I HATE MEN As Read By Men Comes to Newcastle Fringe Festival
Brittanie Shipway takes on directing role for the innovative Australian play.
The world premiere of I HATE MEN As Read By Men comes to Newcastle Fringe Festival, 20–22 March 2026 - a daring new work in development that reimagines Pauline Harmange's once-banned essays for the stage.
This production is an industry event: helmed by multi-award-winning director, dramaturg, writer, and performer Brittanie Shipway, whose practice spans new Australian work, musical theatre development and critically acclaimed productions including her recent work Barbra: The Greatest Star which sold out to critical acclaim at The Hayes Theatre. Shipway's acting credits include Hermia in Bell Shakespeare's The Lovers and Margaret Whitlam in The Dismissal, underscoring her rare combination of performance and directing excellence.
She is joined by a high-calibre cast - Haydan Hawkins (Priscilla Queen of the Desert, Miss Saigon), Jordan Shea (Belvoir, Sydney Theatre Company, Melbourne Theatre Company), and Tana Laga'aia (RENT, Jesus Christ Superstar) - bringing skill, versatility, and bold theatrical intelligence to a work that is part social experiment, part music-infused stage event.
Shipway says: “I'm really interested in seeing how audiences change the energy of each performance; it will feel incredibly different night to night. And that's what theatre should be: IT'S ALIIIIIVE!”
This premiere offers a rare opportunity to witness a high-profile, new Australian work in development, and to interview the director and cast as they explore, deconstruct, and bring to life one of the most provocative texts in contemporary feminism.
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