The story of Troy has been told for millennia: gods meddle, militaries clash, a city burns and the names of its heroes live on. But beneath the lure of legend lies something more sinister – ordinary lives swept into the tide of war. The battles of Troy may be ancient, but the provocations they raise feel painfully present. What compels us towards violence? What are we truly defending? And what, if anything, can be gained when so much is lost?
This world-premiere presents the myth not as a distant fantasy, but as a mirror. Tom Wright’s writing is storytelling stripped to its raw emotional spine, layered with vivid theatricality by director Ian Michael.
Our ensemble of extraordinary performers takes on physically and emotionally demanding roles, as they live, fight, love and die, each carrying the weight of history while also exposing its cracks.
This production continues Malthouse Theatre’s commitment to spotlighting stories that challenge, unsettle and resonate long after the lights fade. Troy is more than a retelling, it’s an excavation of war itself. We welcome you into this space not only to witness a legend reborn, but to sit with its questions.
WRITER'S NOTE
TOM WRIGHT
War. We're soaking in it.
This work came from conversations about war and land. Initially it was written in response to the invasion of Ukraine by Russia; how mythology, defensible history, propaganda, sentimentality and outright lies become so confused that the casus belli is forgotten or distorted. A set of scenes about how war becomes its own end – ongoing, horrific, contradictory. Not just the human terror of war, but the tortured mental processes we go through to justify, to comprehend.
And land. The idea of ownership of land, that land somehow belongs to humans. The long rhythms of country, versus the reflexive rapidity of human activity. And the memory land holds.
We are different. This country has thousands of years of unbroken relationship between land and the humans who lived on it, to the point where the idea of possession feels inadequate and juvenile, something white Australia is still learning. But there are parts of the world where the concept of unbroken relationship between people and land is untenable. Where so many peoples have moved through, across and into the soil that the simple answer to 'Who owns this land?' is Nobody. But myth intrudes, and long arguments about Kievan Rus or legendary ancestors or golden apples lead to slaughter.
It's been pointed out many times that the landing at Anzac Cove in 1915 took place a few kilometres from the lonely hill that was once Troy. That a founding event-myth of Australian national identity is the arrival of an Imperial army at the Hellespont and the nightmare-scape that followed. The idea of a foreign field which has power for a distant people isn't new. But it can be dangerous.
Finally, this is a piece about Cassandra. When we did Women of Troy at Malthouse in 2008, Cassandra spoke a broken-down, crazed language where past, present and future collided; she saw so much her speech became bloody poetry. The notion of a human given divine insight but fated to be ignored has intrigued me ever since. To be a 'Cassandra' is to speak truths that we simply can't hear.
In an ideal world, that's theatre.
DIRECTOR'S NOTE
IAN MICHAEL
Why Troy, now? Because its questions haven’t gone away. Why do we still go to war? What are we willing to sacrifice to defend a home, a belief, or a lie? And when we finally arrive on the battlefield, what do we forget? Our own humanity? The land we stand on? The people who lived here before us?
Theatre is not only about telling stories, but retelling and reinterpreting them – each production offering a lens that breathes new life into what we thought we knew.
We are not re-staging an old myth. We are confronting it. What does it mean to return to a story that has echoed through Western history for thousands of years – and to retell it from the inside out?
Tom's adaptation doesn’t deal in marble columns or noble speeches. It deals in flesh. In grief. In survival. It strips away grandeur and dives into the brutal humanity beneath the myth: the mess of war, the hunger for power, the fragility of love, and the cost of history repeating itself.
This production is grounded in the physical and emotional reality of those questions. It’s a demanding work, built for a cast willing to go deep—featuring the powerhouse ensemble of Ciline Ajobong, Paula Arundell, Danny Ball, Elizabeth Blackmore, Geraldine Hakewill, Lyndon Watts, and Mark Leonard Winter.
Alongside them, our creative team: Set and Costume Designer Dann Barber, Lighting Designer Paul Jackson, Composer Rosalind Hall, Sound Designer Marco Cher, Assistant Set and Costume Designer Jodi Hope, Fight and Movement Director Lyndall Grant, Intimacy Coordinator Amy Cater, and Voice and Text Coach Mark Wong – builds a world where history and myth collide, where time loops and fractures, and where oppressors and oppressed are never as far apart as we’d like to think.
This Troy is not about heroes and glory. It’s about what it means to live through change. To be caught in the cycle. To be human in the ruins.
