YANDHA DJANBAY (GO SLOWLY) to Return to Merrigong Theatre Company
Gunai artist Kirli Saunders performs her solo work at Wollongong's Merrigong Theatre following standing ovations in its debut season.
Merrigong Theatre Company will present Gunai artist and writer Kirli Saunders' captivating one-woman show, Yandha Djanbay (Go Slowly) as part of their Mainstage season from 17 – 20 June 2026, at Illawarra Performing Arts Centre.
After receiving a rave response and standing ovations after its debut in the MerrigongX 2025 season, Yandha Djanbay (Go Slowly), will enthral Wollongong audiences yet again, in storytelling that centres love, grief, and responses to the 2024 referendum - making space for sorrow and rage, while honouring joy as a form of resistance and a legacy of those who came before.
Taking its title from a Dharawal phrase meaning to go slowly, this work is both an acknowledgement of Ancestral strength and a hopeful offering for the future, extending connection to country, to community, and to the resilience of Matriarchy.
Saunders' powerful work holds space for survivors, and boldly addresses the ongoing impacts of violence, racism, and sexism faced by Aboriginal people, particularly women, and features stunning visuals from 15 First Nations women based on Dharawal & Wodi Wodi lands.
In this one-woman show, Saunders' intertwines personal monologues with songs and poems from her acclaimed poetry collections Eclipse (Allen & Unwin, 2025) and Returning (Magabala, 2023), in a celebration of her inherited strength, her identity as a Blak queer woman, and the wisdom found in slowing down.
Kirli Saunders (OAM) is a proud Gunai Woman, and award-winning multi-disciplinary artist, writer, singer-songwriter and consultant, and in 2022, was awarded an Order of Australia Medal for her contribution to the arts.
Writer, Composer and Performer, Kirli Saunders said, “Yandha Djanbay gives voice to the stories I haven't yet told. It speaks to our ways, offering a reminder to move slowly and find calm amid chaos through connection to land, sea, and sky. The journey of this work so far has been deeply rewarding, and I'm excited to share it as widely as I can, so all of us may find a way to move a bit slower.'
Yandha Djanbay (Go Slowly) features an incredible team including Director and Production Designer, Leland Kean, First Nations Emerging Producer, Lillie Paton, Vision & Sound Realiser, Dominic Hinton, Cinematographer, Tad Souden, and Lighting Designer, Corey Potter.
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