The Drovers is a 1921 Australian play by Louis Esson. According to Esson's obituary the play was his "finest piece... one scene, one simple incident; it was what he could do; be never did anything better; and no one else did, either."[1]
| The Drovers | |
|---|---|
| Written by | Louis Esson |
| Original language | English |
| Genre | drama |
It was published in a collection of plays in 1920[2] and 1945. The play was published before it had been performed.
Leslie Rees called The Drovers:
A play that will stand reading and rereading... Each character is dry-pointed, hardly more than a line-sketch in so brief a compass—... but definite and clear. The situation has some of the inevitability of a Greek tragedy. No play of ours more powerfully shows the grimness of a fate that broods over men who pit themselves against our vast inland wilderness.[3]
Radio adaptations
editThe play was adapted for radio in 1940, 1943[4] and 1946.[5]
Premise
edit"The Play tells of Briglow Hill, the injured drover, left to die on the track because the parched cattle must be driven on to a distant waterhole at all costs."[6]
References
edit- ^ "Pioneer Playwright". The Sydney Morning Herald. No. 33, 852. New South Wales, Australia. 22 June 1946. p. 8. Retrieved 28 February 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "SUNDRY SHOWS.", The Bulletin, Sydney, N.S.W: John Haynes and J.F. Archibald, 6 Jan 1921, nla.obj-672127224, retrieved 28 February 2024 – via Trove
- ^ Rees, Leslie (1987). Australian drama, 1970-1985 : a historical and critical survey. Angus & Robertson. p. 134. ISBN 978-0-207-15354-9.
- ^ "Friday, Sept. 17", ABC Weekly, Sydney: ABC, 11 September 1943, nla.obj-1315921724, retrieved 28 February 2024 – via Trove
- ^ "MONDAY", ABC Weekly, Sydney: ABC, 26 January 1946, nla.obj-1353597165, retrieved 28 February 2024 – via Trove
- ^ "FRIDAY . . . . . MAR. 1", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, Sydney: Wireless Press, February 24, 1940, nla.obj-718401287, retrieved 28 February 2024 – via Trove
External links
edit- The Drovers at AustLit
- The Drovers at Ausstage
- Esson, Louis (1920). Dead Timber and Other Plays. Hendersons. - includes complete text of play