Sydney Theatre Company and Allens present
THE SECRET RIVER
By Kate Grenville
An adaptation for the stage by Andrew Bovell

The return of a landmark production

A sold out hit in 2013, The Secret River is a stirring adaptation of Kate Grenville’s award-winning novel. In 2016, it returns for an encore season.

Directed by Neil Armfield, The Secret River is a story of two families divided by culture and land. William Thornhill arrives in New South Wales a convict from the slums of London. His family’s new home offers him something he hadn’t dare dream of: a place to call his own. On the banks of the Hawkesbury River, he plants a crop and lays claim to the soil in which it grows.

But the Hawkesbury is already home to another family. A family from the Dharug people, whose existence depends on that land. As Thornhill’s attachment to the land deepens, he is driven to a terrible decision that will haunt him for the rest of his life.

Winner of six Helpmann Awards, including Best Play, Best Direction and Best New Australian Work, The Secret River was heralded as “a stunning, shattering piece of theatre that goes to the heart of our history” (The Sunday Telegraph). Don’t miss out.

“Astonishingly beautiful to look at, languid in its storytelling and deeply affecting… Essential viewing.”
Sun Herald