Comments on: Merit vs Misogyny in Australian Theatre – and what we’re going to do about it

By: Van Badham

Van Badham — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 22:25:01 +0000

This grrl is up for the fight – and if I have to burn my bra to shove my feminism up their patriarchy, you just watch me. We have nothing to lose but their scorn. Onward!

By: Michele Johnson

Michele Johnson — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 03:56:34 +0000

I think Diana Simmonds has hit the nail on the head – this is the result of deeply entrenched sexism and ‘taste’ is an expression of sexist beliefs and values.
Its a really good article, I’m so glad you did this research and published your article.

By: Diana Simmonds

Diana Simmonds — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 05:07:02 +0000

It’s really good that you grrlllzz have got your teeth into this subject. And that you’ve turned the spotlight on it, Gus. Thanks heaps.
It’s not about “taste” however – that lets too many off the hook. It’s about plain old sex discrimination and (sorry I’m going to use the word, stick your fingers in your ears and say lalalalalala) patriarchal values. Feminism was supposed to deal with these attitudes, but sadly, it didn’t – although gains the like of which our suffragette grandmothers couldn’t have dreamed of have happened. But now that feminism is a dirty word for younger women and derided by the popular media (bra burning etc), it’s coming back to bite us all in the collective bum.
What you’ve all been talking about, discovering and railing against in this debate is exactly the same themes that women were talking about, discovering and railing against in the 70s. And what we’ve all realised or need to realise, I think, is that we might win a battle but we don’t actually win the war. That’s no reason to pack our pistols and go home, however: just the opposite. Possibly the most important thing is for women of all ages to support one another and get together…there’s safety and strength in numbers. Divide and conquer, divide and rule are age-old strategies: we (grrlllzz) should be smarter than that. Over to you sweetpops.

By: Carolyn B

Carolyn B — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 10:20:13 +0000

It really amazes me that so little fuss has been kicked up about this. While I certainly don’t think that plays by women are of lesser quality than plays by men, female playwrights can hardly be producing their best work in such a hostile environment.
I can’t imagine what goes through the mind of someone compiling a program for a major state company who doesn’t include a single play by a female playwright.
From the figures it looks like even a ridiculously low quota (even just one play per company per season) might help get things moving.

By: Tweets that mention Merit vs Misogyny in Australian Theatre – and what we’re going to do about it at Augusta Supple -- Topsy.com

Wed, 19 Jan 2011 08:17:23 +0000

[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Sydney Fringe Fest, Jane. Jane said: "Programming has to do with taste… main-stage companies … have to face up to the responsibility and consequences." http://bit.ly/hFUBzU […]

By: Con Nats

Con Nats — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 05:34:44 +0000

As a male playwright, I have no qualms with quotas for women. It might help the artistic directors – who are the real problem, not the writers – extract their vision from the narrow tunnel it has been stuck in for too long, and quotas are one way to break the nexus, before it makes itself obsolete thorough exposure to more relevant scripts for half the audience. Once the audiences grow, artistic directors will wake up and smell the roses. And are women really under-represented, or is it more of factor that bad writing and age-old writers are over-represented?

By: Donna Abela

Donna Abela — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 04:20:41 +0000

It is professional suicide to write a lesbian themed play. If you’re a woman. I bet a bloke could get away with it, though.

By: Augusta Supple

Augusta Supple — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 02:11:47 +0000

Thanks for your comment Van. I think what is needed is the frequent turn over of taste makers. If a company has a track record of being adverse to diverse, vigorous adventurousness in their programming, they aren’t doing their job properly.

The interesting thing is how stale and obvious so much programming is… I personally think that Virginia Hyam has one of the best attitudes to programming and hunting for new works – demonstrated via her work developing and programming The Studio at the Sydney Opera House. Perhaps she could make some suggestions to the boys club about how to make brave and interesting choices when selecting scripts and creative teams?

By: Van Badham

Van Badham — Mon, 17 Jan 2011 15:07:33 +0000

Of course theatre companies should programme to taste – that’s the entire point of artistic direction. But when your ‘taste’ consistently, year after year, fails to represent anyone with a vagina, there’s another word for it, and it’s not ‘taste’ – it’s ‘misogyny’.