Think New, Think Big at New Theatre in 2015

New Theatre 2015 comp

With an overarching theme of Think New, Think Big!, Sydney’s New Theatre promises to give audiences in 2015 a program which is diverse, entertaining and adventurous.

Ranging across drama, comedy and musical theatre, the ‘New’ is revisiting two hits from their past (Mother Clap’s Molly House and The Diary of Anne Frank), and reviving contemporary classics from Australia (When the Rain Stops Falling) and the UK (The Real Thing).

Taking a new slant on two classic ‘comedies of manners’ in The School for Scandal and The Women and rounding out the year with the hilarious home-grown musical treat that is Dinkum Assorted.

The directorial team for 2015 includes established New Theatre directors including Artistic Director Louise Fisher (Harvest, Enron), Alice Livingstone (Privates on Parade, Top Girls) and Frank McNamara (The Real Inspector Hound).

Two directors from the New’s 2014 Sydney Fringe season – Sam Thomas (The Matilda Waltz) and Sahn Millington (Amanda) are taking on the mainstage, and we welcome New Theatre debutants Rachel Chant (Associate Director, Rock Surfers Theatre Co) and NIDA 2014 Directors’ Course graduate David Burrowes.

Mother Clap’s Molly House
10 February – 7 March 2015
Presented as part of the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras Festival,  New Theatre revives Mark Ravenhill’s riotous musical play, bursting with outrageous characters, graphic sexuality, bawdy songs and handsome men! Director: Louise Fischer

When the Rain Stops Falling
17 March – 18 April 2015
Acclaimed Australian writer Andrew Bovell (Lantana) has created an epic investigation of humanity and family, of shared experience and inherited legacies, which asks the question: do we have the capacity to address the damage of the past in the future? Director: Rachel Chant

The School for Scandal
28 April – 30 May 2015
A hedonistic society consumed by gossip, ambition and greed forms the backdrop for this delicious, witty comedy of manners by Richard Brisley Sheridan. Two brothers, one an amiable rake, the other a sanctimonious cad, are tested by their wealthy uncle to determine which is the more trustworthy; and crusty old fool-in-love tries to tame his feisty, much-younger wife. Director: David Burrowes

The Diary of Anne Frank
9 June – 11 July 2015
Anne Frank dreamt of immortality as a writer; yet it was her teenage diary, never meant for other eyes, which would make her one of the most powerful voices in literature. Director: Sam Thomas

The Women
11 August – 12 September 2015
Written in 1936, this satirical comedy of manners is set in the world of Manhattan socialites and social climbers: trophy wives, single girls, ambitious hustlers, career women, shop girls, chorus girls, mothers and daughters. Director: Frank McNamara

The Real Thing
6 October – 7 November 2015
In this brilliant exploration of commitment – to spouses, lovers, children, causes, ideas – Tom Stoppard brings together head and heart, life and art in exhilarating style. Director: Alice Livingstone

Dinkum Assorted
17 November – 19 December 2015
Linda Aronson’s poignant, funny and entertaining musical comedy about a group of women striving for personal and professional freedom against the backdrop of a changing world serves up a slice of Australian social history with laughter, tears, songs, tap dancing – and Rita, the regimental goat! Director: Sahn Millington

For more information on New Theatre’s 2015 Season, visit: www.newtheatre.org.au for details.

Image: courtesy of New Theatre