Ensemble Theatre is delighted to present its 2027 season, featuring ten extraordinary productions. From world premieres to beloved classics, the season showcases outstanding new Australian voices and celebrated international playwrights, placing exceptional stories at the heart of every performance.
Ensemble Artistic Director, Mark Kilmurry said, “It’s always exciting putting together a new season. And each year, as well as established plays I am thrilled we can commission two new Australian playwrights. I am looking forward to Brittanie Shipway’s Split Ends, an exciting new comedy, and Joanna Murray-Smith’s, Bombshells 2, a marvellous new take on the dilemmas of women’s lives. Without our Commissioners’ Circle none of this would be possible and I am very grateful for the support in creating new work.
Of course, as Artistic Director, all ten plays in 2027 are dear to me, a few being a brand-new sparkling David Williamson social comedy Sleeping Dogs, to open the season; Peter Quilter’s hugely successful End of the Rainbow, a terrific play with music about Judy Garland’s last concert; and, on my own bucket list, Hedda Gabler, in Michael Meyer’s wonderful translation, which gets right into the heart of this classic comedy drama.
As ever, I’m excited to be working alongside our directors, actors and creative teams, and for me a sprinkling of an enormously funny Noel Coward in the last half of the season makes the year sing!”
ENSEMBLE THEATRE 2027 SEASON
SLEEPING DOGS: 22 JANUARY – 13 MARCH
WORLD PREMIERE
By David Williamson
Directed by Priscilla Jackman
Cast of 5 includes Merridy Eastman and Colin Moody
A Lifetime Achievement Award… and a lifetime of unfinished business. Max was once
Tinseltown’s top dog — but with offers drying up, the fading film director returns home, only
to discover the past snapping at his heels. As family tensions flare, buried truths are unleashed
with David Williamson’s signature comedic bite. The former Hollywood heavyweight soon
learns it may be wiser to let sleeping dogs lie.
LIFE X3: 19 MARCH – 18 APRIL
By Yasmina Reza
Translated by Christopher Hampton
Directed by Lee Lewis
Cast of 4 includes Gareth Davies, Rebecca Massey, Seán O’Shea
What’s worse than a dinner(less) party from hell? Living through it three times. When guests
arrive a day early, there’s no food and nowhere to hide — just a couple of chocolate fingers,
too much wine, painfully awkward small talk, and a screaming child refusing to go to sleep.
Yasmina Reza’s LIFE X 3 is a wickedly incisive, Olivier Award–nominated comedy that proves
one socially disastrous evening can unravel in more ways than you ever imagined.
SPLIT ENDS: 30 MARCH – 24 APRIL
WORLD PREMIERE
By Brittanie Shipway
Directed by Liesel Badorrek
Cast of 4 includes Ainslie McGlynn, Tom Rodgers and Diane Smith
In the sleepy town of Warragamba, Beety’s Beauty Boutique is a salon frozen in time — where
the perms are tight, the gossip is tighter, and everybody knows your business. But when flashy
city hairdresser Chitch arrives with plans to buy out the struggling salon for his family’s
growing franchise, Beety’s perfectly set world is thrown into chaos and an unlikely partnership
is formed. Bursting with razor-sharp wit, big laughs and plenty of style, Brittanie Shipway’s
new Australian comedy is a warm, prickly celebration of local legends who prove it’s never
too late for a fresh cut — or to find your true colours.
END OF THE RAINBOW: 30 APRIL – 5 JUNE
By Peter Quilter
Directed by Julia Robertson
Cast of 4 includes Darcy Kent and Lucy Maunder
Judy Garland. London, 1968. The comeback of a lifetime. At the Talk of the Town nightclub,
the legendary performer prepares for a series of concerts that could restore her status — or
bring everything crashing down. Featuring Garland’s iconic songs, END OF THE RAINBOW is a
darkly funny, deeply human portrait of fame, music and the cost of living in the spotlight.
Nominated for three Tonys and four Olivier Awards, and adapted into the Oscar-winning film
Judy, this acclaimed play offers a dazzling and heartbreaking glimpse into the final chapter of
the Hollywood star’s remarkable life.
