Our Country's Good: Use of performance space

Our Country’s Good: Use of performance space

Use of Performance Space in ‘Our Country’s Good’

The Play Within a Play

• The concept of a play within a play is key to understanding Wertenbaker’s use of performance space.
• The convicts rehearsing and staging their own play literally transforms the penal colony into a theatre, challenging the viewer’s perception of the space.
• Wertenbaker’s manipulation of performance space also extends to the symbolic, as the ‘stage’ on which the convicts perform their play becomes a symbol of their emotional and societal transformation.

Spatial Hierarchy and Power Dynamics

• The spatial arrangement in many scenes reflects and reinforces the hierarchy and power dynamics between the characters.
• Typically, the officers are positioned above the convicts, indicating their place of authority - this static positioning reflects the rigid social system of the time.
• However, this structure begins to collapse during the rehearsals and eventual performance of the play, symbolising the breakdown of societal norms and boundary.

The Use of Set and Props

• Wertenbaker uses the lack of traditional theatre sets and props to highlight the harsh conditions of the colony.
• The minimal set also emphasises that characters are defined by their actions and attitudes rather than their surroundings or material possessions.
• Props such as the hangman’s noose and Sydney Cove painting are powerful symbolic objects, representing the convicts’ fate and the idea of Australia as a pitiless, alien environment.

The Separation of Characters and Audience

• Another striking aspect is the frequent separation of characters, highlighting their confinement and isolation.
• However, the maturation of the play-within-the-play begins to break down these barriers, showing characters interacting in ways that were previously denied to them.
• Additionally, the notion of audience becomes blurred - the convicts are both performers and audience members, suggesting that everyone in society plays multiple roles.

Dynamic Use of Space: Scene Transitions

• Transitions between scenes often involve significant spatial rearrangement, indicating shifting dynamics within the story.
• These transitions serve to highlight key moments of development in characters or significant changes in the community dynamic.
• The fluidity of scene changes suggests an adaptability and resourcefulness amongst the convicts in altering their environment.

Consideration of performance space broadens our understanding of ‘Our Country’s Good,’ providing different perspectives on character relationships, societal dynamics and narrative progression.