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Three white men standing on a boat facing the camera in a triangle, blue sky behind
WA Maritime Museum

Taking Liberty

Dates

This event has now finished. Please visit Tours & events to see what’s on at the Museum.

Saturday 16 September - Sunday 1 October | Various times

See performance dates and times below. 

Dates
This event has now finished. Please visit Tours & events to see what’s on at the Museum.
Saturday 16 September 2023 | 2pm
- 3.30pm
Sunday 17 September 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Monday 18 September 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Tuesday 19 September 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Wednesday 20 September 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Thursday 21 September 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Friday 22 September 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Saturday 23 September 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Sunday 24 September 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Monday 25 September 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Tuesday 26 September 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Wednesday 27 September 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Thursday 28 September 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Friday 29 September 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Saturday 30 September 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Sunday 1 October 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Tuesday 19 September 2023 | 7pm - 8.30pm
Wednesday 20 September 2023 | 7pm - 8.30pm
Thursday 21 September 2023 | 11am - 12.30pm
Thursday 21 September 2023 | 7pm - 8.30pm
Friday 22 September 2023 | 7pm - 8.30pm
Saturday 23 September 2023 | 2pm - 3.30pm
Saturday 23 September 2023 | 7pm - 8.30pm
Sunday 24 September 2023 | 11am - 12.30pm
Sunday 1 October 2023 | 2pm - 4pm
Ages
Recommended age 10 years and over.
Cost

Standard | $45
Concession | $40
Junior | $40
Book 6 tickets and receive 15% off.

Friend Members receive 15% off ticket pricing for this event.

Your ticket to this event also gives you free access to the WA Maritime Museum and the exhibition, Australia II: 40 Years On
For 7pm performances, the exhibition will be open from 5.30pm – 7pm; theatre doors open at 6.30pm.

Duration

80 mins (no interval)
Doors open 30 minutes prior to the performance.

Age

10+

Content warning

Mild coarse language

Accessibility

This event is wheelchair accessible.  If you need wheelchair access or have any questions about access, please get in touch with us via reception@museum.wa.gov.au or 1300 134 081.

Site access information

WA Maritime Museum is mostly accessible, excluding tours aboard the HMAS Ovens. Call 1300 134 081 for assistance. More about accessibility and amenities >

Book now
This event has now finished. Please visit Tours & events to see what’s on at the Museum.

The WA Museum in collaboration with THEATRE 180 presents one of the greatest moments in Australian sporting history – the defeat of Liberty by Australia II in the 1983 America’s Cup.

In an epic, against-the-odds finish to a best-of-seven race, Skipper John Bertrand led his crew to turn the tide from a 3-1 deficit in race five and claim victory in a nail-biting decider, one of the biggest comebacks in sporting history.

Combining the excitement of live theatre against a cinematic backdrop, Taking Liberty by Ingle Knight celebrates the moment in time which defined a nation and gave international prominence to our cultural identity and fighting spirit, ending America’s 132-year dominance of the sport in what became known as the Race of the Century.

A story of enormous national significance: one of grit, perseverance, technological innovations and the athleticism of those who changed the course of history.


Performance dates

Saturday 16 September | 2pm | PREVIEW

Tuesday 19 September | 7pm | PREVIEW

Wednesday 20 September | 7pm | OPENING NIGHT

Thursday 21 September | 11am & 7pm


Friday 22 September | 7pm

Saturday 23 September | 2pm & 7pm

Sunday 24 September | 11am

Wednesday 27 September | 11am & 7pm


Thursday 28 September | 7pm

Friday 29 September | 11am & 7pm


Saturday 30 September | 2pm & 7pm

Sunday 1 October | 2pm

 

Important information

  • Foyer doors open one hour prior to the performance, with theatre doors opening 30 minutes prior to the performance. 
  • Seating is unreserved on a first come first served basis unless accessibility requirements are advised.
  • The performance duration is 80 minutes with no interval.
  • If you need wheelchair access or have any questions about access, please get in touch with us via reception@museum.wa.gov.au or 1300 134 081.
  • The performance is recommended for ages 10 and older. 
  • Your ticket to this event also gives you free access to the WA Maritime Museum and the exhibition, Australia II: 40 Years On

    For 7pm performances, the exhibition will be open from 5.30pm – 7pm; theatre doors open at 6.30pm.