HEDDA GABLER: 11 JUNE – 10 JULY
AUSTRALIAN PREMIERE
By Henrik Ibsen
Translated by Michael Meyer
Directed by Mark Kilmurry
Cast of 7 includes John Adam, Aisha Aidara, Janet Anderson and Sam O’Sullivan
Henrik Ibsen’s provocative masterpiece is a gripping portrait of a woman who will not be
contained. Stuck in a suffocating marriage and longing for freedom, Hedda is determined to
regain control of her life — no matter the cost. She schemes, manipulates and plays the game
to win. When an old flame re-enters her world, Hedda’s carefully composed façade threatens
to unravel. Directed by Mark Kilmurry, this thrilling classic remains as relevant today as ever.
MONEY AND FRIENDS: 16 JULY – 21 AUGUST
By David Williamson
Directed by Lee Lewis
Cast of 8 includes Jamie Oxenbould
By the sparkling waters of Crystal Inlet, four couples return year after year to their beloved
beachside escape — trading Sydney’s hustle for sun, sea and easy friendship. But when Peter,
too generous and kind-hearted for his own good, falls into serious financial trouble, the
group’s camaraderie begins to crack. As loyalties are tested and tensions rise, each friend is
forced to confront an uncomfortable question: how much are they really willing to sacrifice
for someone they love? Packed with razor-sharp dialogue and unmistakable Australian wit,
David Williamson’s MONEY AND FRIENDS is a hilarious and biting examination of money,
morality and mateship. Audiences will be laughing one moment and squirming the next.
BOMBSHELLS 2: 27 AUGUST – 26 SEPTEMBER
WORLD PREMIERE
By Joanna Murray-Smith
Directed by Lee Lewis
Cast Sharon Millerchip
The bombshells are back for round two! Five women. Five wildly different lives. One
unforgettable ride. From a relentlessly upbeat air hostess to a mum hanging by a thread, their
stories unravel in a funny and deeply human whirlwind. It’s sharp, relatable and full of heart
— a celebration of finding your voice when life gets messy. Written by one of Australia’s most
celebrated playwrights, Joanna Murray-Smith, and performed by the critically acclaimed
Sharon Millerchip (A BROADCAST COUP, SHIRLEY VALENTINE), strap in for a one-woman tour
de force not to be missed.
THE YEAR IN TATTERS 2027 REVUE: 6 SEPTEMBER – 9 OCTOBER
WORLD PREMIERE
Directorial Advisor Mark Kilmurry
Cast Andrew Hansen, Mark Humphries, Emily Taheny and Chris Taylor
After their sellout debut season in 2026, the Tatters Revue team is back with an all-new show
taking aim at the cultural highs and lows of 2027! Join Australia’s sharpest satirical performers
as they return to the Ensemble stage to sift through the wreckage of yet another year where
the world was flipped upside down. Turning the chaos into laughter, THE YEAR IN TATTERS is
once again sure to be a season highlight, promising a night of songs, sketches and political
satire to keep us all sane.
FALLEN ANGELS: 15 OCTOBER – 20 NOVEMBER
By Noël Coward
Directed by Mark Kilmurry
Cast of 6 includes Garth Holcombe, Madeleine Jones, Gabrielle Scawthorn and David Soncin
Two wives. One past lover. Zero decorum. When their husbands head out for the day… the
champagne flows and old rivalries fizz. What’s a little pre-marital scandal between friends —
especially when it’s with the same man? Who may be en route! Director Mark Kilmurry
uncorks a sparkling revival of Noël Coward’s FALLEN ANGELS — an intoxicating romp from
one of theatre’s comedy masters, brimming with wit and mischief.
JOYFUL AND TRIUMPHANT: 26 NOVEMBER – 9 JANUARY
By Robert Lord
Directed by Shane Anthony
Cast of 7 includes Rebecca Massey
Christmas with the Bishops comes with all the trimmings: homemade decorations hanging by
a thread, a strategically placed centrepiece doing its best to hide last year’s gravy stain and
more than enough family drama to stuff a stocking. Robert Lord’s beloved classic unwraps
four decades of triumphs, tensions and treasured traditions. With humour and heart, JOYFUL
AND TRIUMPHANT is a celebration of the people we love most — despite our best efforts.
Subscriptions for Ensemble’s 2027 season are on sale from 10am on Tuesday 11 August via
http://www.ensemble.com.au/
