Life of Galileo by Bertolt Brecht

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It is no secret to those who know me that Bertolt Brecht is one of my favourite playwrights of all time. I was extremely happy that I had the opportunity to study more on Brecht and his works this year at Uni in my 20th Century Theatre course. This play was the one we focused on in class and - like the other plays I have read from him - it is a REALLY good play!

The title gives away what the play is all about - it details the life of Galileo, as told through Brecht's "epic theatre" style. It talks about his scientific discoveries, the church's rejections to these new findings, and his "forced" recantation, in order to continue his work.

Like many of Brecht's plays, the play can be easily applied to a variety of contemporary themes. When it was first produced in the Zurich Shauspielhaus in 1938, the issue of "the need to smuggle the truth out of Nazi Germany" was embedded in the text (p. xiii). Later, when the first atomic bomb was detonated in 1945, the interpretation of the play was changed to suit the new contemporary issue of the use of technology (pp. xiii). Reading through the play, I couldn't help but think of possible contemporary interpretations for today e.g. the media and how they distort truth, government corruption..... the list is endless.

This play is a DEFINITE must-read for Brecht fans everywhere!

Betrayal by Harold Pinter

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This is a play I was introduced to when I was studying Experimentation in 20th Century Theatre at Uni. It is one of Harold Pinter's most famous plays, one that has won a Nobel literature prize.

It is the story about two lovers who meet years after they have broken up, and traces the events of how their affair took place and how they split up. The play does not reveal the events in chronological order; it starts from the "end" when the two lovers meet years later, to the beginning when they first meet each other on the woman's wedding night.

At first, I found this play to be quite boring. It's only when you see it acted out that you see how the text becomes interesting. There are a lot of pauses and repetitive phrases that make the play sound boring on the page. These techniques actually have a more interesting effect when they are performed.

A must-read play for anyone who's interested in 20th Century Theatre

(For Australian readers: Check out the Queensland Theatre Company website to make a booking for when they put on their production of "Betrayal" in October!)

Capricornia by Louis Nowra

Image taken from www.gazellebookservices.co.uk

This is another really good play I had the opportunity to learn about in my Australian Theatre course. It was written as part of Australia's bicentenial year celebrations, and is a stage adaptation of the novel of the same name, written by Xavier Herbert.

The story is about a young man named Norman Shillingsworth, who is raised by his uncle to believe that he is the son of a Javanese princess. The truth about his REAL family origins is discovered when he returns to visit and work for his uncle in Port Zodiac. Step by step, Norman learns more secrets about his family, and he struggles to come to terms with the seemingly never-ending new "revelations." During the course of the play he teams up with Tocky, a aborigine girl who is smitten by his good looks. Tragedy further unfolds when Tocky kills a man in self-defense, and Norman is blamed for the murder. There is action galore throughout the play, more than enough to keep readers (and audiences) on the edge of their seats.

Like the book, the play is very confronting, as it deals with a lot of uncomfortable issues. However, Nowra seems to tackle these issues with ease, and adds humour to the seriousness of the plot.

A definite read for those interested in reading a good Australian play.

The Ghosts Trilogy by Janis Balodis

Image taken from australianplays.org

This is another set of plays that was introduced to us in our Australian Theatre Course. Although we only concentrated on the first installment in the Trilogy, "Too Young for Ghosts," I ended up reading the whole trilogy, and loved it!

The plays detail the lives and loves of a group of Latvian immigrants who come to Australia to start a new life. We learn of their struggles in adapting to a new land, people and culture, and we learn of their affairs and misgivings. In the later two installments, we hear of their children and about their experiences with the language/culture/generation gaps. There is another layer to the text, as Janis Balodis compares and contrasts the immigrants' struggles with the story of Leichardt and his journeys through Australia, adding interest to the performance text.

Balodis writes really well. Having been born of Latvian immigrants himself, he draws on personal experiences as inspiration for the text. He has now become one of my favourite Australian playwrights, now that I have sat down and studied these three plays.

At first, the text seems confusing, as the narrative jumps back and forth from the historical account of Leichardt and his travels with the journey of the immigrants. However, like The Time is Not Yet Ripe, the text becomes better understood once it staged and performed. Once that is done, the reader can better visualize how the story is played out.

Overall, this was a great read, and another definite recommend for those interested in studying Australian theatre.

The Time is Not Yet Ripe by Louis Esson

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This is a comedy that was written in 1912 by a talented man by the name of Louis Esson. It was first performed in Melbourne at the Athenaeum Hall, and was well received on its opening night. I came across this play when I was studying it for the Australian Theatre course I am doing at the moment, and I quite enjoyed reading it.

The play details the story of Doris, the daughter of the Prime Minister, an active member of the Liberal Party. Doris is betrothed to a man named Sydney Barrett, a socialist who poses a threat to the Prime Minister's party. At first, her father does not approve of the marriage, but begins to soften in the end after his party wins again in the election.

While the written text does not appear to be comical at first, the comedy becomes more apparent when the play is actually staged. Our class found this out when we performed excerpts from the play in our tutorial class. It is indeed a well-written play, and one that is worth looking into if you are interested in learning about early Australian Theatre.

The Good Person of Szechwan by Bertholt Brecht

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I am a HUGE fan of Bertholt Brecht and his plays, which is why I was so excited to learn that I would be studying Brecht this semester at Uni. The Good Person of Szechwan is one of the plays written by Brecht that I will be studying this semester.

The Good Person of Szechwan tells the story of three powerful Gods who are on the search of finding at least one good person left on the earth. They tarry the night with a woman by the name of Shen Teh, a "good-hearted but penniless prositute" (back cover), who is struggling to get out of her current situation and start a new life. Believing that Shen Teh has great potential of doing much good for other people, the Gods give her a sum of money, so as to be able to help her start her own tobacco business, and no longer work on the streets to earn money. Problems arise when the other characters in the play prey on Shen Teh's kindness and try to manipulate her, and in order to escape from such corrupt persons, she disguises herself as a Shui-Ta, a ruthless and very clever "cousin", who does not take kindly to Shen Teh's ill treatment by the other characters. Further complications arise when Shen Teh falls pregnant, and can no longer keep up the charade of being Shui-Ta. It is a riveting and thought-provoking story, one that I would like to see performed on stage one day.

As with all of Brecht's plays, the play addresses a lot of social issues that cannot all be listed here. A few of them include the nature of survival, the business world and its potential to become corrupt, and the line drawn between when is being too lenient and when is being too harsh, (how to be "nice" while at the same time being assertive and not have people walk all over you. This commentary is especially noted when Shen Teh switches from being herself, to Shui-Ta).

This is a must-read for all lovers of theatre and of Bertholt Brecht.