AustLit

Motherland was an ambitious task, nevertheless, Katherine Lyall-Watson and Caroline Dunphy, the cast and the other creative minds involved in its formation, succeeded in creating a performance that was visually and aurally striking, emotionally gripping, and intelligent. The innovative and clever integration of the women’s stories in the script provided the perfect foundation to build a compelling performance. The staging added a very sophisticated and stylised quality to the play, while the lighting design greatly enhanced the atmosphere. The decisions made in regards to directing and the manipulation of paralinguistics brought the lines to life and helped guide the audience through the intricate juxtaposition of time and events.

It is evident when comparing Motherland to two earlier plays, also by women playwrights, that they share many similarities in the types of stories and themes they investigate; the difference being that Motherland interprets them through a modern lens. It is also apparent, that while Wives Have Their Uses and Quiet Night were written and performed within the confines of realism, Motherland takes on a much more experimental form. Evident in these three plays, and others by women playwrights, is that the Australian national identity is less prominent compared to plays by Australian men whose plots typically revolve around the bush, beer, cars and sport (Schafer and Smith 148). Perhaps though it is simply that women are presenting a different perspective of Australia. They use Australia as a beautiful backdrop and foundation for their writing rather than using their writing to feature and reinforce core cultural and national, often androcentric, characteristics. Instead, attention is given to the multidimensional characters and unique plots which results in intelligent and emotionally engaging plays.