Showing of ‘Our country’s Good’ reflects modern dilemmas

The production of Wertenbaker’s ‘Our Country’s Good’ at the Lyric Hammersmith in London provides an interestingly modern approach to the 1988 play. The main themes of the play still shone through, and were depicted phenomenally. The actors displayed the pains of the convicts hyper-realistically, evoking emotion from the entire audience. However, there were some elements of this production that varied from other presentations of this Wertenbaker classic. The director integrated various modern elements into this version of the play; a few of the characters were wearing ‘modern’ wear as opposed to the classic ‘prison slops’ that are usually used to replicate those of the convicts in the transportations to Australia that they represent. Instead, some of the characters wore items of clothing including a tracksuit, running trainers and branded T-shirts. This unique decision presented an interesting take on the deeper meaning of the play- it is possible that these decisions were made to reflect the fact that people in the modern world experience struggles similar to those experienced by the convicts themselves. This could be taken as a depiction of immigration in the 21st century, and the mental toll that this has on the immigrants themselves, in comparison to the toll that transportation has on the convicts in the play. Additionally, the use of brands throughout the costuming and props in this production could be viewed as a subtle criticism of the over consumerism in modern society, and our obsession with always needing the ‘next best thing’. In direct comparison with the simplistic resources the convicts in the late 1700s would have lived with during the transportations, it forces the audience to really consider their consumerist lifestyle choices.