Black Swan Season 2018

Black Swan State Theatre Company (WA) has announced its 2018 season, the first that embodies the vision of Artistic Director Clare Watson, featuring a line-up of classic and contemporary works that sit side by side, in a series of mini festival ‘feasts’ between the Heath Ledger Theatre and Studio Underground. Each pairing will be enriched with pop up activities, discussions, podcasts, film screenings and more…

The boys are back in town. Sitting side by side in the month of May are one of our greatest and beloved Australian plays - Ray Lawler’s Summer of the Seventeenth Doll and gender bending American kitchen sink drama, Hir. Both plays begin with men returning, only to find things have irrevocably changed.

Hit me with your best shot. Tony Award-winning musical Assassins, music & lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by John Weidman is paired with the contemporary British play The Events by David Greig. Extremism and gun violence are under the lens and the healing power of music is celebrated.

Together in electric dreams. Two wonderful world premieres of plays about belonging. The 2018 season commences with Perth Festival and DADAA in a co-production You Know We Belong Together, looking at the beauty and complexity of living with Down syndrome. It is paired with a co-production with Yirra Yaakin Theatre Company, later in the year, a truly unique West Australian work, called Skylab, a 70s sci-fi comedy set in Esperance.

Girls just want to have fun. Embracing the feminine and looking at the roles and representation of women across a century, In The Next Room, Or The Vibrator Play by Sarah Ruhl is a hysterical parlour drama set in the1880s, revealing the history of the vibrator. It pairs with Xenides, a world premiere and top dollar musical exposè about Adriana Xenides, the 1980s game show hostess from Australia’s ‘Wheel of Fortune’.

Artistic Director Clare Watson said “Curating the 2018 season we began by asking the question: “What should we be talking about right now, as citizens of the world, as Western Australians, as humans? We wanted the theatre that you see at Black Swan to catalyse and contribute to the big conversations.”

She added that “Our season in 2018 is designed to encourage compassion and extend empathy and most importantly, to entertain. We are thrilled to continue to build our community of artists and celebrate exciting collaborations with our small to medium sector colleagues, as well as our national colleague companies for our audience.”

The 2018 season will deliver three mainstage shows in the Heath Ledger Theatre with a record five shows in the Studio Underground. This includes three world premieres, two co-productions with local companies and four plays written by Australian playwrights.

2018 SEASON

You Know We Belong Together by Julia Hales

STUDIO UNDERGROUND

1 - 4 March

A co-production with Perth Festival and DADAA, You Know We Belong Together looks at the beauty and complexity of living with Down syndrome and tells of Julia Hales’ story of finding love, directed by Clare Watson.

Summer Of The Seventeenth Doll by Ray Lawler

HEATH LEDGER THEATRE 


5 – 20 May

A beautiful 1950’s drama of love and homecoming. Set in working class Melbourne, this classic is directed by Adam Mitchell.

Hir by Taylor Mac

STUDIO UNDERGROUND 


10 – 27 May 


Subversive and gender bending American kitchen sink drama, directed by Zoe Pepper.

Assassins by Stephen Sondheim. Book by John Weidman.

HEATH LEDGER THEATRE 


16 June – 1 July

Multiple Tony Award-winning musical Assassins,directed by Roger Hodgman, is described as a timely reminder that those in power ignore the marginalised in society at their peril.

The Events by David Greig

STUDIO UNDERGROUND 


21 June – 8 July

Starring Catherine McClements (Water Rats, Rush), directed by Clare Watson, and featuring a different Perth community choir at each performance.

Skylab by Melodie Reynolds-Diarra

STUDIO UNDERGROUND 


16 August – 2 September

Black Swan’s first co-production with Yirra Yaakin Theatre Company, a unique West Australian work, called Skylab, a 70s sci-fi comedy set in Esperance, written by Melodie Reynolds-Diarra and directed by Kyle J Morrison.

IN THE NEXT ROOM, OR THE VIBRATOR PLAY by Sarah Ruhl

HEATH LEDGER THEATRE 


20 October – 4 November (plus an option week till 11 November)

In The Next Room, Or The Vibrator Playby Sarah Ruhl is a hysterical parlour drama set in the1880s, revealing the history of the vibrator and directed by Jeffrey Jay Fowler.

XENIDES by Clare Watson and collaborators

STUDIO UNDERGROUND

25 October – 11 November (plus an option week till 18 November) 


A musical exposè about Adriana Xenides, the 1980s game show hostess from Australia’s ‘Wheel of Fortune’, with original composition by electronic pop group The Twoks.

Subscriptions during the priority period is from 28 August to 31 December 2017 with Black Swan single tickets on sale on Tuesday 2 January 2018.

All Subscription packages are available to be purchased online at tickets.bsstc.com.au or through the completion of the booking form, available to download as an editable PDF: bsstc.com.au/ticket-packages

For further information, please visit www.bsstc.com.au

Images: Igor Sas as Arnold in HIR; Amy Mathews as Olive and Kelton Pell as Roo in Summer of the Seventeenth Doll; Catherine McClements as Claire in The Events: Alan Little as Nev in Skylab. Photo credit Cameron Etchells.