Australian Adaptations: The European Turn

Abstract

In Part III, we investigate the continuous modernization of classical and modern texts across the region to show how directors, writers and/or collaborating artists create radically revised adaptations or versions of mostly well-known plays. Theorist Linda Hutcheon broadly defines an adaptation as ‘an announced and extensive transposition of a particular work or works’ from one form to another such as novel to film (Hutcheon, 2006: 7). In a more theatre-oriented discussion, Peter Boenisch attributes the worldwide trend in theatre adaptation to the postdramatic paradigm that foregrounds ‘presentational, self-reflexive, and experimental mises en scène instead of the traditional representation ..