Jacinda Ardern & Anna Funder The Art of Disagreement
Can we disagree without becoming divided?
Event details
| Date | Time |
|---|---|
| Sunday, 1 November 2026 | 2:00pm |
| Ticket | Price |
|---|---|
| Standard | $45 |
| Full-time Student* | $40 |
$8.95 booking fee applies per transaction
*Australian Student card holders.
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.
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For those requiring assistance, wheelchair or companion seating, accessible seating locations are available. Bookings can be made by calling the Box Office on 1300 764 849 or by email.
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.
Dame Jacinda ArdernWe are the richer for our difference and the poorer for our division
Anna Funder, for the Rethinking Civil Society projectA civilised society is one in which people are not afraid. They are not afraid that if they speak the truth, or their mind, they will get the sack
Meet the speakers
Jacinda Ardern was elected prime minister of New Zealand in 2017 at the age of thirty-seven and became the country’s youngest prime minister in more than 150 years.
In 2018, she gave birth to her daughter, Neve, and became the first leader of a country in thirty years to give birth while in office.
In 2023, she was awarded the accolade Dame Grand Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit. She now spends her time writing, speaking, learning and being a mum.
Anna Funder is Professor of Practice in Creative Writing at the University of Sydney, appointed in 2026 to strengthen the University’s leadership in writing and literature, public discourse and civic engagement.
Anna is the author of the multi-award-winning, international bestsellers Stasiland, All That I Am and Wifedom: Mrs Orwell’s Invisible Life, which have been published in over 20 languages. In 2004, Stasiland won the Samuel Johnson (now Baillie Gifford) Prize. All That I Am won the Miles Franklin Award and was a finalist for the International IMPAC Dublin Award and the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize. Wifedom was a New York Times Notable Book of 2023 and won France’s prestigious Prix du Meilleur Livre Étranger in 2024. Originally trained as an international human rights lawyer, Anna lives in Sydney.
Professor Mark Scott AO is the Vice-Chancellor and President of the University of Sydney.
Under his leadership, the university has embarked on an ambitious 10-year strategy with immediate commitments to more than double scholarship support for under-represented domestic students and invest nearly half a billion dollars in a world-leading biomedical precinct.
Mark is a highly respected and successful senior leader of large and complex institutions, across public service, education, and the media. His notable roles include Secretary of the NSW Department of Education (2016 to 2021), Managing Director of the ABC (2006 to 2016) and Editor-in-Chief of Fairfax newspapers.
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Attending this event
Practical information about this event, ticketing and visiting. If you have questions or need help, see our general terms and conditions for tickets and events or contact us.
Ticket information
If you have further questions or need help, please refer to our general terms and conditions for tickets and events or contact a member of our team on 1300 764 849.
A resale restriction is in place, meaning it is unlawful for a person to resell their ticket for more than 110% of the face value. In all cases, it is advisable that tickets are only purchased from authorised channels, to protect your rights should the event be cancelled or postponed and to be sure you receive all necessary communications.
The authorised agency for this event is listed under ticket pricing. 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.
A booking fee of $8.95 applies per transaction. Prices are correct at the time of publication and subject to change without notice. Exact prices will be displayed with seat selection.
Children aged 15 years and under must be accompanied at all times. Babies aged 0-2 years old at the time of a performance may be seated on an adult’s lap. Children three (3) years and older will need to hold a standard ticket.
Please contact Box Office on 1300 SOH TIX as soon as possible if you are unable to attend.
eTicket or postal delivery should be used wherever possible. Tickets will be emailed three days prior to the event. Download your e-Ticket and have it ready on your mobile device for scanning before you queue to enter the venue.
At the venue
Information to help you arrive at the venue on time and prepared for your show.
The Opera House is committed to the safety and wellbeing of children that visit or engage with us. Read our Child Safety Policy. The Opera House has also developed a Child-friendly Code of Conduct to engage with our youngest visitors.
The health, safety and wellbeing of everyone at the Sydney Opera House is our top priority. In line with this commitment, the Opera House is a smoke-free site. Read our Smoke-free Environment Policy.
The safety and security of patrons, visitors and staff is our highest priority. Entry to venues inside the Opera House including theatres, the Utzon Room, the Centre for Creativity and Bennelong Restaurant is via a single entry point located under the Monumental Steps.
In line with our venue security procedures, all ticketholders must present their bags and personal belongings for visual inspection or x-ray screening prior to entering the building. Our walk-through scanners are safe for patrons with pacemakers, cochlear implants or similar devices. Please let security know if you prefer alternative screening.
We hope all our audience members, including those children with us, have a wonderful time. Please keep disturbances to a minimum. Ticketholders who interfere unreasonably with another’s enjoyment may be asked to leave.
If your child becomes unsettled during the performance, we ask that you step outside with them until they settle. Note that you may not be readmitted until there is a suitable break in the performance.
Filming and photography is not permitted inside the venue, unless expressly authorised by us. You must switch your mobile phone off or to silent while in the venue.
Refreshments are available to purchase from our theatre bars, with foyers open 90 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and two hours pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances.
The Opera House has a range of restaurants and bars on site. Explore our venues.
Cloaking facilities will be open 60 minutes pre-show. It is strongly encouraged that you travel lightly. Larger items – including handbags bigger than A4-size, backpacks, umbrellas, suitcases and prams – are not permitted inside the venues and must be cloaked.
Yes, pram parking is available outside our theatres. All Sydney Opera House foyers are pram accessible, with lifts to the main and western foyers.
Foyer doors are usually open 90 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and 120 minutes pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances.
Theatre doors will open 30 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and 15 minutes pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances.
If you’re collecting your tickets from the Box Office, we recommend doing this at least 60 minutes before the event starts.
We’ll aim to 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.
Where an event has a lock-out period, 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.
Location and access
Drama Theatre
The Drama Theatre is located in the north-western corner of Sydney Opera House, best accessed through the Western Foyers.