AUSTRALIA wasn't always the land of sunshine and opportunity we now see it as.
For the first British settlers, deported there as convicts by the government, it was a place of harsh conditions, and unknown terrors.
This is the background to the Nuffield's latest production. But the themes of the play, directed by Georgia Bance, have little to do with the hazards of making landfall in a new country.
A piece about the power of theatre, Timberlake Wertenbaker's play follows a group of convicts as, with the help of a liberal-minded officer, they stage the first ever play performed on Australian shores.
Nuffield Theatre, Southampton, Thursday November 14 to Saturday November 16. Tickets: from £12. Box office: 023 8067 1771.
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