From ballrooms to saloons, outback towns to the corridors of power, Queensland Theatre’s upcoming 2025 season is sumptuous, decadent and daring, and it’s been made with love. The theme for the freshly launched season is For the Love of Theatre and it boasts three world premieres, three blockbuster seasons at QPAC, a rollicking musical and a razor-sharp social comedy by David Williamson starring a two-time Logie winner.
The 2025 season launch took place on Wednesday night at QPAC where key cast and creatives sat down for a chat with Queensland Theatre’s CEO Criena Gehrke. Joining her were Associate Artistic Directors Daniel Evans, Fiona MacDonald and Isaac Drandic, along with a thousand of their closest ‘friends’ who were keen to witness the big reveal.
Kicking off the season will be Jane Austen’s lavish costume drama Pride and Prejudice, coinciding with the author’s 250th anniversary. This vibrant re-telling will be penned by Patrick White Award winners Wendy Mocke and Lewis Treston, featuring an all-Queensland cast and directed by Bridget Boyle and Daniel Evans. The roles of Mr Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet will be played by Andrew Hearle and Maddison Burridge. A special preview performance will be held just in time for Valentine’s Day at the Empire Theatre, Toowoomba, before a Feb/March season at the Playhouse, QPAC. (The 2025 season dates for all productions can be found at the bottom of this article.)
Next up for a March/April season will be a raucous revival of the golden gem musical, Calamity Jane, with Naomi Price in the title role. This stripped-back re-imaging will be directed by Richard Carroll who premiered the show at Hayes Theatre Company. Audiences will be thrust into the world of the Golden Garter Saloon, in an immersive experience featuring all the favourite numbers from ‘The Black Hills of Dakota’ to ‘Secret Love.’
Georgie Parker and Glen Hazeldine are set to star in David Williamson’s Rhinestone Rex and Miss Monica in a May/June season. The pair originated the roles in 2010 with Ensemble Theatre and will be reuniting in an updated version directed by Mark Kilmurry. Described as an up close and highly flammable two hander, audiences will love watching the sparks fly in this comedic gem written by one of Australia’s national treasures.
Coinciding with NAIDOC week will be the world premiere of Dear Son, a co-production with the State Theatre Company of South Australia. Based on the 2021 novel by Thomas Mayo and adapted for stage by John Harvey and Isaac Drandic who is also directing, the work is based on Mayo’s beautiful anthology containing letters from twelve indigenous men to their sons, fathers and nephews, including Stan Grant, Troy Cassar-Daley, and Charlie King. A cast of five will appear in the June/July season with Jimi Bani and Trevor Jamieson already on board.
Next up will be the Queensland premiere of Julia, the hot new play by Joanna Murray-Smith starring Justine Clarke. Directed by Sarah Goodes in a co-production by Sydney Theatre Company and Canberra Theatre Centre, Julia has been dazzling audiences across the country since its 2023 premiere. The play takes us through key moments of Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s life, culminating in an electrifying verbatim performance of ‘that’ speech. Julia is set to have a sell-out August season at QPAC and features Clarke in the title role alongside 2022 NIDA Acting alum Jessica Bentley.
Another world premiere work is up next with Back to Bilo, a co-production with Belloo Creative being presented presented as part of Brisbane Festival. Back to Bilo is based on the headline grabbing true story of a Sri Lankan family and the grassroots movement to bring them back to Biloela. No cast have been announced as yet, but Belloo Creative’s Co-Artistic Directors Dr Katherine Lyall-Watson and Caroline Dunphy are on board as the writer/director team.
Coinciding with Brisbane Powerhouse’s Melt Festival will be the world premiere of Malacañang Made Us, the winner of the 2025 Queensland Premier’s Drama Awards. Written by Jordan Shea and directed by Kenneth Moraleda, the play explores the impact of the 1986 fall of President Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines and its lasting effects on those who lived through it. The cast so far includes Marty Alix who won a Sydney Theatre Award for their work in the Australian premiere of the musical Hamilton.
Wrapping up the season will be Aaron Sorkin’s blistering legal drama A Few Good Men, directed by Daniel Evans and performed as part of QPAC’s 40th birthday celebrations. Brisbane actor George Pullar will make his Queensland main stage debut in the role made famous by Tom Cruise, and his likeness to Cruise in the hero image is uncanny. Pullar was most recently seen in the Paramount Plus series North Shore, with the rest of the cast yet to be announced.
George Pullar in A Few Good Men, photo by Sam Scoufos.
Minister for the Arts, Leeanne Enoch welcomed the launch of the 2025 season.
“With a wealth of stories, programs and productions for audiences and communities across the State, Queensland Theatre is offering an expansive and inclusive season of work in 2025. Our investment in Queensland Theatre is delivering on the priorities of our Creative Together 2020-2030 roadmap and celebrate our stories as we prepare to share them on the global stage of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.”
An electronic copy of the 2025 Season Brochure with information about the main stage productions can be downloaded here.
It also contains information about the initiatives being undertaken in 2025, including First Nations First, New Stories New Voices, The First 20, Education and Young People including Little Play Days, and the return of the DOOR 3 initiative and Undercover Artist Festival.
QT website: https://queenslandtheatre.com.au/season-2025
2025 Season overview:
Pride & Prejudice: 13 Feb, Empire Theatre, Toowoomba, 20 February – 19 March, Playhouse, QPAC
Calamity Jane: 22 March – 17 April, Bille Brown Theatre
Rhinestone Rex and Miss Monica: 28 May – 21 June, Bille Brown Theatre
Dear Son: 28 June – 19 July, Bille Brown Theatre
Julia: 16 – 30 August, Playhouse, QPAC
Back to Bilo: 3 – 13 September, Bille Brown Theatre
Malacañang Made Us: 18 October – 1 November, Bille Brown Theatre
A Few Good Men: 22 November – 7 December, Playhouse, QPAC
Watch the trailer for the 2025 Queensland Theatre season.
Cover photo credit: Sam Scoufos
