Co3 Contemporary Dance has announced the appointment of Co-Artistic Directors Charmene Yap and Cass Mortimer Eipper.

The collaborators and partners will relocate back to Western Australia to take on the role from January 2027 following the departure of Co3’s inaugural Artistic Director Raewyn Hill.

Cass Mortimer Eipper and Charmene Yap. Photo © Bonnie Hansen Photography

“This isn’t simply a move west for us – Western Australia shaped us both as artists, so the opportunity to return and lead Co3 together means a great deal,” said Yap and Mortimer Eipper.

“We see Co3 as a place where ambitious dance is made, where artists can take risks, and where work born in Western Australia can resonate nationally and internationally.”

Trained in both WA and New York, Charmene Yap is a dance artist, choreographer and movement director who works across contemporary dance, theatre, opera, film and site-responsive work. She has worked with organisations including Sydney Dance Company, Sydney Theatre Company, Opera Australia, Belvoir and Chunky Move, and her performances have earned her two Helpmann Awards and an Australian Dance Award.

Choreographer and director Cass Mortimer Eipper begun his career at West Australian Ballet and has since seen his works performed by Sydney Dance Company, Bangarra Dance Theatre and Queensland Ballet, among others. He has earned international commissions from Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal and Milwaukee Ballet, and has earned a West Australian Dance Award and Helpmann Award for his work as a performer and choreographer.

Yap and Mortimer Eipper created Grey Rhino for the 2022 Sydney Festival.

Outgoing AD Raewyn Hill will remain with Co3 as a Creative Fellow throughout 2027, developing and presenting a new work amongst the organisation’s 2027 season.

“After 12 extraordinary years, I am delighted to see Co3’s next chapter entrusted to two exceptional artists whose creative partnership is founded on collaboration, generosity and a shared vision for what dance can be,” said Hill.

“Welcoming Charmene and Cass home to Western Australia with their young family feels especially significant, bringing their experience, creativity and deep connection to this place back to the community that first nurtured them.”

More about Co3 Contemporary Dance can be found here.