AustLit
Latest Issues
AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'Following the success of 'Fury' in 2013, playwright Joanna Murray-Smith, director Andrew Upton and actor Sarah Peirse join forces again for a suspenseful new thriller; a fictional postulation of an episode in the life of Patricia Highsmith. The spiky novelist, best known for her creation of the very talented con artist Tom Ripley, receives an unexpected visitor at her home in Switzerland - a young man sent by her publisher with the purpose of extracting one last Ripley novel from her before she dies. Switzerland cunningly explores what happens when the spark of life that a writer puts into a character has the potential to set off a fire and destroy more than it creates.' (Source: http://www.theatrepeople.com.au/newsflash/andrew-upton-announces-sydney-theatre-company%E2%80%99s-2014-season )
Production Details
-
Performed 3 November to 20 December 2014, Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House. Opening: Friday 7 November 2014.
Director: Andrew Upton.
Cast including Sarah Peirse.
Produced by the Queensland Theatre Company, 21 May to 26 June 2016.
Director: Paige Rattray.
Cast including Andrea Moor.
Produced by Melbourne Theatre Company at the Sumner, Southbank Theatre, 28 September to 29 October 2016.
Director: Sarah Goodes.
Set and Costume Designer: Michael Scott-Mitchell.
Lighting Designer: Nick Schlieper.
Composer and Sound Designer: Steve Francis.
Cast: Eamon Farren and Sarah Peirse.
Produced by Black Swan Theatre Company at the Heath Ledger Theatre, 19 August to 3 September 2017.
Director: Lawrie Cullen-Tait.
Sound Designer: Ash Gibson Greig.
Cast includes Jenny Davis (Patricia Highsmith).
Produced by the State Theatre Company of South Australia at the Dunstan Playhouse, 20 October to 5 November 2017.
Director: Nescha Jelk.
Designer: Ailsa Paterson.
Composer: Jason Sweeney.
Cast includes Sandy Gore.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
-
The Talented Ms Gore
John Dexter
(interviewer),
2017
single work
interview
— Appears in: The Adelaide Review , November vol. 453 no. 2017; (p. 34)'With Joanna Murray-Smith’s Switzerland set to open in Adelaide, Sandy Gore chats about playing the 'mercurial' author that was Patricia Highsmith and what sort of truths there are to be found in her most famous creation, Tom Ripley.
Sandy Gore says she doesn’t see herself as just an actor. Her role is more than calling out lines as part of a play; it’s to tell a story.' (Introduction)
-
Swiss Armoured Life
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: The Saturday Paper , 22 October 2016;
— Review of Switzerland 2014 single work drama 'Joanna Murray-Smith’s drama about thriller writer Patricia Highsmith’s dying days sequestered in Switzerland is brilliant, sinister entertainment in the Hitchcock mode.' -
Seductive Thriller with a Barbed Wit
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: The Age , 23 September 2016; (p. 26)
— Review of Switzerland 2014 single work drama -
Review : Switzerland
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: The Guardian Australia , 17 November 2014;
— Review of Switzerland 2014 single work drama -
Review : Switzerland
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sun-Herald , 16 November 2014; (p. 14)
— Review of Switzerland 2014 single work drama
-
Thrills and Chills
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 1-2 November 2014; (p. 10-11)
— Review of Switzerland 2014 single work drama 'Patricia Highsmith’s talent was as sharp as her tongue. Elissa Blake peeks inside the mind of one of literature’s most unusual writers.' -
Pitch-Perfect Pas de Deux
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: The Australian , 6 November 2014; (p. 15)
— Review of Switzerland 2014 single work drama -
The Power of Words to Transform
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: The Australian , 10 November 2014; (p. 16)
— Review of Switzerland 2014 single work drama -
A Battle of Wills Worthy of Highsmith Herself
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 10 November 2014; The Age , 10 November 2014;
— Review of Switzerland 2014 single work drama -
Review : Switzerland
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sun-Herald , 16 November 2014; (p. 14)
— Review of Switzerland 2014 single work drama -
Adapting to a Season Without Cate
2013
single work
column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 13 September 2013; (p. 16) -
The Talented Ms Gore
John Dexter
(interviewer),
2017
single work
interview
— Appears in: The Adelaide Review , November vol. 453 no. 2017; (p. 34)'With Joanna Murray-Smith’s Switzerland set to open in Adelaide, Sandy Gore chats about playing the 'mercurial' author that was Patricia Highsmith and what sort of truths there are to be found in her most famous creation, Tom Ripley.
Sandy Gore says she doesn’t see herself as just an actor. Her role is more than calling out lines as part of a play; it’s to tell a story.' (Introduction)
Awards
- 2017 shortlisted Victorian Green Room Awards — Writing/Adaptation for the Australian Stage
- 2016 winner Matilda Awards — Best Mainstage Production
- 2014 winner Sydney Theatre Awards — Best New Australian Work
- 2014 nominated Sydney Theatre Awards — Best Mainstage Production
-
cSwitzerland,cWestern Europe, Europe,