A TRIO of actors are bringing Henry Lawson\u2019s stories alive in commemoration of the one hundredth anniversary of his death.<\/p>\n
Hedley Thomson, Jane Gaylor, and Peter Vanderkley are Lawson and his Mates, <\/em>and they\u2019re set to tour Ballarat in the coming months performing the writer\u2019s poetry and prose pieces as dramatic vignettes.<\/p>\n Thomson said Lawson was not just a bush poet and the author of The Drover\u2019s Wife<\/em>, but had a local link, and unpacked timeless political and social issues, fairness, equality, and justice throughout his career.<\/p>\n \u201cMost will know him as one of Australia\u2019s greatest writers,\u201d Thomson said.<\/p>\n \u201cNot many will know though that in 1888 Lawson came to Ballarat on a pilgrimage to visit the site of the Eureka battle, and to visit the Ballarat Old Cemetery to view the graves, located side-by-side, of the diggers and soldiers who died in the fighting.<\/p>\n \u201cAt the time, Lawson had had a handful of literary pieces published, including Song of the Republic<\/em>, and two poems about the Eureka battle, and was on the verge of truly launching his career.<\/p>\n \u201cHis visit to Ballarat was no doubt to obtain inspiration in support of an important priority in his writing that would persist throughout his lifetime; the creation of a society that provided for a fair go for everyone.<\/p>\n \u201cHe ended up writing a total of seven marvellous pieces about the Eureka battle and its significance to the culture and governance of our country.\u201d<\/p>\n