This is an adaptation of Ethel Florence Lindesay Robertson's three-part novel of the same name. Born and educated in Melbourne, Ethel Robertson was one of Australia's first woman novelists, writing as Henry Handel Richardson. She tells of a nation's turbulent adolescence by drawing deeply on her father's struggles with survival, identity and sanity. With one foot in the old country and a toe-hold in the new, Richard Mahoney's life gallops alongside the great events of the 19th century. A family saga of fortunes won and lost, it is a story of great social reach and enormous emotional power. This great sprawling story has been superbly adapted by Michael Gow (1 act, 6 men, 4 women, extras).