Winner - Sydney Theatre Award — Best Production for Young People, 2024.

“I wasn’t there ’cause I wanted to be. I was there ’cause I had to be, okay? If Josh hadn’t eaten my noodles, I wouldn’t be here…”

Set to a soundtrack of rap and hip-hop created by young people in the youth justice system, Saplings offers an honest, raw look at the adult consequences faced by some of our most vulnerable.

Through a series of short interwoven scenes, the voices and experiences of young people navigating Australia’s youth justice system are captured in this high-energy emotional performance, brought to life by an exceptional group of First Nations actors and creatives.

Yani, Kai, Shanika and Lachlan each have their own hopes, dreams and struggles. From wanting to go to the Easter Show to seeking a sense of home, their desires are relatable—yet complicated by their interactions with the justice system. As the play unfolds, it raises important questions about how young people grow and thrive while facing systemic barriers and societal expectations.

Yuwaalaraay playwright Hannah Belanszky and Kalkadoon director Abbie-Lee Lewis bring their exceptional talent to Saplings, a collection of hilarious and heartbreaking stories born from workshops with young people experiencing the youth justice system from Marrickville to Moree. This contemporary Australian drama is a poetic, personal, funny and unexpected production that will leave you questioning who’s really to blame within the complexities of the youth justice system—while celebrating the survival instincts of young people.

This production is supported by the St George Foundation, Create NSW and Creative Australia.

Tickets & pricing

Adult $55, Concession $45
Groups $40 per student/additional teacher (1 free teacher per 10 students)

Duration

80 minutes (No interval plus 20-minute Q&A after the 1pm show)

Age Suitability

General Public: Ages 14+
Schools: Years 8-12 and Tertiary

Warnings

Coarse language (swearing), haze, loud noises, and references to First Nations peoples who are deceased.

Accessibility

Wheelchair Accessible

Accessibility

CURRICULUM LINKS

English, Drama

SCHOOLS RESOURCES

Teacher’s Resource Kit: Will be provided to schools following their booking.
Q&A: A 20-minute Q&A will follow the matinee performance.
Workshops: Will be available prior to the performance season. Please indicate your interest on your booking form.
Risk Assessment

Dates & Times

August 2026

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"...authentic, raw, brutal, and very moving."

Sydney Arts Guide

"A delicate story of challenge and possibility."

The Sydney Morning Herald

"Belanszky has written a raw and beautiful script that feels like it's brimming with the voices of young people."

Theatre Travels

Meet the Creative Team

Hannah Belanszky

Writer

Hannah Belanszky is a writer, actor and Yuwaalaraay woman based in Sydney. She is the recipient of the 2025 Balnaves Fellowship with the Belvoir St Theatre, which has long been recognised as one of the most prestigious playwriting awards in Australia. Hannah is currently working on a number of projects, including a 2025 commission for the Griffin Theatre Company, and the Australian Theatre for Young People (ATYP).

As Playwright for ATYP: Saplings (2024); for Queensland Theatre: don’t ask what the bird look like (2023); for QPAC/Playlab Theatre: Shadow in a Dress (2020); for Fringe World Perth & Brisbane Powerhouse: The Wives of Wolfgang.

Awards 2025 Belnaves Fellowship with Belvoir St Theatre; Her debut mainstage play don’t ask what the bird look like was shortlisted for the 2024 NSW Premier’s Literary Awards, a finalist for the 2019 Queensland Premier’s Drama Award, and the 2019 Lord Mayor’s Award for Best New Australian Work; Best Cabaret at Adelaide Fringe Weekly Award (2020) for The Wives of Wolfgang.

Abbie-Lee Lewis

Director

Abbie-lee Lewis is a Kalkadoon woman who grew up in Western Australia and is a WAPPA graduate. Abbie was the 2022 recipient of Belvoir St Theatre’s biannual Andrew Cameron Fellowship.

As Director for ATYP: Saplings (2024); Mooghalin Performing Arts: Cutter and Coot (2022); for Belvoir St Theatre 25A: An ox stand on my tongue.

As Assistant Director for ATYP: Charlie Pilgrim (or a Beginner’s Guide to Time Travel) (2018); for Bell Shakespeare: Hamlet (2020), Macbeth (2023); for Belvoir St Theatre: At What Cost? (2022), Wayside Bride and Lights Shining in Buckinghamshire (2022),The Weekend (2023).

Stage for Bell Shakespeare: The Players, Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Ensemble in Macbeth; for Sport for Jove Theatre Co: Martha in Fallen; for Black Swan Theatre Company: Emily in Our Town; for Blue Room Theatre: IDA in The Bleeding Tree; for Belvoir St Theatre: Counting and Cracking International tour; for Australian Dance theatre And Illbidjiri: Tracker.

