David Williamson

David Williamson

David Keith Williamson AO (born 19 February 1942) is one of Australia's best-known playwrights. He has also written screenplays and teleplays.

Contents

Biography

David Williamson was born in Melbourne and brought up in Bairnsdale, Victoria. He initially studied mechanical engineering at the University of Melbourne from 1960.[citation needed] His early forays into the theatre were as an actor and writer of skits for the Engineers' Revue at Melbourne University's Union Theatre at lunchtime during the early 1960s.

After a stint as a lecturer for Swinburne University, he turned to writing plays in 1967.

Williamson rose to prominence in the early 1970s, with works such as Don's Party (later turned into a 1976 film), a comic drama set during the 1969 federal election; and The Removalists (1971). He also collaborated on the screenplays for Gallipoli (1981) and The Year of Living Dangerously (1982). Williamson's work as a playwright focuses on themes of politics, loyalty and family in contemporary urban Australia, particularly in two of its major cities, Melbourne and Sydney.

Major works include The Club, The Department, Travelling North, The Perfectionist, Emerald City, Money and Friends and Brilliant Lies.

Recent work has included Dead White Males, a satirical approach to postmodernism and university ethics; Up for Grabs, which starred Madonna in its London premiere; and the Jack Manning Trilogy (Face To Face, Conversation, Charitable Intent) which take as their format community conferencing, a new form of restorative justice, in which Williamson became interested in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

In recent years he has alternated work between larger stages (including Soul Mates, Amigos and Influence - all premiered with the Sydney Theatre Company) and smaller ones (including the Manning trilogy, Flatfoot and Operator, which premiered at the Ensemble Theatre). However, in 2005, he announced his retirement from main-stage productions.

Williamson was instrumental in the founding of the Noosa Longweekend Festival, a cultural festival in Noosa, Queensland.

In August 2006 Cate Molloy, former Australian Labor Party member of the Queensland Parliament for the Electoral district of Noosa, announced that Williamson would be her campaign manager as she sought to recontest her seat as an Independent.

In 2007 appeared Lotte's Gift, a one-woman show starring Karin Schaupp, which traced a journey through Schaupp's own life as well as those of her mother and grandmother (the Lotte of the title).

Personal life

He is married to Kristin Williamson (sister of independent filmmaker Chris Löfvén) and lives on Queensland's Sunshine Coast. His stepson Felix Williamson and his son Rory Williamson are both Australian actors. Rory starred as Stork in the 2001 revival of The Coming of Stork at the Stables Theatre in Sydney, produced by Felix's company, the Bare Naked Theatre Company.

Honours and awards

Australian Film Institute Awards

  • 1977 - AFI Award, Best Screenplay, Original or Adapted, 'Don's Party'
  • 1981 - AFI Award, Best Screenplay, Original or Adapted, 'Gallipoli'
  • 1987 - AFI Award, Best Screenplay, Adapted, 'Travelling North' [3]
  • 2009 - AFI Award, Best Screenplay, Adapted, 'Balibo' (Shared with director Robert Connolly)

Full list of plays

  • The Coming of Stork (1970)
  • The Removalists (1971)
  • Don's Party (1971)
  • Jugglers Three (1972)
  • What If You Died Tomorrow? (1973)
  • The Department (1975)
  • A Handful of Friends (1976)
  • The Club (1977)
  • Travelling North (1979)
  • Celluloid Heroes (1980)
  • The Perfectionist (1982)
  • Sons of Cain (1985)
  • Emerald City (1987)
  • Top Silk (1989)
  • Siren (1990)
  • Money and Friends (1991)
  • Brilliant Lies (1993)
  • Sanctuary (1994)
  • Dead White Males (1995)
  • Heretic (1996)
  • Third World Blues (1997, An Adaptation Of Jugglers Three)
  • After The Ball (1997)
  • Corporate Vibes (1999)
  • Face to Face (2000)
  • The Great Man (2000)
  • Up for Grabs (2001)
  • A Conversation (2001)
  • Charitable Intent (2001)
  • Soulmates (2002)
  • Amigos (2004)
  • Influence (2005)
  • Scarlett O'Hara at the Crimson Parrot (2008)
  • Let The Sunshine[4] (2009)
  • Don Parties On (2011)
  • At any Cost? (play) (2011)

Box office revenue

Sydney Theatre Company box office revenue from David Williamson plays:

  • 1982 — The Perfectionist $357,088
  • 1985 — Sons of Cain $382,771
  • 1987 — Emerald City $707,918
  • 1990 — Siren $624,626
  • 1992 — Money and Friends $1.221 million
  • 1993 — Brilliant Lies $851,000
  • 1995 — Dead White Males $1.184 million
  • 1996 — Heretic $1.29 million
  • 1997 — Third World Blues $771,822
  • 1998 — After the Ball $1.132 million
  • 1999 — Corporate Vibes $1.409 million
  • 2000 — The Great Man $1.289 million
  • 2001 — Up for Grabs $1.25 million
  • 2002 — Soulmates $1.333 million
  • 2003 — The Club $1.387 million (remake)
  • 2004 — Amigos $1.405 million
  • 2005 — Influence $1.719 million

References

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • David Williamson — David Alan Williamson (* 1961 in England) ist ein Comedy Zauberkünstler. Bekannt ist er durch seine Waschbärpuppe Rocky Raccoon. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 Preise und Auszeichnungen 1.1 Bücher und DVD 2 Weblinks …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • David Williamson (disambiguation) — David Williamson may refer to: David Williamson (b. 1942), Australian playwright David Williamson, Baron Williamson of Horton (b. 1934), British and European civil servant David Williamson (businessman), Executive Director of Operations at… …   Wikipedia

  • David Williamson (businessman) — David Williamson Born 1961 Edinburgh, Scotland Nationality Scottish …   Wikipedia

  • David Williamson (magician) — David Williamson is a comedy magician and master of closeup magic. His signature act involves Rocky a racoon puppet that Williamson presents as a live animal that participates in several magic effects.In 1981 David won first place in the… …   Wikipedia

  • David Williamson (footballer) — David Williamson (born in Hong Kong on December 15, 1975) is a soccer player currently without a club. David was first spotted while playing in the Northern Ireland Milk Cup for Co. Fermanagh and was taken on by Castlereagh College in Belfast on… …   Wikipedia

  • David Williamson Shaffer — Born May 10, 1964 (1964 05 10) (age 47) New York, New York Residence USA …   Wikipedia

  • David Williamson (Pennsylvania) — David Williamson (1752–1814) was a Colonel in the Pennsylvania militia during the American Revolutionary War. He was born near Carlisle, Pennsylvania. He led the expedition that murdered 100 Moravian Delaware Indians at the town of Gnadenhutten,… …   Wikipedia

  • David Williamson — David Keith Williamson (né le 19 février 1942) est l un des dramaturges australiens les plus connus. Il a également écrit des scénarios et des téléfilms. Sommaire 1 Biographie 2 Récompenses 3 Œuvres …   Wikipédia en Français

  • David Williamson Carroll — For other uses, see David Carroll (disambiguation). David Williamson Carroll (March 11, 1816 – June 24, 1905) was a prominent Arkansas politician who served in Confederate Army and then the Confederate States Congress during the American Civil… …   Wikipedia

  • David Williamson, Baron Williamson of Horton — David Francis Williamson, Baron Williamson of Horton GCMG, CB, PC (born 8 May 1934) was a senior British and European civil servant and is an active member of the House of Lords. Williamson was educated at Tonbridge School and Exeter College,… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”