THE LIBERTINE (2026) | Her Productions

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Presented by UpStage at the Playhouse Produced by HER Productions

Experience The Libertine across two distinct productions as we transforms this provocative work through history and into the present day.

Provocative, sensual and unflinchingly human, The Libertine is theatre that refuses to let you look away...

John Wilmot, the Earl of Rochester, is a poet, a wit, and a notorious rake at the court of King Charles II. Armed with a lethal charm and a contempt for hypocrisy, they dedicate their life to pleasure and satire. When they meet the ambitious actress Elizabeth Barry, they find a spirit as formidable as their own, forcing them to confront the devastating cost of their own nihilism. Provocative and darkly comic, this work challenges audiences with a searing duet between destruction and creation, and the quest for truth in a world of glittering decay.

To unravel the timeless themes of The Libertine, we invite you to experience two distinct versions of this production. The first is a gripping, historically-set piece, where the male Rochester’s self-destruction plays out against the emerging power of women. The second is an exciting reimagining of our time, featuring a woman as Rochester, who subverts the very confines of this iconic role and asks: how does the story transform when a female body wields the same toxic, brilliant power, and how hard does she have to fight for her right to be seen and accepted?

See both to witness a masterful play transformed across centuries. A thrilling conversation about gender, power and the roles we are still fighting to break.

Running time: 2 hrs 20 mins, inc interval.
This production contains violence and sexual themes.
Strictly 18+.

Two worlds. One story. Which version of The Libertine will you experience - period or contemporary? Explore the schedule and choose your path.

Thursday (Opening Night) Period (Then)..........2 July 2026, 7pm
Friday Contemporary (Now)................................3 July 2026, 7pm
Saturday Period (Then).........................................4 July 2026, 2pm
Saturday Contemporary (Now)............................4 July 2026, 7pm

Thursday Period (Then)........................................9 July 2026, 7pm
Friday Contemporary (Now)...............................10 July 2026, 7pm
Saturday Period (Then)........................................11 July 2026, 2pm
Saturday Contemporary (Now)...........................11 July 2026, 7pm

TICKETS TICKETS TICKETS

STEPHEN JEFFREYS

Playwright (1950-2018)

Stephen Jeffreys' plays include The Libertine and I Just Stopped By to See the Man (Royal Court); Valued Friends and A Going Concern (Hampstead); Bugles at the Gates of Jalalabad (part of the Tricycle Theatre's Great Game season about Afghanistan); The Convict's Opera (Out of Joint); Lost Land (starring John Malkovich, Steppenwolf, Chicago); The Art of War (Sydney Theatre Company) and A Jovial Crew (RSC). His adaptation of Dickens' Hard Times has been performed all over the world. He wrote the films The Libertine (starring Johnny Depp) and Diana (starring Naomi Watts). He co-authored the Beatles musical Backbeat which opened at the Citizens Theatre and went on to seasons in London's West End, Toronto and Los Angeles, and translated The Magic Flute for English National Opera in Simon McBurney's production. For eleven years he was Literary Associate at the Royal Court Theatre where he was a member of the Council. His celebrated workshops have influenced numerous writers.

CHARLOTTE DE WIT

Director/Elizabeth Malet

Charlotte De Wit is a director, performer, and producer based on Awabakal land (Mulubinba/Newcastle). She creates theatre that is emotionally brave, quietly radical, and deeply human work that doesn’t look away from the uncomfortable, the intimate, or the unsaid.
Charlotte is the Co-Artistic Director of HER Productions, a company championing stories by and about women and marginalised voices. HER is rooted in the belief that urgent, arresting theatre can be made anywhere — not just on mainstages, but in galleries, studios, rehearsal rooms, and regional cities. The work is artist-led, rigorous, and unafraid to take risks.
As a director, Charlotte is drawn to text that pulses with tension and truth, stories that crack open big questions about power, love, trauma, and identity. For her recent production of Romeo and Juliet: A Reimagining (2024) recontextualised the classic with a fierce contemporary lens incorporating movement and dance to explore the text . Uncle Vanya (2022/2024) was a stripped back version of the play, with a focus on the performances and interpersonal relationships. For both productions Charlotte was awarded best director at the City of Newcastle Drama Awards.
As an actor, her recent credits include Una in Blackbird (2024–2025), Jo in Low Level Panic (2023–2024), Oberon/Theseus in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (2023), Gala Dalí in Darli (2019), Catherine in Neighbourhood Watch (2018) and Mairead in The lieutenant of Inishmore (2017) . Screen credits include Bethany in Pending Pick Up (2025).
She trained at the Atlantic Acting School in New York and is beginning her professional Director’s internship at 16th Street Acting studio in Melbourne 2026/2027.

