Within the earlier a part of this 2024 preview sequence, printed on 13 September, we regarded on the 2024 seasons of The Australian Ballet, Belvoir, Canberra Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Theatre Firm and the Sydney Symphony.
Again in August, in our first instalment, we shared some highlights from the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra, Australian Chamber Orchestra, Ensemble Theatre, Malthouse Theatre Firm, and each the Melbourne and West Australian Symphony Orchestras.
Right here, we discover some potential highlights from the likes of Bell Shakespeare, Griffin Theatre and the STC – in addition to the primary Opera Australia manufacturing for 2024 to be programmed by incoming Inventive Director Jo Davies.
Bell Shakespeare
For the primary time since 2010, Bell Shakespeare presents a model new manufacturing of the Bard’s brutal tragedy about insanity and betrayal, King Lear (14 June – 20 July 2024 in Sydney and 25 July – 11 August in Melbourne) directed by the corporate’s Inventive Director Peter Evans and starring veteran actor of stage and display, Robert Menzies within the title function.
As a portrait of a household and a nation at conflict with themselves, Bell’s Lear is certain to tackle recent resonance in gentle of each Brexit and the latest inside tensions throughout the Home of Windsor.
Additionally being staged by Bell Shakespeare subsequent 12 months are a pared-back nationwide tour of A Midsummer Evening’s Dream (numerous dates in NSW, Vic, WA and the ACT), the unique manufacturing of which was disrupted by COVID border closures in 2021, and Evans’ private exploration of a standard Shakespeare theme – In A Nutshell: the Poetry of Violence (5-8 September in Sydney 2024 and 13-14 September 2024 in Canberra).
Griffin Theatre Firm
Simply as Griffin Theatre Firm opened the doorways of its SBS Stables Theatre in King’s Cross to Australian Theatre for Younger Folks in 2018 when the corporate was briefly homeless (as a result of redevelopment of Sydney’s Walsh Bay Arts Precinct), subsequent 12 months Griffin itself will go on the street, with productions offered or co-presented at Carriageworks and different venues as a result of Stables closing for redevelopment early within the 12 months.
Earlier than that occurs, Griffin goes out with a bang by mounting Louis Nowra’s epic The Lewis Trilogy (9 February to 21 April 2024) three performs carried out again to again and spanning the years 1962 to 2017 – a major and necessary endeavor contemplating this nation’s typically lacklustre response to remounting previous works.
The three separate performs, Summer season of the Aliens, Cosi and This A lot Is True have by no means been staged collectively earlier than, and will likely be carried out by an ensemble forged with Griffin Inventive Director Declan Greene directing. Every particular person play will likely be staged in repertory over the Wednesday to Friday nights of the season, with the three performs carried out again to again (together with an interval and a dinner break) every Saturday and Sunday.
Following this epic endeavor, the Stables will shut for redevelopment (with the brand new theatre’s capability anticipated to be 44% bigger and absolutely accessible, with an improved dressing room and a model new rehearsal house). Throughout that point, Griffin will co-present quite a lot of works with different firms and festivals, together with acclaimed Mununjali poet Ellen van Neerven’s first work for the stage, Swim (10-27 July 2024) and the ‘West Facet Story-meets-QAnon queer pop spectacular’, Flat Earthers: The Musical (11 October – 9 November 2024).
Learn: What’s in retailer in 2024 for the performing arts (half one)
Hayes Theatre Co
The 12 months of the primary full season to be programmed by Hayes Theatre’s co-Inventive Administrators Richard Carroll and Victoria Falconer, 2024 additionally sees the 111-seater inventive powerhouse have a good time its 10th anniversary in type – mixing up the whole lot from the world premiere of Laura Murphy’s Zombie! The Musical (8 March – 6 April 2024) to the uncared for traditional Guarantees, Guarantees (13-15 November 2024) by Neil Simon, Burt Bacharach and Hal David.
Different standouts within the season embody embody the Griffin co-production Flat Earthers: The Musical (see above), the Sydney premiere of long-running Melbourne establishment Residence Grown (24 March 2024), a celebration of latest musicals in improvement that includes writers and composers sharing and discussing never-before-heard songs, a partnership with Adelaide Cabaret Pageant to launch a joint cabaret fee, and Hayes’ first ever Pageant of New Work. Based mostly on the 2024 season, it appears the Hayes is in very protected fingers.
Opera Australia
An epic, absolutely staged manufacturing of Puccini’s Tosca (24-30 Might 2024) will likely be offered by Opera Australia at Melbourne’s Margaret Courtroom Enviornment in Might subsequent 12 months – the primary opera to ever be staged within the venue and the primary staging of this acclaimed manufacturing exterior the UK.
Tosca is the primary work to be programmed by OA’s new Inventive Director Jo Davies, who formally begins within the function in November this 12 months, whereas the selection of venue displays the truth that the corporate’s standard Melbourne residence, the State Theatre at Arts Centre Melbourne, will likely be unavailable as a consequence of a serious improve as a part of the Melbourne Arts Precinct Transformation mission.
The manufacturing was first staged in 2018 on the Grand Theatre, Leeds and directed by Edward Dick for Opera North. It is going to be intriguing to see the way it works in Margaret Courtroom Enviornment, which is able to seating 7500 patrons – versus the 1500-seat Grand Theatre for which it was designed.
The total Opera Australia season 2024 will likely be revealed on 24 October 2023.
Learn: What’s in retailer in 2024 for the performing arts (half two)
Sydney Theatre Firm
Given the large success of Inventive Director Kip Williams’ ‘cine-theatre’ adaptation of The Image of Dorian Grey and its much less spectacular follow-up, Unusual Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, the announcement that Zahra Newman is to deal with a number of roles within the last of Williams’ Gothic trilogy is thrilling information certainly.
Newman, a mercurial and achieved actor who’s already set to play a number of roles in Malthouse’s adaptation of The Hate Race earlier within the 12 months, will deal with the titular function of Bram Stoker’s iconic Transylvanian depend within the STC’s Dracula (2 July – 4 August 2024). The manufacturing is certain to be a tour de power – by whether or not it may well recapture the lighting within the bottle of Dorian Grey stays to be seen.
Demonstrating the Firm’s dedication to Australian playwriting, 11 of the 15 performs programmed for 2024 are by Australian playwrights, together with the world premiere of Into the Shimmering World (2 April – 19 Might 2024) by the multi award-winning Angus Cerini (The Bleeding Tree, Wonnangatta) starring stage and display legends Colin Friels and Kerry Armstrong; Noongar director Ian Michael tackling Jane Harrison’s 1996 Stolen Generations traditional Stolen (6 June – 6 July 2024); and Anchuli Felicia King’s (White Pearl, The Poison of Polygamy) eviscerating take a look at company tradition, American Indicators (15 June – 14 July 2024).
There’s additionally a Sydney switch of the MTC’s sold-out hit in regards to the Heide circle, Sunday (28 October – 7 December 2024), a switch of Griffin’s Golden Blood 黄金血液 (13 September – 13 October 2024) by playwright Merlynn Tong, and Barking Gecko Theatre’s ‘transcendental puppet present’ adaptation of Shaun Tan’s Cicada (21 September – 13 October 2024) – to not point out an Australian manufacturing of the Tony Award-winning musical Expensive Evan Hansen (12 October – 17 November 2024) directed by Dean Bryant and co-produced with Michael Cassel Group.