Writer’s Note: David Williamson, EMERALD CITY
I’d be lying if I didn’t say the subject matter for EMERALD CITY came from quite close to home.
In 1979 the family did drive up from Melbourne to Sydney to start a new life. Sydney and its sub tropical lushness had imprinted itself on my mind in my very first memories as a three year old taken by my parents on holiday. Sydney had also embraced my early plays THE REMOVALISTS and DON’S PARTY, helped by superb productions by John Bell and John Clark, with an enthusiasm that made me feel Sydney was where I should be.
In the play I’ve made Kate very reluctant to come to Sydney. In real life my wife Kristin was almost as keen as I was to make the journey and indeed her journalistic, and then writer’s career, took wing in Sydney as did mine. On the surface the play is about Sydney versus Melbourne and art versus entertainment – the latter a topic of endless debate. Underlying all that is an examination of the competitive tensions in a marriage of two ambitious and talented writers, Colin and Kate, both determined to make their creative mark. To complicate matters for both of them, along comes one of my favourite characters, the hustler Mike McCord, who is guided only by the gospel of the dollar and his determination to hold onto the woman he’s crazy about – the lovely Helen.
Finally, it’s a play about the importance of being able to tell our own Australian stories or let our culture be swamped by the U.S. entertainment behemoth, and whether anyone cares? Nearly forty years on many feel that question might have now been answered. Are we and not Canada now the 51st State?
David Williamson AO
Playing 18 Jul – 23 Aug, don’t miss this timeless satire from one of Australia’s most beloved social commentators explores ambition, rivalry and the personal cost of chasing the dream.