Australian theatre company
Griffin Theatre Company is an Australian theatre specialising in new works, based inSydney. Founded in 1979, it is the resident theatre company at theStables Theatre inKings Cross.[1] As of February 2020[update] the artistic director is Declan Greene.
Founded in 1979 its original founders were Peter Carmody,Penny Cook, Eadie Kurzer, Jenny Laing-Peach, and Rosemarie Lenzo. The organisation held its first meetings in Laing-Peach's cottage in Griffin Street,Surry Hills. Their first project was to present the Irish playThe Ginger Man byJames Patrick Donleavy at the Kirk Gallery inCleveland Street, Surry Hills on 6 April 1979. The first Artistic Director was Peter Kingston who served until the appointment of Ian B Watson in 1988.[7]
For the 1984 season the company was awarded The Sydney Critic's Circle Award for "the most significant contribution to theatre that year."[8] In 1986 The SBW Foundation Purchased the Stables Theatre and offered the company a lifetime rent-free lease.[9]
The theatre focuses on "all-Australia" talent and works.[1]
Cate Blanchett andJacqueline McKenzie began their professional careers at Griffin. The filmsLantana,The Boys, andThe Heartbreak Kid (which later spun off into the television seriesHeartbreak High) were based on plays produced by Griffin.Away, Australia's most produced contemporary play, also started at the company.[5]
In 2018 Griffin launched an annual experimental theatre festival, the Batch Festival. It is a three-week festival featuring multiple shows each day, curated to highlight emerging artists.[10] It was paused in 2021 owing to theCOVID-19 pandemic.[11]
Griffin Independent and Griffin Special Extras
[edit]Running since 2004 (then called Griffin Stablemates), in parallel to Griffin's own mainstage season of new Australian plays, Griffin Independent is an annual season of 5–6 new plays presented by independent theatre companies. In 2018, Griffin Independent was updated to Special Extras.[12]
Bestowed annually since 1998, the Griffin Award is offered to the most outstanding new work as read and judged by a panel appointed by Griffin. The award comes with a $10,000 cash prize. One stipulation on entry is that all works submitted have not been performed or produced prior.[13]
- 1998 – Catherine Zimdahl forClark in Sarajevo
- 1999 –Neil Cole forAlive at Williamstown Pier
- 2000 – Ian Wilding forBelow
- 2001 –Verity Laughton forBurning
- 2002 – Noelle Janacsewska forSongket and Patrick Van der Werf forPresence
- 2003 –Brendan Cowell forRabbit
- 2004 –Debra Oswald forMr Bailey's Minder
- 2005 – Ian Wilding forThe Carnivores
- 2006 – Mary Rachel Brown forAustralian Gothic
- 2007 – Damien Millar forEmergency Sex and Other Desperate Measures
- 2008 – Glace Chase forWhore
- 2009 –Lachlan Philpott forSilent Disco
- 2010 –Aidan Fennessy forBrutopia
- 2011 – Glace Chase forA Hoax
- 2012 – Vivienne Walshe forThis is Where We Live
- 2013 – Donna Abela forJump for Jordan
- 2014 – Angus Cerini forThe Bleeding Tree
- 2015 – Stephen Carleton forThe Turquoise Elephant
- 2016 –Melissa Reeves forThe Zen of Table Tennis
- 2017 – David Finnigan forKill Climate Deniers
- 2018 –Suzie Miller forOn the Face of It (Prima Facie)
- 2019 – Mark Rogers forSuperheroes
- 2020 - Dylan Van Den Berg forway back when
Griffin Studio is a year-long residency for directors, writers and dramaturgs with the company, established in 2011. It is awarded annually to one or more applicants.[14]
Founded in 2015, the Lysicrates Prize is awarded annually to a play and is described as a "philanthropic initiative presented by The Lysicrates Foundation and produced by Griffin Theatre Company". The inaugural prize was won by Steve Rodgers for his playJesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam.[15][16][17]
Incubator Fellowship
[edit]In 2020 the company partnered withCreate NSW to form theIncubator – NSW Theatre (Emerging) Fellowship program (akaIncubator Fellowship). Shortlisted fellows complete a three-month incubator program for emerging playwrights, directors, dramaturgs, designers and composers to work with the company. One of the fellows is then chosen to receive $30,000 to "pursue a self-directed program of professional development in Australia or overseas".[18]
- Winners
- 2020: Ang Collins[19]
- 2021: Happy Feraren[20]
- 2022: Eve Beck[20]
The Suzie Miller Award was established in 2024 for mid-career playwrights, named in honour of Australian playwrightSuzie Miller. The award provides a full commission and residency at the theatre, along with mentorship by Miller. It is open to established writers whose work deals with "knotty, contemporary questions". The inaugural winner of the award was Mary Rachel Brown.[21]
Recent Griffin Theatre Company mainstage seasons are listed below.[22]
- Dead Cat Bounce by Mary Rachel Brown. 22 February – 6 April 2019
