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y separately published work icon Norm and Ahmed single work   drama   - One act
Issue Details: First known date: 1960... 1960 Norm and Ahmed
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'A rather ocker, white Australian male encounters a well-mannered Pakistani student with revolutionary ambitions in a Sydney park at midnight. Buzo creates an image of race prejudice as a profoundly irrational force in the behaviour of ordinary Australians.' (Publication summary)

Notes

  • Norm and Ahmed was 're-invented' for Alana Valentine's 2009 play 'Shafana and Aunt Sarrinah'. The two plays were performed at the Seymour Centre, Sydney, 5-29 August 2009.

Production Details

  • First produced at the Old Tote Theatre by the Old Tote Theatre Co., Sydney, 9 April 1968. Director: Jim Sharman. Dedicated to Merelyn.
  • Also produced during 1969 at La Mama Theatre, Melbourne and Twelfth Night Theatre, Brisbane.The actors who played Norm in the Melbourne and Brisbane seasons were arrested and tried for obscenity. A record of proceedings in the Supreme Court of Queensland, 1969, is held at the Fryer Library, University of Queensland.
  • Broadcast on ABC Radio National on Sunday 16 January 2011 as part of the Playing the 20th Century series.

  • In 1988, Film Australia released a 41-minute video of the play, directed by Karl McPhee and Starring Max Cullen and Alex Pinder, as part of an intended series of education packages on Australian playwrights, including a video, discussion notes, and the play text. It was not intended for an did not receive a commercial release or television broadcast.

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

Notes:

Sound recording also available.

Alternative title: ノームとアーメッド
Transliterated title: Nōmu to Āmeddo
Language: Japanese
VIEW PUBLICATION DETAILS FOR ALL VERSIONS ()

Related Works

y separately published work icon Shafana and Aunt Sarrinah : Soft Revolution Alana Valentine , 2009 Strawberry Hills : Currency Press , 2010 Z1612549 2009 single work drama

'In a first for Australian theatre, a classic play is reinvented by a fresh new work. Buzo's enduring themes of cultural and generational conflict are taken up by award-winning playwright Alana Valentine in a thoroughly 21st century story.

'..."Shafana and Aunt Sarrinah" tells the story of a young Afghani-Australian Muslim woman who turned to the religion of her heritage for answers after the September 11 attacks, resulting in a deep experience of faith and a controversial decision to wear the hijab.'

Source: Seymour Centre website, http://www.seymour.usyd.edu.au/
Sighted: 10/08/2009
VIEW ALL RELATED WORKS (1)

Works about this Work

The Front Room Boys and New Wave Theatre Julian Meyrick , 2017 single work criticism
— Appears in: The Conversation , 15 February 2017;

''Fucken boong'. With these words Australian theatre entered the swinging sixties – eight years after the decade began.

The two profanities capture the spirit of rebellion that characterised a new generation of theatre artists. They are the last line of Alex Buzo’s play Norm and Ahmed (1968) and the actors who uttered them were prosecuted for obscenity when it was produced in Queensland and Victoria.' (Introduction)
The Athens of the South Alison Broinowski , 2014 single work criticism
— Appears in: Adelaide : A Literary City 2014; (p. 147-161)
We Got Naked for Progress Graeme Blundell , 2014 single work column
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 31 May - 1 June 2014; (p. 17)
A Father's Legacy Takes Centre Stage Natalie Muller , 2011 single work column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 21 February 2011; (p. 15) Natalie Muller reports on Emma Buzo's appointment to The Amidale School where Buzo is teaching her father's play Norm and Ahmed to year twelve students.
Racial Tensions Still Resonate Bree Fuller , 2009 single work criticism
— Appears in: Illawarra Mercury , 12 November 2009; (p. 30) Dennis Koks talks about the reasons for staging Alex Buzo's 40 year old play.
Heavenly Intervention Fails to Swamp Classic John McCallum , 2007 single work review
— Appears in: The Australian , 15 October 2007; (p. 12)
— Review of Norm and Ahmed Alex Buzo , 1960 single work drama
Potent after Decades and Downpour Stephen Dunne , 2007 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 16 October 2007; (p. 14)
— Review of Norm and Ahmed Alex Buzo , 1960 single work drama
Ripped from Headlines, but Play Still Shocks Jason Blake , 2009 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 12 August 2009; (p. 14)
— Review of Norm and Ahmed Alex Buzo , 1960 single work drama ; Shafana and Aunt Sarrinah : Soft Revolution Alana Valentine , 2009 single work drama
Veil Tale Paired with An Old Gem John McCallum , 2009 single work review
— Appears in: The Australian , 11 August 2009; (p. 8)
— Review of Norm and Ahmed Alex Buzo , 1960 single work drama ; Shafana and Aunt Sarrinah : Soft Revolution Alana Valentine , 2009 single work drama
Triumph of a Censor's Target Graeme Blundell , 2009 single work review
— Appears in: The Australian , 27 July 2009; (p. 30)
— Review of Norm and Ahmed Alex Buzo , 1960 single work drama
Wary Asians on a Theme : Dramatising in the Near North Alex Buzo , 2004 single work criticism
— Appears in: Quadrant , November vol. 48 no. 11 2004; (p. 62-65)
Memoirs of an Unswonian Alex Buzo , 2006 single work column
— Appears in: Quadrant , April vol. 50 no. 4 2006; (p. 51-53)
A Stage to Laud Buzo Frank McKone , 2007 single work column
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 24 February 2007; (p. 22) A special celebration to honour the life and work of Alex Buzo was held on Sunday 18th February 2007.
Holding a Mirror to an Australian Classic Louise Schwartzkoff , 2009 single work column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 4 August 2009; (p. 12)
When the Vice Squad Had the Best Seats in the House Graeme Blundell , 2009 single work column
— Appears in: The Australian , 27 July 2009; (p. 30)
VIEW ALL WORKS ABOUT (55)

Awards

2009 nominated Sydney Theatre Awards — Best Independent Production Nominated for the 2009 Alex Buzo Company joint production with Shafana and Aunt Sarrinah.
VIEW ALL AWARDS (1)
Last amended 28 Mar 2019 12:08:24
Subjects:
Settings:
  • Sydney, New South Wales,
  • 1960s
  • 1970s
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