In 2025, Black Swan State Theatre Company in Perth will present seven dynamic productions.
The 2025 offering features American and Australian contemporary classics, a sizzling dinner party gone wrong, a new Australian work, a witty political portrait, a coming-of-age story, and a musical performance from the Kimberley.
“Planning a season is like creating a meal,” Artistic Director Kate Champion says. “We aim for a mix of flavours and textures, undeniable substance, diverse nutrition, and a sprinkling of surprising spices. Our 2025 season is designed to challenge, delight, and nourish our audiences.”
Starting off the year, is the American contemporary classic ‘August: Osage County’, from Pulitzer Price and Tony Award-winning Tracy Letts. It’s an unflinching portrayal of a family’s unravelling, reflection a nation’s disintegrating facade.
Next up, ‘Blue’ presents a beautifully insightful and tender monologue from proud Kamilaroi man, and ‘Heartbreak High’ star, Thomas Weatherall. It’s a life-affirming story delving into a young person’s journey through life, loss, mental wellbeing, and early adulthood.
‘Never Have I Ever’ is the explosive, savagely funny debut play from ‘The Guilty Feminist’, Deborah Frances-White. It’s a mix of humour, savvy political insights, twists, turns, and mayhem. . . A dinner party leaving its guests reeling, with their lives changed.
Having enjoyed sold-out shows around the country, Jonathan Biggins’ ‘The Gospel According To Paul’ explores the intriguing complexity of Paul Keating’s personality, and is laden with Keating’s acerbic language and unmatched, eviscerating witticisms.
‘Speaking In Tongues’ is often regarded as an Australian classic. The work, from Andrew Bovell, was famously adapted for the screen, in the form of the renowned film ‘Lantana’. It’ll make audiences question, ‘what if I…?’. Fate and purpose fill the narrative, opening up contemplation about the significance and consequences of every decision we make.
Next, ‘Raised In Big Spirit Country’ brings a touch of the Kimberley to Perth. It’s curated by Black Swan’s Broome-based Artistic Associate Naomi Pigram-Mitchell and was born among the artistic giants who created the ‘Broome sound’, and were integral to other Black Swan productions like ‘Bran Nue Dae’ and ‘Corrugation Road’.
Finally, to wrap up 2025, Andrea Gibbs returns to the Perth mainstage with new offering ‘Carol’. The play follows Carol, who has unexpectedly found herself on the margins of society. She finds genuine season’s cheer, through unexpected alliances, new perspectives and unprecedented resilience.
Black Swan State Theatre Company’s 2025 season kicks off with ‘August: Osage County’ in February.
