Seeking Sperm
The drought Australia isn’t talking about enough: sperm
Event details
| Date | Time |
|---|---|
| Sunday, 8 March 2026 | 10am |
| 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
Become a Sydney Opera House Insider to receive exclusive pre-sale access
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.
Melanie SawardAfter I’d paid to be a patient, they handed me a donor list with about 10 people on it... I thought my choice would be easy because I’ll just pick whoever the Indigenous donors are and choose from them — but there weren’t any.
All about the speakers
Alisha Burns (she/her)
Alisha Burns is a leading voice in modern motherhood, known for reshaping the conversation around choice, family and women’s independence.
After years of infertility and loss, Alisha became a solo mum by choice just before her 40th birthday — a decision that changed her life and sparked a movement. She is the founder of Solo Mum Society, one of Australia’s most visible and influential communities for women choosing to become mothers on their own terms, and the creator and host of the widely followed No Need for Prince Charming podcast. Through her work, Alisha has supported thousands of women to move from fear and uncertainty into confidence, clarity and connection — while building strong villages around themselves and their children.
Alisha is also the author of My Perfect Family, a children’s book series helping families and educators talk about donor conception and diverse family structures with warmth and confidence.
Maeve Marsden (she/her)
Maeve Marsden is a writer, theatremaker and the Creative Director of Varuna, the National Writers’ House, and the Blue Mountains Writers’ Festival. She is best known for producing Queerstories, a national storytelling project that has brought more than 500 LGBTQIA+ writers to stages around the country over the past ten years.
Melanie Saward (she/her)
Dr Melanie Saward is a proud Bigambul and Wakka Wakka woman, and a writer, editor and academic. She lectures in the University of Queensland’s School of Communication and Arts and is the newly appointed Director of the Writing, Editing and Publishing master’s program. Her research explores Indigeneity in romantic comedy fiction, focusing on diversity, intersectionality and the Australian publishing industry. Melanie is the author of Burn and Love Unleashed, and co-author (with Brooke Blurton) of A Good Kind of Trouble, with its sequel Making Trouble due in April 2026.
Edwina Storie (she/her)
Moderator
Edwina Storie is a journalist and the lead for The Feed, SBS’s youth media brand. She has long reported on gender, sexuality and inequality. She co-created the Kennedy Award-nominated Feed Debate, and her short documentary Phyllis & Francesca was screened at several international film festivals, including Palm Springs ShortFest.
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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.