Alex Buzo
Encyclopedia
Alex Buzo was an Australia
n playwright and author who wrote 88 works.
in 1944 to an Albania
n-born father and an Australian mother. He attended The Armidale School
in Armidale
and The International School in Geneva
before graduating from University of New South Wales
.
and Victoria
were charged with obscenity for use of the word "fucking." The charges were eventually quashed by the Attorney-General. Other plays include Rooted, The Front Room Boys, Macquarie, Tom, Coralie Landsdowne Says No, Martello Towers, Makassar Reef, The Marginal Farm, Big River, Stingray, Shellcove Road and Pacific Union.
In his writing career wrote for the children's animation show, Arthur and the Square Knights of the Round Table.
In 2001 he gave the 3rd annual Tom Brock Lecture
.
on 16 August 2006 after a five-year battle with small-cell cancer. In 2007 Buzo's eldest daughter Emma formed The Alex Buzo Company. Its aim is to produce, promote and perpetuate the work of Alex Buzo both in Australia and internationally. The company is supported by the Buzo family and manages his estate. It is dedicated to fostering the same level of excellence Buzo achieved in his career in contemporary Australian literature through innovative programs of theatre, education and training.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n playwright and author who wrote 88 works.
Early life
Buzo was born in SydneySydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
in 1944 to an Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
n-born father and an Australian mother. He attended The Armidale School
The Armidale School
The Armidale School is an independent, Anglican, day and boarding school predominantly for boys, located in Armidale, on the New England Tablelands of northern New South Wales, Australia...
in Armidale
Armidale, New South Wales
Armidale is a city in the Northern Tablelands, New South Wales, Australia. Armidale Dumaresq Shire had a population of 19,485 people according to the 2006 census. It is the administrative centre for the Northern Tablelands region...
and The International School in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
before graduating from University of New South Wales
University of New South Wales
The University of New South Wales , is a research-focused university based in Kensington, a suburb in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
.
Playwriting career
Buzo's second play, the iconic Norm and Ahmed, explored issues of racism and generational envy and hit the headlines around Australia in the late 1960s and early '70s, when those involved in productions in QueenslandQueensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
and Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
were charged with obscenity for use of the word "fucking." The charges were eventually quashed by the Attorney-General. Other plays include Rooted, The Front Room Boys, Macquarie, Tom, Coralie Landsdowne Says No, Martello Towers, Makassar Reef, The Marginal Farm, Big River, Stingray, Shellcove Road and Pacific Union.
Subsequent career
Alex Buzo achieved success in most literary genres. He published many witty and insightful books on Australian life, language and sport during his career and his articles on many varied subjects including reviews and travel writing were published in all the major newspapers and magazines in Australia.In his writing career wrote for the children's animation show, Arthur and the Square Knights of the Round Table.
In 2001 he gave the 3rd annual Tom Brock Lecture
Tom Brock Lecture
The Tom Brock Lecture is an annual scholarly lecture organised by the Australian Society for Sports History under the bequest of Australian sports historian Tom Brock. The topic of the lecture is the history of rugby league football...
.
The Alex Buzo Company
Buzo died in SydneySydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
on 16 August 2006 after a five-year battle with small-cell cancer. In 2007 Buzo's eldest daughter Emma formed The Alex Buzo Company. Its aim is to produce, promote and perpetuate the work of Alex Buzo both in Australia and internationally. The company is supported by the Buzo family and manages his estate. It is dedicated to fostering the same level of excellence Buzo achieved in his career in contemporary Australian literature through innovative programs of theatre, education and training.
Awards
- 1972 Gold MedalALS Gold MedalThe Australian Literature Society Gold Medal is awarded annually by the Association for the Study of Australian Literature for “an outstanding literary work in the preceding calendar year.” From 1928 to 1974 it was awarded by the Australian Literature Society, then from 1983 by the Association for...
from the Australian Literature Society for his history play Macquarie - 1998 an Alumni Award from the University of New South WalesUniversity of New South WalesThe University of New South Wales , is a research-focused university based in Kensington, a suburb in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
- 2005 Honorary Doctorate of Letters from UNSW for his contribution to Australian Literature.
Plays
- The Revolt (1967)
- Norm and Ahmed (Currency Press, 1968)
- The Front Room Boys (Currency Press, 1970)
- Macquarie (Currency Press, 1971)
- Batman's Beach-Head (1973)
- Rooted (Currency Press, 1973)
- Roy Murphy Show (Currency Press, 1973)
- Coralie Lansdowne Says No (Currency Press, 1974)
- Tom (Angus & Robertson, 1975)
- Vicki Madison Clocks Out (Currency Press, 1976)
- Martello Towers (Currency Press, 1976)
- Makassar Reef (Currency Press, 1978)
- Big River (Currency Press, 1985)
- The Marginal Farm (Currency Press, 1985)
- Stingray (Currency Press, 1987)
- Shellcove Road (1989)
- Pacific Union (Currency Press, 1995)
Non-fiction
- Legends of the Baggy Green (Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 2004)
- A Dictionary of the Almost Obvious (The Text Publishing Company, Melbourne, 1998)
- Kiwese (Mandarin, Port Melbourne, 1994)
- The Longest Game, co-edited with Jamie Grant (Mandarin, Port Melbourne,1990)
- The Young Persons Guide to the Theatre (Penguin, Ringwood, 1988)
- Glancing Blows (Penguin, Ringwood, 1987)
- Meet the New Class (Angus and Robertson, Sydney, 1981)
- Tautology (Penguin, Ringwood, 1981)
Fiction
- Prue Flies North (Mandarin, Port Melbourne, 1991)
- The Search for Harry Allway (Angus and Robertson, Sydney 1985)