Classic-ing on the Australian mainstream stage The place and phenomenon of classic in Australian mainstream theatre 1995-2016

This book evaluates classic drama as an active creation. To classic is a complex theatrical practice that animates program choice, casting and staging, audience reception and critical response. Analysis of six distinct examples of pre-determined and self-nominated classic productions on the Australian mainstage is informed by postcolonial theory, specifically the settler dilemma of Indigenous cultural authority. What happens to the political edge of postcolonial aspiration within the status of classic? Close consideration of staging and casting, theatre historical perspectives, and interviews with key artists, expands the concept of classic as a dimension of theatrical and not only of dramatic reception. This book responds to a polarised debate that focused on auteur directors and the relative value of new vs classic plays. Rather than adopting a position, the study undertakes a deeper assessment of the phenomenon and place of the dramatic classic in Australian mainstream theatre.    

Acknowledgements.- Introduction: The Concept of the Classic.- The Classic, Postcolonial Resonance and Australia.-  Australian Postcolonial Classic: Shakespeare’s Role-.- An Actor as Classic-er.-  An Unearthed Classic: The Golden Age-.- An Instant Classic: The Secret River-. Conclusion: The Practice of Classic-ing-.- Afterword: Performing Classic in Australia from 1788 to 1994-.- Appendix: Production Histories

 

Susan McClements Wyss currently works in Switzerland as a writer, translator, and teacher. She completed her PhD in 2023 at the University of Cologne, Germany and Flinders University, South Australia. Susan moved to Switzerland in 2003, where she completed her MA in Theatre Studies at the University of Bern and worked in various independent arts projects. Before this move, Susan had a long career in Melbourne, Australia as an artistic director, actor, and theatre maker, in marketing and sponsorship development and in public arts funding.