Bill Neskovski
Encyclopedia
Bill Neskovski was a Macedonian Australian playwright
and actor
. He wrote in both English
and Macedonian
Born Blagoja Neskovski in Bitola
, Republic of Macedonia
, his family migrated to Australia
in 1974 and settled in the industrial town of Port Kembla. He wrote his first play, Full House, while in his final year at Warrawong High School and then studied creative arts at the University of Wollongong
and an acting course at NIDA
. His second play, Say Goodbye to the Past, premiered at Theatre South in 1985.
He became a member of the Nimrod Theatre Company
in 1986, and in 1989, he wrote his third and final play, Conqueror Cole. It was performed in Wollongong, Sydney
, Melbourne
, as well as in his homeland Macedonia
. Craig Pearce
(who co-wrote the script for Strictly Ballroom
with Baz Luhrmann
) played the role of Sasho in the 1989 Griffin Theatre Company
production of Say Goodbye to the Past.
Neskovski's plays deal with issues confronting the Macedonian
migrant experience in Australia
. Cultural dislocation is an underlying theme in the plays. One month before his early death, he was accepted as a member of the Association of Writers of Macedonia. He was also a member of an amateur Macedonian-Australian theatre group Macedonian Theatre of Illawarra which, after his death, took his name to became the Macedonian Theatre Bill Neskovski.
The Sydney Morning Herald published an obituary
on 29 November 1989. He was posthumously given a Special Award for distinguished contribution to Australian literature in the 1991 New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards
.
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
and actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
. He wrote in both English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and Macedonian
Macedonian language
Macedonian is a South Slavic language spoken as a first language by approximately 2–3 million people principally in the region of Macedonia but also in the Macedonian diaspora...
Born Blagoja Neskovski in Bitola
Bitola
Bitola is a city in the southwestern part of the Republic of Macedonia. The city is an administrative, cultural, industrial, commercial, and educational centre. It is located in the southern part of the Pelagonia valley, surrounded by the Baba and Nidže mountains, 14 km north of the...
, Republic of Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
, his family migrated to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
in 1974 and settled in the industrial town of Port Kembla. He wrote his first play, Full House, while in his final year at Warrawong High School and then studied creative arts at the University of Wollongong
University of Wollongong
The University of Wollongong is a public university located in the coastal city of Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia, approximately 80 kilometres south of Sydney...
and an acting course at NIDA
National Institute of Dramatic Art
The National Institute of Dramatic Art is an Australian national training institute for students of theatre, film, and television, based in the Sydney suburb of Kensington. It is supported by the federal Office for the Arts, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. NIDA is located adjacent...
. His second play, Say Goodbye to the Past, premiered at Theatre South in 1985.
He became a member of the Nimrod Theatre Company
Nimrod Theatre Company
The Nimrod Theatre Company, in Nimrod Street, Kings Cross, Sydney, Australia, was founded by in 1970 by John Bell, Richard Wherrett and Ken Horler, and gained a reputation for producing more "good new Australian drama" from 1970 to 1985 than any other Australian theatre company...
in 1986, and in 1989, he wrote his third and final play, Conqueror Cole. It was performed in Wollongong, Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, as well as in his homeland Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
. Craig Pearce
Craig Pearce
Craig Pearce is an Australian actor and writer.Pearce co-wrote the play Strictly Ballroom and the screenplay of the movie adaptation with Baz Luhrmann. He wrote the screenplay for the 1996 film Romeo + Juliet and co-wrote the 2001 film Moulin Rouge!, both with Baz Luhrmann.-External links:Brother...
(who co-wrote the script for Strictly Ballroom
Strictly Ballroom
Strictly Ballroom is a 1992 Australian romantic comedy film directed and co-written by Baz Luhrmann and produced by M&A Productions. The film is the first installment in The Red Curtain Trilogy, Luhrmann's trilogy of theatre-motif-related films; the follow-ups were Romeo + Juliet and Moulin Rouge!...
with Baz Luhrmann
Baz Luhrmann
Mark Anthony "Baz" Luhrmann is an Australian film director, screenwriter, and producer best known for The Red Curtain Trilogy, which includes his films Strictly Ballroom, William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet and Moulin Rouge!...
) played the role of Sasho in the 1989 Griffin Theatre Company
Griffin Theatre Company
Griffin Theatre Company is an Australian theatre specialising in new writing. It is the resident theatre company at the SBW Stables Theatre in Kings Cross, Sydney, Australia...
production of Say Goodbye to the Past.
Neskovski's plays deal with issues confronting the Macedonian
Macedonians (ethnic group)
The Macedonians also referred to as Macedonian Slavs: "... the term Slavomacedonian was introduced and was accepted by the community itself, which at the time had a much more widespread non-Greek Macedonian ethnic consciousness...
migrant experience in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. Cultural dislocation is an underlying theme in the plays. One month before his early death, he was accepted as a member of the Association of Writers of Macedonia. He was also a member of an amateur Macedonian-Australian theatre group Macedonian Theatre of Illawarra which, after his death, took his name to became the Macedonian Theatre Bill Neskovski.
The Sydney Morning Herald published an obituary
Obituary
An obituary is a news article that reports the recent death of a person, typically along with an account of the person's life and information about the upcoming funeral. In large cities and larger newspapers, obituaries are written only for people considered significant...
on 29 November 1989. He was posthumously given a Special Award for distinguished contribution to Australian literature in the 1991 New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards
New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards
The New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards were established in 1979 by the New South Wales Premier Neville Wran. Commenting on its purpose, Wran said: "We want the arts to take, and be seen to take, their proper place in our social priorities...
.