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From Andrea James (Sunshine Super Girl) comes The Black Woman of Gippsland – a story of Victoria’s dark past that is in dire need of revisiting, told as a thrilling modern mystery that unfolds with beauty, tragedy and rebellion.
Jacinta’s family is driving her up the wall and her academic career is floundering, but amongst the books, something doesn’t feel right about the story history tells. The myths and half-truths that surround the figure of a ‘white woman’ said to have lived among the Gunaikurnai people of Gippsland in the 1840s are so abundant it seems the reality is out of reach. But Jacinta is determined to unearth the truth for herself and her Gunaikurnai family no matter the twists and turns the journey might take her on.
Andrea James is a Yorta Yorta/Gunaikurnai theatremaker and graduate of VCA. Her plays include Big Name No Blankets (co-written with Sammy and Anyupa Butcher), Yanagai! Yanagai! (premiered at Playbox in 2004 and toured to the UK), and with Cath Ryan, Dogged (Griffin Theatre Company). Her play Sunshine Super Girl premiered at Griffith Regional Theatre in 2020, then 2021 Sydney Festival before an extensive national tour. Andrea is currently Associate Artistic Director at Griffin Theatre Company where she directed Ghosting the Party by Melissa Bubnic in 2022, Jailbaby by Suzie Miller in 2023 and swim by Ellen Van Neerven in 2024. Previous positions include Artistic Director of Melbourne Workers Theatre (2001-2008), Aboriginal Arts Development Officer at Blacktown Arts Centre (2010-2012) and Aboriginal Producer at Carriageworks (2012-2016). Andrea was recently awarded the Mona Brand Award for Women Stage and Screen Writers. She was a recipient of British Council’s Accelerate Program for Aboriginal Art Leaders and was awarded a Creative Australia National Theatre Award in 2024.
