More Cast Revealed For The Shawshank Redemption

Feature-The Shawshank Redemption

As final performances for the Sydney and Melbourne seasons for the Australian tour of The Shawshank Redemption go on sale today, additional cast members were revealed. The stage adaptation of one of the most popular and enduring films of all times, The Shawshank Redemption will play in Sydney from 2-31 January 2027 and Melbourne from 3 February to 7 March, before moving to Perth, Adelaide and Brisbane. Head to ShawshankLive.com.au to buy tickets.

Stephen Anzo (Headless, The Big Fix) will be playing the role of Nelson, alongside Laurence Boxhall (The Mousetrap, Lord of the Rings) as Tommy and Soren Jensen (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time) as Hadley. Stephen Lopez (Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, Fisk) will play Rico, Blessing Mok (Bad Blood Blues, NCIS: Sydney) is Entwistle, and Nathan O’Keefe (The Importance of Being Earnest, Betrayal) plays Rooster. Completing the cast are Mark Saturno (The Normal Heart, A View From The Bridge) as Dawkins and Jeremiah Wray (Macbeth, A Few Good Men) as Bogs Diamond.

They join acclaimed television, film and theatre actor David Berry (Outlander, A Place To Call Home, Home and Away) who will play Andy Dufresne, prolific stage and television actor Bert LaBonté (The Book of Mormon, Colin From Accounts, Cloudstreet) playing “Red”, and one of Australia’s most recognised screen actors Rodger Corser (Doctor Doctor, Rush, Channel 9’s The Floor) in the role of the Warden.

The Shawshank Redemption is a powerful stage production that places you just metres from the action. Raw, intimate and deeply moving, this is theatre at its most compelling – where every moment unfolds live before your eyes. Based on Stephen King’s celebrated novella, this gripping adaptation tells an unforgettable story of hope, friendship and the resilience of the human spirit.

Wrongly convicted of the brutal murders of his wife and her lover, Andy Dufresne is sentenced to life imprisonment in the notorious Shawshank prison. As he navigates the harsh realities of incarceration, he forms an unlikely friendship with fellow inmate Red, discovering that even in the darkest of places, hope can endure. But when the corrupt Warden seeks to exploit Andy’s talents for his own gain, a quiet and daring plan begins to emerge, one that will challenge the very walls of Shawshank itself.

“Electrifying – it truly is a must see show” – The Observer
“This production has nailed it … Gripping live theatre” – Broadway World

Adapted for the stage by Owen O’Neill and Dave Johns, and directed by David Esbjornson who directed Angela Lansbury and James Earl Jones in the Australian tour of Driving Miss Daisy, this acclaimed production captures the emotional power and humanity that have made The Shawshank Redemption one of the world’s most enduring stories.

The 1994 film adaptation, nominated for seven Academy Awards, has become one of cinema’s most beloved classics. Now, experience a story of hope, friendship and redemption brought vividly to life in an unforgettable live theatrical event.

THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION
Adapted for the stage by Owen O’Neill and Dave Johns, based on the novella Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption by Stephen King
Directed by David Esbjornson
Produced by Impresario Productions, by arrangement with Bill Kenwright Limited
By arrangement with Knight Hall Agency Ltd in association with Paradigm Talent Agency

SEASON DETAILS

SYDNEY
Venue: Theatre Royal Sydney
Season: 2 – 31 January 2027
Performance Times: Tues-Thurs 7pm, Fri-Sat 7.30pm, Wed 1pm, Sat 2pm, Sun 1pm
Prices: From $89.90 (Transaction fees apply)
Bookings: ShawshankLive.com.au or 1300 163 808

MELBOURNE
Venue: Playhouse, Arts Centre Melbourne
Season: 3 February – 7 March 2027
Performance Times: Tues-Thurs 7pm, Fri-Sat 7.30pm, Wed 2pm, Sat 2pm, Sun 1pm & 6pm (schedule varies weekly)
Prices: From $89.90 (Transaction fees apply)
Bookings: ShawshankLive.com.au or call 1300 182 183

PERTH SEASON
Venue: Regal Theatre
Season: 12 – 28 March 2027
Performance Times: Tues-Thurs 7pm, Fri-Sat 7.30pm, Wed 1pm, Sat 2pm, Sun 1pm & 6pm (schedule varies weekly)
Prices: From $89.90 (Transaction fees apply)
Bookings: ShawshankLive.com.au or 08 9381 9943

ADELAIDE SEASON
Venue: Her Majesty’s Theatre
Season: 1 – 11 April 2027
Performance Times: Wed-Thurs 7pm, Fri-Sat 7.30pm, Thurs 1pm, Sat 2pm, Sun 1pm & 6pm (schedule varies weekly)
Prices: From $89.90 (Transaction fees apply)
Bookings: ShawshankLive.com.au or phone 131 246

BRISBANE SEASON
Venue: Glasshouse Theatre, QPAC
Season: 28 April – 9 May 2027
Performance Times: Wed-Thurs 7pm, Fri-Sat 7.30pm, Wed 1pm, Sat 2pm, Sun 1pm & 6pm
Prices: From $89.90 (Transaction fees apply)
Bookings: ShawshankLive.com.au or phone 136 246

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Hayes Theatre Co Unveils Its 2027 Season

Stylized retro city skyline with a heroic figure standing to the right, symbolizing urban leadership and ambition.