Screen for Australian Broadcasting Corporation: Black Comedy.

Ryan Whitworth-Jones

Associate Director

Ryan Whitworth-Jones is a proud Wiradjuri man, award-winning director, producer, and arts leader. Holding a Master of Fine Arts in Directing from NIDA, Ryan has collaborated with prominent companies such as Sydney Theatre Company, Darlinghurst Theatre Company, Moogahlin Performing Arts, Opera Australia, Art Gallery of NSW and NAISDA Dance College.

As Director for Fidelio (Opera Australia development), Eden – Garage Noise Music Video (Triple J Unearthed), Healing: A new First Nations dance piece (Brand X), The Queen’s City of the South (Qtopia) Sage to Stage (Scene Theatre, Pier 4 Walsh Bay), Venus in Fur (Sydney Fringe Festival, Nominee Best in Theatre), Cloudstreet (Lane Cove Theatre Company, Best Director Nominee), Life Cycle (NAISDA), Cheats and Liars – Jawbreakers Music Video (Triple J/ABC Rage, 2024 Telly Award Winner), I’m Not Inspirational (PACT) and How to Win a Plebiscite (and Tennis) (Festival of Emerging Artists).

As Assistant Director for Cut Chilli (Old Fitz Theatre), What is wrong with us? (Yellamundie Festival), the Australian Premier of the Broadway Musical Natasha, Pierre and the Comet of 1812 (Darlinghurst Theatre Company) and The Job I took (Triple J).

As Dramaturg for works with Australian Plays Transform, The Visitors (Sydney Theatre Company), Yellamundie Festival and guest reader for the Patrick Playwright Award.

As a Producer Ryan has worked across art forms and institutions. His work has earned two Imagine Awards.

Angela Doherty

Co-Set and Costume Designer

As Set and Costume Designer for ATYP: Saplings (2024), Shack (2022); for New Ghosts Theatre Company: Iphigenia in Splott (2021).

As Costume Designer for Hayes Theatre Co: A Little Night Music (2023); for Red Line Productions: The Chairs (2023); for Seymour Centre: The Turn of the Screw (2023).

Qualifications National Institute of Dramatic Arts: Bachelor of Fine Arts (Design for Performance).

Awards Sydney Theatre Award Nomination for Best Independent Costume Design (2023).

Morgan Moroney

Co-Set and Lighting Designer

Morgan Moroney is an award-winning lighting and video designer working across theatre, opera, dance and installation. Growing up on Kaurna land, he currently lives and works primarily on Gadigal Land. He brings a distinct multidisciplinary approach to his practice, with a particular fascination for integrated-media live performance.

Morgan’s work includes August: Osage County (Belvoir & Black Swan), Song of First Desire and Nayika: A Dancing Girl (Belvoir), Dido & Aeneas (Pinchgut Opera), The Queen’s Nanny, Suddenly Last Summer, Clyde’s and Mr. Bailey’s Minder (Ensemble), The Barber of Seville (Opera Australia National Tour), Turn of the Screw (Hayes Theatre Co), Shitty (Belvoir 25A), Cleansed (Redline Productions), The Nutcracker (Australian Chamber Orchestra), Inferno (Australian Brandenburg Orchestra), Camp (Siren Theatre Co), Girls in Boys Cars and A Practical Guide to Self-Defence (NTofP), Anatomy of a Suicide (Sugary Rum), The Dry and The Wet (Circa Cairns), Saplings and Shack (ATYP) and Collapsible (essential workers), which he also co-directed.

A NIDA graduate, Morgan’s accolades include the 2020 APDG Emerging Designer for Live Performance Award (Ghosts), 2023 Sydney Theatre Award in Best Independent Lighting Design and NIDA X Storytelling Futures Grant (Collapsible), 2023 APDG Award in Lighting Design (Cleansed) and 2024 Michael Northen Award for emerging Lighting Designers, administered by the Association for Lighting Production and Design in the UK. Morgan’s Assistant and Associate Designer work with Nick Schlieper includes Dracula (Sydney Theatre Company), The Phantom of the Opera (Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour) and Maureen: Harbinger of Death (Soft Tread). Morgan is one half of independent theatre contingent essential workers.

Michael Weir

Composer and Sound Designer

I’m a Wiradjuri man who you will find in the studio recording and producing music, and creating visual art for my Indigenous streetwear label Sacred Era. As a hip-hop artist, I have won a Deadly Award, shared the stage with some of Australia’s most talented Indigenous artists, and opened for local and international acts, but I’m most proud of the work I’ve done in my community developing and implementing workshops for Indigenous youth.

As Composer and Sound Designer for ATYP: Saplings (2024); for Moogahlin Performing Arts: Yellamundie Festival (2023), Cutter & Coot (2022).