Because the Trojan War is not just ancient history. It’s now. It’s us. And the stories we choose to tell may be all that remain to say we were here.
FAMILY TREE
Get to know the names behind the legend.
Cast & Creatives
Photo of CILINE AJOBONG
CILINE AJOBONG
THEY/THEM
IPHIGENIA, POLYXENA & OTHERS
Photo of PAULA ARUNDELL
PAULA ARUNDELL
SHE/HER
HECUBA & OTHERS
Photo of DANNY BALL
DANNY BALL
HE/HIM
ACHILLES, APOLLO, & OTHERS
Photo of ELIZABETH BLACKMORE
ELIZABETH BLACKMORE
SHE/HER
CASSANDRA & OTHERS
Photo of GERALDINE HAKEWILL
GERALDINE HAKEWILL
SHE/HER
CLYTEMNESTRA, THEANO & OTHERS
Photo of LYNDON WATTS
LYNDON WATTS
HE/HIM
PATROCLUS, HELEN & OTHERS
Photo of MARK LEONARD WINTER
MARK LEONARD WINTER
HE/HIM
AGAMEMNON, HECTOR & OTHERS
Photo of TOM WRIGHT
TOM WRIGHT
HE/HIM
WRITER
Photo of IAN MICHAEL
IAN MICHAEL
HE/HIM
DIRECTOR
Photo of DANN BARBER
DANN BARBER
HE/HIM
SET & COSTUME DESIGNER
Photo of PAUL JACKSON
PAUL JACKSON
HE/HIM
LIGHTING DESIGNER
Photo of ROSALIND HALL
ROSALIND HALL
SHE/HER
COMPOSER
Photo of MARCO CHER
MARCO CHER
HE/THEY
SOUND DESIGNER
Photo of JODI HOPE
JODI HOPE
SHE/HER
ASSISTANT SET & COSTUME DESIGNER
Photo of LYNDALL GRANT
LYNDALL GRANT
SHE/HER
FIGHT & MOVEMENT DIRECTOR
Photo of AMY CATER
AMY CATER
THEY/SHE
INTIMACY COORDINATOR
Photo of MARK WONG
MARK WONG
HE/HIM
VOICE & TEXT COACH
Photo of JESS KEEPENCE
JESS KEEPENCE
SHE/HER
STAGE MANAGER
"Tom's adaptation doesn’t deal in marble columns or noble speeches. It deals in flesh. In grief. In survival."
Ian Michael
JUSTINE GOSS, OLIVIA MORTIMER-EADE & DARCY POINTON FROM AURORA ARTISTS’ MANAGEMENT; CLINTON BRYAN-MATHIESON FROM CBM MANAGEMENT; KATHERINE DODD FROM LIBERTY ARTIST MANAGEMENT; LISA MANN & MELINA MCKENNA FROM LISA MANN CREATIVE MANAGEMENT; NATALIE HALL, HELEN HILLMAN & CHARLOTTE LEWIS FROM NATALIE HALL MANAGEMENT; ALEX CULLIVER, SARAH NATHAN & BEC WALLACE FROM NATHAN CULLIVER MANAGEMENT; AIMEE RAVEK & EMILY JOHNSON FROM RGM ARTISTS; VERONICA TAYLOR FROM SUE BARNETT & ASSOCIATES; JO DYER FROM SOFT TREAD ENTERPRISES; DAN TRUSCOTT AND THE MONASH ART, DESIGN & ARCHITECTURE WORKSHOP; MATTHEW LUTTON; JUSTIN GARDAM; STEPHANIE LAKE; BLAIR ALLEN; NATE AMARE; ITAI FRANCO; KARLA HILLAM; MELISSA PHAM; SELINA SALGADOE; JAYDEN WALL; SOPHIE ROSS; JOJO ZHOU; CARLY PICKARD AND ENSEMBLE THEATRE; MELBOURNE THEATRE COMPANY; NATHALIE AND THE TEAM AT QUEST SOUTHBANK; ANNIE STRAUCH FROM PERFORMANCE MEDICINE
CONTENT WARNING
This production contains adult themes, coarse language, distressing depictions and descriptions of war, death, physical violence, drowning, reference to sexual assault, loud sounds including lengthy war-like soundscapes, smoke effects including herbal cigarettes, haze, and flashing lights. Some design elements of this show use small particles, including sand, powder and breadcrumbs. Masks will be available on request. For more information see our detailed content warnings page.
