Our mission is to make incredible theatre.

A national company based in Adelaide, Windmill Theatre Co has established a global reputation as a leading producer of theatrical work for children, teenagers and families.

We engage excellent artists to create theatre inspired by the vibrancy, modern sophistication and inventiveness of young people, and showcase these works to an ever-increasing national and international audience.

Alongside Windmill Theatre Co, our screen producing arm Windmill Pictures creates and produces richly-imagined film and television works for young people and families that bring our theatrical DNA to the screen.

Each year we deliver a season of performances in South Australia, tour extensively around the country and present our unique works across the world. Our productions have won many prestigious awards across stage and screen including Helpmann, Greenroom, AACTA and Australian Production Design Guild to name just a few.

"The most influential children's theatre company in the country"

The Australian

1,800,000

worldwide audience

(and counting…)

65
Works
37
Commissions
300
Cities
30
Countries
3091
Performances

Our all-original work is made in South Australia, from scratch. We commission writers, directors, designers and performers to create shows over a rigorous creative development period. We premiere the work in our home town of Adelaide before touring it to audiences in regional towns and major cities around the country and across the world.

"One of the smartest companies in the Australian theatre scene; cheeky, youthful, and smart all at the same time"

Aussie Theatre

Recent highlights

We export to the world…

Our productions undertake extensive national touring and have been performed at landmark Australian venues including the Adelaide Festival Centre, Sydney Opera House, Sydney Theatre Company, Queensland Performing Arts Centre, Belvoir Theatre and the Arts Centre Melbourne.

Windmill is also one of Australia’s most successful international exporters of arts and culture, having established demand for our touring productions in key markets including the United States, Canada, China and the United Kingdom.

We regularly feature at leading festivals around the world, from Adelaide’s DreamBIG and Perth’s Awesome Festival, to the Edinburgh International Children’s Festival and Vancouver International Children’s Festival, plus many more in between.

"Windmill is testament to what financial and political support for children's theatre can achieve, the company having more than repaid the investment with a string of Helpmann awards, critically acclaimed collaborations with leading companies, and even a Broadway debut"

Sydney Morning Herald

…and we’ve won
a swag of awards.

We have enjoyed a remarkable period of growth and success in recent years, marked by a string of accolades including eight national Helpmann Awards, three Business SA Export Awards, seven South Australian Ruby Awards, and the 2011 Sidney Myer Performing Arts Group Award for Excellence – the first ever awarded to a theatre company that makes work for young people.

2023

Ruby Award | Winner
Outstanding Work or Event Outside a Festival: Beep and Mort
2023

Australian Podcast Award | Winner
Best Family Podcast: Sun Runners
2019

Critics’ Awards for Theatre in Scotland | Winner
Best Design: Shona Reppe, Ailsa Paterson, Selene Cochrane and Chris Edser, Baba Yaga
2019

Ruby Award | Winner
Best Work or Project for Young People: Baba Yaga
2019

Australian Teachers of Media ATOM | Winner
Best Educational/Training Video or Website (Primary/Secondary): Girl Asleep Digital Education Package
2018

Ruby Award | Winner
Best Work or Event Outside a Festival: Beep
2017

Adelaide Theatre Guild Curtain Call Award | Winner
Best Show – Musical/Opera: Rumpelstiltskin
2017

Helpmann Award | Winner
Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Play: Amber McMahon
2017

Australia Council Theatre Award | Winner
Rosemary Myers
2016

Ruby Award | Winner
Arts Innovation and Enterprise: Girl Asleep
2016

Ruby Award | Winner
Best Work: Girl Asleep
2016

AACTA Award | Winner
Jonathon Oxlade, Best Costume Design: Girl Asleep
2016

Cinefest OZ | Winner
$100,000 Film Prize: Girl Asleep
2016

Seattle Film Festival | Winner
Grand Jury Prize and Futurewave Award: Girl Asleep

"South Australia's Windmill Theatre Company are masters of their trade"

The West Australian

Our artists are the backbone of the company’s creative practice.

We assemble incredible artistic teams, attracting some of the best talent in Australia. Our unique development model brings together groups of key collaborators who feed into the evolution of the work, and shape productions from their early stages.

