''The Drover’s Wife'' is a play by

Leah Purcell Leah Maree Purcell (born 14 August 1970) is an Aboriginal Australian stage and film actress, playwright, film director, and novelist. She made her film debut in 1999, appearing in Paul Fenech's ''Somewhere in the Darkness'', which led to rol ...

, loosely based on the classic short story of the same name by

Henry Lawson Henry Archibald Hertzberg Lawson (17 June 1867 – 2 September 1922) was an Australian writer and bush poet. Along with his contemporary Banjo Paterson, Lawson is among the best-known Australian poets and fiction writers of the colonial period ...

published in 1892.

Synopsis

The title character, Molly Johnson, is a heavily pregnant woman living in a remote homestead in the

Snowy Mountains The Snowy Mountains, known informally as "The Snowies", is an IBRA subregion in southern New South Wales, Australia, and is the tallest mountain range in mainland Australia, being part of the continent's Great Dividing Range, a cordillera syste ...

, whose husband spends long periods away as a drover. She encounters Yadaka, an Aboriginal man on the run from colonial authorities. Over a few days, a series of events occur which change their lives forever.

Productions

The play 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. Its artistic director is Eamon Flack. The theatre comprises two performing spaces: the Upstairs Theatre and the small ...

in Sydney from 17 September to 16 October 2016, directed by Leticia Càceres and produced by Belvoir. The cast included Purcell in the title role, Mark Coles Smith, Tony Cogin, Benedict Hardie, and Will McDonald.

Critical reception

The play and the original production were widely acclaimed.

Awards

''The Drover's Wife'' has received multiple awards, including the Nick Enright Prize for Playwriting and the overall Book of the Year at the NSW Premier's Literary Awards, and the Prize for Drama and the overall Victorian Prize for Literature at the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards. The play was named Best New Australian Work, and the Belvoir production Best Mainstage Production, at the

Sydney Theatre Awards The Sydney Theatre Awards are annual awards to recognise the strength, quality and diversity of professional theatre in Sydney, Australia. They were established in 2005 by a group of major Sydney theatre critics. The awards recognise mainstage and ...

in January 2017. It received the national Helpmann Award for Best Play and Best New Australian Work in July 2017. At the AWGIE Awards in August 2017, ''The Drover's Wife'' received the Major Award across all writing for performance genres, the Stage award and the David Williamson Prize for excellence in writing for Australian theatre.

Film adaptation

The play was adapted into a 2021 film, also written and directed by Purcell.

Synopsis

Productions

Critical reception

Awards

Film adaptation

See also

References

Further reading