The Eternity Man single work   musical theatre   opera  
Note: Music by Jonathan Mills; libretto by Dorothy Porter.
Issue Details: First known date: 2003... 2003 The Eternity Man
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'The Eternity Man' tells the story of one of Sydney's most intriguing characters, Arthur Stace, who combed Sydney for 37 years writing the word 'Eternity' in chalk on pavements and other surfaces.

Adaptations

form y separately published work icon The Eternity Man Julien Temple , Dorothy Porter , Jonathan Mills , ( dir. Julien Temple ) Australia : Goalpost Pictures , 2008 Z1554990 2008 single work film/TV

'The Eternity Man is a film opera about Arthur Stace, a reformed petty criminal, World War 1 veteran and recovering alcoholic, who haunted Sydney's seedy bars and brothels until a revelation one night in a soup kitchen chapel. Stace then spent nearly 40 years chalking a timeless message on the city's streets: the single word - Eternity.

'The film is a journey into the gritty heart of Sydney itself; a place of black humour, alcoholism, bashings, love, sex, lies and shocking beauty. Stace is the archetypal outsider in the city; unobtrusive, distracted, flung from freak-show to brothel to Baptist church, revealing the secrets a city likes to keep to itself through the autistic repetition of a single gesture. As Stace walks through the decades from the 1930s to the present day he encounters some of the key events of the 20th century.

'During his journey of self-discovery Stace wrote his word almost 500,000 times; it was his mission to traverse the city to its furthest reaches in order to spread his message. Now more than 30 years after his death, this mission has a powerful resonance, to the point where Sydney's millennium celebrations were crowned with his word lighting up the Harbour Bridge in neon, sending his evocative message out from Sydney and across the world.'

Source: ABC1 website, http://www.abc.net.au/
Sighted: 20/01/2009

Production Details

  • First produced at the Almeida Theatre, London on 23 July 2003. Produced at The Studio, Sydney Opera House from 20-26 January 2005.

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

Works about this Work

A Tale for All Eternity Anthony Clarke , 2009 single work criticism
— Appears in: Limelight , January 2009; (p. 34-36)
Epiphany Writ Forever on Concrete Miriam Cosic , 2005 single work review
— Appears in: The Australian , 28 January 2005; (p. 15)

— Review of The Eternity Man Dorothy Porter , 2003 single work musical theatre
Stace's Message Gets Lost in Translation Peter McCallum , 2005 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 11 January 2005; (p. 27)

— Review of The Eternity Man Dorothy Porter , 2003 single work musical theatre
One-Word Sermon We Can't Forget Sharon Verghis , 2005 single work column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 19 January 2005; (p. 16)
Paul Mitchell Interviews Dorothy Porter Paul Mitchell (interviewer), 2003 single work interview
— Appears in: Cordite Poetry Review , no. 13 2003;
The Eternity Man - Opera - First Night Robert Thicknesse , 2003 single work review
— Appears in: The Times , 25 July 2003; (p. 19)

— Review of The Eternity Man Dorothy Porter , 2003 single work musical theatre
The Sound of Silence - Sometimes the Pauses Can Say as Much as the Music but You Suffer for It Stephen Pritchard , 2003 single work review
— Appears in: The Observer , 27 July 2003; (p. 11)

— Review of The Eternity Man Dorothy Porter , 2003 single work musical theatre
[Review] The Eternity Man Annette Morreau , 2003 single work review
— Appears in: The Independent , 28 July 2003; (p. 17)

— Review of The Eternity Man Dorothy Porter , 2003 single work musical theatre
Stace's Message Gets Lost in Translation Peter McCallum , 2005 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 11 January 2005; (p. 27)

— Review of The Eternity Man Dorothy Porter , 2003 single work musical theatre
Epiphany Writ Forever on Concrete Miriam Cosic , 2005 single work review
— Appears in: The Australian , 28 January 2005; (p. 15)

— Review of The Eternity Man Dorothy Porter , 2003 single work musical theatre
Here to Eternity on a Faraway Stage Peter Fray , 2003 single work column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 12-13 July 2003; (p. 2)
Taking It from the Streets Michele Field , 2003 single work column
— Appears in: The Bulletin , 22 July vol. 121 no. 6382 2003; (p. 68)
Reports on the funding and staging of the 2003 production of The Eternity Man at London's Almeida Theatre.
Eternity Michael Shmith , 2003 single work column
— Appears in: The Age , 15 July 2003; (p. 11)
Eternity Odyssey a Path to Operatic Glory Jane Cornwell , 2003 single work column
— Appears in: The Australian , 22 July 2003; (p. 13)
Paul Mitchell Interviews Dorothy Porter Paul Mitchell (interviewer), 2003 single work interview
— Appears in: Cordite Poetry Review , no. 13 2003;
Last amended 21 Jan 2009 09:54:41
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