Early in the Morning (radio play)

Last updated
Early in the Morning
Genredrama feature
Running time60 mins (8:00 pm – 9:00 pm)
Country of originAustralia
Language(s)English
Written by Ruth Park
Directed byJohn Cairns
Original releaseNovember 5, 1946 (1946-11-05)

Early in the Morning is a 1946 Australian radio feature by Ruth Park about Abel Tasman. [1]

Contents

The play was well received and was produced again in 1947, [2] 1949, 1951, 1953 [3] and 1959. [4]

The play was one of six Australian plays picked by the ABC to commemorate Australia's Jubilee in 1951. [5]

Public response to the play was strong. [6]

The play was one of a series of radio dramas by Park about European exploration of Australia, others being Stormy Was the Weather (on James Cook) and I'll Meet You in Botany Bay on (Governor Phillip). According to Leslie Rees these plays:

Formed an eloquent and fine-tempered reverse sequence bearing on the theme of discovery. They combined the presentation of factual incidents with a keen imaginative perception of character under stress, an ironical feeling for the forlornness, anguish or disillusionment of persons born to a place in history, an appreciation of pioneering courage and achievement set against the failure of private life to fulfil its expectations. These plays had the salt tang of the sea, the roll or pitch of wooden ships breasting through uncharted waters, as well as vivid or bitter personal emotions. [7]

Reception

Reviewing the 1951 production The Age said the play "has a good deal of. strength in the telling, and suggests a certain amount of authenticity as to fact, but it ends unsatisfactorily In that it brands him as a failure after his first voyage for not having discovered the Great South Land." However the critic specified "As a piece of dramatic writing" the play "is well contrived. The dialogue is crisp and there is little confusion in separating the characters." [8]

Reviewing the 1953 production the Adelaide Advertiser called it a "self-conscious attempt to draw a heavily realistic portrait, and that in striving for imaginative accuracy the writer had fallen into the pit of deliberate debunking... It was almost as though we were being asked to forget the great discoverer and to remember the weaknesses of the man." [9]

Premise

"At the dawn of the sixteenth century Abel Tasman set sail from Batavia in his fragile but swift-sailing ship, Zeeliaen. He had been commissioned to And the mysterious continent Terra Australis, the mythical land of fabulous wealth, and claim it for Holland." [10] [11]

Cast of 1947 production

Cast of 1959 production

Related Research Articles

<i>The Fire on the Snow</i> Play written by Douglas Stewart

The Fire on the Snow is a 1941 Australian verse play by Douglas Stewart about the Terra Nova Expedition to Antarctica by Robert Falcon Scott. It premiered on ABC radio on 6 June 1941 to great acclaim and inspired a series of Australian verse dramas on ABC radio.

<i>The Invisible Circus</i> (play) Play by Sumner Locke Elliott

The Invisible Circus is a 1946 Australian stage play by Sumner Locke Elliott set in the world of commercial radio drama, a field that Elliott knew well from many years writing for George Edwards. Elliott is represented in two characters, the idealistic Brad and the more jaded Mark.

Ned Kelly is a 1942 radio play by Douglas Stewart about the outlaw Ned Kelly.

Daybreak is a 1938 Australian play by Catherine Shepherd.

<i>Portrait of a Gentleman</i> (play) 1948 play by George Farwell

Portrait of a Gentleman is a 1940 Australian radio play by George Farwell about Thomas Griffiths Wainewright. It was the first time Wainewright's life had been dramatised.

<i>Murder in the Silo</i> Australian radio drama

Murder in the Silo is a 1937 radio drama by Edmund Barclay. It was described as a psychological melodrama and was very popular at a time when Australian set radio dramas were relatively rare. Leslie Rees called it "one of the most effective of our shorter radio plays."

<i>Lazy in the Sun</i> 1951 radio drama by Max Afford

Lazy in the Sun is a 1951 Australian radio drama by Max Afford. It was one of Afford's most acclaimed works. It explored the notion of Australia's responsibilities to the world.

