John Farnham’s iconic album Whispering Jack will be adapted for the stage in the Sydney Theatre Company’s upcoming season.
The 2026 program is the first under new artistic director Mitchell Butel, who took over from Kip Williams in late 2024 and will also direct Whispering Jack: the John Farnham Musical.
“It’s probably not the normal thing you’d see in a STC program, but we’re really excited about what new audience we can bring to the company with a work as widely appealing as this,” Butel explained.
Produced in partnership with Michael Cassel and Gaynor Wheatley, the musical marks the 40th anniversary of Farnham’s hit album, which became the highest-selling by a local artist in Australia and spawned the single You’re The Voice.
“We’re in the middle of auditions at the moment looking for our John, and very excited by some of the talent that’s been coming into the room,” Butel said.
Farnham shared his delight at the news of the musical.
“For me it has always been about the songs,” he said.
“From Sadie to You’re the Voice, I am forever grateful for both these songs and the people who connect with my music.”
While working on the play Charlie Girl in the early 1970s, Farnham met his wife Jill.
“Musicals have always held a very special place in my heart,” he said.
Wheatley, the widow of Farnham’s long-time manager Glenn who passed away in 2022, also shared her excitement.
“Glenn believed in John when others didn’t, and together with Jill, we risked everything to make it happen,” she said.
“To now see that story come alive on stage, with all of its heart, humour, and grit is deeply personal and incredibly exciting.”
To bring Whispering Jack to life, Wheatley famously mortgaged her house while Farnham’s stardom had faded since his earlier hits.
The musical marks Farnham’s return to the public stage after undergoing gruelling mouth cancer surgery in August 2022 and subsequent reconstructive procedures.
Other STC productions slated for 2026 include new works from celebrated playwright Suzie Miller, whose credits include Prima Facie and RBG: Of Many, One. Strong is the New Pretty explores the formation of the Australian Rules national women’s league and will star Lucy Bell, Sheridan Harbridge, and Amy Ingram.
Jane Harrison’s Bennelong in London will also premiere, starring Googoorewon Knox and Guy Simon, and being directed by Ian Michael.
The story follows a young actor preparing for an audition who imagines the young Bennelong, who was abducted by Governor Arthur Phillip’s men in 1789 and later became the first Aboriginal man to visit Europe and return.
Butel said his approach as artistic director has involved “thousands” of coffees and dinners with artists to discover what the nation’s top stage talent wants to work on.
“Whenever you force people into a certain project or show, it’s never as good as when people come together around an idea and go, I’m desperate to do this work,” he said.
One of those projects includes actor David Wenham starring in An Iliad, a stage adaptation of Homer’s poem from the Robert Fagles translation, featuring live music.Marking almost four decades since its debut, The Normal Heart will also return to the stage at the Sydney Opera House under the STC.
Butel first performed with the STC in 1992’s Six Degrees of Separation and most recently served as artistic director of the State Theatre Company South Australia.
He says he has helped reverse a fall in philanthropic donations, partly by attracting support for individual productions.
Rising production costs and a decrease in government funding led the STC to a $566,000 deficit in 2024.
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