''Variations'' is a musical with book and lyrics by
Nick Enright and music and arrangements by
Terence Clarke.
It premiered at the
Belvoir St Theatre
Belvoir is an Australian theatre company based at the Belvoir St Theatre in Sydney, Australia, originally known as Company B. Since 2016 and its artistic director is Eamon Flack.
The theatre contains a 330-seat Upstairs Theatre and a 80-seat ...
in Sydney on 2 December 1982, produced by the
Nimrod Theatre Company. The original production was directed by
John Bell and featured
Nancye Hayes
Nancye Lee Bertles AM ( Hayes; born January 1943), billed under her maiden name as Nancye Hayes, is an Australian actress, dancer, singer and choreographer/director and narrator. She has been a leading figure in Australian musical theatre si ...
,
Deidre Rubenstein, Robert Alexander, Philip Dodd,
Vivienne Garrett,
Brian James,
Patricia Kennedy, Kim Krejus and
George Spartels.
Set in contemporary (1982) Sydney, the musical concerned the search for love and fulfilment in three generations of Australian women: a cello-playing grandmother seeking a violinist to play with her; her daughter, a shopfront lawyer and single mother; a daughter-in-law leaving a routine marriage; and a granddaughter approaching love for the first time.
''Variations'' received the Play Award at the 1983
New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards
The New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards, also known as the NSW Premier's Literary Awards, were first awarded in 1979. They are among the richest literary awards in Australia. Notable prizes include the Christina Stead Prize for Fiction, t ...
. Despite the award, since the première there has been no further staged production. Neglected Musicals performed a staged reading in 2013 at the
Hayes Theatre in Sydney.
References
{{Nick Enright
Australian musicals
1982 musicals