My first play… on a Sydney stage

I was in Sydney this weekend to watch a short play I’d written being performed at the New Theatre in Newtown. It was my first play, so I was quite excited. It was part of the “Short and Sweet” festival, which originated in Sydney but now operates in other Australian cities, and a few other countries. You send your script off, and if you’re lucky it gets selected for performance. Mine was picked up by Kiwi actor/director Michael Whalley, who persuaded three professional actor friends to join the cast. They were fantastic.

It’s a comedy called “Alternate Serve” about the Australian custom at large events of serving two different choices for the main course, but allocating them in strict rotation around the table, regardless of whether individual guests actually prefer the beef or the fish. The idea is that if you’re not happy with your choice you find someone else at the table to swap with. In my play a foreigner gets increasingly frustrated when he’s served the “wrong” alternative for each successive course, and fails to find anyone to swap with.

Writing is part of a diplomat’s job – op-eds, digital media and the reporting cables that analyse the country you’re in and try to bring it to life for readers at home. But it’s the first time I’d tried anything like this. It’s quite fun seeing your words and plot acted out on a stage by professionals, and particularly pleasing when something elicits a wave of laughter from the audience.  I was really thrilled when my play was chosen as the one from this week’s ten performances to go through to the final in March. I have to say I enjoyed my brief excursion as a playwright. It will be a great memory of my time in Australia. Not sure I’ll be able to give up the day job just yet though.