SOURCE: Page, Malcolm. “Sharon Pollock: Committed Playwright.” Canadian Drama (fall 1979): 104-11.

In the following essay, Page details the storylines of a handful of Pollock's earlier plays, and considers the social and political motivations behind them.

Sharon Pollock may be an under-estimated writer because, of her numerous works, only Walsh (Talonbooks) and The Komagata Maru Incident (Playwrights Co-op) are readily available—for the fact (sometimes the accident) of publication remains important in establishing the stature of a playwright. Further, Pollock identifies with alternative rather than mainstream theatre, telling an interviewer: “I don't feel a part of the theatre community. I'm glad I'm not—they have tunnel vision. I want community link-ups, to the Sikh community, for example. … I think I'm writing for people who never go to the theatre. … I see what other people see but don't recognise, like the poor. That's my job as an artist.”¹

Her first...