Since its premiere at the Riverside Theatre in Parramatta in May 2013, this powerful new Australian theatre work has had a huge impact!
The Baulkham Hills African Ladies Troupe is based on the personal stories of four African Australian women. It examines the effects of trauma, and what it means to be a survivor of sexual abuse and violence in both domestic and war situations –as the women attempt to 'move on' and create new lives for themselves in a new country.
To quote one of Australia’s most respected and successful film-makers, Dr George Miller, AO:
In the theatre it was a remarkable and unforgettable piece. Not only because of the powerful mosaic of stories told by the women, but that it achieved that rare thing…it transcended the immediate subject matter. It leapt from the specific to the general, illuminating deeper truths.
Following the premier sell-out season at Riverside Theatre in May 2013, the production went on to play a further 5 week sell-out season at Sydney’s prestigious Belvoir. The play was subsequently invited back for a return season at Riverside in 2015, followed by another separate season at the Sydney Opera House.
Then the Baulkham Hills ladies were invited to tour to the UK . The show was performed as a centre-piece of the WOW FESTIVAL (Women of the World Festival) at the prestigious Southbank Centre in London in March 2015. It also toured to the Nottingham Playhouse.
In each of these seasons, the audience response has been the same.
Capacity houses, with long waiting lists; and standing ovations at every single show. Audiences coming out profoundly moved, as well as uplifted, saying “this work is truly life changing”
Get Involved
Bring your community or organisation together for a screening and start a more compassionate conversation about refugees and asylum seekers.
Review Exceprts
It’s a profoundly moving experience. But Horin's great skill here is to also make it an uplifting one. Gripping, sobering, and humbling.
The Guardian
Baulkham Hills African Ladies Troupe is sophisticated, well crafted, intensely theatrical, honest and true.
Dianna Simmonds, Stage Noise
It’s story-telling of the most beguiling kind. The dignity and humour are breathtaking and inspiring and Aminata Doumbia's singing is just gorgeous.
Stage whispers
Out of this difficult, sometimes harrowing material, Writer-director Ros Horin has created an optimistic, uplifting show.
Deborah
The theatre production is a celebration of the resilience, courage and spirit of these remarkable women. It was developed over 4 years, by Ros Horin, in collaboration with the African women survivors, whose stories form the core of the work. It brings together film, music, dance, poetry and song to tell its stories. Strong dramatic structure and elements of contemporary performance fuse with African cultural references, to bring the voices of each woman to the stage. And it manages to bring together humour and drama in a particularly fine balance.