MARIGOLD PAZAR

Director/Elizabeth Barry

Marigold Pazar is a multidisciplinary artist working across acting, directing, filmmaking, and producing, with a strong background in dance, art, and photography. She is based in Muloobinba/Newcastle and is a co-founder and co-artistic director of HER Productions.

As an independent artist, she has created and spearheaded numerous film, art, and theatre projects, collaborating with like-minded creatives in Newcastle and Sydney. She has directed independent short films and music videos, worked across art and production departments in film and theatre, and is a committed writer, director, and producer on her own work.

Her acting education began at Sydney institutions including ACTT, Screenwise, and Darlo Drama. She has continued her training through various programs and private coaching, working with renowned teachers such as Bill Pepper, Kevin Jackson, Justin Lehmann, and Helena Walsh.

Recent directing/producing credits: Uncle Vanya (theatre, 2022) – CONDA winner; Lego (music video, 2025) for Maple’s Pet Dinosaur; Future Never (film, 2022); The Crucible (theatre, 2021); The Message (short film, in progress); Exodus: The Endless Valley (short film, 2021) – Winner, Best Drama, Australia’s Festival of Time: Sci-Fi/Animation/Horror.

Recent acting credits: Lady Macbeth in Macbeth (2025); Woman in The Message (2025 short film); Yelena in Uncle Vanya (2024); Mary in Low Level Panic (2023–24); Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (2023).

ROSE TRELOAR

Earl of Rochester (now)

Rose Treloar is an Australian actor and playwright based in Sydney and a graduate of Actors Centre Australia (ACA). Recent theatre credits include the lead role in The Front Page at New Theatre and MOTEL, which premiered at Sydney Fringe Festival. She wrote and stars in Watch Me Sleep, which has been performed at Brisbane Fringe and Sydney Fringe (where it received a nomination for Best in Theatre) and this year makes its international debut after being selected for the New York City Fringe Festival in April 2026. Rose also wrote, starred in and co-produced the television pilot The Rules, which screened at the Arizona International Film Festival. She is currently completing her MFA in Dramatic Writing at the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA).

WILLIAM MCLENNAN

Earl of Rochester (then)

Will McLennan (he/him) is currently based in Newcastle/Muloobinba, and is thrilled to make his Newcastle stage debut with Her Productions. As with many privileged bourgeois millennials disillusioned with the rat race, he pivoted to acting in his mid 20s in search of meaning and purpose. Since then he’s appeared on stage in ‘The Dumb Waiter’ (directed by Iain Sinclair), and on screen in ‘Home And Away’ (briefly) and the noir thriller feature ‘Interloper’. However he is most proud of ‘The Offering’, a tense and searing short film he wrote and directed, which won the audience choice award at film festivals in Sydney, Melbourne and London.

JESS DALTON

Jane (now)

Jess Dalton is a Sydney-based actor and graduate of the University of Notre Dame Australia, where she completed a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Theatre with a minor in Film. Jess has previously worked extensively behind the scenes as a stage manager for Her Productions, with credits including Low Level Panic (KXT), Uncle Vanya (Flow Studios), and Blackbird (KXT). The Libertine marks her first production with the company as an actor and their stage debut. Screen credits include the short films Falling (2022) and Angelfish (2023), the web series PUFF (2026), with appearances in season two of Heartbreak High on Netflix, along with several commercial roles.

MIA FOLEY

Jane (then)

Mia Foley (she/her) is an actor and divisor dedicated to the celebration of individuality, authenticity and empathy in life and art. Bold, cheeky and candid, Mia's work is reflective of her core values; complex honesty, courageousness and vulnerability. Mia made her professional debut in Queensland Theatre's 2021 production of 'Our Town' by Thornton Wilder, and in 2025 was awarded MEAA’s Equity Scholarship. This scholarship sent her to The Atlantic Acting School’s intensive program in New York City, where she specified her study in Practical Aesthetics beyond her years at QUT's Fine Arts Acting degree, where she will return in 2026 as a teacher for the 2nd and 3rd year acting cohort.

HAROLD PHIPPS

George Etherege

Harold Phipps is a Sydney based actor who grew up in Newcastle. Graduating from Hunter School of the Performing Arts in 2014, Harold was later accepted into the National Institute of Dramatic Arts (NIDA) and graduated in 2023.
Recent theatre credits include: Bearfoot Theatre: Playing Face; Opera Hunter: She Loves Me; NIDA: Festen, A Midsummer Nights Dream, The Marriage, The Visit, A Very Expensive Poison; The Old Fitz: Anomalies.

LILLY KIME

Billy Downs

Lilly is a passionate, young and upcoming actor from Newcastle, taking on both the stage and screen.
She featured in Her productions 2025 run of Blackbird at the KXT Theatre as well as appearing in Paramount+’s Australian television drama Playing Gracie Darling, where she portrays the role of Mackenzie. In early 2024, she was named a Top 50 finalist in the AACTA Youth Stars search for Australia's rising screen talent, an experience that allowed her to work with leading casting directors on the Gold Coast. In 2023, Lilly appeared in Emily Barker's music video Wild to Be Sharing This Moment, and starred as Kat, the headstrong lead in the locally written theatrical production Cockhead.

