Jane Harrison (playwright): Difference between revisions
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{{short description|Indigenous Australian playwright and writer}} | {{short description|Indigenous Australian playwright and writer}} | ||
{{refimprove blp|date=June 2025}} | |||
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2016}} | {{Use dmy dates|date=October 2016}} | ||
{{Use Australian English|date=October 2016}} | {{Use Australian English|date=October 2016}} | ||
'''Jane Harrison''' is an [[Aboriginal Australian]] playwright, [[novelist]], [[literary festival]] director, and researcher. | '''Jane Harrison''' is an [[Aboriginal Australian]] playwright, [[novelist]], [[literary festival]] director, and researcher. She is known for her 1998 play ''[[Stolen (play)|Stolen]]'', which received critical claim and has toured nationally and internationally, and ''The Visitors'', first produced in 2020. ''The Visitors'' has been developed as an opera and as a novel. | ||
[[File:Jane Harrison 2025.jpg|thumb|right|Jane Harrison]] | [[File:Jane Harrison 2025.jpg|thumb|right|Jane Harrison]] | ||
==Early life and education == | ==Early life and education == | ||
Harrison is a descendant of the [[Muruwari]] people of [[New South Wales]], from the area around [[Bourke, New South Wales|Bourke]] and [[Brewarrina]].<ref name="Austlit" /> | Jane Harrison is a descendant of the [[Muruwari]] people of [[New South Wales]], from the area around [[Bourke, New South Wales|Bourke]] and [[Brewarrina]].<ref name="Austlit">{{cite web|title= Austlit — Jane Harrison |publisher= Austlit|url=https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/A34457|access-date= 6 November 2024}}</ref> | ||
She grew up in the [[Dandenong Ranges]] in [[Victoria, Australia|Victoria]] with her mother and sister, and began her career as an advertising [[copywriting|copywriter]].<ref name="Austlit" /> | She grew up in the [[Dandenong Ranges]] in [[Victoria, Australia|Victoria]] with her mother and sister, and began her career as an advertising [[copywriting|copywriter]].<ref name="Austlit" /> | ||
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===''Stolen''=== | ===''Stolen''=== | ||
{{main|Stolen (play)}} | {{main|Stolen (play)}} | ||
''Stolen'' premièred in 1998 at Playbox (now [[Malthouse Theatre]]) Melbourne directed by [[Wesley Enoch]] followed by seven annual seasons in | ''Stolen'' premièred in 1998 at Playbox (now [[Malthouse Theatre]]) in [[Melbourne]], directed by [[Wesley Enoch]].{{cn|date=June 2025}} It was followed by seven annual seasons in Melbourne, plus tours to [[Sydney]], [[Adelaide]], regional [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]], [[Tasmania]], the United Kingdom (twice), [[Hong Kong]] and [[Tokyo]], with readings in Canada, [[New York City]], and [[Los Angeles]].{{cn|date=June 2025}} In [[Sydney]], it was performed at the [[Sydney Theatre Company]], directed by [[Wayne Blair (director)|Wayne Blair]].{{cn|date=June 2025}} | ||
[[Sydney Theatre Company | ''Stolen'' is a play about the lives of five [[Indigenous Australian]] people from the [[Stolen Generations]].<ref name="multiple">J. Harrison (2000) ''Stolen''. Strawberry Hills (NSW): Currency Press (Author's biography on 1st page)</ref> For ''Stolen'' Harrison was awarded the [[Australian Writers' Guild]] [[AWGIE Awards|AWGIE]] Nomination, was co-winner of the [[Kate Challis RAKA Award]], and received an Honourable Mention in the CACS National Awards Individual Category for ''An Outstanding Contribution to Australian Culture''.{{cn|date=June 2025}} ''Stolen'' has been studied on the [[Victorian Certificate of Education]] and [[Higher School Certificate (New South Wales)|New South Wales Higher School Certificate]] English and drama syllabi.{{cn|date=June 2025}} ''[[Australian Book Review]]'' called the play "a contemporary classic".<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-06-14 |title=Stolen - A stirring revival of Jane Harrison's play. |url=https://www.australianbookreview.com.au/abr-arts/101-arts-update/12635-stolen-a-stirring-revival-of-jane-harrison-s-play-by-ian-maxwell |access-date=2024-07-15 |publisher=Australian Book Review}}</ref> | ||
