David Williamson's career is unprecedented in the history of Australian drama. From early in the 1970s he became the single most important figure involved in the establishment of a contemporary national theater. His early plays, first performed in "alternative" little theaters, were soon attracting large audiences to their productions in commercial theaters or in local venues, performed by recently founded state theater companies traveling around the country, and then the plays moved on to London, New York, and elsewhere. Averaging a play each year since then, Williamson has maintained his preeminence among local playwrights and his public prominence. Few, if any, writers in Australia have attracted such sustained attention and controversy as he has during his long career. To many commentators, his successive plays constitute an ongoing, critical chronicle of his times, a discerning analysis of changing social attitudes and shifting ethical concerns. For them, Williamson has an...