Recipients of Playing Australia’s Round 36 have recently been announced, and My Darling Patricia’s (NSW) production Africa has been granted $100,000 and is planning to tour nationally via Performing Lines in 2011. This will include 30 performances at 8 different venues across QLD, NSW, VIC, SA and WA and comprise four metropolitan and regional and remote destinations.

Various reviewers and funding organisations have defined Africa as a “work for adults that remembers childhood” but this isn’t necessarily so. Africa is also a unique coming-of-age theatre experience regarding the Theatre for Young People’s (TYP) movement in Australia. For one, it purposely blurs the lines between TYP and adult theatre, and secondly it therefore defies categorisation.

Originally, Africa was created in residence at Malthouse Theatre in 2009, and more recently it was selected to represent Australia’s TFYP movement at the 2011 ASSITEJ World Congress and Festival in Copenhagen/Malmoe. Prior to Africa receiving the green light to complete a national tour via Performing Lines, I was asked to write a brief overview for the ASSITEJ program and discover how this production (within the socio-cultural context under which it was conceived) relates to young people, and how it reflects Australia’s culture or speaks against it?

On completion of the project, I realised that I had been taken on a very special journey which has emotionally…