Sydney Theatre Company staged a new production of ''Stolen'' in its 2024 season, directed by Ian Michael.<ref name=..>{{cite web|title="Stolen" |publisher= Sydney Theatre Company|url=https://www.sydneytheatre.com.au/whats-on/productions/2024/stolen|access-date= 6 November 2024}}</ref> | |||
===''Rainbow's End''=== | ===''Rainbow's End''=== | ||
''Rainbow's End'' | ''Rainbow's End'' premiered in 2005, and toured [[Melbourne]], [[Sydney]], regional [[Australia]], and [[Japan]] in 2007, and has had numerous subsequent productions.{{cn|date=June 2025}} Harrison was awarded the Drover Award (Tour of the Year) and a [[Helpmann Awards]] nomination for Best Regional Touring Production.{{cn|date=June 2025}} It has been studied on the [[Higher School Certificate (New South Wales)|New South Wales Higher School Certificate]] and is currently on the [[Victorian Certificate of Education]] English syllabus.{{cn|date=June 2025}} ''Rainbow's End'' tells the simple, yet convoluted story of three generations of First Nations women; young Dolly, her mother the happy-go-lucky Gladys, and the wise and stern Nan Dear, living in their shanty perched on the flats of the [[Goulburn River]] in 1950s regional Victoria. The play was initially directed by [[Wesley Enoch]].<ref>J. Harrison (2007) ''Rainbow's End'' published in ''Contemporary Indigenous Plays'' Currency Press (Author's biography)</ref> | ||
===''On a Park Bench''=== | ===''On a Park Bench''=== | ||
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===''The Visitors''=== | ===''The Visitors''=== | ||
''The Visitors'' was initially workshopped at the Yellamundie Festival in 2013, before a development at the [[Melbourne Theatre Company]] Cybec Electric series / Melbourne Indigenous Festival in 2014, directed by [[Leah Purcell]].<ref>{{cite web|title="MTC - The Visitors" |publisher= Melbourne Theatre Company|url=https://www.mtc.com.au/plays-and-tickets/whats-on/production-archive/2010-2014/cybec-electric-2014/the-visitors/|access-date= 6 November 2024}}</ref>''The Visitors'' re-imagines the arrival of the [[First Fleet]] on [[Gadigal]] country from the perspective of seven elders meeting on the shores of the [[Port Jackson|harbour]].<ref>{{cite web|title= ''The Visitors'' by Jane Harrison|publisher= Austlit|url=https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/26929448|access-date= 6 November 2024}}</ref> | ''The Visitors'' was initially workshopped at the Yellamundie Festival in 2013, before a development at the [[Melbourne Theatre Company]] Cybec Electric series / Melbourne Indigenous Festival in 2014, directed by [[Leah Purcell]].<ref>{{cite web|title="MTC - The Visitors" |publisher= Melbourne Theatre Company|url=https://www.mtc.com.au/plays-and-tickets/whats-on/production-archive/2010-2014/cybec-electric-2014/the-visitors/|access-date= 6 November 2024}}</ref> ''The Visitors'' re-imagines the arrival of the [[First Fleet]] on [[Gadigal]] country from the perspective of seven elders meeting on the shores of the [[Port Jackson|harbour]].<ref>{{cite web|title= ''The Visitors'' by Jane Harrison|publisher= Austlit|url=https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/26929448|access-date= 6 November 2024}}</ref> | ||
''The Visitors'' premiered as a full production in January 2020 as part of the [[Sydney Festival]]. It was awarded the prize for Best New Australian Work, [[Sydney Theatre Awards|2022 Sydney Theatre Awards]], and was shortlisted for the [[New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards#Nick Enright Prize for Playwriting|Nick Enright Prize for Playwriting]] at the 2021 [[New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=|date=2021-03-24|title=NSW Premier's Literary Awards 2021 shortlists announced|url=https://www.booksandpublishing.com.au/articles/2021/03/24/183931/nsw-premiers-literary-awards-2021-shortlists-announced/|access-date=2021-03-25|website=Books+Publishing|language=en-AU}}</ref> | ''The Visitors'' premiered as a full production in January 2020 as part of the [[Sydney Festival]]. It was awarded the prize for Best New Australian Work, [[Sydney Theatre Awards|2022 Sydney Theatre Awards]], and was shortlisted for the [[New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards#Nick Enright Prize for Playwriting|Nick Enright Prize for Playwriting]] at the 2021 [[New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=|date=2021-03-24|title=NSW Premier's Literary Awards 2021 shortlists announced|url=https://www.booksandpublishing.com.au/articles/2021/03/24/183931/nsw-premiers-literary-awards-2021-shortlists-announced/|access-date=2021-03-25|website=Books+Publishing|language=en-AU}}</ref> | ||
