Can Society Ever Forgive? Brian Vriends Co-Writes Powerful New Australian Play 12 Angry Actors
Australian screen and stage favourite Brian Vriends (All Saints, Wentworth, Underbelly, Sydney Theatre Company) has joined forces with award-winning criminal defence lawyer, actor and producer Celine Khoury to create 12 Angry Actors, a gripping new Australian play that confronts one of society’s most challenging questions: when someone has served their sentence, have they truly paid their debt to society?
Developed over seven years, 12 Angry Actors thrusts audiences into an explosive rehearsal room where twelve performers become embroiled in a fierce debate over whether a fellow cast member with a criminal past deserves a second chance.
As rehearsals unravel, so too do the lives of those on stage. Personal histories, hidden prejudices and long-buried trauma collide, forcing each character and, ultimately, the audience to confront their own beliefs about justice, redemption and forgiveness. Rather than offering easy answers, 12 Angry Actors asks where punishment ends, whether rehabilitation is truly possible, and if society is ever willing to forgive.
For Brian Vriends, the script’s emotional complexity was impossible to ignore.
“What drew me to 12 Angry Actors is that it refuses to offer simple answers. It asks audiences to wrestle with difficult questions about justice, redemption and whether we really believe people deserve a second chance. Those are conversations worth having. Twelve Angry Actors is one of those rare stories that stays with you long after it’s over. I’m incredibly excited to help bring this powerful, thought-provoking story to the stage and can’t wait for audiences to experience it.”
Co-writer and producer Celine Khoury says the production is designed to challenge audiences rather than provide easy answers.
“As a criminal defence lawyer, I’ve spent my career representing people at the worst moments of their lives. This play isn’t about telling audiences what to think. It’s about asking whether we genuinely believe people can change, or whether redemption is something we only support in theory.”
The production features one of Melbourne’s strongest independent theatre ensembles, including Ursula Searle (Fun Home, Melbourne Theatre Company; Apple Cider Vinegar, Netflix; Bluey’s Big Play; Gabby’s Dollhouse Live!), Alexander Given (The Airport Chaplain, SBS), Celine Khoury (Evil Orders, Amazon Prime; Love With No Remorse; An Evening with Kahlil Gibran), Claire Warrillow (The Sunshine Club; And Then There Were None; Holy Water: Crown of Thorns), Monty Burgess (Last Seen, Apple TV+; Utopia, ABC; Lee Nelson’s Well Funny People, BBC), Michael Todorovic (Meurants Lane, La Mama; Never Forgotten), Faouzi Daghistani (more than 180 film, television, commercial and theatre productions), Joanna Karanikolopoulos (Yes, Prime Minister; Magnus Ex), Esther B Ebony (Articulate; Other Gods; Vinegar Tom) and Jacob Saunders (Soyboy; Cowboys Doing Laundry; 3AW and the Nine Network).
Following the success of Son of Byblos, Love With No Remorse and An Evening with Kahlil Gibran, 12 Angry Actors is Asamina Theatre Company’s most ambitious original production to date, commencing 20th August, 2026. Combining the tension of a courtroom drama with the intimacy of backstage theatre, this compelling new Australian work promises to spark conversation long after the curtain falls.
SEASON DETAILS:
12 Angry Actors
Meat Market Stables – 2 Wreckyn St, North Melbourne
20th – 30th August 2026
Early Bird tickets are on sale now until 1 August 2026.
Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/12-angry-actors-tickets-1991553435938
Tickets: $40 per ticket.
Website: www.asaminatheatre.com
