Peta Murray – May 6 2018

May is National Domestic and Family Violence Prevention Month

Peta began work as a high school teacher, involving herself in fringe and community theatre before taking up writing full-time in 1989. She is a graduate of the NSW School of Drama and holds a BA (Hons) from the UNSW, a Diploma of Education from the University of Sydney, a Master’s degree in Creative writing from QUT and a PhD (Creative Writing) from RMIT University. Best known as a playwright, Peta also writes short stories and is a dramaturge and director. Her playwriting credits include Wallflowering, which has been adapted for ABC radio; Spitting Chips, an adaptation of Tim Winton’s Blueback; This Dying Business, which looks at “society’s inability to deal with death”; and Diving, a comic look at the many choices faced by young people as they strive to develop their identities and strengthen their self esteem. Peta has taught writing at the University of Western Australia Extension Service, playwriting at the University of Melbourne and RMIT University, and as co-facilitator of The Black Writers Lab for Ilbijerri Theatre. In 1991 she spent eight weeks as Writer in the Community at the Araluen Centre for Arts and Entertainment in Alice Springs. Peta is co-founder and Creative Consultant of The GroundSwell Project.

The Keys to the Animal Room
Australian Script Centre, 1993
100 minutes; 3 female, 2 male
This play was commissioned on the subject of domestic violence. It charts the cycles of abuse within the relationship of Julia and Carl over a period of seven years and focuses specifically on a woman’s experience of invisibility and terror. It challenges the community to look beyond the sanctity of the home and to ‘break the silence’ on family violence and abuse.

The Law of Large Numbers
Australian Script Centre, 2003
100 minutes; 3 female, 2 male; Cast age 12 to 16, 16 to 18, 18+
Audience age: Teen, young adult, adult
Coral Reith, a middle aged woman, suddenly finds herself in an ’empty nest’ after years of being defined by her duties as mother and wife. Coral’s attempts to find kindred spirits and meaningful community all lead to dead ends, until ultimately she takes solace in “the nearly machines” of local gaming halls. Meanwhile, her home town itself is experiencing a mysterious proliferation as it’s overrun by ants and spectacular ant mounds. The play is a bizarre comedy designed to involve community members and audience in the performance. It was written for 5 actors plus a chorus of community members, but has a variable cast with 13 main roles plus chorus.