La Mama

Episode of Series “Australia Council archival film series: on stage”.
Betty Burstall founded La Mama in Carlton, Melbourne, in 1967 as a venue for experimental theatre. During her nine years as Artistic Director, she encouraged playwrights, poets, actors and musicians to reject theatrical traditions and push the boundaries of performing art. La Mama is synonymous with the renaissance of Australian theatre. Playwrights such as Williamson, Buzo, Dickins, Romeril and Hibberd wrote about contemporary Australia. Actors rejected the formality of conventional theatre and developed a larrikin performance style which reflected a new awareness of cultural identity. In this engaging compilation film, Burstall, her successor Liz Jones, writers Barry Dickins and Jack Hibberd and performers Petter Cummins and Valerie Kirwin speak to Mary-Lou Jelbart about the challenges and joys of working at La Mama.