Where have all the players gone?
JA
April 13
Interesting news from the ALR blog and Currency Press this week – the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards, announced last Wednesday, failed to include a shortlist for the Play Award category.
The decision is technically at the judges’ discretion, but what are the wider implications for Australian theatre as a whole here? In the words of Stephen Romei, ‘Are we saying that in the 12 months to October 2009 no Australian wrote a play worth the ticket?’
Playwright Matt Cameron (Poor Boy), went further, commenting that this constituted:
A disheartening day for Australian playwrights with not one play deemed worthy of this year’s award. I hasten to add this is not about my own work but the bigger picture. Prizes in the arts always risk being akin to comparing sunsets – that is, somewhat impossible. And yet they do remind us of the value of celebrating at least one sunset a year. I thought I saw some rather glorious ones...
The NSW government has said that they will keep the prize money of $30 000 on hold, to be later awarded as grant. Although one wonders why they decided this in lieu of as award, seeing as the funds were there in any case.
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