Burst of Summer

Burst of Summer
Written by Oriel Gray
Date premiered 2 Feb 1960
Place premiered Little Theatre, South Yarra, Melbourne
Original language English
Subject race relations

Burst of Summer is a 1959 play by Oriel Gray.[1]

Plot

Racial tensions that erupt in a small town when a young Aboriginal girl gains brief notability as a film actress. White townsfolk decide to build houses and move the Indigenous residents of the 'The Flats' into them.

Background

The story story is based on the story of Ngarla Kunoth who was cast in the lead of Charles Chauvel's film Jedda.

Original Production

The play was first produced in 1960.

Cast

1960 Radio Adaptation

The play was performed on ABC radio in 1960.

1961 TV Adaptation

Burst of Summer
Directed by William Sterling
Production
company
ABC
Release dates
 1961
Running time
 54 mins
Country Australia
Language English

The play was broadcast in 1961 by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Filming took place at the ABC's Melbourne Studios in South Bank.

Cast

Production

Robert Tudawali was flown from Darwin to Melbourne to make his first appearance in a live television drama. He had already been seen in the filmed series Whiplash.[2]

Reception

The TV critic from the Sydney Morning Herald wrote that:

There is a first class story waiting to be written on the problems of the aboriginal in a white society. But it hasn't been done yet. Burst Of Summer... made a half-hearted stab at it. But in spite of a sincere and moving job of acting by nightclub singer Georgia Lee, plus an impeccable performance in a character role by veteran actor Edward Howell, the play as a whole failed to make much impact. Robert Tudawali, for instance... lacked the subtleties of acting that his role demanded. The script abounded in phrases such as "extra grouse" and "them boongs," but somehow they had a hollow ring to them. There were also some bad holes on the aide of authenticity (for instance, would an aboriginal girl who had done some movie work really go back to her hometown dressed up in a flowing evening gown, plus white fur wrap?) At the end of the 60-minute telerecorded production, one couldn't escape the feeling that the author had dashed it off after seeing too many American movies, rather than making a serious attempt to put the Australian colour ur problem into its own perspective. It's a pity this missed out, because there is a goldmine of material on the aboriginal waiting for a skilled, sensitive writer to tap it. Documentaries on the subject have barely skimmed over the surface.[2]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Oriel Gray obituary at Sydney Morning Herald
  2. 1 2 "TV Merry Go Round", Sydney Morning Herald, 8 October 1961 p 84

External links

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