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[[Sydney Theatre Company]] and Moogahlin Performing Arts produced a second production of ''The Visitors'' at the [[Sydney Opera House]] in September / October 2023, directed by [[Wesley Enoch]].<ref>{{cite web|title="The Visitors" |publisher= Sydney Theatre Company|url=https://www.sydneytheatre.com.au/whats-on/productions/2023/the-visitors|access-date= 6 November 2024}}</ref> This production won the [[Sydney Theatre Awards|2023 Sydney Theatre Awards]] for Best Mainstage Production, and Best Ensemble, and went on to tour regional Australia in 2024.<ref>{{cite web|title="The Visitors by Jane Harrison 2024 National Tour" |publisher= Moogahlin Perfomriong Arts Inc.|url=https://www.moogahlin.org/thevisitors2024tour|access-date= 6 November 2024}}</ref> | [[Sydney Theatre Company]] and Moogahlin Performing Arts produced a second production of ''The Visitors'' at the [[Sydney Opera House]] in September / October 2023, directed by [[Wesley Enoch]].<ref>{{cite web|title="The Visitors" |publisher= Sydney Theatre Company|url=https://www.sydneytheatre.com.au/whats-on/productions/2023/the-visitors|access-date= 6 November 2024}}</ref> This production won the [[Sydney Theatre Awards|2023 Sydney Theatre Awards]] for Best Mainstage Production, and Best Ensemble, and went on to tour regional Australia in 2024.<ref>{{cite web|title="The Visitors by Jane Harrison 2024 National Tour" |publisher= Moogahlin Perfomriong Arts Inc.|url=https://www.moogahlin.org/thevisitors2024tour|access-date= 6 November 2024}}</ref> | ||
[[Victorian Opera (Melbourne)|Victorian Opera]] commissioned Harrison to collaborate with composer [[Christopher Sainsbury]] to develop an operatic version of ''The Visitors'', staged at [[Arts Centre Melbourne]] in October 2023.<ref>{{cite web|title="The Visitors" |publisher= Victorian Opera|url=https://www.victorianopera.com.au/production/the-visitors/|access-date= 6 November 2024}}</ref> | [[Victorian Opera (Melbourne)|Victorian Opera]] commissioned Harrison to collaborate with composer [[Christopher Sainsbury]] to develop an operatic version of ''The Visitors'', staged at [[Arts Centre Melbourne]] in October 2023.<ref>{{cite web|title="The Visitors" |date= 6 February 2023|publisher= Victorian Opera|url=https://www.victorianopera.com.au/production/the-visitors/|access-date= 6 November 2024}}</ref> | ||
The opera was listed on the [[Victorian Certificate of Education]] 2023 curriculum.<ref>{{cite web|title="New opera brings composer Chris a full circle" |publisher= Canberra City News, 10 October 2023|url=https://citynews.com.au/2023/new-opera-brings-composer-chris-a-full-circle/|access-date= 6 November 2024}}</ref> | The opera was listed on the [[Victorian Certificate of Education]] 2023 curriculum.<ref>{{cite web|title="New opera brings composer Chris a full circle" |date= 9 October 2023|publisher= Canberra City News, 10 October 2023|url=https://citynews.com.au/2023/new-opera-brings-composer-chris-a-full-circle/|access-date= 6 November 2024}}</ref> | ||
==Novels and short stories== | ==Novels and short stories== | ||
===''The Visitors''=== | ===''The Visitors''=== | ||
The narrative arc presented in Harrison's play ''The Visitors'' is reconceptualized as a literary novel, also called ''The Visitors'', published by [[HarperCollins]] in 2023. The novel was named Debut Fiction book of the year in the 2024 [[Indie Book Awards Book of the Year – Debut Fiction|Indie Book Awards]]. | The narrative arc presented in Harrison's play ''The Visitors'' is reconceptualized as a literary novel, also called ''The Visitors'', published by [[HarperCollins]] in 2023.{{cn|date=June 2025}} The novel was named Debut Fiction book of the year in the 2024 [[Indie Book Awards Book of the Year – Debut Fiction|Indie Book Awards]].{{cn|date=June 2025}} | ||
===''Becoming Kirrali Lewis''=== | ===''Becoming Kirrali Lewis''=== | ||
