By Jennifer Beasley.
Look out 2025- Red Stitch Theatre heralds 5 bold new plays!
I was very keen to be part of this 2025 season launch by Red Stitch Theatre. As one of the smaller theatres, it has consistently produced high quality productions over its 24-year history. Having grown up around the Chapel Street area, I have a soft spot for this theatre known for its passionate plays, that are always delivered with excellent quality.
Held at The Local, a buzzing pub on Carlisle Street in St Kilda, Humphrey Clegg, Chair of the Red Stitch Board, welcomed us before handing over to the Artistic Director, Ella Caldwell. Caldwell is very busy indeed, overseeing a company of 80 odd creatives, the Hanson Graduate program, which supports 5 emerging playwrights and engages them into the practices of a dynamic theatrical company, and the Ink Program, where two playwrights, Angus Cameron and Emmanuelle Mattana (from the 2024 crop), have the chance to develop their contemporary plays and have them performed by the company.
Launching into their 2025 season, is the first offering, Honour, by Joanna Murry-Smith. First performed 30 years ago, this timeless play will be performed by Caroline Lee as Honour (who is currently wowing audiences in Your Name Means Dream) and Peter Houghton (The Eye of The Storm) as George. The play tells the story of middle-aged George, who leaves his wife Honour, and their daughter, to enter a relationship with a younger woman. This production has played all over the world, which is a credit to the incredible writing of the playwright. Themes of love and betrayal structure this beloved Australian play and is a must see for any theatre goer who love to see great writing and brilliant acting, with direction by Sam Strong (Boy Swallows Universe). Lee and Houghton read a passage from the play for the attendees at the launch. Funny and insightful, it’s certainly on my list to watch next year. Performance is from 15th February to 16th March 2025.
The second play, hot from Off-Broadway, is American playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ The Comeuppance. This performance follows 5 friends, who meet again after 20 years, and whose revelry degrades into a darker side. Directed by Gary Abrahams (Yentyl), this is the Australian premier of this work and promises to take you on a journey that will make you think about the passage of time and your relationship with mortality. Performance is from 26th April to 25th May 2025.
Up next is another premier, Super, by Emilie Collyer. Again, featuring Caroline Lee as Rae, as well as Laila Thaker, and directed by Emma Valintine, this comedy is about two superpowered friends, who use their powers to do good in a stealthy manner, but whose lives are upended when celebrity chef Rae enters, thus catapulting them as global superstars. But is everything as wonderful as it seems? This looks like a real hoot, and the extract reading was hilarious. A definite on the calendar next year, with performance scheduled from the 11th June unto 6th July 2025.
Also, another Australian premier, What’s Yours, written by Keziah Warner (Hour of The Wolf, Nosferatu), and directed by Isabella Vadiveloo (First Stage) this funny, messy, and heart-breaking play tells of two good friends, Jo and Lia and the test of the bond that makes up that friendship when Jo’s ex, Simon, gets together with Lia. After many failed IVF trials, Simon and Lia ask child-free Jo to donate her eggs to them. This promises to explore the nature of women’s friendships and asks, what would you give to your best friend? Performing from 26th July to 24th August 2025.
The fifth and final play is another American show. Job, by Max Friedlich, and directed by Nadia Tass (Malcolm, The Big Steal), is a psychological thriller. A two-hander, it examines the effect of being online, as Jane, played by Jessica Clarke (Pomona), has been placed on leave from her Tech job after becoming the subject of a viral video. But as the play unfolds, her therapist, Loyd, begins to suspect that the job is not what it seems. Developed from a short play and then extended from a 5-day run to 5 weeks, this play has rave reviews in New York. Performing from 13th September to 12th October 2025.
All these plays sound incredible and Red Stitch Theatre have a 3-ticket subscription where the price is 20% off each ticket. Make sure you take up this amazing offer!
Further to the above plays, a national tour of Emily Sheehan’s Monument has been announced as part of Red Stitch’s in-house touring model. The new work developed through the INK program will be the sixth new Australian play that the company has toured nationally or internationally, and will be heading to Tasmania, Regional NSW, Regional Victoria and WA in the second half of 2025. The company’s sell-out production of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? will also be playing at the Sydney Theatre Company from 7 November 2025.
The 2025 season will be accompanied by a major fundraising campaign, Long Live Big Little Theatre. A multi-year $2 million campaign to secure Red Stitch’s future and continued artistic independence, Long Live Big Little Theatre will ensure the company continues to transform Australian theatre for generations to come. For more information and to donate, visit: https://www.redstitch.net/long-live-big-little-theatre-compaign
Red Stitch, The Actors’ Theatre tickets and information can be found at TICKET INFORMATION — Red Stitch Actors’ Theatre.
