Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC), in association with Opera Australia and Oombarra Productions, have announced that The Drover’s Wife – The Opera will make its world premiere in QPAC’s new Glasshouse Theatre from 13 to 22 May 2026.
Co-commissioned by QPAC and Opera Australia, The Drover’s Wife – The Opera is a monumental new work based on the play, novel and film by one of Australia’s leading artists, Leah Purcell AM. Purcell has written the libretto with George Palmer AM, and will direct the season.
The Drover’s Wife is a short story written by Australian writer Henry Lawson. It was adapted and reimagined into a play by Purcell that premiered at Belvoir in 2016. Purcell’s novel The Drover’s Wife The Legend of Molly Johnson was published in 2019. The film of the same name was released in Australia in 2022.
With a ravishing score, also written by Palmer and performed live by Queensland Symphony Orchestra, this new stage version reveals the symphonic soul of Purcell’s modern classic in its most expansive telling yet.
Queensland’s own award-winning soprano Nina Korbe will take on the titular role of Drover’s Wife Molly Johnson. Korbe recently appeared as Maria in West Side Story on Sydney Harbour.
With her husband away droving sheep, a heavily pregnant Molly is left alone to care for her children in a remote Snowy Mountain shanty. It’s there between the bullocks and hostile travellers on her doorstep that she faces no shortage of threats.
Fellow Queensland singer-songwriter Marcus Corowa (Opera Queensland’s Festival of Outback Opera, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Opera Australia’s Bran Nue Dae) will play Yadaka, an Aboriginal man evading colonial authorities, who disrupts Molly’s hard-won sanctuary.
Under the baton of Conductor Tahu Matheson, luscious orchestrations will capture the beauty and violence of the Australian High Country, where grand opera traditions will meet contemporary First Nations storytelling.
The unforgiving Snowy Mountains will be realised by Set Designer Isabel Hudson and Costume Designer Tess Schofield. Lighting Designer Karen Norris and Sound Designer Michael Waters will also join the team.
The full cast, including six dancers under the direction of Choreographer Yolande Brown (Bangarra Dance Theatre), will be announced soon.
Approached to adapt the work by Palmer after he spotted the novel on his wife’s bedside table, Purcell said The Drover’s Wife had been in her heart since 1975. But the desire to bring the story to life began in 2014, taking shape across many genres and platforms.
Ms Purcell said:
“The intensity and scale of this Australian story makes it ripe for an operatic retelling. I’ve enjoyed the challenge. While this opera may not follow traditional expectations, it will offer something uniquely Australian – bold, grounded and full of heart.”
I’ve loved diving back into The Drover’s Wife and looking at how we can use the libretto, First Nations language and the full might of an orchestra to take the storytelling to the next level and distinguish this version from its predecessors. I want people to say, ‘I’ve read the book, I’ve watched the movie and now I’m seeing the opera’.”
Palmer said he wanted to write an opera that was quintessentially Australian, both in its subject matter and musical expression. The powerful drama of The Drover’s Wife play provided the perfect vehicle.
Mr Palmer said:
“The opera is a confluence of the First Nations tradition of chant and dance and the western operatic tradition. Those traditions, each true to itself, come together without losing their identities. Each complements the other, adding textural and contextual richness to the music and the story.”
QPAC Chief Executive Rachel Healy said the world premiere of The Drover’s Wife – The Opera was a highlight of the Glasshouse Theatre’s opening program:
“The Glasshouse opens as a space for stories that matter. Leah Purcell’s celebrated take on The Drover’s Wife is exactly that. Leah’s vision and voice, paired with George Palmer’s evocative score, promises to deliver a work that is visceral, unflinching and stirringly Australian. It’s a fitting beginning for a theatre built to hold the weight of powerful stories and thrilling performances.”
Following an encore season of Leah’s lauded Is That You, Ruthie? earlier this year and the epic ambition of Wagner’s Ring Cycle with Opera Australia in 2023, we are thrilled to be uniting a team of our regular collaborators to again create work of national significance that Queenslanders will see first.”
Opera Australia Acting CEO Simon Militano said:
“We’re proud to have co-commissioned this extraordinary piece of work with QPAC. These incredibly talented artists have created a uniquely Australian opera that bridges operatic tradition with contemporary Australian tradition. It will be a highlight of OA’s 70th anniversary season in 2026.”
Minister for Education and the Arts John-Paul Langbroek said the world premiere of The Drover’s Wife – The Opera at Glasshouse Theatre in 2026 was the first of a broader opening program which would welcome audiences into the new theatre.
Mr Langbroek said:
“This powerful operatic retelling of The Drover’s Wife by master storyteller Leah Purcell AM will provide Queenslanders with access to a bold new opera in an extraordinary theatre environment.
With its advanced technical capabilities, exceptional acoustics and orchestra pit, the state-of-the-art Glasshouse Theatre provides the perfect stage for this new large-scale work featuring the talents of many Queensland artists and creatives. I look forward to announcing the full exceptional and exclusive opening program for the Glasshouse Theatre in the coming weeks.”
Due for completion at the end of the year, the 1,500-seat Glasshouse Theatre will open to the public in 2026, joining the Playhouse, Lyric, Concert Hall and Cremorne Theatre, and making QPAC the largest performing arts centre in Australia under one roof.
The Drover’s Wife – The Opera runs 13 -22 May 2026 at the Glasshouse Theatre, QPAC.
Tickets are on sale now!
Website: https://qpac.com.au/whats-on/2026/the-drovers-wife-the-opera
Socials: https://www.instagram.com/atqpac/
Hero image photo: Nina Korbe as Molly Johnson. Photo by David Kelly, Artwork by Blaklash.
The Drover’s Wife – The Opera is co-commissioned by QPAC and Opera Australia. It is based on The Drover’s Wife play. Originally commissioned and produced by Belvoir in association with Oombarra Productions through the Balnaves Foundation Indigenous Playwright’s Award.
