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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'Five plays from around the country which illustrate that the rich tradition of indigenous storytelling is flourishing in contemporary Australian theatre.' (Source: Australianplays.org)
Contents
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Bitin' Back,
single work
drama
humour
Adapted from Vivenne Cleven's award-winning novel Bitin Back.
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Black Medea,
single work
drama
'In this riveting reworking of Euripides' play, Medea is a young Indigenous woman who after leaving her family and desert country behind, finds herself in a loveless partnership with the drunken and violent Jason. When Medea attempts to flee home with their young son, Jason makes her promise that she will never take the child from the house. In a breathtaking act of revenge and sacrifice, Medea kills her young child... the child that was the father's heart.' (Source: AusStage website)
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King Hit,
single work
drama
'An acclaimed play that strikes at the very heart of the Stolen Generations, exploring the impact on an individual and a culture when relationships are brutally broken.' 'Based on the life story of Geoffrey Narkle, King Hit mirrors the lives of many Aboriginal people of his generation. Forcibly removed from his family, Geoffrey was raised on Wandering Mission before leaving to join Stewart's Boxing Troupe, where he travelled the South West as a tent boxer.'
'Ultimately it would be Geoffrey's fighting spirit that gave him the strength to turn away from a downward spiral of despair and find peace within and reconcile broken family bonds.' (Source: Yirra Yaakin Theatre Company website; Publisher's blurb,19/07/2009).
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Rainbow's End,
single work
drama
'Three generations of Koori women live on the edge of a country town in a shack on the banks of a flood prone river. For Nan, even life on “The Flats” represents progress of a kind, but Gladys has ambitions for a real house in town and a proper job for daughter Dolly. Set against the Queen’s visit in 1954 with music that evokes the period, this tender, funny play celebrates the fierce optimism of the women as they struggle for community acceptance in Menzies’ era Australia. ' (Source: AusStage website)
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Windmill Baby,
single work
drama
Windmill Baby is the story of Maymay, an old Aboriginal woman who returns to the deserted Kimberley cattle station that was her home 50 years ago. A one-woman redemption piece told through Indigenous voices, with the endearing characters of Wun-man, Two-man, Aunty Darbella and old Maymay, this play is delivered with the poetry of a campfire storyteller.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Also e-book.
Works about this Work
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Untitled
2008
single work
review
— Appears in: Australasian Drama Studies , April no. 52 2008; (p. 203-204)
— Review of Contemporary Indigenous Plays 2007 anthology drama -
New Release Books
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: Koori Mail , 15 August no. 407 2007; (p. 51)
— Review of Contemporary Indigenous Plays 2007 anthology drama ; The Circuit 2007 single work film/TV ; The Versatile Man : The Life and Times of Don Ross, Kaytetye Stockman 2007 single work autobiography -
The Pointed Review
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: National Indigenous Times , 8 February vol. 6 no. 122 2007; (p. 32)
— Review of Writing Never Arrives Naked : Early Aboriginal Cultures of Writing in Australia 2006 single work criticism ; Contemporary Indigenous Plays 2007 anthology drama ; Darby : One Hundred Years of Life in a Changing Culture 2006 single work life story ; No Fixed Address : Nomads and the Fate of the Planet 2006 single work essay
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The Pointed Review
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: National Indigenous Times , 8 February vol. 6 no. 122 2007; (p. 32)
— Review of Writing Never Arrives Naked : Early Aboriginal Cultures of Writing in Australia 2006 single work criticism ; Contemporary Indigenous Plays 2007 anthology drama ; Darby : One Hundred Years of Life in a Changing Culture 2006 single work life story ; No Fixed Address : Nomads and the Fate of the Planet 2006 single work essay -
New Release Books
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: Koori Mail , 15 August no. 407 2007; (p. 51)
— Review of Contemporary Indigenous Plays 2007 anthology drama ; The Circuit 2007 single work film/TV ; The Versatile Man : The Life and Times of Don Ross, Kaytetye Stockman 2007 single work autobiography -
Untitled
2008
single work
review
— Appears in: Australasian Drama Studies , April no. 52 2008; (p. 203-204)
— Review of Contemporary Indigenous Plays 2007 anthology drama