CURRENT PRODUCTIONS

CIVIC PLAYHOUSE NEWCASTLE - buy tickets here CESSNOCK PERFORMING ARTS CENTRE - buy tickets here   Send in the clowns! Hunter Drama students will hit the boards with a comedy avalanche of slap-stick, jokes and gags that will have you rolling in the aisles. Showcasing their extremely dramatic and zany talents, Festival of The Fools will feature the cream of the Hunter’s most talented youth in this mid-year festival where one this is certain...your cheeks will ache!

'Comedy is simply a funny way of being serious.'

Travel down the rabbit hole with Hunter Drama in our 10th Anniversary production of Disney's Alice In Wonderland JR.

Join Alice, one of literature’s most beloved heroines, in her madcap adventures.  Featuring updated songs from Disney’s thrilling animated motion picture, Disney’s Alice in Wonderland JR. is a fast-paced take on the classic tale.

The cast of Disney's Alice In Wonderland JR. will also be invited to perform at the Junior Theatre Festival in Newcastle, October 2021.

BUY TICKETS HERE

We're all mad here.

When Andy Dufresne is convicted of murder and sentenced to life in the notorious Shawshank prison, he must find a way to keep himself and his hope alive by using his wits and forging friendships. Based on the novella by Stephen King, The Shawshank Redemption brings the story of resilience made famous by the acclaimed film to the stage. This Australian premiere features Hunter Drama's senior students, along with some of the region's most talented professional actors, treading the boards for 4 shows only in the Civic Playhouse.

'Get busy living, or get busy dying.'

On a Midsummer’s night, four young lovers find themselves wrapped in the dream-like arms of an enchanted forest where sprites lurk and fairies rule. While a feuding Fairy King and Queen are at war, their paths are crossed by Bottom, Quince and their friends rehearsing a play for the Duke. Chief mischief-maker Puck is on-hand to ensure that the course of true love is anything but smooth, and games of fantasy, love and dreams ensue in Shakespeare’s most beguiling comedy. Join us for a night under the stars in the Hunter Valley vineyards. Bring your blanket and your picnic hamper for a night of mystique, magic and a little bit of love!

Lord, what fools these mortals be.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR AN ORPHAN AUDITION

Consider yourself part of the family, and join us for Oliver!, the Tony and Olivier Award-winning musical adaptation of the classic Charles Dickens’ novel. The streets of Victorian England will come to life on the iconic Civic Theatre stage in Hunter Drama's grand staging of this well-loved classic. Oliver, a malnourished orphan in a workhouse, becomes the neglected apprentice of an undertaker – he escapes, finding acceptance amongst a group of petty thieves and pick-pockets led by the elderly Fagin. When Oliver is captured for a robbery that he didn’t commit, the benevolent viction, Mr Brownlow, takes him in. Fearing the safety of his hideout, Fagin employes the sinister Bill Sikes, and the sympathetic Nancy, to kidnap him back – threatening Oliver’s chances of discovering the true love of a family. Featuring songs such as Food Glorious Food, Consider Yourself, Where Is Love, Oom Pa Pa, As Long As He Needs Me, and more. Oliver! is one of the few musicals to also win an Academy Award for Best Picture, and is widely hailed as a true theatrical masterpiece by actors and audience members alike.

Please sir, I want some more.

With music and lyrics by Broadway  acclaimed Lin-Manuel Miranda (In the Heights, Hamilton, Moana), this Tony Award nominated musical is set against the backdrop of the cut-throat world of cheerleading, high school politics, and budding romances. In an unexpected turn, Campbell a senior and cheer-royalty at Truman High School has been forced to move to the neighbouring hard-knock Jackson High. With no cheer squad to speak of, against the odds Campbell helps to transform the local dance crew into a powerhouse squad for National Championships. Bringing together a multi-talented cast of performers drawn from Hunter Drama's own Senior musical theatre ensemble, audiences will be treated to vivacious vocals, cut-throat chore and cheerleading stunts tossed in for good measure!

These Truman girls, are superhuman girls.

An urban detective story in which the investigator is a teenage girl and the body is her own. Poppy has developed a tic. A twitch. A spasm. It spreads through her body, then her group of school friends and before long, the whole town. Nobody can explain it, but as the disease spreads, the community begins to fracture along lines that turn into deep fissures. Who or what is to blame? And how are they going to fix it? Inspired by the true story of ‘The Town That Caught Tourettes’, this new work by award-winning Australian playwright Katie Pollock is dark, provocative and theatrically inventive. Written by Katie Pollock, Normal is the winner of the Inscription/Edward Albee Playwriting Scholarship and the Ingenious Grant from Town Hall Theatre, MA (USA).

The town that caught Tourettes.

On the 12th day of Christmas, my true love gave to me.... Over 500 hundred young actors from within the Hunter Dama family to get you feeling festive! Join us to celebrate the achievements and talents of all of our students in this festive variety of plays, musicals and story-telling. For some, it will be their first time treading the boards, for others, they'll be right at home in front of a crowd. For both, one thing is certain, it’s sure to be an exciting and thrilling showcase to round out the year! Scholarships will also be presented during this festival of festive-ness.

Christmas isn't a season, its a feeling.