One of Australia’s most acclaimed contemporary theatre productions is returning to Melbourne this June, with Back to Back Theatre set to stage a strictly limited season of Ganesh Versus the Third Reich at the Union Theatre in Parkville.
Presented by University of Melbourne Arts and Culture (UMAC), the exclusive return marks the first Australian staging of the landmark work in more than a decade ahead of the production’s appearance at Paris’ Festival d’Automne in 2026.
Originally premiering at the Melbourne International Arts Festival in 2011, Ganesh Versus the Third Reich went on to tour more than 34 cities worldwide and became one of the country’s most internationally celebrated theatre works.
Along the way it collected major honours including a Helpmann Award for Best Play, an Edinburgh International Festival Herald Angel Critics Award, three Green Room Awards and The Age Critics’ Award at Melbourne Festival.
The return also follows a major period of international recognition for Geelong-based company Back to Back Theatre. In 2024, the ensemble became the first Australian theatre company to receive the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement in Theatre at the Venice Biennale, while in 2022 they were awarded the prestigious International Ibsen Award.
Ganesh Versus the Third Reich begins with the elephant-headed Hindu god Ganesh travelling through Nazi Germany to reclaim the Swastika, originally an ancient spiritual symbol. As the story unfolds, a second narrative emerges, with the actors themselves questioning authorship, ethics and cultural appropriation in the process of telling the story.
The result is a layered and deeply human work that examines representation, responsibility and hope through a theatrical form that constantly reveals itself to the audience.
Back to Back Theatre Artistic Director Bruce Gladwin said the production still resonates strongly today.
“Returning Ganesh Versus the Third Reich to Melbourne after this time feels significant. At its core it’s a piece about agency, about authorship, authority, and representation and it continues to hold us to those questions.”
UMAC Director of Performing Arts Virginia Lovett described the production as a landmark Australian work that helped establish Back to Back Theatre as a major cultural export on the world stage.
Ganesh Versus the Third Reich will play at the Union Theatre, Parkville from 12 to 21 June 2026. Tickets are on sale now via https://www.umac.melbourne/
