Welcome to the second episode of the Access Ideas and Insights Podcast Series!

In this episode, we explore how narrative, agency and identity are shaping new possibilities across art forms and genres.

Joining the conversation are two incredible guests, Christopher Bryant, an award-winning playwright, performer and educator, and Bria McCarthy, a Wiradjuri artist and writer whose practice spans theatre, literature, film, education and experimental shadow puppetry.

Together, they share bold ideas and creative insights into how disability storytelling is evolving and where it’s headed next.

Watch, Listen To or Read the Podcast

Episode 2: The Future of Disability Storytelling

Watch the Auslan interpreted video with closed captions by clicking through to watch on YouTube:

You can also access the podcast via the links below:

• Listen on Sound Cloud
• Listen on Apple Podcasts
• Listen or watch on Spotify with open captions

Check out the Episode 2 Transcript and the Image Description document which describes the artworks and images in the Auslan interpreted podcast video.

Podcast Guest Speakers

Christopher Bryant

Christopher Bryant is an award-winning playwright, performer, and disability advocate. He has worked with a range of companies including Griffin Theatre, STC, La Mama, Accessible Arts, and Merrigong Theatre Co. In 2024 he was a participant in Australian Plays Transform’s inaugural Write Together, Rise Together group for playwrights with disability. He’s been a two-time finalist for the Griffin Award (Parallel Play, 2024, and Home Invasion, 2015), been mentored by Nicola Gunn and Amelia Roper, and had work developed through the Great Plains Theatre Conference in Omaha (Disinhibition, 2018). In 2020 he completed his Ph.D. in disability & radical adaptation at Monash University, and has taught playwriting at institutions around the country

Bria McCarthy

Bria McCarthy writes and creates work for theatre, literature, film and education,with a speciality in experimental shadow puppetry. She created the ‘Shadow House’, a recycled fabric textile installation and performance space seen at the Penrith Real Festival and the Art Gallery of NSW in 2024. Her work was commissioned for the major exhibition ‘Dhuluny: The War That Never Ended’ at Bathurst Regional Art Gallery. In 2023, her debut solo show “Dragon Hearts” won the Sydney Fringe Award for Best Emerging Artist, and the show was selected to play in the Melbourne Fringe BlakLodge. She was the recipient of the 2022 ACE Indigenous Artist Residency, and her debut manuscript was shortlisted for the 2022 Text Prize. She is an autistic artist with Wiradjuri and Irish heritage. Her work is characterised by an emphasis on multispecies storytelling, neurodivergent imagination, and it is always a little magical.

Podcast Host

Bedelia Lowrenčev

Bedelia (they/she) is a groovy disabled actor, dancer, singer, agitator, theatre maker, producer and Access Coordinator, living and working on Wategoro and Wangal Land. Bedelia frequently collaborates with their Deaf twin Jeremy, as facilitators and explorers of queerness, disability and deafness. Bedelia has a keen interest in communal care, story sovereignty, reciprocity and advocacy in their arts practice. In particular, challenging the western gaze on body, community and identity, and the reclamation of CALD queerness, and relation to land. Most recently, Bedelia acted in the new short film ‘With Love, Lottie’ which screened at FrameShift at the Sydney Opera House, and will screen at the 2025 Mardi Gras Film Festival. Previously, Bedelia acted with Bus Stop Films in ‘Screen Me’, Assistant Produced Raghav Handa’s THE ASSEMBLY at Campbelltown Arts Centre, performed SOFT PLACES at the Sydney Biennale, Griffin Studio Resident, and was Access Coordinator at Performance Space for Liveworks, and Co-Program Coordinator: Access at Sydney Fringe Festival. Currently, Bedelia is cracking into their disabled musical spenanza with Wear It Purple, is lead creative in the Move Series at the Art Gallery of NSW, and worked on the Ripple program with Accessible Arts as program coordinator for 2025.

This podcast is proudly produced by Accessible Arts and Kiera Brew Kurec with sound design by Tralala Blip. Access consulting was provided by Macro Impact Consulting and our Advisory Group.

This podcast series is proudly supported by the City of Sydney and Create NSW, the principal funding partner of Accessible Arts.

Image description: Headshots of the podcast guest speakers Bria McCarthy and Christopher Bryant (photo by Jasmin Simmons).