Something With a Cow In It

In this episode, Glace Chase and Lally Katz discuss the Australian autobiographical play. How do true life experiences intersect with storytelling in their craft? What does it mean to write authentically, and why do Australian theatre audiences value authenticity so highly? This conversation was recorded in summer 2021–22.

Kate Mulvany and Tom Wright are two of Australia’s most prolific adapters for theatre, and in this episode they discuss the explosion of novel adaptations on the Australian mainstage since the 2010s. How do playwrights navigate the relationships between the texts they are adapting and new voices, stories, and ideas? What draws theatre makers and audiences back to stories that have been told before?This conversation was recorded in summer 2021–22.

In the age of the Anthropocene, Australian playwrights are finding ways to challenge audiences and portray a rapidly changing world. In this episode, playwrights David Finnigan and Andrew Bovell discuss questions including, how should humans deal with despair, melancholy, and uncertainty in the face of the climate crisis? Are we capable of the deep thinking required to bring about change? Can plays empower audiences to take action? This conversation was recorded in summer 2021–22.

S. Shakthidharan is a Western Sydney storyteller with Sri Lankan heritage and Tamil ancestry, while Michele Lee is a non-Australian writer whose plays privilege the Asian Australian experience. In this episode, they discuss the migration play and the position of diasporic narratives on the twenty-first-century Australian stage. What is the role of playwriting in connecting with community and personal identity? How does the migrant experience intersect with gender and class in Australia? What kinds of stories are being privileged on the Australian mainstage?This conversation was recorded in summer 2021–22.