Transportation of convicts, to America until 1776 and then to Australia, served two clear purposes. First, it helped populate the new colonies, providing a convenient and cheap source of labour. Second, it provided a means of emptying overcrowded prisons without the use of the death penalty. 

This is the scene for Our Country’s Good.  In a penal colony in 1789, a young lieutenant directs rehearsals of the Restoration comedy “The Recruiting Officer”. But with a cast of dispirited convicts, opposition from sadistic officers, and a leading lady who faces being hanged, Australia’s first theatrical production is in trouble from the start.

“The Greeks believed that it was a citizen’s duty to watch a play. It was a kind of work in that it required attention, judgement, patience – all social virtues” – Captain Phillip