If this production raises concerns for you or someone you know, there is support available. Contact Beyond Blue (1300 224 636); Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples can contact Yarning Safe’n’Strong (1800 959 563).
DURATION
The running time for this production is approximately 110 minutes, with no interval.
Malthouse Theatre presents TROY BYTOM WRIGHT
CAST
Iphigenia & Others Ciline Ajobong Hecuba & Others Paula Arundell Achilles & Others Danny Ball Cassandra & Others Elizabeth Blackmore Clytemnestra & Others Geraldine Hakewill Patroclus & Others Lyndon Watts Agamemnon & Others Mark Leonard Winter
CREATIVES
DirectorIan Michael Set & Costume DesignerDann Barber Lighting Designer Paul Jackson Composer Rosalind Hall Sound DesignerMarco Cher Assistant Set & Costume Designer Jodi Hope Fight & Movement DirectorLyndall Grant Intimacy Coordinator Amy Cater Voice & Text CoachMark Wong
Stage ManagerJess Keepence Assistant Stage Manager Claudia Howarth Assistant Stage Manager (cover) Lyndie Li Wan Po Lighting Operator Rob Ballingall Lighting Programmer Rhys Pottinger Sound Operator Andrew Boswell Costume MakerJo Foley Miliner Phillip Rhodes
ANONYMOUS LIZ & CHRIS SCHELL JANINE TAI RICHARD LEONARD & GERLINDE SCHOLZ CANNY QUINE FOUNDATION JENNIFER DARBYSHIRE & DAVID WALKER SIMONE LOUREY & WILLIAM RANDALL CARRILLO GANTNER AC & ZIYIN GANTNER DASHIELL GANTNER & DR ANNA FOLEY
THALIA ($5,000)
JOHN & LORRAINE BATES MICHELE LEVINE ANN KEMENY & GRAHAM JOHNSON PETER & MARY-RUTH MCLENNAN ANONYMOUS CHRISTOPHER REED JORDANA HUNTER & JACOB VARGHESE ANDREW DOMASEVICIUS & AIDA TUCIUTE
MELPOMENE ($2,500)
ROSEMARY FORBES & IAN HOCKING ANONYMOUS MICHAEL KINGSTON ALISON PYE ROSEMARY WALLS LEONARD VARY AM AND DR MATT COLLINS AM KC PETER TEMPLETON AMY & PAUL JASPER JON WEBSTER AM SUE PRESTNEY & PAUL GLEN J COWEN SUSANNE DAHN
EUTERPE ($1,000)
ROGER DONAZZAN ANITA & GRAHAM ANDERSON MIN LI CHONG JASON CRAIG NAN BROWN SALLY BROWNE ANONYMOUS GRAEME JOHNSON OAM EDWINA SAHHAR MACKEN ANONYMOUS CARMAN'S KITCHEN JULIE & MICHAEL LANDVOGT NANNETTE HUNTER TOM & RUTH O'DEA ROS CASEY MARK DUCKWORTH PSM & LAUREN MOSSO ROD FULLER THE BRISCOE FAMILY DR TIM SMYTH MICHAEL RIORDAN & GEOFFREY BUSH GEORGE KOKKINOS & MELISSA TONKIN PETER & SHIRLEY WATSON ANITA & RICHARD DAMMERY MONICA & SAM ABRAHAMS EVELYN FIRSTENBERG & GRAHAM BLASHKI BEN & NATALIE GILBERTSON SHERWOOD FAMILY CHARITABLE TRUST ROGER HATTEN JAN WILLIAMS
TERPSICHORE ($500)
STEVEN RICHARDSON ANONYMOUS ELISE CALLANDER LINDA NORMAN CHARLIE POWLES JEAN ROSS ANN MCLAREN SUSAN MCLEAN ROBERT & HENRY HOSKIN ANONYMOUS KAYLENE O'NEILL PENNY WARD FIONA MAHONY ANONYMOUS BRONWEN EVANS ANDREA MEDWIN PROF MICHAEL JEFFORD CAMERON LEWIS MARY DYER ABBEY-PINKERTON FAMILY PROF ROBERT NORDLINGER PETER BERRY & AMANDA QUIRK MARY-ANNE THOMAS ROSS LYONS ALAN WONG & LICHIN LIM STEPHANIE JONES DR LINDY HUME JAN BEGG