Harrison's novel, ''Becoming Kirrali Lewis'', won the [[State Library of Queensland]] 2014 black&write! Indigenous Writing Fellowship, was shortlisted in the [[Prime Minister's Literary Awards]] 2016, and was Highly Commended in the [[Victorian Premier's Literary Awards]] 2016. ''Becoming Kirrali Lewis'' is a coming-of-age teen fiction novel about the search by [[Stolen Generations]] member Kirrali Lewis for her biological parents, which turns stereotypes on their heads. ''Becoming Kirrali Lewis'' was published by [[Magabala Books]] in 2015. | Harrison's novel, ''Becoming Kirrali Lewis'', won the [[State Library of Queensland]] 2014 [[black&write!]] Indigenous Writing Fellowship, was shortlisted in the [[Prime Minister's Literary Awards]] 2016, and was Highly Commended in the [[Victorian Premier's Literary Awards]] 2016.{{cn|date=June 2025}} ''Becoming Kirrali Lewis'' is a coming-of-age teen fiction novel about the search by [[Stolen Generations]] member Kirrali Lewis for her biological parents, which turns stereotypes on their heads. ''Becoming Kirrali Lewis'' was published by [[Magabala Books]] in 2015.{{cn|date=June 2025}} | ||
===''Born, Still''=== | ===''Born, Still''=== | ||
Short story, ''Born, Still'', was published by the [[State Library of Queensland]] in ''Writing Black: New Indigenous Writing from Australia'', launched in May 2014, and in the anthology ''Flock'' published by [[University of Queensland Press]] in 2021. ''Born, Still'' is a gentle reflection on the death of a daughter before birth. | Short story, ''Born, Still'', was published by the [[State Library of Queensland]] in ''Writing Black: New Indigenous Writing from Australia'', launched in May 2014, and in the anthology ''Flock'' published by [[University of Queensland Press]] in 2021.{{cn|date=June 2025}} ''Born, Still'' is a gentle reflection on the death of a daughter before birth.{{cn|date=June 2025}} | ||
''Born, Still'' was subsequently re-worked as a play, workshopped at the National Play Conference in 2018 with a reading at the [[Melbourne Writers Festival]] also in 2018. | ''Born, Still'' was subsequently re-worked as a play, workshopped at the National Play Conference in 2018 with a reading at the [[Melbourne Writers Festival]] also in 2018.{{cn|date=June 2025}} | ||
===''First Nations Monologues''=== | ===''First Nations Monologues''=== | ||
''First Nations Monologues'' (edited by Harrison) is an anthology of 30 contemporary First Nations playwrights’ most notable theatrical monologues. Published by Currency Press in 2023, it pays homage to the diverse perspectives that resonate throughout | ''First Nations Monologues'' (edited by Harrison) is an anthology of 30 contemporary First Nations playwrights’ most notable theatrical monologues. Published by [[Currency Press]] in 2023, it pays homage to the diverse perspectives that resonate throughout Australia.{{cn|date=June 2025}} | ||
===''Little J & Big Cuz''=== | ===''Little J & Big Cuz''=== | ||
Harrison has written for [[Little J & Big Cuz]], an Australian First Nations animated television series first screened on the NITV network and subsequently on ABC television. The series won the 2018 Logie Award for Most Outstanding Children's Program.<ref>{{cite news |title=Logies awards 2018: Here's the full list of winners and nominees |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-06-29/the-60th-tv-week-logie-awards-2018-nominee-list/9914478 |accessdate=18 July 2024 |work=[[ABC News (Australia)|ABC News]] |date=2 July 2018 | Harrison has written for ''[[Little J & Big Cuz]]'', an Australian First Nations animated television series first screened on the [[NITV]] network and subsequently on [[ABC Television (Australian TV network)|ABC television]]. The series won the 2018 [[Logie Award for Most Outstanding Children's Program]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Logies awards 2018: Here's the full list of winners and nominees |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-06-29/the-60th-tv-week-logie-awards-2018-nominee-list/9914478 |accessdate=18 July 2024 |work=[[ABC News (Australia)|ABC News]] |date=2 July 2018}}</ref> | ||
===''Healing our communities, healing ourselves''=== | ===''Healing our communities, healing ourselves''=== | ||
