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CAROL is a stage play, not a documentary. Written by Andrea Gibbs and presented by Black Swan State Theatre Company, it follows a 60-year-old woman who has spent decades organising Christmas for other people and now has to hold on to that tradition while her own life comes apart. The run took place at Heath Ledger Theatre in Perth from 22 November to 14 December 2025, and Black Swan’s production page lists it as a past show. If you are reading this later, treat the details below as a record of that season, not a current booking.
What CAROL is
CAROL is a 90-minute theatre work with no interval. It was staged by Black Swan State Theatre Company, a Western Australian company, and written by Andrea Gibbs. The production is set in a distinctly Western Australian Christmas, with hot weather rather than snow, and combines comedy, emotional vulnerability and live music. It is a dramatic piece about one character and the people and places around her, so viewers expecting the factual approach of a documentary should know that the material is fictional and performed.
The story
Black Swan’s official synopsis describes Carol as a 60-year-old woman born on Christmas Day. For decades she has organised Christmas for others. In the year of the play, hardship disrupts her life. She feels wind through her car windows, relies on late-night talkback radio for company, and receives council move-on notices. She still refuses to give up on Christmas.
The company frames the work as both funny and heartbreaking, with themes of hope, courage, resilience and seasonal spirit. The central idea is a woman at risk of being overlooked, and the question of how someone keeps going when social and personal stability is slipping away.
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| Role | Name |
|---|---|
| Producer | Black Swan State Theatre Company |
| Writer | Andrea Gibbs |
| Director | Adam Mitchell |
| Title role (Carol) | Sally-Anne Upton |
| Musical director and composer | Jackson Harper Griggs |
A PerthNow feature reports that original music was performed live at every performance. Black Swan’s 20 October 2025 announcement named Sally-Anne Upton as the lead performer, and the company’s 11 November 2025 cast article confirmed the creative credits above.
Run, venue and practical details
| Detail | What the sources establish |
|---|---|
| Venue | Heath Ledger Theatre, Perth |
| Dates | 22 November to 14 December 2025 |
| Status | Listed as a past production on Black Swan’s production page |
| Runtime | 1 hour 30 minutes, no interval |
| Content information | Coarse language and theatrical haze |
| Age suitability | Not stated. No age recommendation appears in the company’s materials. |
| Accessibility | Black Swan identifies the venue as wheelchair accessible and links to accessible-show and venue information on its page |
| Historical ticket prices | $30 to $119 across seat, performance and concession categories, as listed by Black Swan for 2025. Prices were subject to demand-based change and are not current. |
The company’s listed price range covers all categories together. The published range does not break down which seats fall into which tier, so check the company’s own page for any future season.
Rank #2
- Young Women's Edition Book/Online Audio
- Pages: 160
- Instrumentation: Vocal
What the promotional statements say
A sponsored PerthNow feature by content producer Olivia Senior, produced with Black Swan, contains enthusiastic language about the show. Its positive claims come from the company and from Gibbs, not from independent reviewers or audience surveys. Gibbs is quoted describing the play this way:
“It’s our Christmas on stage: funny, warm, a bit chaotic, and painfully relatable in all the best ways.”
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“A quiet reminder that everyone’s carrying something, everyone’s doing their best.”
Rank #3
- 33 Great Songs from Musicals
- Includes Plot Notes for Each Song
- Indispensable for Teaching Young Singers
- Standard Notation
- 160 Pages
And on why the central character matters to her:
“And if it makes someone look at a woman like Carol, someone older, easy to miss, and go, ‘Yeah, I see you,’ then that’s the part that matters to me.”
Black Swan’s production page supports the premise and emotional framing in the same terms, but the feature remains marketing copy, and it should be read that way. No attendance figures, audience ratings or box-office results were published in the material reviewed.
Rank #4
- Volume 1 Book/Online Audio
- Pages: 122
- Instrumentation: Voice
- Instrumentation: Piano Accompaniment
Who the show suits
The company’s material gives coarse language and theatrical haze as content information but states no age recommendation. The play’s subject, an older woman facing housing and financial strain, is adult in tone, but it is not described as unsuitable for younger viewers. Parents deciding whether to bring children should contact Black Swan directly for guidance.
If the play returns
No future run has been announced in the material reviewed. If one is announced, these are the points to confirm before buying:
Best Value
- Check the venue, dates and performance times on Black Swan’s own site rather than relying on this 2025 listing.
- Confirm current prices, since the company’s 2025 listing states that demand-based pricing could change them.
- Review the accessibility information for the specific venue and session you plan to attend.
- Read the content information for that season, since the language and haze note may differ from 2025.
Those details are the most useful ones to verify, because a revived production could differ from the 2025 staging in cast, runtime or pricing.
Quick Recap
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