A theatre rises from the ashes

When esteemed Australian playwright David Williamson heard the awful news that La Mama, the beloved Carlton venue where he had got his start, had burned to the ground, he feared it may be the end for the 50-plus-year-old institution and its remarkable place in the nation’s cultural fabric. ‘My heart sank, like just about everyone who has been associated with theatre in Melbourne, or, indeed, Australia,’ he recalled. ‘La Mama was the generator of so much in Australian culture and the loss, which at the time seemed permanent, was quite shocking.’