Picnic at Hanging Rock

With a thrilling cast featuring some of this country’s finest young performers, Sydney Theatre Company’s new production of Picnic at Hanging Rock, Tom Wright’s critically lauded adaptation of the Joan Lindsay classic, is currently playing the Drama Studio – Sydney Opera House until 5 April 2025.

Olivia De Jonge (Elvis), Kirsty Marillier (Home and Away), Lorinda May Merrypor (& Juliet), Masego Pitso (Is God Is), and Contessa Treffone (On the Beach) star as five teenage girls recounting the famed myth that was first etched into the Australian psyche by Lindsay’s groundbreaking 1967 novel and Peter Weir’s award-winning 1975 film.

Wright’s lyrical and daring adaptation brings Lindsay’s chilling enigma into the 21st century with a form-shattering mix of storytelling, gossip and reenactment, as reimagined by “the most exciting new director of this generation” (Limelight), STC Resident Director Ian Michael (STC’s Stolen; Constellations).

“At its core, it is a story that explores identity, societal pressures, and our cultural obsession with disappearance and the mysteries tied to the land,” said Michael. “Set against the haunting backdrop of colonial Australia, Picnic at Hanging Rock challenges us to think about what happens when we don’t tread lightly, disrupt sacred grounds of ceremony and initiation, and impose foreign structures and names upon stolen land.”

Set on St Valentine’s Day, 1900, in the sweltering summer heat of the Victorian Highlands, four schoolgirls sneak away from their excursion to climb the imposing monolith of Hanging Rock, pulled higher and higher by a mysterious force. All but one disappears without a trace.

“Hanging Rock isn’t just a backdrop; it becomes a character itself, full of both beauty and danger. It mirrors the tension in our history and a society wrestling with the unknown. I’m incredibly excited to be working with such a brilliant cast and creative team to breathe new life into this iconic Australian story,” said Michael.

With design by Elizabeth Gadsby, lighting design by Trent Suidgeest and composition and sound design by James Brown, Picnic at Hanging Rock promises a hypnotic exploration of innocence, cultural clash, and the enduring power of the wilderness in a contemporary theatrical experience like no other.

“A haunting, heady horror story” – The Guardian