AUSTRALIAON
THE SMALL SCREENOpposite:Sully(KoaNuen)andAsh(PhoenixRaei) Above,from
top:Pav(MarcusGraham)withdoctorsVish(VishalBulsara)and
Claudia(RozHammond);UncleMax(KeltonPell)andHazel(Fiona
Press); Ana (Cara McCarthy) with Hazel’s son, Ryan (Mitchell Bourke)ArcadiaHeightsisn’treallysupposedtobeanywherein
particular.LikeRamsayStreet,SummerBayandWandin
Valleybeforeit,it doesn’trepresenta realplace,but
moreanideaofa place.JustasNeighboursplaysout
in a typicalsuburbanstreet,HomeandAwayis setin a
genericbeachfrontcommunityandA CountryPractice
unfoldsin anarchetypalsmallcountrytown,theABC’s
The Heightscreatesa broadcanvasfroma settinglittle
exploredbyAustraliansoapoperas to date: the typical
inner-cityneighbourhood.
It’sa boldandtimelychoice.Upuntilnow,the
Australiansoaplandscapehasbeenlargely,if notquite
entirely,theprovinceofthecomfortablemiddleclass.
Tobefair,Seven’slong-runningA CountryPracticehad
a large,rotatingsupportingcastoffarmersandrural
workers,butitsfocusremainedresolutelyonWandin
Valley’sprofessionalclass,specificallyits doctors.
Similarly,thesamenetwork’sHomeandAwayinitially
centredonthefosterhomerunbytheFletcherfam-
ily– but,in thethreedecadessincetheshow’sdebut,
thisattentiontolower-socio-economic concerns has
graduallybeen eroded.
The Heightsrefutessuchcoyness;fromtheshow’s
marketingmaterialalone,it wouldbereasonablefor
audiencestoexpectthattheprincipalcharacters–
residentsoftheArcadiaTowerscommunity-housing
complexthatconstitutesoneoftheseries’keyloci
- wouldbestaunchlyworking-class.Indeed,we’re
introducedto many of them in the first episode,when a
false fire alarm rung at the towersbringsthe residents,
includingpensioned-offex-copPav(MarcusGraham),
intothestreet.Butwe’resoonwhiskedawayfromthe
grounds.Afterdiscoveringanabandonedbabyin one
of the building’sflowerbeds,Pav takes the child to the
localhospital,whichconnectshimwithemergency-
departmentdoctorandsinglemotherClaudia(Roz
Hammond),wholivesin a moderntownhousein the
vicinityofthetowers;herdaughter,Sabine(Bridie
McKim),whohascerebralpalsy,attendsthelocal
high schoolalongsidePav’s son, Mich (CalenTassone).
Mich’smother,Leonie(ShariSebbens)– anIndigenous
lawyerlivingin a refurbishedwarehousein thetowers’
neighbourhood– is strugglingtobalanceherjob,her
familyandcaringforherfather, who is struggling with
theonsetofdementia.
Likeanysoapworthitssalt,The Heightssetsup
a complexwebofrelationshipsandrivalries– too
complex,really,tobeoutlinedin anygreatdetail
here – but ‘diversity’ is the watchword among the
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