Deborah Cheetham Fraillon
A career-spanning conversation with an Australian arts trailblazer
Event details
| Date | Time |
|---|---|
| Sunday, 8 March 2026 | 6pm |
| Ticket | Price |
|---|---|
| Unreserved Seating | $35 |
$8.95 booking fee applies per transaction
Prices correct at the time of publication and subject to change without notice. Exact prices will be displayed with seat selection.
The only authorised ticket agency for this event is Sydney Opera House. For more information about Authorised Agencies, see the frequently asked questions below.
Sydney Opera House Insiders pre-sale
9am, Tuesday 13 January 2026
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What’s On e-newsletter pre-sale
9am, Wednesday 14 January 2026
General Public tickets on-sale
9am, Thursday 15 January 2026
Event duration is a guide only and may be subject to change.
Children aged 15 years and under must be accompanied at all times.
The Opera House is committed to the safety and wellbeing of children that visit or engage with us. Read our Child Safety Policy.
Deborah Cheetham FraillonYorta Yorta by birth. Stolen Generation by government policy. Soprano by diligence. Composer by necessity. And lesbian by practice.
all about the speakers
Deborah Cheetham Fraillon (she/her)
Deborah Cheetham Fraillon AO (Yorta Yorta/Yuin) is a soprano, composer and human rights advocate and a leader in First Nations art music. She is the founder and artistic director of Short Black Opera and Director of the Dhungala Children’s Choir.
Her major works include Australia’s first Indigenous operas Pecan Summer and Parrwang Lifts the Sky and the war requiem Eumeralla. She is an Officer of the Order of Australia, a Don Banks Music Award recipient and currently holds senior creative and academic roles with the MSO and the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.
Santilla Chingaipe (she/her)
Moderator
Santilla Chingaipe is a filmmaker, historian and writer whose work explores settler colonialism, slavery and post-colonial migration in Australia. Her first book, Black Convicts: How Slavery Shaped Australia (2024), was shortlisted for The Stella Prize and longlisted for the Cundill History Prize. She is a regular contributor to The Saturday Paper and a columnist for The Monthly. Santilla is based in Melbourne.
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Attending this event
Venue information
Our foyers will be open 90 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and two hours pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. Refreshments will be available for purchase from our theatre bars.
All Sydney Opera House foyers are pram accessible, with lifts to the main and western foyers. The public lift to all foyers is accessible from the corridor near the escalators on the Lower Concourse and also in the Western Foyer via the corridor on the Ground Level (at the top of the escalators). Pram parking will be available outside the theatres in the Western Foyer.
Getting here
The Sydney Opera House Car Park, operated by Wilson Parking, is open and available to use. Wilson Parking offer discounted parking if you book ahead. Please see the Wilson Parking website for details.
Please check the Transport NSW website for the latest advice and information on travel. You can catch public transport (bus, train, ferry) to Circular Quay and enjoy a 7-10 minute walk to the Opera House.
Frequently asked questions
Ticket purchases and collection at our Box Office is discouraged and eTicket or postal delivery methods should be used, wherever possible. However, if you are collecting your tickets from the Box Office, we recommend doing this at least 60 minutes before the event starts. If you have already received your tickets, the venue doors will be open 45 minutes pre-show for Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and 30 minutes pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. Please take your seats as soon as you arrive.
If you are late, we will seat you as soon as we can and, where possible, in your allocated seat. However, to reduce movement in the venue as well as minimise disruption to the performance and other patrons, ticketholders may be seated in an allocated latecomer’s seat. Please be aware that some events have lock-out periods. In these cases, latecomers will be admitted at a suitable break in the performance. On occasions, this may not be until the interval, or at all where there is no interval.
Details of our right to refuse admission can be found in our General Terms and Conditions for Tickets and Events.
In accordance with our venue security procedures, Opera House security will be scanning and checking bags under the Monumental Stairs, prior to entering the building. Bags will be scanned by an x-ray machine, and staff will wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) when handling your belongings, such as gloves. Cloaking facilities will be open 60 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and 60 minutes pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. However it is strongly encouraged that you travel lightly to minimise contact and queuing. Any bags larger than an A4 piece of paper will need to be checked into the Cloak Room.
The authorised agency for this event is the Sydney Opera House.
Only tickets purchased by authorised agencies should be considered reliable. If you purchase tickets from a non-authorised agency such as Ticketmaster Resale, Viagogo, Ticketbis, eBay, Gumtree, Tickets Australia or any other unauthorised seller, you risk that these tickets are fake, void or have previously been cancelled. Resale restriction applies. For more details, please refer to our General Terms and Conditions for Tickets and Attendance at Events.
Please contact Box Office on +61 2 9250 7777 as soon as possible to advise if you can no longer attend.
Foyers will be open 90 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and two hours pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. Refreshments will be available for purchase from our theatre bars.
The venue doors will be open 45 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and 30 minutes pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances.
Please bring a credit or debit card for any on site purchases to enable contactless payment. You’re welcome to bring your own water bottle but no other food and drinks are permitted inside our venues.
The health, safety and wellbeing of everyone at the Sydney Opera House is our top priority. In line with this commitment, the Opera House became a smoke-free site in January 2022. Read our Smoke-free Environment Policy.
Location and access
Yallamundi Rooms
The access to Yallamundi Rooms is via the Northern Broadwalk, so it’s simple to get to from either side of the Opera House. Guests can walk around the outside of the House, or if they are less mobile, there is a Buggy Service available at no additional cost. If you need to make use of it, please discuss this with our Functions Team when you book the venue.