I would love to write plays that are produced in theatre and one day be recognised as Australia's next Lawler or Williams or realistically be known more as myself. but how to achieve this, I wondered to myself as I wrote a play whilst I was on a plane to America, (one must occupy themselves somehow on these long haul flights) what sets a good play apart from a bad one? Of course character, relationships, tension, subtext etc will all play a significant part, but is there an easier way to know how to captivate your audience? Surely many thoroughly thought out plays can fail whilst some others that have been knocked up and become surprise successes with the playwright never being able to recreate that success for the simple reason he can't identify the wining formula. Shakespeare and Checkov wrote very different plays. Both are held in very high esteem . Shakespeare is timeless and connects with audiences of all ages. One would struggle to convince me that Checkov is the same. Perhaps this example would be better served by two examples more similar in style but a playwright should really write for the ages. After all is there that much pride to be taken by being a one hit wonder?

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Much like Odysseus (or Ulysses, if that is how you swing.) I have been cast out to a far flung land in order to reach my goal. here the similarity's differ (although you could be forgiven for suggesting Americans are no less monstrous then Circe or the cyclops). I have come by choice to do some acting courses with schools and teachers of relatively high note in The Groundlings school (comedy improv particularly big characters) and Howard Fine (Realism in the Hagen mould. read Fine on Acting for more) a fantastic mix I would say and extremely challenging to say the least.

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I remember in my most recent performance, "Our Country's Good" where I played Ralph I felt utterly overwhelmed with responsibility. Not only was I required on stage for nearly the entirety of the play I had to learn a stupid amount of lines whilst juggling my tee study's. My teacher told me that playing that role would teach me more then the entirety of my year 11 work for drama. He was right. Before this I had played mostly bit part roles or roles where I had my good friend who is an excellent actor beside me. So naturally I really believed that there was not much more to being on stage then remembering lines and cues and playing a believable character. But as Ralph in our countrys good I played a role where almost all the action required me. This was a task enough without the fact our company fell behind the pace from the beggining and so we were all playing catch up until the performance. Even then It was still not polished few people knew there lines to the letter and I was one of them On the matinee performance, at the very end I Lost myself, It was an incedental comment to a convict but I forgot. The actor who had the line after mine stood there saying nothing. I then hurriedly had to rush over to him pretending this was all part of the action to tell him to go on with his line as my brain had dropped the ball. It was humiliating and the actor who said the line was hailed as a hero. As can be imagined I got on top of my text that night.

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Well, I've been blessed by the recent news that my sister in LA is going to pay for me to go over, stay with her for a few months and do some acting courses over there as well as-hopefully-doing some local student films and maybe collaborating with her on a short film of her own. I'm naturally overwhelmed by the news and as I-like all graduates who did drama-aim to one day grace the big stages or silver screens of the world. It's an opportunity that I'm grateful beyond words for because if this had not arisen then my gap year would have surely consisted of me lazing around half the year doing maybe one or two shows and the same amount of student films and eventually getting a job as I became disheartened by my goal to do as much acting-theatre or screen-that I could this year. Who knows if I take kindly to La la land I may even stay on longer. But it brings up the sad point that Perth really offers not much future for young inexperienced actors-less for older-even experienced actors normally have to move interstate or overseas to survive on their work. The current Barnett government has done little to fix this problem which has seen funding and thus opportunity for actors dry up in the last decade. In fact the point that Barnett cares very little about the arts is evident in his shunning of the opening night of the PIAF (Perth International Arts Festival)[http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/arts/wa-premier-colin-barnett-missing-from-opening-night-crowds/story-e6frg8n6-1225827595096] and the bundling of Planning with culture and the arts (Minister John Day), two seemingly incompatible portfolios. this governmental incompetence has seen the states artists forced to ask big business for funding, with obviously limited success. Let's hope the next resource boom does not see the arts in Perth again overlooked by the public sector. My last blog seeked a continued involvement in theatre by the youth of the state. but really continued growth in the arts can only be achieved by an increase in funding. Currently this can be achieved be one of two things 1. current projects need to become more lucrative and promise more returns for any investor. or more realistically 2. The business people need to get more generous and give money like there's no tomorrow. unfortunately in the current economic climate wayward is the last thing on the minds of the entrepreneurs of the state. So will it be generosity or viability that saves the arts in Perth? I don't care as long as one of them works. Better that then see Perth cement that Dullsville tag further by neglecting of one of the most colourful aspects of any city.

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Today we face the problem of growing with our audience. Theatre was often the entertainment of choice by many until technological advances and social opinions changed all of this. But like the humble book it appears that though seemingly facing annihilation at the hands of superior technology that offers more to the consumer we have stuck around, yes theatre may not be the most popular of entertainments but the fact it remains up there at all is a testament to the survivability of our wonderful industry.

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