Sydney Theatre Company’s revival of Larry Kramer’s The Normal Heart returns almost forty years after its Australian premiere in 1989. A political drama with a feisty, beating heart, it feels disturbingly relevant today.
Set in early-1980s New York at the beginning of the AIDS crisis, the play follows Ned Weeks (Mitchell Butel), a gay activist struggling to raise awareness about a disease threatening to kill gay men.
With the help of Dr Emma Brookner (Emma Jones), a physician and survivor of polio, Ned attempts to rally his community and the media to spotlight the disease while falling in love for the first time.
Dean Bryant and Mitchell Butel debuted Kramer’s semi-autobiographical play in October 2022 in Adelaide for the State Theatre Company of South Australia. They now bring it to the Sydney Opera House.
The title draws from W.H. Auden’s poem September 1, 1939, written on the day World War II was declared and is particularly inspired by the line “We must love one another or die.”
It’s an idea that serves as a stark reminder in these times that failing to unite in our oneness as humans could be to our detriment. Watching it now feels confronting, in a world that again feels closer to pandemics post-Covid but also shows us the cost of silence.
From the start, there’s a sense of urgency. The dialogue moves quickly – explaining, documenting and persuading. Much of it functions as exposition and testimony, like political speeches. The writing can feel cold and didactic at first, but the sharp, deeply inhabited performances pull us through into the human experience.
Director Dean Bryant wisely resists softening Kramer’s polemic, letting the argument drive the play forward. He creates an undercurrent of emotion through moments of human connection that gathers until it breaks in waves.
Bryant keeps the world moving around the characters with the intriguing choice to keep all actors on stage throughout. They switch between scenes and move into the background, either observing the scenes play out or visiting the Gay Men’s Health clinic for check-ups. This adds to the building tension of the story.
Jeremy Allen’s production design is sparse, almost wide shot in feel, giving the audience space to observe. A sterile hospital with peeling walls creates a sombre environment that the actors gradually draw us into.
Nigel Levings’ lighting is restrained, letting characters recede and re-emerge as scenes shift around the stage. The lighting begins cool and subtle, before gradually introducing warmth. The morning light, later in the play, that streams through windows and falls across faces, is excellent production design. It gives a fleeting sense that things might shift even in a world of uncertainty.
The score, composed by Hilary Keinig, gently affects the emotional rhythm of the production, subtly guiding transitions between scenes. Both musicians stay visible within the action. Michael Griffiths, at times, turns from the piano to observe the play, while cellist Rowena Macneish plays with delicate sensitivity beneath the dialogue. The cello in particular draws emotions out slowly and unexpectedly, pulling at the emotional undercurrent.
This is a show worth seeing for the performances alone. The actors are precise, nuanced and powerful in their portrayals and the play thrills with some of the most affecting monologues I’ve seen on stage. They begin in restrained, intellectual desperation and build until the emotion finally breaks through.
Each actor hits a variety of chords, from snappy humour to heartbreaking moments made visceral by the performers’ perfect physical control. The emotional centre of the play is in the burgeoning love between Ned (Butel) and Felix, played with aching sweetness by Nicholas Brown.
Equally affecting are the scenes between Ned and his brother Ben (Mark Saturno), a loving connection marred by underlying disapproval, bringing the play into a relatable human light. Together they form an emotional through-line beneath the brisk, snappy dialogue.
Mitchell Butel is both brittle and vulnerable as Ned Weeks. He anchors the play as a fiercely articulate activist whose need to be heard pushes the story forward.
Particular standouts are Keiynan Lonsdale as Tommy and Evan Lever as Mickey. Lonsdale is magnetic as Tommy Boatwright, with finely tuned comic timing and expressive mannerisms. Evan Lever’s Mickey Marcus feels completely inhabited, lived right to the bone. His phone-room monologue builds to a crescendo, with palpable, relatable distress and despair. “I feel so inadequate,” he admits, and we feel the helplessness with him.
Emma Jones’ Dr Brookner provides the hard-nosed rational through-line. She’s sharp, weary, and given a moment that’s among the most moving and staggering I’ve seen on stage or screen.
As Artistic Director, Butel reminds us, despite all the work and progress, World AIDS Day, which was commemorated in 1988, is no longer recognised by the United States. Executive orders have also targeted transgender rights, undoing decades of progress.
The Normal Heart is devastatingly powerful with precise performances that strike many emotional chords. It asks us to look back on how far we’ve come but also offers a rousing call to action. Kramer reminds us that now is no time to settle, and the risk of speaking up is worth it.
The Normal Heart runs to 14 March at the Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House.
Tickets: https://www.sydneytheatre.com.au/whats-on/productions/2026/the-normal-heart
Website: https://www.sydneytheatre.com.au/
Socials: https://www.instagram.com/sydneytheatreco/
Photo credits: Neil Bennett
Presented by Sydney Theatre Company, in association with Wagnan Productions Sarah Rohrsheim and, community partners Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras and ACON.
Queer Night: Tuesday 17 February, post-show panel discussion, Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House
Night with the Artists: Monday 23 February, post-show Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House
Queer Backstage Tours: Thursday 19 and Thursday 26 February at 5:30pm, Sydney Theatre Company Wharf 4/5 15 Hickson Road, Walsh Bay
