Full MERRIGONGX 2026 Artist’s Program Announced

Merrigong Theatre Company is delighted to launch its annual independent artists’ program  MERRIGONGX, featuring four original works and a stunning line-up of local talent from the Illawarra region.

MERRIGONGX places artists and their practices at the heart of the community. From in-house creative developments to fully staged public presentations of new work and everything in between, MERRIGONGX provides independent artists with essential financial, technical, marketing, and artistic resources.

 

 

MERRIGONGX’s 2026 Artist’s Program includes:

• Arawarra (26-28 March) – Gammea-Dharawal man and Dharawal language teacher, Jake Māra and Director Lincoln Smith unearth the hidden tale of Arawarra, a First Nations leader and freedom fighter who was erased from our history books.

 

• Two Weeks (28-30 May) – Australian journalist, playwright and Wollongong local, Siobhán Doran-Chaston presents an intimate new play on life, death and the universe, loosely based on her and her now-husband.

 

• Cicada (27-29 August) – In this immersive blend of theatre and visual art, Illawarra playwright Tegan Ware takes audiences on a journey through the tumultuous life of an unnamed artist, exploring the depths of memory and how much of ourselves we lose in the process of creating art.  An immersive experience, Cicada will be performed in Wollongong Art Gallery.

 

• Service (24-26 September) – Wollongong theatre Producer Lachlan Grogan (The Australian Ballet’s Romeo and Juliet) presents a high-octane dance theatre collision that dives headfirst into the controlled chaos of the hospitality industry.

 

Beyond the staged season, MERRIGONGX will support over seven local artists across various projects throughout the year, including talents such as Kid Pharaoh, Amelia Harding, Susie Fagan and Emma Price.

For the first time ever in 2026, Merrigong’s permanent company of neuro-diverse actors, The Strangeways Ensemble will present their annual work The Strangeways Cabaret in Wollongong on Saturday 27 June before touring to Queanbeyan (Saturday 4 July) and Bathurst (Friday 17 July).

 

 

The Strangeways Cabaret takes audiences on an antics-fuelled ride that packs a surprising emotional punch. Original songs about online dating, loneliness and broken promises share the stage with duelling eyebrows, glamorous drag queens, and stories of killer spiders and lovelorn vampires to create a joyful celebration of life and love in all its forms.

With a live cabaret band and a whole lot of heart, The Strangeways Cabaret promises unique takes on one of the most explored human emotions – love.

 

 

Artistic Development Manager of Merrigong Theatre Company, Leland Kean:

Now in its ninth year, the MERRIGONGX Artists Development Program is cited as best practice, and was acknowledged by our industry peers as a key element in Merrigong being awarded 2025 Performing Arts Centre of the Year. Once again in 2026 the program continues to innovate.

Reflective of the diverse community living on Dharawhal country and platforming the region’s unique artistic voice,  the impact has changed not only the ecology for independent artists in the live performing arts in the Illawarra but is felt now across the national performing arts landscape, championing a fiercely independent group of creators, from and connected to our community, across the national stages.

 

MERRIGONGX ARTISTS’ PROGRAM:

 

The Strangeways Ensemble’s The Strangeways Cabaret

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For more information click HERE

Photo Credit: Anthony Rigby-Smith