New works by Nakkiah Lui, Osamah Sami and Michele Lee feature alongside the return of Picnic and a new Melancholia.

Melbourne’s Malthouse Theatre has announced its 2018 season, with new works by Nakkiah Lui, Osamah Sami and Michele Lee featuring alongside a return season of Picnic at Hanging Rock and a theatre adaption of Lars von Trier’s Melancholia. “We were very interested in looking at what were the political controversies and taboos that we need to keep talking about in Australia,” Malthouse Artistic Director Matthew Lutton tells Limelight. “I think there’s a real interest in looking at a whole lot of new diverse writers that can be working on our stages, particularly in very entertaining ways.”

Lutton is hard-pressed to nominate highlights. “It is really tricky to choose, they’re like all my children! “A lot of these works the company’s been talking about and working on for two years or so. I’m really proud of the suite of new writing that we’re premiering next year,” he says.

^{Malthouse Theatre Artistic Director Matthew Lutton. Photo © Andrew Gough}

“I’m really excited about Michele Lee’s...