Special offer

Join one of our 11am and 2pm performances and show your ticket at our on-site cafe to receive:

  • Freshly baked muffin and small tea/coffee $7.90
  • Toasted sandwich (ham and cheese or vegetarian) and chips $9.90
  • Toasted chicken wrap and small tea/ coffee $12.90
Taking Liberty logo with yellow and green underline stripes

 

“THEATRE 180 is proud to continue our 31-year history of telling Western Australian stories with this production. Taking Liberty, as the title promises, highlights the tenacity, audacity and larrikin belief in resounding success which characterised the 1983 campaign to wrest America’s Cup from the bolt holes of the New York Yacht Club, where it had sat firmly for 132 years.

Filled with colourful characters, drama and laughs aplenty, this play takes us back to the moment in time when Western Australia was put on the world map and the stage was set for the port city of Fremantle, where Australia II and her famous winged-keel now proudly hangs in our WA Maritime Museum, to shine.” 



Stuart Halusz, Artistic Director THEATRE 180

Luke Hewitt, Joel Jackson and Kazimir Sas headshots

 

Cast and creatives

West Australian cast favourites: Luke Hewitt, Joel Jackson & Kazimir Sas

Writer: Ingle Knight

Director: Stuart Halusz

Sound Designer: Ben Collins

Visual Design: Gneiss Design

Visual Production: Sunburnt Films

Costume Designers: Neil Sheriff and Ingrid Zurzolo

Assistant Sound Designer: Noah Ivulich

Theme Song Composer: Craig Skelton


Story background

In 1983 history was made. The New York Yacht Club had retained the America’s Cup for the last 132 years, the longest winning streak in sporting history in the oldest international sporting competition in the world. In an epic, against-the-odds finish to a best-of-seven race, Skipper John Bertrand led his crew to turn the tide from a 3-1 deficit in race five and claim victory in a nail-biting decider, one of the biggest comebacks in sporting history.

Businessman and financier Alan Bond’s fourth attempt at success was aided by the brilliance of Ben Lexcen’s now-famous but at the time secretly held winged keel design, the business savvy of Warren Jones, the experience and determined strategy of skipper John Bertrand, and the commitment and hard work of her crew. Australia II nestled itself firmly in the hearts and minds of all Australians in a series of races that defined a nation and gave international prominence to our cultural identity and fighting spirit, and in the process changed the face of Fremantle, Western Australia, overnight.

Back home, the nation came to a standstill. We woke early in the morning to watch the races live on TV, we scoured newspapers for blow-by-blow reports on the progress of the challenge, we embraced the now iconic ‘Boxing Kangaroo’ as a symbol of patriotic pride and we listened to Men at Work’s Down Under on repeat. Images of then-Prime Minister Bob Hawke in his Australia jacket and now-famous ‘boss who sacks his worker’ quote plastered our screens and newspapers.

It is a story of enormous national significance and one to be celebrated, for those of us who were there and can remember the excitement and galvanising pride at the time, and for those who may be discovering it for the first time and who can learn from the grit, perseverance, technological innovations and athleticism of those who changed the course of history.


Image: Stewart Thorpe Photography

WA Museum and Theatre 180 company logos side by side

Related exhibitions

Overhead shot of a yacht with white, green and yellow colours sail in the water
Australia II 40 Years On

Australia II: 40 Years On

Celebrate the 40th anniversary of Australia II making history by winning the America’s Cup; the oldest sporting trophy in the world.

Details

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