{"id":23296,"date":"2026-08-14T14:49:13","date_gmt":"2026-08-14T04:49:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/domremy\/?post_type=article&p=23296"},"modified":"2026-08-14T14:49:13","modified_gmt":"2026-08-14T04:49:13","slug":"bennelong-in-london-year-11-drama","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/domremy\/article\/bennelong-in-london-year-11-drama\/","title":{"rendered":"“Bennelong in London” – Year 11 Drama"},"content":{"rendered":"
On Wednesday, 12th August, our Year 11 Drama class travelled to Sydney Theatre Company’s Wharf Theatre, to watch Jane Harrison\u2019s world-premiere play, Bennelong in London<\/em>. Having previously studied Harrison\u2019s Stolen<\/em> in class, I expected familiar themes of colonisation, identity and raw truth-telling, but experiencing this production live was a unique honour and privilege.<\/div>\n
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The play offers a compelling retelling of Woollarawarre Bennelong\u2019s life which is a story rarely given deep focus in the Australian history curriculum. As a huge history fan, watching his journey to England and the trials he faced was an incredible experience. The entire production relies on just two brilliant actors: Guy Simon, playing an aspiring actor named Sebastian Anders, and Googoorewon Knox as Bennelong, who appears as a conjured thought brought to life by Sebastian. Throughout the show, Bennelong takes Sebastian on a raw, comedic and eye-opening journey that directly challenges historical accounts written from a colonial perspective.<\/div>\n
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There are so many beautiful aspects of theatre within this production that I could rant on about forever, but to keep it short and sweet, every single detail was crafted so thoughtfully that you could undeniably tell quality research and genuine heart were poured into it. The subtle humor brilliantly contrasted the intense, raw emotion near the end, where Knox\u2019s character mourns the loss of the Wangal people and his children. Sitting just a metre and a half from the stage made the performance feel deeply intimate, leaving several of us in tears as Sebastian found connection to Country and courage through Bennelong\u2019s storytelling.<\/div>\n
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Staying for the post-show Q&A to hear Guy and Googoorewon discuss their identities as First Nations’ actors and how they navigate the heavy emotional weight of these roles was an honour and something that I will most definitely never forget as someone who is interested in acting myself. In Drama, we often debate whether theatre is just entertainment or a tool to confront society’s taboos, and this play proved it is firmly the latter, especially when Bennelong reenacts his kidnapping by Governor Arthur Phillip and tells Sebastian, “I don\u2019t care if your play isn\u2019t showing this, it happened so you\u2019ll sit and listen.”<\/em><\/div>\n
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Jane Harrison is a master storyteller who continues to amplify vital First Nations’ perspectives, and I strongly encourage everyone to explore her work no matter who you are. I think my whole drama class could agree that Bennelong in London was an unforgettable experience that left us all moved and will definitely be a part of future class discussions. All I can say is that I now urge you to catch up on your history, and learn about the beautiful Country you walk on!<\/div>\n
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Francesca, Year 11\/ Ms Bridget Malloy, Year 11 Coordinator<\/strong><\/em><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On Wednesday, 12th August, our Year 11 Drama class travelled to Sydney Theatre Company’s Wharf Theatre, to watch Jane Harrison\u2019s world-premiere play, Bennelong in London. Having previously studied Harrison\u2019s Stolen in class, I expected familiar themes of colonisation, identity and raw truth-telling, but experiencing this production live was a unique honour and privilege. \u00a0 The […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":23297,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","class_list":["post-23296","article","type-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/domremy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article\/23296","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/domremy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/domremy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/article"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/domremy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23296"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/domremy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23297"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/domremy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23296"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}