- Prima Facie bySuzie Miller. 17 May – 22 June 2019
- City of Gold byMeyne Wyatt. 26 July – 31 August 2019
- Splinter byHilary Bell. 6 September – 12 October 2019
- First Love Is The Revolution by Rita Kalnejais. 6 September – 12 October 2019
- Kill Climate Deniers by David Finnigan. 23 February – 7 April 2018
- Good Cook. Friendly. Clean. by Brooke Robinson. 4 May – 16 June 2018
- The Almighty Sometimes by Kendall Feaver. 27 July – 8 September 2018
- The Feather in the Web by Nick Coyle. 5 October – 17 November 2018
- A Strategic Plan by Ross Mueller. 27 January – 11 March 2017
- The Homosexuals or 'Faggots' by Declan Greene. 17 March – 29 April 2017
- Rice by Michele Lee. 21 July – 26 August 2017
- Diving For Pearls by Katherine Thomson. 8 September – 28 October 2017
- Ladies Day byAlana Valentine. 5 February – 26 March 2016
- Replay by Phillip Kavanagh. 2 April – 7 May 2016
- The Literati byJustin Fleming. 27 May – 16 July 2016
- Gloria byBenedict Andrews. 26 August – 8 October 2016
- The Turquoise Elephant by Stephen Carleton. 14 October – 16 November 2016
- Masquerade byKate Mulvany. 7–17 January 2015
- Caress/Ache bySuzie Miller. 27 February – 11 April 2015
- The House on the Lake byAidan Fennessy. 15 May – 20 June 2015
- The Bleeding Tree by Angus Cerini. 31 July – 5 September 2015
- A Rabbit for Kim Jong-il by Kit Brookman. 9 October – 21 November 2015
- Emerald City byDavid Williamson. 17 October – 6 December 2014
- The Witches byRoald Dahl, adapted from the stage play by David Wood. 24 September – 5 October 2014
- Ugly Mugs byPeta Brady. 18 July – 24 August 2014
- Eight Gigabytes of Hardcore Pornography by Declan Greene. 2 May – 14 June 2014
- Jump for Jordan by Donna Abela 14 February – 29 March 2014
- The Serpent's Table by Darren Yap andLee Lewis. 24–27 January 2014
- Dreams in White - byDuncan Graham. 8 February – March 2013
- The Bull, the Moon and the Coronet of Stars – byVan Badham. 2 May – June 2013
- Beached – by Melissa Bubnic. 17 July 31 August 2013
- The Floating World – byJohn Romeril. 4 October – 16 November 2013
- Graces – by Angus Cerini, Elise Hearst andLachlan Philpott. 14 September – 7 December 2010
- Love Me Tender – byTom Holloway. 18 March – 11 April 2010
- Like a Fishbone by Anthony Weigh. 16 July – 7 August 2010
- Quack by Ian Wilding. 27 August – 2 October 2010
- Angela's Kitchen byPaul Capsis and Julian Meyrick / Associate WriterHilary Bell. 5 November – 18 December 2010
- The Fates – by Kamarra Bell-Wykes, Jonathan Ari Lander andCatherine Ryan. 19 May – November 2009
- Holiday – by Ranters Theatre. 4–28 February 2009
- Concussion by Ross Mueller. 13 March – 4 April 2009
- The Call – byPatricia Cornelius. 1 May – 6 June 2009
- Savage River – by Steve Rodgers. 12 June – 8 July 2009
- Strange Attractor – bySue Smith. 23 October – 21 November 2009
- Seasons – by Nicki Bloom, Jonathan Gavin,Sue Smith and Rick Viede. 19 January – 8 February 2008
- China – by William Yang. 19 January – 8 February 2008
- The Kid – byMichael Gow. 22 March – 26 April 2008
- Don't Say The Words – byTom Holloway. 4–26 July 2008
- The Modern International Dead – by Damien Millar. 12 September – 11 October 2008
- Tender – by Nicki Bloom. 21 November – 20 December 2008
- Impractical Jokes – byCharlie Pickering. 23 January – 2 February 2008
Commissioned and premiered works
[edit]Playwrights whose work has premiered at Griffin include:
- Glenda Adams –The Monkey Trap (1998)
- Richard Barrett –The Heartbreak Kid (1987)
- Hilary Bell –Wolf Lullaby (1996),The Falls (2000)
- Andrew Bovell –After Dinner (1989),Whisky on the Breath of a Drunk You Love (1992),Speaking in Tongues (1996),Ship of Fools (1999)
- Brendan Cowell –Rabbit (2003)
- Timothy Daly –Kafka Dances (1993),The Moonwalkers (1995),Private Visions of Gottfried Kellner (1999)[23]
- Wesley Enoch –The Story of the Miracles at Cookie's Table (2007)
- Gordon Graham –The Boys (1991)
- Michael Gow –Away (1986),Europe (1987),Live Acts on Stage (1996)
- Noel Hodda –The Secret House (1987),Half Safe (1990),
- Ingle Knight –White Nancy (1982)
- Ned Manning –Us or Them (1984),Belonging (2007)
- Tommy Murphy –Strangers in Between (2005),Holding the Man (Adapted from the book byTimothy Conigrave, 2006)
- Louis Nowra –Death of Joe Orton,The Boyce Trilogy:The Woman with Dog's Eyes (2004),The Marvellous Boy (2005),The Emperor of Sydney (2006)[23]
- Debra Oswald –Mr Bailey's Minder (2004),The Peach Season (2006)
- Stephen Sewell –The Father We Loved on a Beach by the Sea (1981),In Stillness My Sister Speaks to Me (1990),The Secret Death of Salvador Dali (2004),Three Furies Scenes from the life of Francis Bacon (2005)[23]
- Katherine Thomson –Wonderlands (2003),King Tide (2007)[23]
- Ian Wilding –Below (2000),Torrez (2004),October (2007)[23]
- Catherine Zimdahl –Clark in Sarajevo (1998)[23]
