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WHEN SAND BECOMES GLASS

$5.40$15.00

An educated Indonesian man flirts with a young Australian girl on a Bali beach. A policemen recounts the horror of a terrorist bombing, a muslim woman rages at late night television and two drug traffickers have second thoughts in a cheap hotel room.

Set on the eve of the Bali Bombings - each of these stories and many more are interwoven through-out the play, creating a tapestry of modern Australia - colliding with the culture of a mysterious land.

Each thread, character and situation revolves around the other - appearing and reappearing, echoing words and events though monologue and scene, satire, drama, shadow puppetry and comedy - before culminating in the event that shook Australia to its core.

  • drama, politics, satire, ensemble, naturalism
  • 80
  • 17 total
  • 9 female identifying, 8 male identifying
  • lgbtqia+, history, young people
  • 16 to 18, 18+
  • teen, young adult, adult
  • Australian Script Centre


  • MONOLOGUES
  • PRODUCTION HISTORY

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Matt

Male | Unspecified | 3 to 5 minutes
Starts on page 4

EXTRACT: On the night of October the 12th 2002 a man carrying a backpack entered Paddy's Bar a popular tourist location in Bali and detonated the first of two devices. The second explosion originated from a car bomb left outside the Sari nightclub a few doors away. Both devices contained traces of amonuim nitrate a substance commonly found in household fertiliser. The number of bodies found at the crime scene totalled two hundred and two. Of these we identified eighty-eight as Australians as well as thirty-eight Balinese, thirty-five British Nationals, seven Americans and two to three people from various European countries.

Adult themes

Zoe

Female | Unspecified | under 3 minutes
Starts on page 30

EXTRACT: Loren's such a flirt. I mean she's not usually but something in her brain goes wild in the heat and she's just...dangerous. The first time she took me to Paddy's Bar I wanted to run. Paddy's Bar. One huge Australian orgy, hot like a oven, smoke and bass pumping - bodies pressed tight wriggling like jungle monkeys to Powderfinger and Kylie. Paddy's bar. I reckon I was groped ten times in the first half-hour.

Adult themes, Adult language

Jen

Female | Unspecified | under 3 minutes
Starts on page 11

EXTRACT: Have you noticed she always pronounces something wrong every news bulletin she does. It's true, very cute, Sandra and I often share a coffee when my husband works late. Tonight she was wearing a lovely blue dress with plunging neckline, a little risque for Sandra - but she gets away with it - beautiful doe eyed Sandra, calm and soothing, speaking words and that had become such familiar late night mantra. So familiar they felt no heavier than the baby's singlet I was folding. Bombs, suicide, check-point, democracy, words words words, floating out from Sandra's mouth like bubbles of detergent..

Adult themes, Adult language

Loren

Female | Unspecified | under 3 minutes
Starts on page 3

EXTRACT: Baleeee, Baaaaaleeeee - curving, resonant, slipping out of my gullet like a river of lust. Humid, hot, crappy little shantys, pools and palaces, palm trees and rice paddy's. Standing on Kuta beach, stained glass ocean, sun rippling upon the bikini Goddess, firm, golden, apple-wax tits, sarong dipping to my garden of eden, men gaping, craving me. Baaaaleeee - luxury, desire, paradise for under ten dollars a day. You, you want me, you can't have me, not yet, meet me tonight, paddy's bar, maybe you can, maybe you can't,

Adult themes, Adult language

Kate

Female | Unspecified | under 3 minutes
Starts on page 3

EXTRACT: I told you I don't know how it got there. It's not a bag it's a vanity case... it's not a ...yes it's my bag. Okay I have go now. Tell that man to step away from the door. Now, step away from the door, get me a taxi, I'm going to my hotel and tomorrow I'll meet you... wherever you people call a police station and we'll sort this out. What? I don't...are you speaking English? What are you talking about? Jesus, it's pronounced Marijuana and for the one hundreth time - it's not mine.

Adult language

Sam

Male | Unspecified | 3 to 5 minutes
Starts on page 6

EXTRACT: July 22nd round fifteen Telstra Dome - a crowd of thirty thousand arse to arse, breath baited, North Melbourne blue and white scattered like wildflowers goal to goal, Dean Laidley and Glen Archer huddled like two anzacs at Gallipoli - and there... standing like a an AFL God in pressure bandages and Addidas boots...Jason McCartney. I love Jason McCartney. He should have died. Back there in Bali...that kind of damage would have rooted an ordinary bloke...over eighty percent of his body totally charred...

Adult language

Prime Minister

Gender Unspecified | Unspecified | 3 to 5 minutes
Starts on page 1

EXTRACT: No no no if the right honourable member would let me finish, you've had your say it's my turn now, now now now I didn't say culture, culture is good, cricket is culture, Cricket covers all culture Mr Speaker, English, Indian, Pakistani, just you ask SBS. Now look, I'm not going to argue about this, Culture is whatever I and my goverment say it is as long as I hold a majority in the senate and Amanda Vandstone extradites Australian citizens whenever she wants - what I'm talking about is theatre Mr Speaker. Bleeding heart left wing, elitist, socialist propaganda.

Adult language

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