National Theatre of Parramatta to deliver Heartland Festival

National Theatre of Parramatta (NTofP) will be presenting Heartland Festival, a two-week festival from 25th June to 5th July 2025 featuring world premieres, theatre, spoken word, comedy, artist workshops, and catering in celebration of the artists and communities that make the heartland of Western Sydney so special.

Heartland Festival will be showcasing over 50 local and international artists.

NTofP Producer and the 2025 Heartland Festival Programmer, Phil Spencer noted “mixing local theatre makers and international artists, Heartland Festival will be a true celebration of the creative spirit of Parramatta, a unique meeting place for storytelling and live theatre."

In addition to the performance program, Heartland Festival will also provide a number of opportunities for artists’ development: NTofP’s annual Staging The World mentorship program and housing the National Play Sumit, a thought-provoking industry event produced with Australian Plays Transform (APT).

The Heartland Festival officially launches with the full theatrical premiere of The Offering (A Plastic Ocean Oratorio) on 25th June and an epic new performance work by multi-award-winning Australian author, poet, and rapper, Omar Musa (Since Ali Died) and renowned American cellist and composer Mariel Roberts Musa.

Creator of The Offering, Omar Musa shared “we are so proud of what we’ve made with The Offering and can’t wait to share it at Heartland Festival – hopefully it’s something super imaginative, stirring and disruptive”.

NTofP teams up with re:group performance collective (Coil, UFO) to present their smash-hit show POV with a rotating cast including Nat Jobe (Yoga Play), Nicole Milinkovic (White Pearl), Bali Padda (Optics) Caroline L George (The Marriage Agency), Ariadne Sgouros (4000 Miles) Jemwel Danao (Yoga Play), Alex Malone (Yoga Play), Keivaan Askari, and many more. This hilarious and profound portrait examines what it means to negotiate difficult questions about parenting, agency, and mental health.

Supper Club, hosted by Nancy Denis (Ma’p Boulé), showcases new works by theatre makers Pratha Nagpal (Aurat Raj), Erica Brennan (The Hero Leaves One Tooth), emerging writers Geneva Valek and Kate Bubalo and storytellers Tiffany Wong (Slanted Theatre) and Youssef Sabet (Karim). These two tasty evenings of hot new works in a blistering variety show are not to be missed.

NTofP Creative and Executive Producer Joanne Kee enthsed “I am thrilled that we're able to share the incredible talents of these artists. Check out some of the most exciting new works happening in Australia, where we are combining theatre with spoken word, music and more in a feast for the senses.”

The full program and tickets are available at nationaltheatreofparramatta.com.au/show/heartland-festival/

HEARTLAND FESTIVAL:
Dates: Wednesday 25th June – Saturday 5th July 2025
Location: Riverside Theatres – Corner of Church and Market Streets, Parramatta.
Tickets: Starting from $29, available from nationaltheatreofparramatta.com.au/show/heartland- festival/ or from the Box Office (02) 8839 3399.

Image. Credit: Nat Cartney