The Wrong Gods

6 JUN  —  12 JUL 2025

Arts Centre Melbourne, Fairfax Studio

Australian playwright S. Shakthidharan (Counting and Cracking) is one of the most exciting voices in theatre today. This bold new work conjures a tale of community, family and freedom in the face of impending globalisation.

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This is rated 5 out of 5 stars

‘A contemporary classic.’

Time Out on Counting and Cracking
This is rated 5 out of 5 stars

‘Deeply felt and searingly intelligent.’

The Age on Counting and Cracking

ABOUT THE SHOW

Australian playwright S. Shakthidharan is one of the most exciting voices in theatre today. His epic play Counting and Cracking wowed audiences in sell-out seasons across the country, alongside triumphant tours to the UK and now New York. Melbourne audiences can again witness his talents in full flight with this new work conjuring a community confronted by the bold promises of globalisation.

For fifty thousand years, soldiers and missionaries and kings and queens have tried to conquer this remote Indian valley, and for fifty thousand years Nirmala’s ancestors have kept them out. But what if out is exactly where her daughter Isha wants to be?

When a stranger arrives with an offer too good to be true, the two must reckon with the costs of a devil’s bargain. Family, freedom and the fates of thousands will ultimately rest in their hands.

The Wrong Gods is a thrilling, gripping tale full of hope, betrayal, tradition and self-discovery. Rich with poetry and imagery, it asks brave questions that don’t have a safe answer. If everything in this world comes at a cost, who gets to decide what that cost will be?


Co-producer
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Accessibility

  • Wheelchair Accessible

  • Hearing Assistance

  • Audio Described

  • Tactile Tour

  • Open Captioning

  • Closed Captioning

  • Auslan Interpreted

Performance Type Performance Date(s)
Audio Described
Vision Australia
Saturday 28 June at 2pm
Tuesday 1 July at 6.30pm
Tactile Tour
at venue
Saturday 28 June at 2pm (Tactile tour commences at 1pm)
Open Captioning
via screen
Saturday 5 July at 2pm
Closed Captioning
via GoTheatrical App
Saturday 5 July at 2pm
Auslan Interpreted Please email mtcticketing@mtc.com.au for more information
Artwork for Radhika Mudaliyar

Radhika Mudaliyar

Isha

Artwork for Vaishnavi Suryaprakash

Vaishnavi Suryaprakash

Lakshmi

Artwork for Nadie Kammallaweera

Nadie Kammallaweera

Nirmala

Artwork for S. Shakthidharan

S. Shakthidharan

Writer & Co-Director

Artwork for Hannah Goodwin

Hannah Goodwin

Co-Director

Artwork for Keerthi Subramanyam

Keerthi Subramanyam

Set & Costume Designer

Amelia Lever-Davidson.png

Amelia Lever-Davidson

Lighting Designer

Fairfax Studio

100 St Kilda Road

Melbourne , Victoria 3004