Dennis McIntosh was 12 when Melbourne’s West Gate Bridge collapsed on 15 October, 1970. He and his friends heard the terrible thud from their school – something he has never forgotten. Thirty-five men died in what remains Australia’s deadliest industrial accident. For the past decade, McIntosh has been working on a play about the horror of what happened that day and the impact on the widows and orphans left behind. Now, his new play West Gate has its world premiere at Melbourne Theatre Company, directed by Iain Sinclair.

Limelight Editor’s Choice

Award-winning director Iain Sinclair (A View from the Bridge) returns to Melbourne Theatre Company to helm this haunting and compassionate new work by Dennis McIntosh – a powerful retelling of a defining moment in Australian history.

Screen veterans Steve Bastoni (Police Rescue, The Matrix Reloaded) and Daniela Farinacci (Lantana), as well as Darcy Kent (New Gold Mountain) and Rohan Nichol (Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith) lead a powerhouse cast in this searing retelling of a foundational Melbourne story.

On 15 October 1970, dozens of workers were mid-construction on Melbourne’s West Gate Bridge when it collapsed in what is still Australia’s deadliest industrial accident. Thirty-five men were killed as countless more workers and families were left forever changed.

Young Scrapper is a mouthy labourer born into the construction union. When he’s teamed up with veteran welder Vittorio, his attitude starts to improve. But as disquiet mounts about working conditions and questionable safety measures, their lives are put on the line. With increasing pressure to get the bridge finished, the engineers scramble to placate the workers and keep things moving, but none of them have ever built a steel bridge before – let alone one this size. When the structure comes crashing down, who will take the fall?