Introducing Zachary Sheridan
Our 2019 Flinders University Young Playwrights’ Award winner (senior category) is Zachary Sheridan. We spoke to Zach about how he became interested in playwriting and what his award-winning work, The Dead, is all about.
What inspired your winning play, The Dead?
A few things. I think it was this new understanding for me — which I’m sure most people probably are already aware of — that a lot of what humans believe in and live by are just fictions that we’ve agreed upon. I wanted to interrogate this idea, and the nature of that ‘agreement’ — if there ever was one. So the play becomes about the stories we’re told and the stories we tell ourselves… I also wanted to write a play for young people, and to explore the horror genre. And, of course, the competition itself was inspiration. Opportunities like this with no specific end goal in mind give space to write freely. Naturally, now it’s actually going to be read aloud, I’m terrified.
What are the main themes, ideas or messages of the play?
Inevitability; the limits of narrative; ghosts & jumping at them.
How did you get involved in playwriting?
My favourite parts of novels have always been when characters speak. So I’ve always loved reading plays. (Of course, plays are much more than just dialogue!) I’ve been lucky enough to study & practice theatre, and through this I’ve been encouraged to give playwriting a go.
I wrote my first play two years ago and it was performed at 107 Projects in Sydney, and now I’ve had plays I’ve written on in Perth and Adelaide. Each time I learn something new about the craft, but I know I have bucketloads more to learn. I’m grateful and thankful for mentors and artists who have, and continue to, pave the way.
What do you think sets theatrical storytelling apart from other modes of storytelling?
Heaps of good things! There’s no screen in an age where screens dominate our lives. And so you have actual, real bodies in front you — and around you. You are sharing a space with others, and that’s special — especially because so much of the systems we live in promotes individualism. In opposition to this, theatre encourages community. And we feel that community in the foyer beforehand, and at the bar afterwards, as well as during the show. We laugh together, we cry together, we lean forward on our seats together. The performance is happening there and then. It’s live. And because of that it’s different every time. Plus, the form is always pushing itself in new and interesting ways… OK, I’m getting carried away.
I love binging TV and watching footy (carn the pear!) as much as the next person, but I think theatre has a lot to give. It doesn’t have to be elitist. It can be for everybody. I think that’s what’s exciting about a lot of emerging makers coming through — there’s a real push to reach audiences and bring people in. It’s a place where we can really look at each other, and say, ‘I see you. I hear you.’ I think that validation, that act of seeing each other, is really crucial right now.
Find out more about the Flinders University Young Playwrights’ Award at statetheatrecompany.com.au/flinders-young-playwright-award
