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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
Stolen is based upon the lives of five Indigenous people, who go by the names of Sandy, Ruby, Jimmy, Anne and Shirley, who dealt with the issues for forceful removal by the Australian government.
Production Details
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AUSTRALIA:
First produced by Ilbijerri and Playbox Theatre Centre in association with the Melbourne Festival at the CUB Malthouse, Melbourne, 21 October 1998. Written for the Ilbijerri Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Theatre Cooperative.
Director: Wesley Enoch.
Cast: Tammy Anderson, Kylie Belling, Tony Briggs, Pauline Whyman, and Stan Yarramunua.
Production Crew: Wesley Enoch, Richard Roberts, Glenn Shea, Matt Scott, and David Chesworth.
Later played at the Cremone Theatre, South Bank, Brisbane on 2 November 2011.
Produced at the National Theatre of Parramatta, 29 May to 1 June 2018.
ENGLAND:
Performed at the Tricycle Theatre in London for a two-week season during 2001.
Director: Wesley Enoch.
Performed at Riverside Theatres, Parramatta : 3-17 June 2016.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
-
y
Jane Harrison on ‘Becoming Kirrali Lewis’
Astrid Edwards
(interviewer),
Melbourne
:
Bad Producer Productions
,
2020
23454707
2020
single work
podcast
interview
'Jane Harrison, a descendant of the Muruwari people of NSW, is a playwright, novelist, and the Festival Director of Blak & Bright, the First Nations Literary Festival based in Melbourne.
'Her novel Becoming Kirrali Lewis won the 2014 Black&Write! Prize, and was shortlisted for the Prime Minster’s Literary Awards and the Victorian Premier’s Awards.
'In terms of her works for the stage, Stolen, her first play, was the co-winner of the Kate Challis RAKA Award and has been performed throughout Australia as well as the United Kingdom, Hong Kong and Japan. She has also written The Visitors, Rainbow’s End, On A Park Bench and Blakvelvet.' (Production introduction)
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Stolen hearts, Stolen Generations
2018
single work
review
— Appears in: NEW: Emerging scholars in Australian Indigenous Studies , March vol. 4 no. 1 2018; (p. 111-113)
— Review of Stolen 1998 single work drama 'Twenty years since Stolen debuted in Melbourne’s Playbox Theatre, the play still resonates with audiences as one of the key texts exploring the constructed and contested nature of Australia’s Stolen Generations. Its timelessness is owed to the interpretability of theatre, but also to the thoughtful construction in its superb writing. Stolen has continued to prove its relevancy in Australia’s negotiation with its Indigenous population, from its plural histories to its ongoing attempts at reconciliation. Stolen is a poignant exploration of the intersection between history and memory, and the role human experiences have to play in building a more inclusive, shared history on Australian soil.' -
Stolen hearts, Stolen Generations
2018
single work
review
— Appears in: NEW: Emerging scholars in Australian Indigenous Studies , March vol. 4 no. 1 2018; (p. 111-113)
— Review of Stolen 1998 single work drama 'Twenty years since Stolen debuted in Melbourne’s Playbox Theatre, the play still resonates with audiences as one of the key texts exploring the constructed and contested nature of Australia’s Stolen Generations. Its timelessness is owed to the interpretability of theatre, but also to the thoughtful construction in its superb writing. Stolen has continued to prove its relevancy in Australia’s negotiation with its Indigenous population, from its plural histories to its ongoing attempts at reconciliation. Stolen is a poignant exploration of the intersection between history and memory, and the role human experiences have to play in building a more inclusive, shared history on Australian soil.' -
Story of Forced Removal of Indigenous Children Still Powerful
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 7 June 2016; (p. 24)
— Review of Stolen 1998 single work drama -
Maternal Practice and Maternal Presence in Jane Harrison's Stolen
2015
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Outskirts : Feminisms along the Edge , November no. 33 2015; 'This paper offers an analysis of the representation of Aboriginal mothers in Jane Harrison’s play, Stolen. It argues that the Aboriginal mother characters in Stolen endeavour to engage in maternal practices even after their children are taken from them. The act of a non-Aboriginal person speaking about Aboriginal representation is acknowledged as problematic. Further, this paper proposes that if white feminists seek to analyse the representation of Aboriginal women then they should be open to criticism of their analyses. Engaging with dramatic criticism, postcolonial theory and maternal philosophy, the author presents Harrison’s play-text as constituting an important contribution to discourses surrounding the Stolen Generations. ' (Publication abstract)
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Humour FromTragedy
2011
single work
review
— Appears in: Koori Mail , 19 October no. 512 2011; (p. 64)
— Review of Stolen 1998 single work drama -
New Look at a Sad Old Story
2011
single work
review
— Appears in: The Courier-Mail , 4 November 2011; (p. 76)
— Review of Stolen 1998 single work drama -
Reality of the Stolen Generation Hits Home
2011
single work
review
— Appears in: The Australian , 7 November 2011; (p. 19)
— Review of Stolen 1998 single work drama -
Play Spreads the Story of the Stolen Generations
1999
single work
review
— Appears in: Koori Mail , 11 August no. 207 1999; (p. 17)
— Review of Stolen 1998 single work drama -
Play Examines Stolen Generations
1998
single work
review
— Appears in: Koori Mail , 4 November no. 188 1998; (p. 3)
— Review of Stolen 1998 single work drama 'A new play from Victoria's Ilbijerri Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Theatre Co-operative looks at one of the most important issues for Indigenous Australians - the stolen generations..' -
Aboriginal Encounters : Cross-Cultural Perspectives on First Nation Drama
2003
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Transgressive Itineraries : Postcolonial Hybridizations of Dramatic Realism 2003; (p. 147-231) Section II of this chapter is entitled 'Staging Australian Aboriginality.' -
Jane Harrison's Stolen and the International Postcolonial Context
2002
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Crucible of Cultures : Anglophone Drama at the Dawn of a New Millennium 2002; (p. 285-294) -
Windshuttling the Right : Some Australian Literary and Historical Adaptations for the Stage
2004
single work
criticism
— Appears in: JASAL , vol. 3 no. 2004; (p. 133-142) Focusing on the disjunction between versions of national history in white and black narratives of shared history, the article provides an overview of theatrical adaptations of cultural narratives that deal with Aboriginal experience in Australia's post-contact history. -
Fears, Hopes, Memories of a Stolen Generation
2005
single work
column
— Appears in: The West Australian , 17 September 2005; (p. 12) -
'Stolen' Play on Tour
2005
single work
column
— Appears in: Koori Mail , 5 October no. 361 2005; (p. 8)
Awards
- 2002 joint winner Australian Centre Literary Awards — The Kate Challis RAKA Award — Drama Joint winner with Dallas Winmar for her play, Aliwa.
- Stolen Generations (Australia)
- Loss
- Grief
- Search for self identity
- Aboriginal children
- Childhood trauma
- Adoption
- Orphanages
- Settler Colonialism
- Belonging
- Child sexual abuse
- Child abuse
- Child labour
- Exploitation (Personal relations)
- Labour exploitation
- Rape
- Mental illness
- Suicide
- Family relationships
- Family reunions