Harrison confessed in 2010 to her own struggles with [[mental health]] in an essay published in the ''[[Medical Journal of Australia]]''. At a time when [[mental health]] was a career-ending stigma, she did so as a platform for talking about [[Indigenous Australians|First Nations']] mental health more broadly. Harrison's essay ''Healing Our Communities, Healing Ourselves''<ref>''Medical Journal of Australia'' 2010; 192 (10): 556-557.</ref> argued that [[Indigenous Australians|First Nations people]] faced the dual challenge of [[transgenerational trauma]] and its associated impact on [[mental health]], in parallel with the more widely acknowledged structural barriers. She argued "a healthy [[Indigenous Australian|First Nations]] person and community represents best practice" but that "we First Nations workers travel a parallel journey, working to improve our community's wellbeing, while sometimes struggling with our own".{{cn|date=June 2025}} In recognition of her contribution to mental health awareness the ''Medical Journal of Australia'' awarded Harrison the ''Dr Ross Ingram Essay Prize''.{{cn|date=June 2025}} | |||
==Other works== | ==Other works== | ||
Harrison created and led ''Blak & Bright - First Nations Literary Festival''<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-03-14 |title=Blak & Bright First Nations Literary Festival |url=https://blakandbright.com.au/ |access-date=2024-07-15}}</ref> in Naarm (Melbourne) from its inception in 2015 in the role of | Harrison created and led ''Blak & Bright - First Nations Literary Festival''<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-03-14 |title=Blak & Bright First Nations Literary Festival |url=https://blakandbright.com.au/ |access-date=2024-07-15}}</ref> in [[Naarm]] (Melbourne) from its inception in 2015 in the role of artistic director / CEO until August 2024.{{cn|date=June 2025}} ''Blak & Bright'' is a bi-annual four-day festival celebrating the diverse expressions of [[Indigenous Australian|First Nations]] story-tellers, the only major First Nations literary festival in Australia.{{cn|date=June 2025}} | ||
"Indig-curious; Who can play Aboriginal roles?" (2012) explores the issues raised by [[Australian Aboriginal identity|Aboriginal identity]] in theatre. The essay was derived from Harrison's [[University of Queensland]] Masters Exegesis.{{cn|date=June 2025}} | |||
Harrison contributed a chapter to ''Many Voices, Reflections on experiences of Indigenous child separation'', which was published in 2002 by the [[National Library of Australia]], [[Canberra]]. This work was also related to the theme of the [[ | Harrison contributed a chapter to ''Many Voices, Reflections on experiences of Indigenous child separation'', which was published in 2002 by the [[National Library of Australia]], [[Canberra]]. This work was also related to the theme of the [[Stolen Generations]].<ref name="multiple"/> | ||
==Awards== | ==Awards== | ||
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| 2012 || [[British Council]] || Indigenous Arts Leadership Accelerate program || Herself || Recipient || | | 2012 || [[British Council]] || Indigenous Arts Leadership Accelerate program || Herself || Recipient || | ||
|- | |- | ||
| 2010 || [[Medical Journal of Australia]] || Dr Ross Ingram Essay Prize || ''Healing our communities healing ourselves'' || Winner || <ref>{{Cite | | 2010 || [[Medical Journal of Australia]] || Dr Ross Ingram Essay Prize || ''Healing our communities healing ourselves'' || Winner || <ref>{{Cite journal |date=2010-05-17 |title=Ross Ingram Memorial Essay Competition - Healing our communities, healing ourselves |issue=10 |url=https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2010/192/10/healing-our-communities-healing-ourselves |access-date=2024-02-15 |journal=The Medical Journal of Australia|volume=192 |last1=Harrison |first1=Jane |doi=10.5694/j.1326-5377.2010.tb03634.x |pmid=20477728 }}</ref> | ||
|- | |- | ||
| 2009 || Interpretation Australia || Excellence in Heritage Interpretation || ''Crime and Justice Experience at the Old Melbourne Gaol'' || Winner (contributing writer) || | | 2009 || Interpretation Australia || Excellence in Heritage Interpretation || ''Crime and Justice Experience at the Old Melbourne Gaol'' || Winner (contributing writer) || | ||
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|| Lake Macquarie Drama Prize || n/a || ''On a Park Bench'' || Finalist || | || Lake Macquarie Drama Prize || n/a || ''On a Park Bench'' || Finalist || | ||
|- | |- | ||
