AustLit

'Australian classics have been surging onto our stages of late: Matthew Lutton and Tom Wright’s acclaimed adaptation of Picnic at Hanging Rock recently enjoyed success in London as well as Australia; Andrew Bovell’s stage version of The Secret River toured the country to critical acclaim; and Leah Purcell’s adaptation of Henry Lawson’s The Drover’s Wifeis one of the most lauded Australian playscripts in recent memory. Kate Mulvany’s masterful adaptation of Ruth Park’s The Harp in the Southtrilogy – whose sprawling two-part, six-and-a-half-hour form is reminiscent of Nick Enright’s stage version of Cloudstreet – stands alongside these productions as an empathetic landmark event in the Australian theatrical canon.'  (Introduction)

'Bangarra Dance Theatre has been Australia’s premier Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dance company for nearly thirty years. Although the company includes dancers from every language grouping, it collaborates with specific traditional owners, depending on the particular works they are creating. This attention to specificity is an important part of Bangarra’s recognition of the different groupings across the Australian mainland and islands, and the islands of the Torres Strait. Led by Artistic Director Stephen Page, Bangarra draws on techniques that include traditional Indigenous dance as well as contemporary world techniques. The company’s works include Praying Mantis Dreaming, Ochres, Skin, Corroboree, Unaipon, CLAN, Mathinna, and Bennelong.' (Introduction)