Australian belonging : an introduction to 'Fountains Beyond'

George Landen Dann was a successful Queensland playwright from the 1930s to 1970s. He wrote many award winning plays, several of which dealt with Indigenous issues of that time. This chapter introduces the background to his work 'Fountains Beyond'. This play was the second of three major works that dealt with the 'Aboriginal issue' exploring Dann's particular concern for what was known as the 'half-caste's dilemma'. Fountains Beyond is one of Dann's most performed works and the one that many key theatre critics including Leslie Rees and David Rowbotham have argued belongs within the 'classic'Australian repertoire.