|| [[Australian Writers' Guild]] || [[ | || [[Australian Writers' Guild]] || [[AWGIE]] || ''Stolen'' || Nomination || | ||
|- | |- | ||
|| CACS National Awards || Outstanding Contribution to Australian Culture || ''Stolen'' || Honourable Mention || | || CACS National Awards || Outstanding Contribution to Australian Culture || ''Stolen'' || Honourable Mention || | ||
|} | |} | ||
==References== | ==References== | ||
Latest revision as of 06:39, 1 July 2025
Template:Short description Template:Refimprove blp Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use Australian English Jane Harrison is an Aboriginal Australian playwright, novelist, literary festival director, and researcher. She is known for her 1998 play Stolen, which received critical claim and has toured nationally and internationally, and The Visitors, first produced in 2020. The Visitors has been developed as an opera and as a novel.
Early life and education
Jane Harrison is a descendant of the Muruwari people of New South Wales, from the area around Bourke and Brewarrina.[1]
She grew up in the Dandenong Ranges in Victoria with her mother and sister, and began her career as an advertising copywriter.[1]
Plays
Stolen
Script error: No such module "Labelled list hatnote". Stolen premièred in 1998 at Playbox (now Malthouse Theatre) in Melbourne, directed by Wesley Enoch.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". It was followed by seven annual seasons in Melbourne, plus tours to Sydney, Adelaide, regional Victoria, Tasmania, the United Kingdom (twice), Hong Kong and Tokyo, with readings in Canada, New York City, and Los Angeles.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". In Sydney, it was performed at the Sydney Theatre Company, directed by Wayne Blair.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
Stolen is a play about the lives of five Indigenous Australian people from the Stolen Generations.[2] For Stolen Harrison was awarded the Australian Writers' Guild AWGIE Nomination, was co-winner of the Kate Challis RAKA Award, and received an Honourable Mention in the CACS National Awards Individual Category for An Outstanding Contribution to Australian Culture.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Stolen has been studied on the Victorian Certificate of Education and New South Wales Higher School Certificate English and drama syllabi.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Australian Book Review called the play "a contemporary classic".[3]
Sydney Theatre Company staged a new production of Stolen in its 2024 season, directed by Ian Michael.[4]
Rainbow's End
Rainbow's End premiered in 2005, and toured Melbourne, Sydney, regional Australia, and Japan in 2007, and has had numerous subsequent productions.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Harrison was awarded the Drover Award (Tour of the Year) and a Helpmann Awards nomination for Best Regional Touring Production.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". It has been studied on the New South Wales Higher School Certificate and is currently on the Victorian Certificate of Education English syllabus.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Rainbow's End tells the simple, yet convoluted story of three generations of First Nations women; young Dolly, her mother the happy-go-lucky Gladys, and the wise and stern Nan Dear, living in their shanty perched on the flats of the Goulburn River in 1950s regional Victoria. The play was initially directed by Wesley Enoch.[5]
On a Park Bench
On a Park Bench was created through workshops at Playbox and the Banff playRites Colony in 2002. The play was a finalist in the Lake Macquarie Drama Prize.[2]
Blakvelvet
Blakvelvet won the 2006 Theatrelab Indigenous Award.[2]
The Visitors
The Visitors was initially workshopped at the Yellamundie Festival in 2013, before a development at the Melbourne Theatre Company Cybec Electric series / Melbourne Indigenous Festival in 2014, directed by Leah Purcell.[6] The Visitors re-imagines the arrival of the First Fleet on Gadigal country from the perspective of seven elders meeting on the shores of the harbour.[7]
The Visitors premiered as a full production in January 2020 as part of the Sydney Festival. It was awarded the prize for Best New Australian Work, 2022 Sydney Theatre Awards, and was shortlisted for the Nick Enright Prize for Playwriting at the 2021 New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards.[8]
