“Inspiring, moving, provocative and extraordinary” Australian Stage

In 1989, The Normal Heart made its Australian premiere at Sydney Theatre Company to roaring standing ovations.

Almost 40 years later, Larry Kramer’s groundbreaking, semi-autobiographical and Tony and Olivier Award-winning masterpiece – set in 1980s New York during the first few years of the AIDS crisis – returns to Sydney Theatre Company: an epic exploration of a community in crisis and their resilience, courage, humour and love.

STC Artistic Director and four-time Helpmann Award-winner Mitchell Butel delivers a “poetically heartbreaking” (Limelight) performance as Ned Weeks, a New York writer determined to uncover the truth about the mystery illness affecting his friends and colleagues and the lack of government action in response. Butel is joined by an astonishing ensemble cast – including Tim Draxl (A Place to Call Home, Sunset Boulevard), Keiynan Lonsdale (Love, Simon, Dance Academy), Nicholas Brown (Circle Mirror Transformation), Fraser Morrison (Grief is a Thing with Feathers) and Emma Jones making her Sydney Theatre Company debut with “stoic kindness and unerring intelligence” (InDaily SA) – as members of a community whose passion and bravery unites them in their fight for recognition and survival. 

The Normal Heart is a monumental and moving tribute to the beginning of a world-changing movement and a poignant reminder of the power of people coming together and falling in love, even when the world seems to be falling apart. 

Directed by Dean Bryant (Dear Evan Hansen), this production comes from State Theatre Company South Australia where it was praised as “a complete triumph” (Stage Whispers) and “the stuff of modern theatrical legend” (The Advertiser). 

Event Details:

• Dates:

  Previews 09 Feb – 11 Feb 2026
  Season 13 Feb – 14 Mar 2026

  Night with the Artists
  Mon 23 Feb, post-show

  Captioned Performances
  Tue 10 Mar, 6:30pm
  Sat 14 Mar, 1:30pm 

  Performance start times
  Preview performances – 7:30pm
  In-season evening performances – Mon & Tues 6:30pm; Wed – Sat 7:30pm
  Matinee performances – Wed 1:00pm; Saturday 1:30pm

• Duration: 2 hrs 30 mins, including interval.

• Suitable for: Mature audiences

• Location: Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House

• Warnings: Strong language, mature themes including homophobia and death, sexual references, herbal cigarettes, smoke and haze effects.

More info & tickets here.