Hayes Theatre Co today announced its 2027 season, the company’s biggest yet, expanding beyond its Potts Point home with work presented at larger Sydney venues under the banner Hayes in New Places while continuing an expansive program at the Hayes Theatre. Artistic Directors Richard Carroll and Victoria Falconer, in their final year as ADs, will lead a season of new work, reimaginings, classics and major theatrical events.

Leading the season is Steven Kramer’s Phar Lap: The Electro-Swing Musical, starring Joel Granger, returning to Sydney for an expanded staging at Carriageworks from 8 July to 8 August ahead of a national tour culminating at Melbourne Theatre Company. Phar Lap previously received rave reviews, sold-out seasons and awards; the 2027 staging is on a larger scale.

The Foundry Theatre will be transformed into an underground bar in October for Mack The Knife, a major new work by Richard Carroll, Victoria Falconer and Jordan Shea that re-imagines The Threepenny Opera. Beginning as an immersive promenade experience, it evolves into a rock-cabaret musical shaped by the audience each night.

At the Hayes Theatre in Potts Point, the season of eight productions spans cabaret, comedy, opera, contemporary musical theatre and drama. The year opens with Peter Allen: Not the Boy Next Door, a new cabaret-concert directed by Hayden Tonazzi with arrangements and musical direction by Steven Kramer (three-week season from 13 January). February and March feature Claudia Barrie’s Lucky Stiff, followed by the return of House of Rot after its sell-out at the 2026 Winter Cabaret Festival. May presents the Australian premiere of the folk epic Swept Away (directed by Drew Livingston), followed in July by Jacinta John’s production of Pulitzer Prize-winning Next to Normal.

In August Matthew Barclay presents a technicolour reimagining of Mozart’s Così fan tutte or The School for Lovers. September brings Cameron Mitchell directing and choreographing the sci-fi satire Be More Chill, and the season closes with Flowers for Mrs Harris starring Rachael Beck and directed by Julia Robertson.

Hayes will again present two major festivals: the Festival of New Work returns for its fourth year extended to three weeks, and the Winter Cabaret Festival returns in June rebranded as Flare. Regular Hayes events include three Neglected Musicals (1776 in March, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum in May and Dames at Sea in October), Theys at the Hayes and Victoria Falconer’s Parlour Night for Mardi Gras 2027, plus returning favourites Musical Bang Bang, Home Grown, An Evening With and Carols by Cabaret. Subscriptions are on sale from Monday 14 September, with single tickets on sale at various times in coming months. Phar Lap single tickets are available now from https://hayestheatre.com.au/event/phar-lap-2027-carriageworks/.

With its most expansive program yet, Hayes Theatre Co’s 2027 season is presented as an invitation to discover music theatre in new places, in new forms and at every scale while continuing to champion artists, audiences and Australian work.

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Monty Python’s Spamalot Arrives In Melbourne

Feature-Monty Python’s SPAMALOT

Rehearsals are about to kick off in Melbourne at the end of August as Monty Python’s SPAMALOT prepares to open at the historic Athenaeum Theatre this September. Preview performances will begin on September 17 ahead of the official opening night on Saturday, September 19. The Tony Award-winning Best Musical has recently extended its Melbourne run through October 11, following extraordinary ticket sales and demand.

Following the Melbourne season, the production will gallop into Sydney for two engagements: first at the Sydney Event Centre at The Star Sydney from October 15–18, followed by Western Sydney’s Coliseum Theatre from October 22–25, 2026.

The Melbourne season will see this incredibly diverse and talented cast take to the stage, led by Australian screen and television icon Stephen Curry, who will make his musical theatre debut, stepping into the regal shoes of King Arthur. Sharing the spotlight with Stephen will be powerhouse vocalist Jaz Flowers, who makes her highly anticipated return to the stage after a decade, as the enchanting Lady of the Lake for the Melbourne season.

Seasoned performer and Perth standout, Jamie Rolton will reprise the hilarious role of Patsy opposite Stephen Curry’s bumbling King Arthur. Joining them is a talented community of hilarious performers that includes rising stand-up comedian and Tik Tok sensation Nick White, tackling the formidable role of Man of Many Characters; NIDA Graduate and up and coming performer Gareth Isaac as Sir Robin; emerging star and WAAPA graduate Jesse Vasiliadas as Sir Lancelot; with Perth season alumni Noah Skape as Sir Galahad and Ethan Jones as Sir Bedevere respectively. Rounding out our talented ensemble is Grace Williams, Emily Huynh, Danielle Gibson, Jacinta Tsakalos, Will Basson, Jack Coyne, Dominique Hamilton and Ethan Churchill.