Sydney Theatre Company and Moogahlin Performing Arts produced a second production of The Visitors at the Sydney Opera House in September / October 2023, directed by Wesley Enoch.[9] This production won the 2023 Sydney Theatre Awards for Best Mainstage Production, and Best Ensemble, and went on to tour regional Australia in 2024.[10]
Victorian Opera commissioned Harrison to collaborate with composer Christopher Sainsbury to develop an operatic version of The Visitors, staged at Arts Centre Melbourne in October 2023.[11]
The opera was listed on the Victorian Certificate of Education 2023 curriculum.[12]
Novels and short stories
The Visitors
The narrative arc presented in Harrison's play The Visitors is reconceptualized as a literary novel, also called The Visitors, published by HarperCollins in 2023.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". The novel was named Debut Fiction book of the year in the 2024 Indie Book Awards.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
Becoming Kirrali Lewis
Harrison's novel, Becoming Kirrali Lewis, won the State Library of Queensland 2014 black&write! Indigenous Writing Fellowship, was shortlisted in the Prime Minister's Literary Awards 2016, and was Highly Commended in the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2016.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Becoming Kirrali Lewis is a coming-of-age teen fiction novel about the search by Stolen Generations member Kirrali Lewis for her biological parents, which turns stereotypes on their heads. Becoming Kirrali Lewis was published by Magabala Books in 2015.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
Born, Still
Short story, Born, Still, was published by the State Library of Queensland in Writing Black: New Indigenous Writing from Australia, launched in May 2014, and in the anthology Flock published by University of Queensland Press in 2021.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Born, Still is a gentle reflection on the death of a daughter before birth.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
Born, Still was subsequently re-worked as a play, workshopped at the National Play Conference in 2018 with a reading at the Melbourne Writers Festival also in 2018.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
First Nations Monologues
First Nations Monologues (edited by Harrison) is an anthology of 30 contemporary First Nations playwrights’ most notable theatrical monologues. Published by Currency Press in 2023, it pays homage to the diverse perspectives that resonate throughout Australia.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
Little J & Big Cuz
Harrison has written for Little J & Big Cuz, an Australian First Nations animated television series first screened on the NITV network and subsequently on ABC television. The series won the 2018 Logie Award for Most Outstanding Children's Program.[13]
Healing our communities, healing ourselves
Harrison confessed in 2010 to her own struggles with mental health in an essay published in the Medical Journal of Australia. At a time when mental health was a career-ending stigma, she did so as a platform for talking about First Nations' mental health more broadly. Harrison's essay Healing Our Communities, Healing Ourselves[14] argued that First Nations people faced the dual challenge of transgenerational trauma and its associated impact on mental health, in parallel with the more widely acknowledged structural barriers. She argued "a healthy First Nations person and community represents best practice" but that "we First Nations workers travel a parallel journey, working to improve our community's wellbeing, while sometimes struggling with our own".Script error: No such module "Unsubst". In recognition of her contribution to mental health awareness the Medical Journal of Australia awarded Harrison the Dr Ross Ingram Essay Prize.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
Other works