ERATO ($250)
ANNE O'DONOVAN AO JO WHYTE SIMONABRAHAMS LYNDY CLARKE JOHN DURIE SHERYLBRYCE ANONYMOUS GERARD POWELL ANITA ROBERTS LIZ WHITE BARBARA YUNCKEN MARK LARSEN MARGOTMCDONALD ANONYMOUS CHRIS TEH JUSTINE CHARLES JUDY MORTON CHRISTINA COSTIGAN ANONYMOUS PATRICK CONWAY GEOFF LAYTON ABIGAIL KING PETER CASH & BARBARA HOGARTH MICHELLE MASON ANONYMOUS DR ROB BROWN MICHAEL CIESIELSKI CHARLES & STASIA ZIKA ANONYMOUS EMILY KLUG LUCY BEST ANONYMOUS TONI SAN DIEGO LEIGH JOHNS OAM MONIQUE HODGKINSON MARITADUNBAR DR ROGERIO PEREIRA HELEN CHAMPION ANONYMOUS DIANNE TEMBY COLIN DYER JANE JURICIC GLENN MUNARI & MARIA O'SHANNESSY ANONYMOUS DAVID JOHNSTON-BELL MANDY BATTAINI LINDEN & MICHAEL GOLDING MARGARET & BARRY VIEIRA PETER & LESLEY THOMAS ANNA TOMADA SUSANNE DAHN DAVID LIH LYNN NORMAN DYLAN COLE
EXECUTIVE TEAM
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER & CEO Vivia Hickman
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Jacob Varghese (Chair) Jada Alberts Jennifer Darbyshire Lindy Hume AM PhD Dr Anna Foley Alison Whyte Alan Wong
ARTISTIC & PROGRAMMING
SENIOR PRODUCER Annie Bourke PRODUCER Erica Browne CASTING DIRECTOR Rhys Velasquez, CGA NEW WORK ASSOCIATE – ARTIST DEVELOPMENT Jessica Arthur NEW WORK ASSOCIATE – SCRIPT DEVELOPMENT Keziah Warner
Paul Buckley Emily Burke Perri Cummings Annabelle Davy Claire Duncan Mellita Ilich Julia Landberg Joshua Lim Sam McDonald Christine Pearsall Claire Tredinnick
EDUCATION
EDUCATION COORDINATOR Lyall Brooks
PRODUCTION
PRODUCTION MANAGER Blair Hart TECHNICAL MANAGER Baird McKenna OPERATIONS MANAGER Dexter Varley HEAD TECHNICIAN (LIGHTING) Rob Ballingall HEAD TECHNICIAN (SOUND) Edwin Cheah
HEAD OF WARDROBE Delia Spicer WORKSHOP MANAGER Goffredo Mameli SET BUILDERS Elizabeth Whitton, Lennon Fowler
PRODUCTION STAFF
Declan Acton Tait Adams Ash Basham Rylan Beckinsale Andrew Boswell Connor Brown Eden Burke Taarani Charrett-Dunlop Brandon Duncan Max Evans Justin Gardham Finnian Gleeson Stephen Hawker Patrick Hay Jodi Hope Kara Jaeger-Pound Brendan Jellie Khisraw Jones-Shukoor Josh Mackenzie Eugene Mackinnon Sofie McClure William Palazzo Micah Patson Chris Payne Darren Peet Rhys Pottinger Arielle Roberts Jacob Shears Natalya Shield Gareth Sole Nathaniel Sy Darren Thao Em Van Dyk Sasha Vulling Dan Walkeden
VENUE MANAGEMENT
FRONT OF HOUSE MANAGER Dani Goder
FRONT OF HOUSE ATTENDANTS
Alice Fittock Aljin Abella Barney Spicer Chiara Gabrieli Fiker Gebrehana George Jefford Hayden Mumby Hayley Wolters Kate Washington Kenny Waite Lauren Walmsley Louisa Carpinteri Lucy Grant Lucy Seale Mitch Brotz Molly Wilson-McKenna Ponie Curtis Sara Norman Sophie McCrae Texas Nixon-Kain Tom Gannon Victoria Barlow Zoë Hadler
Key Campaign Image Peter Tarasiuk Original Campaign Image Kristian Gehradte Production Photography Pia Johnson Rehearsal Photography Tavis Pinnington
