digital creative agency that is a certified B corporation, and we are thrilled with the creative ideas that are flourishing through our collaboration. We can’t wait to show you the website early next year.

And the Polyglot team is taking a summer break to relax and recharge. Our last day for the year will be this Friday 17 December, and we’ll be back at work on Monday 10 January 2022. We hope that you also have an opportunity to rest and reflect after another big year. Our Polyglot at home videos are available for some on-demand creative family fun over the holiday season – there’s even a couple of brand new ones for you to explore.

See you in 2022!