Black Swan State Theatre Company has announced its 2026 Season – a dynamic year of daring stories, fresh voices and visionary collaborations.
Showcasing bold new Australian works alongside reimagined classics and international gems, the program reflects Black Swan’s commitment to delivering theatre that celebrates our diversity and highlights the unique voices within it.
“2026 is a vibrant mix of powerhouse performances, uncompromising original commissions, lauded emerging voices and inspiring collaborations,” said Artistic Director Kate Champion.
Black Swan begins 2026 with the captivating talents of multi-award-winning Meow Meow and her unique brand of subversive and hypnotising storytelling in Meow Meow’s Red Shoes. From fauns to swans to dazzling showgirls, Meow Meow leads us through a riotous journey of music, movement, and meaning.
In Hans Christian Andersen’s tale, a girl is cursed to dance forever – yet Meow Meow wonders: what if she could never start dancing at all? Directed by Kate Champion, co-produced with Belvoir St Theatre and Malthouse Theatre and presented in association with Perth Festival, Meow Meow’s Red Shoes plays at His Majesty’s Theatre from 26 February to 1 March.
“Sensuously articulate and creatively comic, Meow Meow has the unique ability to seduce your brain while she reinvigorates your soul, turning tears of laughter into tender recognitions,” said Kate Champion.
Back by popular demand, Australian legend, Heather Mitchell, returns in her award-winning performance as Ruth Bader Ginsburg in RBG: Of Many, One. Written by Olivier Award-winning playwright Suzie Miller, directed by Priscilla Jackman and produced by Sydney Theatre Company, this intimate theatrical portrait of one woman who changed history, returns to Heath Ledger Theatre from19 March to 4 April.
“If our record-breaking waiting list for tickets to RBG in ‘24 was any indication, you will want to book early for this one. Witness Heather Mitchell in a career highlight as she becomes Ruth Bader Ginsberg before your eyes. An amazing real life icon, a trailblazer like none before her. This is definitely a ‘don’t miss’ production!” said Kate Champion.
Commissioned by Black Swan and premiering at the Heath Ledger Theatre from 9 – 31 May, is the powerful reimagining of Tim Winton’s The Shepherd’s Hut, directed by Tim McGarry. Fifteen-year-old Jaxie Clackton, angry and alone, flees across WA’s salt lands. Instead of freedom, he finds Fintan MacGillis, a disgraced priest exiled to a crumbling hut at the edge of the world.
As the unlikely pair form a fragile bond, buried secrets rise, forcing both to reckon with their pasts and confront life-changing choices. Directed by Matt Edgerton and starring George Shevtsov, The Shepherd’s Hut is a raw and poetic exploration of masculinity, isolation and the violence of hope.
“Quintessentially West Australian, Tim Winton’s writing has no comparison in its ability to capture how our human nature is inextricably linked to the landscape we inhabit. The Shepherd’s Hut, cleverly adapted by Tim McGarry, takes us into the probing isolation of nature in search of personal redemption and release,” said Kate Champion.
Who decides where care stops and control begins? This age-old question is explored in The Almighty Sometimes at the Subiaco Arts Centre from 19 June to 5 July. Anna has been medicated for as long as she can remember. At 18, she wonders who she is without all that: could she fall in love, go to uni, even just feel like herself?
Her mother, Renée, clings to the fragile calm they’ve fought to keep – but Anna’s choices are no longer hers to make. Written by Kendall Feaver and directed by Emily McLean, The Almighty Sometimes is a gripping portrait of a mother and daughter wrestling with love, risk and identity.
“The Almighty Sometimes is the deeply affecting early play by Australian author Kendall Fever. Such an impressive debut, this play captures the heart-wrenching dilemma of any parent who has had to learn to let their offspring finally steer their own course alongside the experience of a young adult who needs to rebel in order to test their own boundaries – even at the expense of heartbreak and damage. Did I mention it’s also funny?” said Kate Champion.
From the pen of well-known West Australian writer and artist Will O’Mahony comes the world premiere of Day (After Day) In The Life Of The Useless. Pete’s wedding is off. Dumped and branded “a robot,” he turns to AI for guidance. Its advice? “Live well”. Easier said than done.
What follows is a freefall of outrageous encounters, comic disasters and spectacularly bad luck. When life boots you off the bus of life, can you ever climb back on – and is AI already driving? Directed by Adam Mitchell, Day (After Day) In the Life Of The Useless plays at the Heath Ledger Theatre from 29 August to 20 September.
“An artist long associated to Black Swan and fondly familiar to its audiences, Will O’Mahony’s brand new play Day (After Day) In The Life of Useless is a deftly woven, giddy portrayal of a character who, with best intentions to rise above, descends ever lower into own goals and unfortunate circumstances. New writing, locally generated, bold, exciting and original,” said Kate Champion.
Associate Artistic Director, Naomi Pigram-Mitchell leads a stellar cast of Broome’s finest musicians, vocalists, dancers and performers in a concert that pays homage to the legendary artists who came before and amplifies the voices shaping the future. Following a sold-out 2025 Perth season, Raised in Big Spirit Country is heading home to Broome to the Goolarri Amphitheatre from 3 – 5 September.
“Raised in Big Spirit Country is a co-production which we are extremely proud of. It harks back to Black Swan’s foundation as one of the first major theatre companies to champion original Aboriginal plays and musicals,” said Kate Champion.
“Naomi Pigram Mitchell has nurtured this production into life where its Perth debut was a sold-out hit. It is now returning to its roots in Broome where it will continue to develop and evolve its magical mix of song and story-telling.”
The second half of 2026 brings together two of WA’s leading theatre companies, Black Swan and Yirra Yaakin, for a bold new co-production that is as confronting as it is hilarious, and personal as it is political. Jacky is a biting new play about family, work, culture and the compromises we make to survive.
With wit, grit and a wicked sense of humour, Declan Furber Gillick shines a light on the cost of navigating identity in contemporary Australia through Jacky, a smart and enterprising young Aboriginal man making a life for himself in the city. Directed by Kate Champion and Maitland Schnaars, Jacky is at Subiaco Arts Centre from 23 October to 8 November.
“Another early play from an outstanding young Australian playwright – Declan Furber Gillick. Jacky received outstandingly positive reactions from critics and audiences alike in Melbourne and Sydney. I’m thrilled that we’re able to present an original production of this provocative play in collaboration with our Perth-based artistic neighbours Yirra Yaakin,” said Kate Champion.
Concluding the 2026 season is the ever-popular The Pool, ready to make a splash in regional WA, including Port Hedland, Karratha, Newman and Wagin before a special return season at a new aquatic centre in Perth. Written by Steve Rodgers and directed by Kate Champion, audiences are invited poolside to share, via personal headsets, a glimpse into the lives of people who call their local pool their second home.
“After its extremely successful Perth Festival ’24 debut, our production of The Pool will tour regional WA in ’26. Celebrating each local community who gravitate towards these venerated public spaces, we look forward to sharing the delight this production brings to pool lovers of every age and aquatic ability,” said Kate Champion.
The 2026 Black Swan season is now on sale to Friends of Black Swan, with general public sales available from 14 October. For more information, visit: www.blackswantheatre.com.au for details.
Image: Will O’Mahony stars in Day (After Day) In The Life Of The Useless (supplied)