GREATER SUNRISE to Make its World Premiere at the Downstairs Theatre, Belvoir

The first show in the inaugural season of 25A, Belvoir's new low-cost independent theatre initiative, is new Australian play Greater Sunrise. The play tackles the real-life spy scandal that has tarnished Australia's international reputation and is also the first produced full-length play by Zoe Hogan. Directed by Julia Patey (ATYP Rose Byrne Female Arts Leader Scholarship), the fantastic cast includes Timorese actor and activist Jose Da Costa (Balibo).

The play is inspired by the real-life spy scandal that saw East Timor take Australia all the way to The Hague, leading to a landmark treaty signed by the two countries in New York in March 2018.

Greater Sunrise is set in Dili, East Timor, in 2004: a post-occupation playground where government and commercial interests collide.

Enter Joana: an Australian aid worker who has just arrived in the 21st century's newest nation. There's dinner parties to host, village ceremonies to plan and a Nobel laureate to meet. As the arrival of Australia's Foreign Minister looms, Joana must decide where her allegiances lie. It's a decision that will take her all the way to The Hague.

Greater Sunrise takes us behind the closed doors of the biggest government scandal you've never heard of; a visiting Foreign Minister, Australia's aid program, and billions of dollars hidden beneath the sea.

"This play draws on my own experiences living and working in East Timor. I've also been inspired by the activists, lawyers and ordinary people who have been fighting for justice for East Timor for over a decade," Zoe explains. "I'm incredibly excited that this play is being produced at Belvoir's Downstairs Theatre, which has been fertile ground in the early careers of so many of Australia's great theatre artists."

Director Julia Patey Production Designer Tyler Ray Hawkins

With: Laurence Coy, Jose Da Costa, Cassandra Sorrell, Alexander Stylianou

Tickets to 25A productions are $25 and Previews are $20. Tickets are available online and on the door. https://belvoir.com.au/25a/