Original Title: Australski novi val
Acija Alfirević’s (b. 1951) study about Australian drama from the 1960s to the beginning of the 1990s was written during the author’s visit to Australia. This book is the first and only review in Croatia of the Australian theatre, which, through its integral nature and numerous pieces of information, makes a valuable contribution to our acquainting ourselves with Australian culture and theatre. The book commences with a review of Australian drama and theatre history and then continues by dealing in detail with the New Wave, a 1960s movement which changed the Australian theatre. The strong and unrestrained language of Australian dramatists of the 1960s, in harsh depiction of Australian society and its shortcomings, once and for all liberated Australian drama literature from English influences. Acija Alfirević creates a meticulous and detailed picture of the drama opus and work of five leading members of the New Wave generation: Jack Hibberd, John Romerilo, David Williamson, Dorothy Hewett and Alexander Buzo. Further on the in the book, the author writes about the typical themes, motifs and characters in Australian plays. A list of primary and secondary literature and the sources for the material in the book provide the framework which places it on the border between a theatre travelogue and theatre theory. The author is Reader in Croatian Language and Literature at the University of London.
The book was published thanks to support given by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Croatian and the Ministry of Education of the State of Victoria in Australia.