Bell Shakespeare 2026 Season

Image: Leon Ford as Cassius in Julius Caesar. Photographer: Pierre Toussaint

Bell Shakespeare has announced its 2026 Season, with three productions to be presented around the country. A new production of Julius Caesar will open the year, followed by the world premiere of Mackenzie, a new play by Yve Blake, and an extensive national tour of the company’s 2023 production of Macbeth. 

A new staging of Julius Caesar will be directed by Artistic Director Peter Evans and star Leon Ford (Elvis, Hamlet) as Cassius and Brigid Zengeni (Coriolanus, The Artful Dodger) as Brutus. Shakespeare’s political masterpiece explores the cost of ambition, loyalty and power, and what happens when an electorate is asking for an autocracy. The play follows the journey of Julius Caesar, who has returned from battle triumphant and is repeatedly offered the crown to rule. Fearful of Caesar’s growing influence, Brutus and Cassius hatch a conspiracy that sets off a chain of violence with devastating consequences. Opening in Sydney in March, the production will tour to Canberra and Melbourne. 

Fresh off a stint touring her hit musical FANGIRLS in London, award-winning creator Yve Blake (pictured right) premieres her new work Mackenzie - a reimagining of Shakespeare’s Macbeth. The production explores if Macbeth was a 13-year-old child star in the heights of early 2000s TV stardom and Lady Macbeth was her ruthlessly ambitious stage mum. Directed by actor and Artistic Director at the Adelaide Cabaret Festival Virginia Gay, and featuring original music by Blake, Mackenzie will open in Sydney in June before touring to Melbourne. 

For the company’s annual national tour, Evans’ 2023 production of Macbeth will tour to over 20 venues across the country, starring Anthony Taufa (Coriolanus, Jailbaby) in the titular role alongside Matilda Ridgway (Coriolanus, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time, Bump) as Lady Macbeth. Shakespeare’s thriller follows the story of Macbeth, a Scottish general, famed for his exploits on the battlefield. Set in the moody 1920s, post-World War I, the production is a terrifying portrayal of moral collapse and an intense and compelling journey into the dark heart of humanity. 

Artistic Director Peter Evans said: “Welcome to season 2026, a season of ambition, guilt and idealised murder. First up is Julius Caesar, one of the most famous political plays of all time, centred on the most famous murder in western history. After ‘Coriolanus’ this year, I’m fascinated to produce Julius Caesar again, another of Shakespeare’s history-based Roman plays, and see how one informs the other. Our national tour sees the return of our highly successful production of Macbeth with a new cast to take our séance inspired nightmare world around the country. And excitingly we have a brand-new play Mackenzie by Yve Blake. Yve is one of the most exciting and hilarious writers in Australia, and when she sent us her new play about an ambitious teenage TV star and her relentless stage mother we were delighted; horrified and delighted. We can’t wait to welcome audiences to the theatre next year.” 

Image (left): Peter Evans. Photographer: Pierre Toussaint

Alongside this mainstage programming, Bell Shakespeare will present their extensive national outreach and education program in schools, communities and Juvenile Justice centres across Australia. 

Other events throughout the year will include a series of panel sessions titled Ambition and the Aftermath held in Sydney and Melbourne, the continuation of the lively script reading series, Play In A Day, featuring Henry VI Part 2 and the ever popular Sonnets & Semillon. To accompany the season of Julius Caesar, some of Australia’s pre-eminent academics will present a series of lectures offering fascinating insights into why this play remains so relentlessly relevant.

Download the Season 2026 brochure here.

JULIUS CAESAR

Betrayal and chaos rock the republic as Rome teeters on the brink of collapse. 

It’s been more than 450 years since a monarch ruled in Rome. But now, in the senate and the streets, the forum and the marketplace, the word ‘king’ is being whispered again. Julius Caesar has triumphed in battle and the adoring crowd roars its approval. The crown is offered to him once, twice, three times. And each time, his refusal seems a little more reluctant. 

Fearful of Caesar’s growing power, Brutus and Cassius hatch a chilling conspiracy. A pre-emptive strike. But their brutal act unleashes a cascade of violence they can’t control. Is this the end of the republic? 

Dates: 

Sydney Opera House | (Previews 7, 8, 10 March) 11 March – 5 April 2026

Canberra Theatre Centre | (Preview 10 April) 11 – 18 April 2026

Arts Centre Melbourne | (Previews 23 April) 24 April – 10 May 2026

MACKENZIE

The creator of FANGIRLS, Yve Blake, premieres her new work - a hilarious, twisted, and deeply camp reimagining of Shakespeare’s Macbeth.

Mackenzie is 13 and she’s booked her first ever TV gig: a tiny part on a huge kids show. It’s a small start, but Mackenzie’s mum has always felt sure that her daughter was destined for superstardom.

One day, Mackenzie and her best on-set friend Beau encounter a geriatric make-up artist who is struck with a vision - that Mackenzie will be NUMBER ONE POP GIRL OF THE WORLD.

Directed by Virginia Gay, this macabre play (with songs) charts Mackenzie’s rise to fame fuelled by a cut-throat stage mum who will stop at absolutely nothing. Set in the heights of early 2000s TV stardom, prepare for a wild ride that will leave you in stitches - and deeply disturbed.

Dates: 

The Neilson Nutshell, Pier 2/3 Sydney | (Previews 6, 7, 9, 10 June) 11 June – 18 July 2026

Arts Centre Melbourne | (Preview 23 July) 24 July – 9 August 2026

Image: Anthony Taufa will play Macbeth. Photographer: Pierre Toussaint

MACBETH

Shakespeare’s most haunting thriller follows the story of Macbeth, a Scottish general, famed for his exploits on the battlefield. Following a bloody battle, Macbeth and his comrade Banquo are met by three Weird Sisters who prophesy Macbeth will one day be king.

Unable to shake the thought, Macbeth tells his wife, Lady Macbeth. Driven by an insatiable hunger for power, posterity and certainty, they commit a murder and set in motion the inevitable unravelling of their sanity. With blood on their hands, they face the dire consequences of their despicable actions.

A terrifying portrayal of moral collapse, Peter Evans’ Macbeth, with Anthony Taufa in the title role, will take you on an intense and compelling journey into the dark heart of humanity.

Dates: 

Sydney Opera House | (Preview 18 November) 19 November – 6 December 2026

Touring nationally, with further tour venues and dates to be announced.