A Cheery Soul

A darkly funny portrait of 50s Australia from Nobel Laureate Patrick White

5 Nov - 15 Dec 2018

Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House

The Play

★★★★ Sydney Morning Herald ★★★★ Time Out Sydney
★★★★ Limelight Magazine ★★★★ Audrey Journal
★★★★ Stage Noise

Sydney Theatre Company presents

A CHEERY SOUL

By Patrick White

Nothing’s as bad as a good neighbour

Meet Miss Docker: the delightfully ghastly anti-hero of this celebrated Australian classic. She is relentlessly upbeat – the quintessential ‘cheery soul’.

Miss Docker is one of Nobel Laureate Patrick’s White’s most memorable creations. She and her neighbours are as hilarious and peculiar as they are uncannily familiar. Together, this pioneering text and marvellous characters take us on a dizzying ride through suburban Australia, exploring the meaning of morality, mortality and the need for belonging.

In the imagined every-suburb of Sarsparilla, Miss Docker is looking for somewhere to belong as her search for purpose and love leads her in a series of increasingly surreal acts. We follow her from the home of her well-meaning neighbours Mr and Mrs Custance, to the nursing home, the church and finally to the isolated grounds of the crematorium, where a cattle dog makes a final bitter judgement. 

One of Australia’s most revered writers, White uses poetic language and piercing satire to peel back the scalp of the Australian mind and reveal the underlying horror of 1950s suburbia. These acidic insights are as dark and funny now as they were upon the play’s debut in 1963.

The magnificent Sarah Peirse (The Children, Switzerland) steps into Miss Docker’s fiercely sensible shoes in a bold new interpretation for the 21st century, joined by an outstanding ensemble including Anita Hegh (The Harp in the South), Tara Morice (The Harp in the South), Shari Sebbens (Black is the New White) and Bruce Spence (Endgame).

STC’s award-winning Artistic Director Kip Williams punctuates the live action with video to tap into the subconscious mind of Miss Docker and the people she encounters, giving the audience a cinematic view into their inner lives, their dreams and their nightmares.

"This is a self-assured, gorgeous production." Time Out Sydney

Duration 2 hrs 30 mins (including interval)

Ticket information

Single ticket prices

A Reserve
Saturday evening $108
Adult $103
Adult B Reserve
Concession $82
Seniors cardholder $93
Preview $65
Under 30 $81

B Reserve
Mon – Sat performances (excluding Sat evening) $75

Prices correct at the time of publication and subject to change without notice. Exact prices will be displayed with seat selection.

Transaction fees may apply
$7.50 online; $8 telephone; $0 Box Office counter

Dates

Previews 5 Nov 2018 – 8 Nov 2018
Season 10 Nov 2018 – 15 Dec 2018

Performance start times
Preview performances 8pm
In-season evening performances Mon & Tue 6.30pm; Wed – Sat 8pm
Matinee performances Wed 1pm; Sat 2pm

Duration 2 hrs 30 mins (including interval)

Pricing and ticket information

Single tickets

A Reserve
Saturday evening $108
Adult $103
Concession $82
Seniors cardholder $93
Preview $65
Under 30 $81

B Reserve
Mon – Sat performances (excluding Sat evening) $75

Prices correct at the time of publication and subject to change without notice. Exact prices will be displayed with seat selection.

Authorised ticket sellers
The only authorised ticket sellers for this event are Sydney Theatre Company and Sydney Opera House. Only tickets purchased by authorised agencies should be considered valid and reliable. More info

General terms and conditions for tickets and attendance at Sydney Opera House events
For further information on general terms and detail on resale restrictions please visit the Sydney Opera House website.

Transaction fees may apply
$7.50 online; $8 telephone; $0 Box Office counter

Concession, seniors and under 30 tickets
Suitable and valid identification must be provided for collection of tickets and at the venue, such as your concession or proof of age card. Alternatively, you may email a copy of your identification to [email protected]. Please quote your booking reference number.

Access requirements
For specific access requirements, please call Box Office on (02) 9250 1777 to book your seats.

Schools Days

Wed 21 Nov 11.30am

Our Education program  

Programs

Pick up a souvenir play program from the Drama Theatre Box Office for $12, featuring exclusive articles, photographs and info about cast and creatives. You can pre-purchase program vouchers for $11 when booking your tickets. Season Ticket Holders can pre-purchase vouchers for $10 with their Season Ticket.

Director Kip Williams
Set Designer Elizabeth Gadsby
Costume Designer Alice Babidge
Lighting Designer Nick Schlieper
Composer Clemence Williams
Video and Sound Designer David Bergman
Assistant Director Benjamin Sheen

With
Emma Harvie, Anita Hegh, Jay James-Moody, Brandon McClelland, Tara Morice, Sarah Peirse, Monica Sayers, Shari Sebbens, Nikki Shiels, Bruce Spence, Anthony Taufa

Marketing image Rene Vaile

This listing is updated as cast and creatives are confirmed in the lead-up to the production, and if there are any changes to the team. Ensure you have the most up-to-date information about each play by opting in to our enewsletter.

Insight Events

We offer a range of free and ticketed events designed to give you further insight into our plays. Find out more about our Insight Events.

Pre-season Briefing
Mon 29 Oct 7pm
Richard Wherrett Studio
FREE
Past event

Night with the Actors
Mon 12 Nov post-show
Mon 26 Nov post-show

★★★★ Sydney Morning Herald ★★★★ Time Out Sydney
★★★★ Limelight Magazine ★★★★ Audrey Journal
★★★★ Stage Noise

 

★★★★ “This is a self-assured, gorgeous production.” Time Out Sydney

★★★★ “This production is packed with luxurious visuals, generous performances and uncomfortable truths about difficult people and difficult conversations.” Time Out Sydney

★★★★ “Miss Docker (Sarah Peirse) is as comical as tragic, and White serves up satirical side-orders of 1950s suburbia, seasoned with carnal desire and Anglicanism, while theatrical flourishes hurtle from unexpected angles, as the internal is made as real as the external.” The Sydney Morning Herald

“Sarah Peirse is extraordinary: an initially monstrous figure about whom we finally come to care.” The Australian

★★★★ “Sarah Peirse gives a masterful performance in this new production by STC Artistic Director Kip Williams.” Limelight Magazine

★★★★ “Kip Williams is at his best in the deft marshalling of complex forces and multiple angles, and A Cheery Soul is no exception, the staging complex but beautifully and precisely choreographed.” Limelight Magazine

★★★★ "Sarah Peirse brings White’s Miss Docker to vivid life in a remarkable performance." Audrey Journal

★★★★ "Sarah Peirse is magnificently awful... Recommended without reservation." Stage Noise

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