Six audio fiction stories that delve into Australia’s dark heart.
Featuring the writing of Tony Birch, Kris Kneen, Julie Koh, Lachlan Philpott, Alicia Sometimes and Maria Tumarkin.
Commissioned by ABC RN for their Radio National Fictions series.
Producer: Camilla Hannan. Series Producer: Sophie Townsend. Sound Design: Camilla Hannan. Sound Engineer: Camilla Hannan & Richard Girvan.
Episode 1: The Promise
Written by Tony Birch
Broken trust, addiction and the unseen scars of longing and displacement. The Promise is adapted from the short story in Birch’s 2014 collection of short stories, also called The Promise (UQP).
Cast
Luke: Mark Coles Smith
Carol: Monique Fisher
Martha: Ros Cronin
Ted: Richard Girvan
Spiritualist Woman: Julie Strini
Healer: Russell Stapleton
Music: Selwyn Cozens.
About the author: Tony Birch is the author of four short story collections, three novels and a book of poetry. His most recent book is the novel, The White Girl. In 2017 Tony was awarded the Patrick White prize for his contribution to Australian literature.
Episode 2: The Pool
Written by Alicia Sometimes
The gentle spray of nature strip sprinklers, the sizzle of barbecues and the splash of back yard pools. A young woman returns to her childhood home, and her neighbours are just as she remembers them.
Cast
Esther: Molly Roberts
Mr Levitt: Todd Levi
Mrs Levitt: Meredith Penman
Mother: Claudette Werden
Mrs Burt: Barbara Heggen
Brother: Dave Manton
Music: Camilla Hannan, Audio Network
About the author: Alicia Sometimes is a writer and broadcaster. She has performed her spoken word and poetry at many venues, festivals and events around the world. Her poems have been in Best Australian Science Writing, Best Australian Poems and more. She is director and co-writer of the science-poetry planetarium shows, Elemental and Particle/Wave.
Episode 3: Workers of All Lands Unite
Written by Julie Koh
A writer who can't write and with appalling taste in men finds herself in possession of a mysterious itch.
Adapted from the original story Workers of All Lands Unite, first published in New Australian Fiction 2019. published by the literary magazine Kill Your Darlings.
In memory of 黃時森
Cast
Julie: Candice Leask
Gold Trader: Paul English
Kabir: Jitarth Jai Bharadwaj
Kimono Dealer: Mayumi Nobetsu
Mother: Yin Lee
Aunt: Joesphine Cheah
Uncle: Sen Lam
Kazumi: Arisa Yura
And featuring the voices of Adrian Plitzco, Richard Buckham, Mark Vear, Richard Girvan, Rick Howe, Iris Zhao, Bang Xiao, Selwyn Cozens, Matthew Crawford and Fiona Pepper.
Music: Camilla Hannan, Audio Network
About the author: Julie Koh is the author of Capital Misfits and Portable Curiosities. In 2017, she was named a Sydney Morning Herald Best Young Australian Novelist. Her short stories have appeared The Best Australian Stories and Best Australian Comedy Writing. She is also the librettist for the satirical opera Chop Chef.
(Image: Hugh Stewart)
Episode 4: On the Comora
Written by Lachlan Philpott
Escaping the city and a broken heart felt like a good idea to Claire. However, there’s something strange going on in Manget - and no one wants to talk about it.
Cast
Claire: Nicole Nabout
Annie: Margot Knight
Marge: Margaret Mills
Jenny G: Lucy Moir
Jenny L: Jenni Powell
Jenny C: Carey Dell
James: Elijah McKiterick
Tim: Christopher Herman
Heather: Jane Beaumont
And featuring the voices of Fiona Pepper, Helen Taylor and Rob Sharp
Music: Camilla Hannan, Audio Network
About the author: Lachlan Philpott is an Australian playwright, teacher, mentor and dog person. His acclaimed plays have been widely produced and awarded. Lachlan has worked in theatre companies around the world. He established Australia’s leading emerging writers’ program at Australian Theatre for Young People and was the inaugural Australian Professional Playwright Fulbright Scholar. He is the Artistic Director of Playwriting Australia, Australia’s leading play development organisation.
Episode 5: The Walker
Written by Kris Kneen
As floodwaters rise on a central Queensland property, repressed memories emerge of a trauma left behind.
Cast
Dragica: Katrina Milosevic
Child Dragica: Clea Wilson
Jogica: Lola Morgan
Nona: Draga Gelt
Marusa: Daniela Farinacci
The Man: Joel Davey
The Soldier: Jack Montgomery Clark
Man in the Street: Mark Newton
Music: Camilla Hannan, Audio Network
About the author: Kris Kneen is the award-winning author of fiction, memoir, poetry, plays, screenplays and documentaries. They won the 2014 Thomas Shapcott Award and was shortlisted for the 2018 Stella Prize. Their book, Wintering was published by Text Publishing.
Episode 6: Moving Sitting Ducks
Written by Maria Tumarkin
When did the experience of fear become synonymous with the passage into womanhood?
Cast
Narrator: Maria Tumarkin
The Women: Adalya, Rachel, Billie, Ellie and Cathi.
Vocal improvisation: Billie Tumarkin.
And featuring the voices of Rob Sharp, Mary McDonald, Mark Skurnik, Dave Williams and Duncan Yardley.
Music: Camilla Hannan, Audio Network
About the author: Maria Tumarkin is the author of four books of ideas. The latest, Axiomatic (Brow Books), won the 2018 Melbourne Prize for Literature’s Best Writing Award and was shortlisted for the Stella Prize. Maria holds a PhD in cultural history and teaches creative writing at the University of Melbourne.