The Jungle and The Sea

From the team behind the multi-award-winning Counting and Cracking — co-writers and co-directors S. Shakthidharan and Eamon Flack — comes an epic about one Sri Lankan Tamil family living through the country's decades-long civil war. When an unexpected act of destruction splits her family apart, Gowrie takes a radical vow of defiance: she blindfolds herself, refusing to see the world again until her loved ones are reunited.

Built out of real-life testimonies from the war and woven through with the Mahabharata and the Greek myth of Antigone, the production features live Carnatic music and a cast including Bharatanatyam dancer Anandavalli with Counting and Cracking alumni Prakash Belawadi, Nadie Kammallaweera, Shiv Palekar, Dushan Philips and Rajan Velu, alongside Emma Harvie and Kalieaswari Srinivasan. Musicians are Hari Sivanesan and Aswin Selvanathan, with a score by composer Arjunan Puveendran and set and costume design by Dale Ferguson.

The Canberra season plays The Playhouse at Canberra Theatre Centre: Thursday 6 August 7pm (preview), Friday 7 August 7pm (opening night), then Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 August at 1pm and 7pm. Running time is approximately 2 hours 50 minutes including two intervals. Suitable for ages 15+ or with parental discretion; the show contains haze, loud sound effects, and themes of war, trauma and the sounds of artillery.

Preview night (Thu 6 Aug): Platinum $95, Premium $85, Premium Concession $79, Premium Under 35 $35, groups of 4+ from $69 per person. Friday to Sunday: Platinum $105, Premium $95, Premium Concession $89, Premium Under 35 $35, groups of 4+ from $79 per person. A transaction fee applies and concessions (pension, full-time student, health care card) must be shown at the box office. Tickets are only released 72 hours before your performance. A Belvoir St Theatre production co-produced with Kurinji and Lingalayam Dance Company, presented by Canberra Theatre Centre. Bookings (02) 6275 2700.