The Secret River (play)

The Secret River
Written by	Andrew Bovell
Date premiered	8 January 2013
Place premiered	Sydney Theatre
Original language	English
Subject	The Secret River by Kate Grenville
Genre	Drama

The Secret River is a play by Andrew Bovell, based upon the novel of the same name by Kate Grenville. Narrated by Dhirrumbin (originally played by Ursula Yovich), the drama is about a man who is exiled from London in the eighteenth century, and is sent with his family to a penal colony in the Hawkesbury River, New South Wales, where he hopes to make a new start, but its inhabitants, the indigenous Dharug people, are not willing to give up their land.

Produced by the Sydney Theatre Company, the play was first performed on 8 January 2013 at the Sydney Theatre. A 2016 remount toured Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

Characters

English settlers

William Thornhill,
Sal Thornhill, Williams wife
Willie Thornhill, William and Sal's eldest son
Dick Thornhill, William and Sal's second son
Smasher Sullivan, a settler on the Hawkesbury River
Thomas Blackwood, an ex-convict and tradesmen
Loveday, a settler on the Hawkesbury River
Dan Oldfield, Williams childhood friend
Mrs Herring, a mid-wife and nurse
Sagitty Birtles, Smasher Sullivan's crony
Captain Suckling, alcoholic and landowner

Dahrug people

Dhirrumbin, a guide
Dulla Djin
Gillyagan
Muruli
Garraway, friend of Dick
Yalamundi, tribe elder
Buryia, female tribe elder
Ngalamalum
Wangarra, tribal warrior
Branyimala, tribal warrior
Narabi, friend of Dick
Turnkey

Original cast

Nathaniel Dean - William Thornhill
Anita Hegh - Sal Thornhill
Jeremy Sims - Smasher Sullivan
Colin Moody - Thomas Blackwood
Ursula Yovich - Dhirrumbin/Dulla Djin
Miranda Tapsell - Gillyagan/Muruli
Bruce Spence - Loveday
Bailey Doomadgee and Kamil Ellis - Garraway
Lachlan Elliott and Callum McManis - Willie Thornhill
Rory Potter and Tom Usher - Dick Thornhill
Roy Gordon - Yalamundi
Daniel Henshall - Dan Oldfield
Ethel-Anne Gundy – Buryia
Trevor Jamieson - Ngalamalum
Rhimi Johnson Page - Wangarra/Branyimala
Judith McGrath - Mrs Herring
James Slee - Narabi
Matthew Sunderland - Sagitty Birtles/ Captain Suckling/Turnkey
Source:^[1]

Awards and nominations

Helpmann awards

Year	Award Ceremony	Category	Nominee	Result
2013	13th Helpmann Awards^[2]	Best Play		Won
		Best New Australian Work		Won
		Best Direction of a Play	Neil Armfield	Won
		Best Male Actor in a Play	Nathaniel Dean	Nominated
		Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role in a Play	Colin Moody	Won
		Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Play	Miranda Tapsell	Nominated
		Best Original Score	Iain Grandage	Won
		Best Musical Direction	Iain Grandage	Won
		Best Costume Design	Tess Schofield	Nominated
		Best Scenic Design	Stephen Curtis	Nominated
		Best Lighting Design	Mark Howett	Nominated

References

↑ "Perth Festival 2013 - The Secret River" (PDF). Perth Festival 2013. Retrieved 8 August 2013.
↑ http://www.helpmannawards.com.au/default.aspx?s=winners&year=2013

Helpmann Award for Best Play

Life After George (2001)
Cloudstreet (2002)
Copenhagen (2003)
Inheritance (2004)
The Sapphires (2005)
Stuff Happens (2006)
The Lost Echo (2007)
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (2008)
War of the Roses (2009)
Richard III (2010)
The Wild Duck (2011)
Ganesh Versus the Third Reich (2012)
The Secret River (2013)
Angels in America (2014)
The Glass Menagerie (2015)

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