After January

“After January” is predominantly an Australian play. It is adapted by Philip Dean from Nick Earls' award-winning novel and it provides a traditional view of life in Australia. Therefore, this play would be a wonderful introduction to the Australian content for the Queensland Theatre Company 2014 program. This presentation will explain how Australian customs and values have been represented through the following four elements: characters, setting, themes and language choices in the script. These four elements work together give a clear understanding of the Australian identity.
The setting of the play represents Australian outdoor life style and brings up the hot topic of development for discussion. This play’s setting is in a famous town, Caloundra on the Sunshine Coast. It is a well-known beach that Australians love to holiday at. Aussies love beaches and it is part of their lives. Like the young Australian boy Alex in the play says “I go the beach early because I ‘m in the habit of it.” Being set in Caloundra embodies Australian culture and their outdoor life style. The setting also brings up the hot topic in relation to urban development versus environmental protection and urban dwellers who transfer their urban lifestyle to the country. They are not really interested in the environment and looking after it. “To them an alternative lifestyle means another way of making money.” says Cliff. Alex agrees with Cliff about developers and says “I could probably do without it.” The audience will connect with this issue.
The themes of the play discuss more problems that young Australians may face. In this period of time, teenagers may face the relationship problems with their parents and partner as well as the academic problems. The play discusses these problems in an easy, humorous way. Alex has ‘eighteen days’ until he finds out if he got into Arts Law. He is very nervous and therefore he has weeks in Caloundra to relax. At the same time, he meets a sophisticated girl, Fortuna. He falls in love with her at first sight, “So I am the watcher now. And she is perfect form. And she moves with the grace of a dolphin.” says Alex when he first sees Fortuna. Their relationship develops over the remainder of the summer break. Alex’s mother marks the changes in her son’s outlook on life and their relationship is an open and supportive one even though Tessa does get carried away with Alex’s interests. However, this may or may not be a long-term relationship. Alex and Fortuna will soon take different directions for their futures. Therefore, they don’t have sex and give themselves time to develop a deeper relationship. This embodies the problems that a lot of Australian teenagers may face and how can they face this situation.
The characters in the play represent Australian teenagers. In Queensland, after January many of the high school students will start to panic, because they are either waiting for QTAC offer or do not know what to do after graduating. Except going to university there are various pathways that Australian teens can choose from. The main character Fortuna represents the teenagers who are not going to university. She doesn’t plan to go to university and when Alex asks about what is the plan for her future, she responds “The future, like Arts-Law Queensland Uni? There are a lot of people who want to do all that stuff. I’m happy to leave it to them.” These are the situations that majority of teenagers are facing in Queensland after January. They probably will have the same feeling as Fortuna and Alex. This period can be seen as a rite of passage, as they are moving from teenage life to adult. “It’s as though I’m passing through this summer in a bubble. Vaguely detached and drifting.” says Alex.
Not only the teenager’s problem, the characters also represent the Australian’s spirit. In this play, Alex is a high achieving graduate student and he is worrying about his future. He has eighteen days until he finds out if he got into Arts Law, “No, it’s a few weeks away. A couple of weeks. Eighteen days.” says Alex when his mother asks him is he worrying about the university offer or not. Tessa wants to support him therefore she says to him “A tertiary offer in no reflection of a person’s worth. You do realise that, don’t you?”, “And whatever you get, even if it’s not law, you’ll have a great time. It shows a reflection of supportive family unit. Tessa is supportive and accepts him as he is. This embodies the Australian spirit which is acceptance of people. No matter what difficulty that young Australians are facing, most will always be given positive encouragement from their family. Families are important to Australians.
The language choices reflect Australian culture. In this play, the conversations between characters include a lot of Australian slang and abbreviations. In the scene, a neighbour Len invites Alex and Tessa over for a Barbie. Barbie is slang and an abbreviation. “We’ve got some of those gourmet sausages from the deli.” says Len. ‘Deli’ is another abbreviation for delicatessen. A delicatessen sells foods from all over the world and suggests our new multi-cultural face. ‘Snags’ are sausages and an example of our peculiar, Australian lingo! Australians don’t always speak in complete sentences and they will run words together. For example, when Len enters Alex’s house he says, “G’day young Alex. Fancy a frame or two?” the word ‘G’day’ actually means Good day and fancy a frame or two means would you like a game of pool. This informal conversational style of language reflects the relaxed life style of Australian culture.
Consequently, the play “After January” gives a clear understanding of the Australian identity. There are four features of the play that give an insight into the Australian culture, which are characters, setting, themes and language choices in the script. Together, they will connect with young adult audiences and as such After January would prove to be a successful inclusion into the 2014 program.