Harrison created and led Blak & Bright - First Nations Literary Festival[15] in Naarm (Melbourne) from its inception in 2015 in the role of artistic director / CEO until August 2024.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Blak & Bright is a bi-annual four-day festival celebrating the diverse expressions of First Nations story-tellers, the only major First Nations literary festival in Australia.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
"Indig-curious; Who can play Aboriginal roles?" (2012) explores the issues raised by Aboriginal identity in theatre. The essay was derived from Harrison's University of Queensland Masters Exegesis.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
Harrison contributed a chapter to Many Voices, Reflections on experiences of Indigenous child separation, which was published in 2002 by the National Library of Australia, Canberra. This work was also related to the theme of the Stolen Generations.[2]
Awards
| Year | Patron | Category | Title | Award | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Indie Book Awards | Debut fiction | The Visitors | Winner | [16] |
| 2024 | Creative Australia | BR Whiting Studio Residency | Herself | Recipient | [17] |
| 2024 | Sydney Theatre Awards | Best Mainstage Production | The Visitors | Winner | [18] |
| 2024 | Sydney Theatre Awards | Best Ensemble | The Visitors | Winner | [19] |
| 2023 | Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards | Individual category | Herself | Winner | [20] |
| 2022 | Sydney Theatre Awards | Best New Australian Work | The Visitors | Winner | [21] |
| 2021 | New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards | Nick Enright Prize for Playwriting | The Visitors | Shortlist | [22] |
| 2016 | Victorian Premier's Literary Awards | Writing for Young Adults | Becoming Kirrali Lewis | Highly commended | [23] |
| 2016 | Prime Minister's Literary Awards | Young Adult Literature | Becoming Kirrali Lewis | Shortlisted | [24] |
| 2014 | State Library of Queensland | Black & Write! Indigenous Writing Fellowship | Becoming Kirrali Lewis | Winner | [25] |
| 2012 | Drovers Award | Tour of the Year | Rainbow's End | Winner | [26] |
| 2012 | Helpmann Awards | Best Regional Touring Production | Rainbow's End | Nomination | [27] |
| 2012 | British Council | Indigenous Arts Leadership Accelerate program | Herself | Recipient | |
| 2010 | Medical Journal of Australia | Dr Ross Ingram Essay Prize | Healing our communities healing ourselves | Winner | [28] |
| 2009 | Interpretation Australia | Excellence in Heritage Interpretation | Crime and Justice Experience at the Old Melbourne Gaol | Winner (contributing writer) | |
| 2007 | Peter Holmes a Court Indigenous Playwriting Award | n/a | Can White Girls Dreamtime? | Winner | |
| 2006 | Theatrelab | Indigenous Award | Blakvelvet | Winner | |
| 1998 – 2002 | Kate Challis RAKA Award | Play writing | Stolen | Co-winner | |
| Lake Macquarie Drama Prize | n/a | On a Park Bench | Finalist | ||
| Australian Writers' Guild | AWGIE | Stolen | Nomination | ||
| CACS National Awards | Outstanding Contribution to Australian Culture | Stolen | Honourable Mention |
References
External links
- [1] Stolen
- [2] Contemporary Indigenous Plays Rainbow's End
- [3] Medical Journal of Australia Healing our communities, healing ourselves
- [4] Currency House Indig-curious; Who can play Aboriginal roles?
- [5] La Trobe University Not one size fits all: Understanding the social and emotional wellbeing of Aboriginal children
- [6] National Library of Australia Many Voices: Reflections on Experiences of Indigenous Child Separation
- ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ a b c d J. Harrison (2000) Stolen. Strawberry Hills (NSW): Currency Press (Author's biography on 1st page)
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- ↑ J. Harrison (2007) Rainbow's End published in Contemporary Indigenous Plays Currency Press (Author's biography)
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- ↑ Medical Journal of Australia 2010; 192 (10): 556-557.
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- Pages with script errors
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- 1960 births
- Australian non-fiction writers
- 20th-century Australian dramatists and playwrights
- Indigenous Australian writers
- Living people
- Australian women dramatists and playwrights
- 21st-century Australian dramatists and playwrights
- 21st-century Australian women writers
- 20th-century Australian women writers