Webs of Our Weaving is a 1945 Australian radio play by Musette Morell. It is one of her most highly regarded radio plays.

<i>The Explorers</i> (play) 1952 play by John Sandford

The Explorers is a 1952 Australian radio play about the Burke and Wills expedition by John Sandford. It was Sandford's first play.

Mrs Pretty and the Premier was a 1914 Australian play by Arthur Adams.

Buke and Wills is a 1949 Australian radio play by Colin Thiele about the Burke and Wills expedition.

<i>Ill Meet You in Botany Bay</i> 1945 radio play

I'll Meet You in Botany Bay is a 1945 radio play by Ruth Park about Governor Arthur Phillip based on original documents and letters.

Spiegel the Cat is a 1952 Australian radio play by David Martin. It was adapted from Spiegel the Cat, a story from the Swiss writer Gottfried Keller.

A Dog's Life is a 1951 Australian radio drama by June Epstein. It was the story of a romance between a boy and his dog. The production was originally recorded in Adelaide.

The Last Foot is an Australian radio play by F. B. Vickers. It was produced in Perth for the ABC's Jubilee Celebration.

Wilbur Wasn't Quite Perfect is a 1951 Australian radio play by Henry P. Schoenheimer. It was produced for the ABC's Jubilee Celebration as part of their series of lighter plays.

Far from the Land is a 1947 Australian radio play by Ruth Park. It was very well received on initial broadcast by the public.

Stormy Was the Weather is a 1948 Australian radio play by Ruth Park about James Cook and his voyage to Botany Bay. It was produced again in 1953. The latter was part of the ABC's 21st birthday celebrations.

The First Gentleman is a 1945 Australian radio play by Betty Roland about Benjamin Boyd. It was one of Roland's most notable works.

The Path of the Eagle is a 1943 Australian radio play by Catherine Duncan. It was originally written under the title Succubus. The play was a telling of the Oedipus story.

References

  1. ↑ "To-day's Highlights On National Radio". Daily Examiner . No. 2939. New South Wales, Australia. 5 November 1946. p. 4. Retrieved 1 September 2023– via National Library of Australia.
  2. ↑ "A.B.C. Saturday Night Drama", ABC Weekly, 9 (15), Sydney, 12 April 1947, retrieved 1 September 2023– via Trove
  3. ↑ "Features of the week...", ABC Weekly, Sydney, 29 August 1953, retrieved 1 February 2024– via Trove
  4. ↑ "A.B.C, radio plays for the week", ABC Weekly, 21 (3), Sydney, 21 January 1959, retrieved 1 September 2023– via Trove
  5. ↑ ABC Weekly, vol. 12, Sydney, 30 December 1950, retrieved 1 September 2023– via Trove{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  6. ↑ "A.B.C. Asturday Night Drama Ruth Park's Play Pleased Critics", ABC Weekly, Sydney: ABC, 12 April 1947, retrieved 1 February 2024– via Trove
  7. ↑ Leslie, Rees (1987). Australian drama, 1970-1985 : a historical and critical survey. Angus & Robertson. p. 200. ISBN   978-0-207-15354-9.
  8. ↑ "The Week in Wireless". The Age . No. 29, 881. Victoria, Australia. 3 February 1951. p. 10. Retrieved 1 February 2024– via National Library of Australia.
  9. ↑ "Outspoken ABC Feature". The Advertiser (Adelaide) . Vol. 96, no. 29, 615. South Australia. 12 September 1953. p. 12. Retrieved 1 February 2024– via National Library of Australia.
  10. ↑ Australian Broadcasting Commission (2 November 1946), "Plays of the week", ABC Weekly, Sydney: ABC, retrieved 1 February 2024– via Trove
  11. ↑ "Radio Plays for Next Week A.B.C.", ABC Weekly, 13 (4), Sydney, 27 January 1951, retrieved 1 September 2023– via Trove
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.