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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
Set in an 'Australian League Canteen' during World War II in an Australian coastal city. The play deals with military life and social status in the context of the war. The characters (22 in total) include voluntary workers who man the canteen, nurses, military personnel from all of the armed forces, and munitions factory workers, from various social levels. One of the characters is an un-named Aboriginal AIF private.
Miss Clancy – Voluntary Helper at Canteen
Matt Payne – A.I.F. Sergeant
An Aboriginal – A.I.F Private
Sister Ruth Wynne – A.I.F. Nurse
Flying-Officer Don Preston – R.A.A.F.
Elmer Lee – Sergeant in U.S. Forces
Bill Stevens – A.I.F. Private
Mrs Fitzgerald – Voluntary Helper at Canteen
Young U.S. Airman
Mrs Stanwell-Rock – Voluntary Helper at Canteen
Mrs Gilden – Voluntary Helper at Canteen
Bettina Smythe – Voluntary Helper at Canteen
Mrs Mona Halliday – Munition Worker and Voluntary Helper at Canteen
'Kokoda' – Young A.I.F. Boy
Jake – Merchant Navy Newfoundlander
Erky – Merchant Navy Cockney
Scottish Naval Rating with R.N.
Laura – A.W.A.S.
Trixie – A.W.A.S.
Sergeant Julie Rutherford – A.A.M.C.
Mrs Shirley Watt – Voluntary Helper at Canteen
Adaptations
-
form
y
Shoulder the Sky
Australia
:
ABC Radio
,
1945
13419468
1945
single work
radio play
A radio adaptation of Dymphna Cusack's play of the same name.
Notes
-
First published as stage play, 1945. Details as yet untraced.
Production Details
-
First produced 5-7 July 1951 by the NT Society of Arts at the Belsen Recreation Hut in Darwin. Produced by Keith Mason with some cast cuts and script alterations to make it suit the limitations of the venue. According to a report in the Northern Standard on the activities of the NT Society of Arts in 1952, Cusack 'expressed her appreciation of the Society's courage at being the first organisation to produce the play.'
- Cast incl. Sheila Madden (Miss Clancy), Lyn Berlowitz (Mrs Fitsgerald), Therese Marks (Bettina Smythe), Lynette McAnley (Sister Wynne), Maureen Blowes (Laura), Wendy Walker (Trixie), Beryl Bolton (Julie Rutherford), Ellen Mahoney (Mrs Shirley Watt), Jean Drysdale (Mrs Stanwell-Rock), Nora Pike (Mrs Gilden), Una Roberts (Mrs Mona Halliday), Clarrie Taylor (Matt Payne), Bill Richardson (Elmer Lee), Alan Carson, Les Last, Bill Sime, Reg Waters, Glen Woodward, Ian White ('Kokoda'), Bill Alderman.
Also broadcast on ABC radio 12 July 1945.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
-
Dymphna Cusack's Plays
1998
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Australasian Drama Studies , April no. 32 1998; (p. 63-76) -
From Staff-Room to Canteen
1951
single work
review
— Appears in: Southerly , vol. 12 no. 2 1951; (p. 101-102)
— Review of Three Australian Three-Act Plays 1950 selected work drama ; Comets Soon Pass 1950 single work drama ; Shoulder the Sky 1945 single work drama ; Morning Sacrifice 1940 single work drama -
Good Crowds See Society of Arts Best Show
1951
single work
review
— Appears in: Northern Standard , 13 July vol. 6 no. 266 1951; (p. 5)
— Review of Shoulder the Sky 1945 single work drama -
Good Houses for NT Show
1951
single work
review
— Appears in: Northern Standard , 6 July vol. 6 no. 265 1951; (p. 12)
— Review of Shoulder the Sky 1945 single work drama -
Society of Arts to Do 'Shoulder the Sky'
1951
single work
column
— Appears in: Northern Standard , 1 June vol. 6 no. 260 1951; (p. 8)
-
From Staff-Room to Canteen
1951
single work
review
— Appears in: Southerly , vol. 12 no. 2 1951; (p. 101-102)
— Review of Three Australian Three-Act Plays 1950 selected work drama ; Comets Soon Pass 1950 single work drama ; Shoulder the Sky 1945 single work drama ; Morning Sacrifice 1940 single work drama -
Good Houses for NT Show
1951
single work
review
— Appears in: Northern Standard , 6 July vol. 6 no. 265 1951; (p. 12)
— Review of Shoulder the Sky 1945 single work drama -
Devil's Make-up Man Was His Task
1950
single work
essay
— Appears in: The News , 29 September vol. 55 no. 8470 1950; (p. 12)
— Review of Comets Soon Pass 1950 single work drama ; Shoulder the Sky 1945 single work drama ; Morning Sacrifice 1940 single work drama This article contains multiple reviews. -
Good Crowds See Society of Arts Best Show
1951
single work
review
— Appears in: Northern Standard , 13 July vol. 6 no. 266 1951; (p. 5)
— Review of Shoulder the Sky 1945 single work drama -
Dymphna Cusack's Plays
1998
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Australasian Drama Studies , April no. 32 1998; (p. 63-76) -
Society of Arts to Do 'Shoulder the Sky'
1951
single work
column
— Appears in: Northern Standard , 1 June vol. 6 no. 260 1951; (p. 8)
Awards
- 1945 Special prize-winner Playwrights' Advisory Board Competition
- 1930s
- 1940s