LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The University of Louisville Department of Theatre Arts continues its season of plays written by women with “Our Country’s Good” Nov. 10-19 at the historic Playhouse theatre.
Based on real events, this award-winning drama by Timberlake Wertenbaker is an evocative look at a moment in history — the founding of a nation —and an inspiring tale about the transformative power of theatre.
In January 1788, British prison ships arrive at Botany Bay, Australia, to settle the penal colony at Port Jackson, the site of current-day Sydney. When hope and supplies run low, a lieutenant tries to increase morale by staging a comedy, “The Recruiting Officer” by George Farquhar, using the convicts as the cast.
In writing the play, which is based on the novel “The Playmaker” by Thomas Keneally (author of “Schindler’s List”), Wertenbaker wanted “to write about what it means to be brutalized, what it means to live without hope, and how theatre can be a humanizing force.”
“I decided to explore Wertenbaker’s ‘Our Country’s Good’ through the lens of current political issues,” said associate professor Baron Kelly, who is directing. “In America, we are witnessing fiery political debates around what is meant by ‘our country.’ We are witnessing factions debating and declaiming issues of immigration and DACA couched in the phrase ‘make American great again.’ The Black Lives Matter movement is a strong voice decrying the deaths of unarmed black men by law enforcement in America. Does ‘make America great again’ really mean for some to make America ‘good and white’ again?”
“Our Country’s Good” runs at 8 p.m. Nov. 10, 11, 16, 17 and 18 and 3 p.m. Nov. 12 and Nov. 19 at The Playhouse, 1911 S. Third St.
Season tickets are $50. Individual tickets are $15 for general admission, $12 for faculty, alumni and seniors and $8 for UofL students. To order tickets or for more information, click here, call 502-852-7682 or email uofltheatrearts@gmail.com.
For more information, contact Blair Boyd at 502-852-7682 or blair.boyd@louisville.edu.
###