Our artists are continually refining and extending their creative dialogues and take great joy in exploring the boundaries of the art form to create imaginative, relevant and unique work. The success of the company is largely a reflection of this collaborative approach.

We appoint over 90 theatre artist engagements every year across our theatre-making and touring activities.

"Windmill employs a highly collaborative, all-hands-on-deck model: there’s a palpable increment of belief and commitment that’s communicated through everyone involved"

Crikey Daily Review

Kaye Weeks
Executive Director

Clare Watson
Artistic Director, Windmill Theatre Co

Rosemary Myers
Artistic Director, Windmill Pictures

A dynamic leadership team and board drives a shared vision.

Empowered by a dynamic culture and fuelled by shared ownership of our vision, the Windmill team is lean and highly skilled. Each arm of our company (theatre and screen) is led by an Artistic Director, with one Executive Director overseeing both companies, reporting to a committed and experienced Board.

"It’s risky stuff, made all the more so by the ingenious use of technology on an individual level... a marvel."

The Advertiser on Hans and Gret

Our repertoire.

We create work diverse in form and scale but unified by our own lateral, inventive and obsessive exploration of the live moment. We cater to four distinct audience groups. From small intimate works to large-scale family productions.

Early Childhood

Ages Under 5

Windmill is a world leader in theatre for the under-five age group. Our shows are specially crafted to provide young children with intimate and non-threatening first theatrical experiences.

Children

Ages 5+

Windmill offers high-quality performances for this age group by telling great stories in inventive and surprising ways.

Teens

Ages 13+

Considered a largely under-catered for audience demographic, Windmill connects with teens through coming-of-age tales and rapid-fire storytelling infused with pop culture references.

Families

Ages 8-108

Windmill offers families a quality theatre experience and fun night out for the whole family, with plenty to talk about on the way home.

We take our stories beyond the stage.

We also inhabit new media spaces and constantly seek innovative new ways to connect artists and audiences. In 2016 we made our first feature film for teenage audiences, Girl Asleep and in 2022 we premiered the first series of our first television series with ABC Kids, Beep and Mort. The series was fast-tracked into a second which premiered in 2023 and has gone onto receive several awards and suite of international sales.

114 Cities
12 Awards
25 Territories
1.1M+ YouTube
Trailer Views

Meet our screen arm…

Initiated in 2017, Windmill Pictures produces unique, inventive and richly-imagined screen works for young people and families.

Operating alongside Windmill Theatre Co, Windmill Pictures develops screen projects from the company’s theatrical repertoire and beyond.

"The most complex and original comedy I've seen this year... an explosive film and a brilliant showcase for its talented cast"

Scenestr

Imagination drives our education and access programs too.

121,000+ attendance by South Australian students to a dedicated school performance

20,000+ young people have seen a performance as part of our free seats initiative

Alongside our productions we have a strong commitment to nurturing deeper engagement with art as well as enhanced creative literacy and appreciation in the broader community. In conjunction with all our works we deliver an extensive arts interaction program and includes:

Our Free Seats access program where up to 15% of tickets are free each year to community groups and schools deemed socio-economically and geographically disadvantaged according to the South Australian Department of Education’s Index of Disadvantage.
Free arts education workshops for students and families providing pre and post-performance experiences to creatively explore themes and ideas in our work. The workshops are structured to include all ages across generations and are inclusive of gender and participants with disabilities.

Bespoke major education projects that bring students and leading creatives together to drive imaginative outcomes driven by the themes of each new production – from installations, to film making projects and everything in between.
Best practice educational resource kits for teachers that are linked to the Australian Curriculum, and include notes, briefings and backstage insights, that are aligned to themes and ideas from the productions.
Professional learning program for educators that provides access to specially curated learning sessions with Windmill artists to help teachers develop new skills, networks and theatre-specific knowledge for advanced classroom learning.

And we love innovative digital learning.

We create interactive experiences that provide students, teachers and general fans with unique opportunities to engage in the behind-the-scenes making of our work. These platforms are immersive, imaginative and dynamic places for young people to experience Windmill projects on a deeper level.

The company also creates specialist digital learning tools for teachers that provide in-depth discussion of the themes and characters of each project.