Playwright Darren Brealey is the author of several plays, short film scripts, monologues and short stories. His book, Performing The Goat, A Collection Of One-Act Plays, was published in June 2006 and is available from your local bookshop and Amazon online bookstore.

ISBN 1 84401 503 3.

Brealey first came to public attention in 1996 when his play, The Meeting Place was produced during the Melbourne Fringe Festival. The Meeting Place was a critical and public success: "The Meeting Place was a simple even old fashioned story of family and loss. I rarely cry in the theatre - at least for emotional reasons - but there I was enjoying some new talent. And I was bawling, with the joy of it and of the magic of a good yarn well put, the tears running down my cheeks like a bloody baby." (Ralph McLean - 3RRR). Brealey won a Special Recommendation Award for The Meeting Place in the Melbourne Fringe Performance Art Awards.

In 1998, Brealey's next full-length work, Three Shorts was produced at Melbourne's Workhouse Theatre. Three Shorts comprised three self-contained plays: Disturbing Mavis', The Stair' and Champagne Ladies'. Once again, critical and public reaction to the work was favourable, with Champagne Ladies' singled out for particular praise: "With Three Shorts, Darren Brealey has written an eclectic mixture of observations that manage, somehow, to connect with the satirical Champagne Ladies' definitely my favourite" (Stage Whispers).

Performing The Goat followed in 1999 containing the plays, 'A Couple Of SNAGS', 'The Chicks' and 'The Mechanics' and was produced as part of the Melbourne Fringe Festival. The strong, positive audience reaction and critical comment confirmed Brealey's ability to create realistic, original characterisations and dialogue: "Darren Brealey delivers four humorous and often terrifyingly accurate portrayals four short plays that capture colloquial Aussie stereotypes and presents them with hilarious accuracy" (Buzz Cuts).

In the 2005 Melbourne Fringe Festival he produced Comfort Zone co-written with friend Stuart Pursell. The success of the show was proven by its audience appreciation, the production received critical acclaim: "Comfort Zone has delivered a rare piece of new theatre that is hilariously self referential and thematically bold" (BNews).

Brealey learnt drama from the age of six with Arena Theatre and first appeared on stage at the Palais Theatre in St. Kilda, when he was ten, in the 1980 Gang Show. In addition to his training in theatre, he studied writing at the Australian Film, Television and Radio School(AFTRS). In August 2004, Brealey attended the Robert McKee, Story Seminar', claimed to be the world's ultimate writing course taught by Hollywood's master of the craft. Over three intense days, the superbly organised, practical course effectively demonstrated the relationship between story design and character, teaching the principals involved in art and craft of writing and story design.

My passion is ...

Writing

I know too much about ...

a little and know a little about a lot.

My parents always told me ...

Be good to your mother.

My childhood ambition ...

To become a famous actor.

My favorite memory ...

Working for two years in the Whitsundays on Long Island (Australia).

Why I write ...

I write to create, educate, share stories and engage with other artisans.

What I am reading/watching/listening to ...

Bette Midler and Peter Allen

My first job ...

A cook's assistant at a chicken shop.

My best moment ...

Writing and producing my first stage play under the age of 25.

My inspiration ...

To have a stage play or film produced by someone else.

Creative Writing > Memoirs Memoirs: Wild fires in Australia 2009

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Monday 23 Feb 2009, from the Woodend train station, I drove towards my hometown, engulfed by a wall of red and black smoke. My body sweated (screaming) turn around, go the other way. The roads were full, cars snaked towards Trentham, others heading in the opposite direction towards safety were filled with personal items; trailers with motorbikes, horse floats and water tanks.

My partner and I packed our cars with personal effects. For two hours we decided what we could let burn in a house fire should the fire front burn our town and what we wanted to pack in our cars, to save. To try and m...

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