Producer/Director Drew Anthony said, “Following our sold-out critically acclaimed Perth season it is my absolute pleasure to be bringing this gem-of-a-show to Melbourne and Sydney. Not only is Spamalot a celebration of all things Monty Python it is also a wonderful love letter to the musical theatre genre. All of the characters and quotes from the source film will keep audiences laughing and wanting more.”

MONTY PYTHON’S SPAMALOT features Eric Idle’s book and lyrics alongside a score by Idle and John Du Prez, offering a hilarious and irreverent parody of musical theatre filled with show-stopping vocals and tap-dancing knights. A contemporary landmark, SPAMALOT won three Tony Awards after its 2005 Broadway debut.

MONTY PYTHON’S SPAMALOT will play at the Athenaeum Theatre from 16 September until 4 October. The show will play at the Sydney Event Centre at the Star Sydney from 15 – 18 October, before transferring to Coliseum Theatre in Western Sydney where it will play from 22 – 25 Oct 2026.

Tickets will go on sale to the general public for Melbourne on Friday 19 June and for Sydney on Monday 29 June via www.ticketmaster.com.au.

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Phar Lap: The Electro Swing Musical Returns In 2027

Feature-Phar Lap: The Electro-Swing Musical

Hayes Theatre Co is thrilled to announce the award-winning sold-out hit of 2025, Phar Lap: The Electro-Swing Musical, will return in 2027. This new Australian musical with the biggest heart returns to Sydney in an expanded, unbridled production playing at Carriageworks, before a national tour including a season at Melbourne Theatre Company, Merrigong Theatre Company, Geelong
Arts Centre, The Art House Wyong, and many more.

A gangly Kiwi racehorse. A trainer down on his luck. A nation ready to believe in a long-shot. Phar Lap: The Electro-Swing Musical is the rags-to-riches story that galloped into history, reimagined with heart, wit and a toe-tapping electro-swing score. The road isn’t easy – there are gambling scandals, double-crosses, an attempted shooting and a career-threatening addiction to sugar. It’s high stakes, high drama and highly historically accurate.

Phar Lap boasts an irresistible electro-swing score by Steven Kramer, with inspirations from Duke Ellington to Daft Punk. Brassy, lively and retro – these songs will take you from the race course to the rave hall.

It was an unprecedented sold-out hit at Hayes in 2025, and now Phar Lap gallops back to Sydney, again starring New Zealand born but Australian claimed triple threat Joel Granger (Guys and Dolls, The Book of Mormon) as the titular hero.

Winner of three 2025 Sydney Theatre Awards including Best Production of a Musical, Best Direction of a Musical (Sheridan Harbridge) and Best Performance in a Leading Role in a Musical (Joel Granger), Phar Lap swaps horse shoes for tap shoes celebrating Australia’s big-hearted equine hero.

★★★★★ “Phar Lap is everything you’d expect from the Hayes – irreverent, funny, slightly chaotic – but the elegant story-telling, lovable characters and electric performances take it to the next level.” – Sydney Morning Herald
★★★★★ “Dazzlingly clever.” – Stage Noise
★★★★☆ “Likely to gallop into Australian musical theatre history … an odds-on favourite to sell out
as soon as it leaves the starting gates.” – Limelight
★★★★☆ “Steven Kramer delivers a remarkable trifecta: great music, sharp lyrics, and an
outrageously bonkers book to match.” – Cultural Binge

“Phar Lap is a really special show – it’s funny, it’s clever, it’s undeniably unique – and truly deserving of the praise it’s received as a new Australian classic. Audiences at our Hayes season were genuinely bowled over by this energetic, irreverent telling of a story that’s so deeply ingrained in our collective culture – so it’s very exciting that many more people will now have the chance to see it.” – Richard Carroll and Victoria Falconer, Artistic Directors, Hayes Theatre Co.

Pop the champagne, harness up and get ready for a wild ride. Phar Lap: The Electro-Swing Musical is the show that will stop the nation in 2027!

PHAR LAP: THE ELECTRO-SWING MUSICAL
Book, Music and Lyrics by Steven Kramer
Director: Sheridan Harbridge
Musical Supervisor: David Gardos
Musical Director: David Youings
Choreographer: Ellen Simpson
Set Designer: Hailley Hunt
Costume Designer: Mason Browne
Lighting Designer: Trent Suidgeest
Sound Designer: Liam Roche
Arranger and Orchestrator: Jack Earle
Orchestrator and Track Producer: Steve Toulmin
Starring Joel Granger

SEASON DETAILS
Venue:
Carriageworks, 245 Wilson St, Eveleigh
Season:
8 July – 8 August 2027
Times:
Tues 6.30pm, Wed-Sat 7.30pm, Wed & Sat 2pm, Sun 5pm
Price:
From $94 Adult, $84 Concession/Group, $79 Under 35
Bookings:
www.hayestheatre.com.au | (02) 8065 7337
TICKETS ON SALE NOW FROM https://hayestheatre.com.au/event/phar-lap-2027-carriageworks/

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