MARK BARRY

Charles Sackville

Mark Barry has been raised around and actively involved in theatre his whole life. After finishing high school in the Blue Mountains he moved to Sydney to pursue his dream of acting and studied at Actors Centre Australia (ACA). At ACA, he played a number of roles including Boris in ‘Children of the Sun’ and the title role in ‘Hamlet’.

Since then he has performed in a number of productions such as ‘Moby Dick’ (Sport for Jove), ‘The Lovely Bones’ (New Theatre), ‘'Tis Pity She’s a Whore’ (The Company), ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ (Joining the Dots Theatre Company), ‘Othello’ (Streamed Shakespeare), ‘Truly Gone Fishing’ (Rock Lobstar Productions) and 'Dags' (Scripted By Her). He has most recently performed as Benedick in ‘Much Ado About Nothin'’ (Bar'd Work), Vladimir in ‘Waiting for Godot’ (Actors Centre Company), Kent in ‘Reasons to Be Pretty’ (The Space Between Theatre Company), Smirnov in ‘The Brute’ (Old Wave Theatre) and as Malvolio/Sebastian in 'Twelfth Night' (Bar'd Work).

KATY CARRUTHERS

Luscombe/Mrs Will

Katy's recent credits include HER Productions latest Romeo and Juliet: A Reimagining, (as Montague) 2024, and Uncle Vanya (as Maria Vasilevna) 2022/2024.
She is proudly a multiple Conda Award winner, a graduate of The Drama Studio Sydney and has worked extensively in Theatre, Television, Film, Documentary and Voice Over.
She is based in Newcastle and Sydney, and when not acting she is in her kitchen running her catering business.

BARNABY DONAGHY

Harry Harris/Mr Huysmans/Consterbul

Barnaby (Barney) (he/him) is an emerging artist, based in Newcastle. Barney’s creative practice lies within nudging comfortabilities, producing entertainment for entertainment’s sake, and cultivating positive, productive, comedic environments to create and perform in. Since graduating with a Bachelor of Communication (Theatre/Media) at Charles Sturt University, Barnaby undertook residency with Tantrum Youth Arts creating short film Bruised (2021), played the role of Liam in Tantrum’s in-schools program Opening Doors: Digital (2022), and in 2023 performed in the sell-out seasons of Spewy by Ang Collins as part of New Annual, and Whale Chorus Theatre's A Midsummer Night's Dream (2023), Twelfth Night (2024) and Meet Me At The Baths (2025). Barney has worked with HER Productions on R&J Reimagining (2024).

AIDEN CLARK

Tom Alcock

Aiden Clark is an up and coming performer from Newcastle. He started acting at the age of 7 and has been involved in many theatre productions since then. His recent performances as Mr Fogg in Sweeney Todd and Ensemble in Kinky Boots. With his unwavering passion for the arts and a drive to continuously improve his craft, Aiden is dedicated to bringing fresh contemporary pieces to the stage in front of Newcastle audiences. Aiden recently directed The Father by Florian Zeller at Newcastle Theatre Company.

EVAN BOOTH

King Charles II

Evan is a theatre artist based in Newcastle, returning to the stage this year after a long break from performing. In 2026, he has taken on three strikingly different roles: Bruce in the musical Fun Home for Lindsay Street Players, Father Goose in Muffet Mayhem for Young People’s Theatre and the Newcastle Fringe Festival, and now King Charles in The Libertine for HER Productions, showcasing his versatility and range as a performer. Alongside performing, Evan is an experienced musical director, having led musical productions for Young People’s Theatre, including You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown, Honk and Tuck Everlasting. He is also the conductor of the regional primary school choir, Hunter Trebles, where he continues to foster a love of music and performance in young people. Evan spent 20 years working for the Department of Education being able to spend time teaching in the drama, music, and dance departments for Starstruck, Creative Arts Camps and the classroom.
This production marks an exciting new chapter, and he is grateful to be part of the creative team.

JARRAH WEBSTER

Understudy and Ensemble

Jarrah has appeared in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (2013), Cosi (2014), Metropolitan Players’ Oliver (2012), Phantom of the Opera (2013) and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (2023). Jarrah made her theatre debut with the role of Nancy in NTC’s Gaslight (2015), and more recently The Watsons (2022), Merrily We Roll Along (2023), One Man Two Govenors (2023) and The Father (2025). Jarrah has studied at both Sydney Theatre School and The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, London, and is currently a tutor at TrueSCREEN acting studio in Newcastle.