This after-hours program aims to drive visitation to Western Sydney CBDs and increase audience engagement at eligible organisations. Cultural venues, museums and galleries in eligible Western Sydney LGAs can apply for grants to stay open after 5pm.
Key information
- Status: Closed
- Grant amount: Up to $200,000
- Application opened: 27 April 2023
- Application closed: 29 May 2023, 5:00 pm
Program objective
By supporting activities after 5pm, Culture Up Late will allow arts and cultural organisations to:
- develop new programs
- extend exhibition hours
- diversify income streams by accessing non-traditional audiences
- create vibrant local precincts through engagement with local businesses, such as restaurants, bars and transport providers.
Program delivery: Between 1 September 2023 and 29 February 2024
Image: Casula Up Late, Casula Powerhouse. Photo: Chantel Bann
This program is funded and administered by Create NSW.
Eligibility
Create NSW is committed to supporting organisations that are essential to a contemporary, innovative and daring arts and cultural ecology in NSW.
This includes not-for-profit and local government arts and cultural organisations delivering activities in artforms including:
Aboriginal Arts and Culture
contemporary music
museums and history, including volunteer-run museums
dance and physical theatre
festivals
classical music and choral
literature
visual arts
multi-arts
theatre and musical theatre.
Who can apply
Applicants must be a local government entity, an incorporated entity or trust (including a trust with a corporate or individual trustee) and hold an Australian Business Number (ABN).
To be eligible for funding, applicants must be located in the following LGAs:
Auburn Council
Camden Council
City of Blacktown
City of Blue Mountains
City of Campbelltown
City of Canterbury Bankstown
City of Fairfield
City of Hawkesbury
City of Liverpool
City of Parramatta
City of Penrith
Cumberland City Council
Wollondilly Shire Council.
Who can't apply
Ineligible applicants include:
any business or organisation that does not satisfy eligibility requirements
any business or organisation located outside the LGAs listed above
unincorporated organisations
individuals or sole traders.
What you can't apply for
Ineligible programs include:
activities that are delivered prior to 5pm
activities that have already been announced
activities that could be classified as normal operational activities
opening nights, awards nights and fundraising events
projects requiring ongoing funding from the NSW Government
activities not open to the public.
Most recent recipients
What was approved
Approved for Arts & Cultural Exchange Inc
‘ACE After Dusk’ is a new initiative by Arts & Cultural Exchange (ACE), Parramatta, aimed at establishing a regular, evening arts party series to extend our venue opening hours (currently 9am-5pm). This will be ACE’s first-ever branded, regular, night-time public-event series. Three events will serve as a pilot from Sept to February ’24, to cement the ACE After Dusk brand.
$86,065 was approved by
the Group Deputy Secretary, Arts, Sport and Tourism, Department of Enterprise, Investment and Trade, based on recommendations from a panel comprising Create NSW staff and other NSW government representatives.Date approved
June 2023Location of the recipient
City of ParramattaAbout the grant
Applications approved
11
Applications received
23
Western Sydney Culture Up Late Program
Agency funding this grant
Create NSWProgram term
30 June 2024What was approved
Approved for Blacktown City Council
Blacktown Arts will partner with Vyva Entertainment to deliver an up late program of signature events and micro programs in cultural spaces and restaurants in Blacktown City CBD. BLACKTOWN AFTER 5 builds on our partnerships and learnings from our 2022 Culture up Late program. In 2023, we will extend our reach to the public spaces and locally run restaurants of Blacktown - all within a 5 min walk of The Leo Kelly Blacktown Arts Centre.
$200,000 was approved by
the Group Deputy Secretary, Arts, Sport and Tourism, Department of Enterprise, Investment and Trade, based on recommendations from a panel comprising Create NSW staff and other NSW government representatives.Date approved
June 2023Location of the recipient
BlacktownAbout the grant
Applications approved
11
Applications received
23
Western Sydney Culture Up Late Program
Agency funding this grant
Create NSWProgram term
30 June 2024What was approved
Approved for Camden Council
A captivating after 5 experience where creativity knows no bounds. The program invites audiences to immerse themselves in a multi-faceted cultural extravaganza that combines live performance, inspiring art, bustling markets, and soul-stirring music. Showcasing a diverse range of live performance, mesmerising dance, and talent the program will inspire, encouraging audiences to engage.
