Bran Nue Dae and the Importance of Aboriginal Theatre Andrew Cowan College

Jimmy Chi’s 1990 musical Bran Nue Dae is widely credited with and lauded for being the first truly aboriginal musical. It was a cultural breakthrough in Australia that achieved great success by bringing the aboriginal experience into the spotlight in a way that was palatable to mainstream audiences. Soon after its release, the play sparked several conversations in the academic community about what exactly constitutes an Australian work of theatre. Theatre critic Peter Wyllie Johnston believed he had the answer when he wrote his article entitled “'Australian-ness' in musical theatre: a Bran Nue Dae for Australia?” (Johnston 157). In his article, Peter Wyllie Johnston does a wonderful job of discussing the importance of aboriginal theatre, but he falls short in discussing Australia’s national intersectional identity.

As Johnston begins his article, he takes a difficult step towards defining Australian theatre and effectively acknowledges the complexity of the subject. He opens with discussing the concept of Australian-ness, which scholar John McCallum defines as “the ability to represent Australians to themselves” (Johnston 157). McCallum’s definition is sound, but incomplete. Though he defines Australian-ness, he fails to define...