The Adelaide Festival has today announced three diverse works of art to feature in its 2017 lineup. The much-loved film and theatrical star Miriam Margolyes will return to Adelaide for Prokofiev’s classic Peter and the Wolf, Neil Armfield’s Sydney Theatre Company adaptation of Kate Grenville’s The Secret River will be performed outdoors in the Anstey Hill Quarry, and Cate Blanchett will appear in a short film by artist Kathryn del Barton about the mating rituals of the Australian redback spider.

In what is being billed as the Australian premiere of the children’s classic tale of the resourceful Peter and his menagerie of furry friends, Margolyes will play the role of narrator alongside the Adelaide Symphony in a performance directed by Patch Theatre Company Artistic Director Naomi Edwards. Margolyes is as well known for her award-winning film roles – including Professor Sprout in the Harry Potter series and the nurse in Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet – as she is familiar to Australian TV audiences for her characters in ABC shows like Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries and Rake.

Serge Prokofiev’s timeless Peter and the Wolf has long been popular as a means to teach youngsters about the instruments of the orchestra, and...