Roger Bennett (1948–1997) was an

Arrernte Arrernte (also spelt Aranda, etc.) is a descriptor related to a group of Aboriginal Australian peoples from Central Australia. It may refer to: * Arrernte (area), land controlled by the Arrernte Council (?) * Arrernte people, Aboriginal Australi ...

man from

Central Australia Central Australia, also sometimes referred to as the Red Centre, is an inexactly defined region associated with the geographic centre of Australia. In its narrowest sense it describes a region that is limited to the town of Alice Springs and i ...

, an actor, and a

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

. His best known works are ''Up the Ladder'' and ''Funerals and Circuses''. His works dealt with his life experiences, particularly the travelling boxing tents, where his father, Elley Bennett was a

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...

champion during the 1940s and 1950s. ''Up the Ladder'' was first performed at the Adelaide Fringe Festival in 1990, in a production directed by Bob Maza. The play subsequently moved to Melbourne in 1995 for a long stint at the

Melbourne Workers Theatre Melbourne Workers Theatre (MWT) was an Australian theatre company based in Melbourne, Australia. The company was founded in 1987 by Patricia Cornelius, Steve Payne and Michael White. It specialised in producing work from a left-wing stance, se ...

and came to Sydney in 1997 for the Festival of the Dreaming. According to ''

The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...

'',

''Up the Ladder'' takes the audience right inside the spangled, sweaty, tatty and deceptive world of the travelling sideshow carnival, from tawdry fake snake charmers to the sawdust of the boxing ring. o-directorEnoch says the Aboriginal culture comes through in the play's physicality, mocking humour and the sparse nature of the dialogue. Critics have hailed it as a "feel-good show", "full of fun and good humour".

The fact that the play emphasizes positive aspects of the Aboriginal experience in travelling shows led at least one reviewer to criticize it as apolitical.

Wesley Enoch Wesley James Enoch (born 1969) is an Australian playwright and artistic director. He is especially known for ''The 7 Stages of Grieving'', co-written with Deborah Mailman. He was artistic director of the Queensland Theatre Company from mid-2 ...

"however argues that any play about Aboriginal people is political", stating that

Having black people on stage punching the shit out of each other is political. But this is not agit prop. I think we are entering into a phase – culturally, artistically, politically – where it is actually about the nuance of racism.

In 2003, the play travelled to Tokyo. Staged by the Rakutendan Theatre Company and directed by Enoch ( Ilbijerri Theatre Cooperative), the play used many Japanese actors. In ''Funerals and Circuses'', first performed at the

Adelaide Festival The Adelaide Festival of Arts, also known as the Adelaide Festival, an arts festival, takes place in the South Australian capital of Adelaide in March each year. Started in 1960, it is a major celebration of the arts and a significant cultural ...

in 1992, Bennett dealt with issues of racism and inter-racial relationships in a small, racially tense town in South Australia. The music of Paul Kelly was used in this production. Bennett was an actor as well as a playwright. He served as

writer-in-residence Artist-in-residence, or artist residencies, encompass a wide spectrum of artistic programs which involve a collaboration between artists and hosting organisations, institutions, or communities. They are programs which provide artists with space a ...

at the

Araluen Centre for Arts and Entertainment The Araluen Cultural Precinct, formerly the Araluen Centre for Arts & Entertainment, in Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Alice Springs in the Northern Territory of Australia, is a cultural precinct which includes the Araluen Arts Centre, the M ...

Alice Springs Alice Springs ( aer, Mparntwe) is the third-largest town in the Northern Territory of Australia. Known as Stuart until 31 August 1933, the name Alice Springs was given by surveyor William Whitfield Mills after Alice, Lady Todd (''née'' Al ...

and at Tandanya National Aboriginal Cultural Institute in Adelaide.

Bibliography

* ''Up the Ladder'' *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bennett, Roger 1948 births 1997 deaths 20th-century Australian dramatists and playwrights Arrernte people Australian male dramatists and playwrights Indigenous Australian male actors Indigenous Australian writers Writers from the Northern Territory