Gods of Red Earth

Gods of Red Earth
Written by	Coral Lansbury
Date premiered	February 27, 1963 (1963-02-27)
Place premiered	Independent Theatre, Sydney
Original language	English

Gods of Red Earth is a 1963 Australian play by Coral Lansbury. It was written with some backing from the Elizabethan Theatre Trust. ^[1] The play was originally a radio play. ^[2]

Premise

The story of a family of graziers over one day.

Reception

The Sydney Morning Herald wrote "nothing more unfortunate could happen to Australian drama than t have Coral Lansbury's God's of Red Earth... in any way identified with it... disastrous... stupefyingly soggy and trite." ^[3]

Lansbury responded to this in a letter claiming the reviewer had missed the point to which the critic responded again insisting "I am always unhappy when I see a bad play badly presented. Anyone who found pleasure in such a spectacle would have to be of a particularly sadistic turn of mind." ^[4]

The paper's music and drama critics attacked the play again the following month writing "why did it encourage in any way the current production of Gods of Red Earth?" ^[5]

One review wrote "here is wit, banter and conventional characterization. Reflection, however, does not long sustain the elation — the play crumbles when the surface glitter starts to fade." ^[6]

References

1. "Curtain Call". The Sydney Morning Herald. 30 December 1962. p. 43.
2. Shelley, Gary (27 March 1972). "Ena Harwood - she's a beauty". The Sydney Morning Herald. p. 15.
3. R.C. (28 February 1963). "Australian play at Independent". The Sydney Morning Herald. p. 7.
4. Lansbury, Coral (7 March 1963). "Review of "Gods of Red Earth"". The Sydney Morning Herald. p. 2.
5. "Better new music for 1963 concerts". The Sydney Morning Herald. 6 March 1963. p. 10.
6. "AT SYDNEY THEATRES". Le Courrier Australien . No. 10. New South Wales, Australia. 8 March 1963. p. 5. Retrieved 5 March 2025– via National Library of Australia.

External links

• Gods of Red Earth at AustLit