$129,450 was approved by
Minister for the Arts, based on recommendations from a panel comprising Create NSW staff and other NSW government representatives.Date approved
June 2023Location of the recipient
CamdenAbout the grant
Applications approved
11
Applications received
23
Western Sydney Culture Up Late Program
Agency funding this grant
Create NSWProgram term
30 June 2024What was approved
Approved for Campbelltown City Council
C-A-C will open Thursday, selected Friday and Saturday evenings (5–9pm), November 2023–January 2024, to present a range of multi-artform artist-led programs aimed at extended engagement with artists, local communities and visitors, under the banner ‘Sundown Sessions’. Building on the successes of 2022’s program, C-A-C will present a highly engaging program of exhibition tours, creative activations, live music and family-friendly workshops driven by community interests and creative, social and economic outcomes. An Art After Dark Trail featuring an AR experience will bring the city’s public art to life through a specially curated trail. We will collaborate with local businesses to support night-time economy and enhance audience access to the arts. TALKS/TOURS/WORKSHOPS: A series of talks & tours of exhibitions, public art trail and gardens, will be facilitated by participating artists and curators. C-A-C will hold workshops led by local artists engaging locals, young people and emerging creatives. ARTS MARKETS: Artist Exchange Makers Market will be held on a Saturday evening in November/December 2023 to showcase the diverse community of artists in Western Sydney and the region. PERFORMANCE: Live performance is integral to the weekly program featuring DJs, musicians and contemporary dancers activating spaces, drawing young people as audiences.
$200,000 was approved by
the Group Deputy Secretary, Arts, Sport and Tourism, Department of Enterprise, Investment and Trade, based on recommendations from a panel comprising Create NSW staff and other NSW government representatives.Date approved
June 2023Location of the recipient
CampbelltownAbout the grant
Applications approved
11
Applications received
23
Western Sydney Culture Up Late Program
Agency funding this grant
Create NSWProgram term
30 June 2024What was approved
Approved for Canterbury Bankstown Council
Imaging and activating Canterbury-Bankstown's creative precinct in the CBD through the concept mapping, the program is a suite of three distinct but interconnected night time events around Craft, Design and Art. With Bankstown Arts Centre (BAC) as the thriving hub, it maps out a walking trail for night time walking to end at the Paul Keating Park and Bryan Brown Theatre. Consisting of three themed nights of programs, it will connect BAC with selected food businesses, the Paul Keating Park and in the final finnisage iteration, link up with a film screening at Bryan Brown Theatre. Core to the concept is an AR artwork activated by mobile phones and ground/wall decals that begins at BAC and ends at the Bryan Brown Theatre, with the view to visualise, through mapping what is an extended creative hub of Bankstown city centre.
$200,000 was approved by
the Group Deputy Secretary, Arts, Sport and Tourism, Department of Enterprise, Investment and Trade, based on recommendations from a panel comprising Create NSW staff and other NSW government representatives.Date approved
June 2023Location of the recipient
Canterbury-BankstownAbout the grant
Applications approved
11
Applications received
23
Western Sydney Culture Up Late Program
Agency funding this grant
Create NSWProgram term
30 June 2024What your application needs to include
For information on full requirements, we recommend reading the full Western Sydney Culture Up Late Guidelines (PDF 3.92MB).
Address the eligibility criteria
Applicant eligibility
Applicants must:
- be a local government entity, an incorporated entity or trust (including a trust with a corporate or individual trustee)
- hold an Australian Business Number (ABN)
- be located in an eligible LGA.
Project eligibility
To be eligible, programs must be presented to the public in the eligible LGA areas from 5pm and after on a regular basis during the activity period (1 September 2023 to 29 February 2024).
Address the assessment criteria
Eligible applications will be assessed against the following assessment criteria:
Excellence: delivery of outstanding, innovative experiences that will draw night-time audiences
Accessibility: appeal and accessibility to a broad and diverse audience base
Value for money: how the proposed program will deliver benefits to the Western Sydney community, including your organisation, local businesses, artists and arts and cultural workers.
Start the application
Applications for this grant are now closed.
After the application is submitted
Successful applications will be decided by: the Group Deputy Secretary, Arts, Sport and Tourism, Department of Enterprise, Investment and Trade, based on recommendations from a panel comprising Create NSW staff and other NSW government representatives.
All applicants will be notified of the outcome of their applications under embargo in June 2023.
Unsuccessful applicants will be provided an opportunity for feedback by Create NSW.
Support and contact
Email: sector.support@create.nsw.gov.au including your name and contact details.
Go to Create NSW