Sunny Garden
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Z i g z a g S t r e e t
Richard Derrington is twenty-eight and single. More single than he'd like to be. More single than he'd expected to be, and not coping well. Since Anna trashed him six months ago he's been trying to find his way again. He's doing his job badly, playing tennis badly, stalled at the start of renovating and wondering when things are going to change.
Zigzag Street covers six weeks of Richard's life in the house his grandparents built at Brisbane's Red Hill. Six weeks of rumination, chaos, poor judgement, interpersonal clumsiness and, eventually, hope, as he stumbles from one incident to another.
Richard's trying to be a nineties man, longing to be desirable, searching for calm, but things are only getting more out of control. Zigzag Street is his story.
Zigzag Street - 2005 season
After playing 34 venues (106 performances) in every state of Australia, Zigzag Street returned to La Boite Theatre Company in Brisbane for a limited season in August/September 2005. The new look production was redesigned and the running time shortened by approximately 20 minutes.
“Like all the best romantic comedies, Zigzag Street is funny... It’s a great show to take a date out to”. Courier Mail
Zigzag Street - the play
Richard is 28, single, and living in the house his grandparents built on Zigzag Street. Despite concerted efforts to get his life together, chaos reigns supreme.
In between taking bad but well-meaning advice from his friend Jeff, taking his toaster apart to find exactly what it is that is giving the toast a slightly odd taste, and explaining the absence of his girlfriend to the local takeaway store, Richard's life meanders back on track. He even discovers that hope wasn't such an overly-optimistic emotion after all.
Adapted by Philip Dean from Nick Earls' award-winning novel, Zigzag Street is a comic tale about life's unexpected pleasures and treasures.
Praise for 'Zigzag Street'
"A tongue-in-cheek comment on an era, a generation; it's comedy; it's farce; and it's also a romance... Expect anything from this novel."Courier Mail
"Wise, graceful, but above and beyond all that very, very funny, Zigzag Street is a distinct pleasure."
Review Independent Monthly
"Zigzag Street is bloated with fantastic ideas, constantly chortling with funny situations and damned clever writing."
Sydney Morning Herald
"Light-footed and funny, Zigzag Street celebrates foolishness with panache."
Bulletin
Nick Earls won a Betty Trask Award for Zigzag Street in 1998.
Takeaway menu
Order Zigzag Street online at:
Dymocks (Australia) Amazon (UK) Amazon (Germany)Alternatively, if you want to order it in at your local bookstore, the ISBN is 186325286X
The play version of the novel is available from Currency Press. Details of stockists available on their web page. If you would prefer to order the play in at your local bookstore, the ISBN is 0868197300
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Disclaimer:
Sunny Garden is designed, written and maintained by Liz Perkins, in cooperation with Nick Earls and Penguin Books. Any questions about Sunny Garden should be directed to Liz
All original contents are © Liz Perkins.