Theatre
Don's Party
David Williamson · 1971
Synopsis
On the night of the 1969 federal election, Don Henderson, a teacher, and his wife, Kath, receive friends to celebrate the expected Labor victory. Two guests, Simon and Jody, vote for the Liberals. There are also Mal, Don's former mentor, and his bitter wife, Jenny; Cooley and a young student, Susan; and Mack, whose wife has just left him. The left leads at first, then the result slips away from it; the drink flows, and the jibes between the men about their disappointed ambitions grow crueller, as does their way of treating the women.
Context
The play was first performed on 11 August 1971 at the Pram Factory in Carlton, home of the Australian Performing Arts Group, some of whose members hesitated to stage it because its realism differed so sharply from their approach. It was revived in Sydney in 1972, by the Melbourne Theatre Company in 1973 and at the Royal Court in London in 1976. The author himself wrote the adaptation brought to the screen in 1976 by Bruce Beresford, and in 2011 produced a sequel that brings the same friends together for the 2008 election.
Who it is for
A play in Australian English that takes place in a single evening among friends, in front of the election results.
Prizes and reception
A great success from its first performance, which established its author's reputation according to The Conversation.
Sources for this page 4
The pages consulted to check this page.