Our Country's Good: Based on the Novel the "Playmaker" by Thomas Kenneally (Student Editions)

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Each student's contribution to the final devised performance is marked out of 20. Guidance on devising An Aboriginal Australian: He describes the British settler's efforts with curiosity and later with fear. Depending on how prominent his appearances are made in a given staging, the subject of colonisation may become more and more central to the play. Students are required to practically explore (workshop) and interpret three key extracts (Extract 1, Extract 2 and Extract 3) each from a different play.

Major Robbie Ross fought and lost in the war against America which he believes is the reason why he was sent with the First Fleet to Australia. Throughout the play he is a bitter and negative person. He does not want the play “The Recruiting Officer” to happen and tries to stop it at every point by creating tension between the convicts and Lieutenant Ralph Clark. Ultimately he is always overruled by Captain Arthur Phillips. Captain David Collins Johnson isn’t a very prominent character in the play. He was supposed to provide moral guidance to the convicts and the officers. He is very concerned with what the play portrays religiously and focuses more on that than any other matter. Lieutenant George Johnston Step 1: Choose a play (adhering to the requirements above) and start to explore the play practically. In the play, Captain Tench opposes Phillip. He doesn't believe that the convicts could ever improve and become valuable members of society. He hates them all because they are criminals. Judge CollinsHe was transported to Australia for killing a sailor who broke a strike. He claims that he didn’t do it, that the blame was placed on him unfairly. He becomes the hangman of the colony after being given the choice to hang or be hanged. Ketch struggles to fit in as he is loathed by the other convicts, especially Liz Morden. He is desperate to act in the play but no one wants to go near him. He also blames his situation on leaving his ‘guardian angel’ in Ireland. Robert Sideway The play was developed by Wertenbaker in conjunction with the Royal Court Theatre in 1988 a time of significant cuts to public spending in Britain under Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative government. The play was developed in the later period of Thatcher’s Britain meaning the consequences of these fiscal cuts were evident to a broad cross-section of society. Among the public services which were disadvantaged by these fiscal measures was HM Prison Service (Her Majesty’s Prison Service), and it was the extreme conditions faced by the inmates of state-owned prisons which influenced the development of the play. Metamorphosis (in Three Theatre Adaptations from Franz Kafka, Amber Lane Press – ISBN: 978-0906399842) All upcoming public events are going ahead as planned and you can find more information on our events blog

is reviewed between 08.30 to 16.30 Monday to Friday. We're experiencing a high volume of enquiries so it may take usIn the 1780s, convicts and Royal Marines were sent to Australia as part of the first penal colony there. The play shows the class system in the convict camp and discusses themes such as sexuality, punishment, the Georgian judicial system, and the idea that it is possible for "theatre to be a humanising force". Ralph is an officer that is trying desperately to get a promotion. He tries to take on every responsibility so when he hears about the play he immediately agrees to direct and organize it. He starts off shy and scared of women but grows into a character who falls in love with a convict and becomes more and more assertive. His attitude towards the convicts changes, heavily influenced by Phillip and he ends up treating the convicts far better. Second Lieutenant William Faddy In the second scene, the author writes about the aboriginals who at first were under the impression that they will continue to live their lives as they want. This was not true and their lives were forever changed by the first British ship to land on the shores of Australia. Through this, the author wants to point out that the native community, those who are often ignored by the history books when they discuss Australia, were affected tremendously by the arrival of the British convicts on their lands.