Merrigong Theatre Company’s permanent ensemble of neurodiverse actors and musicians, The Strangeways Ensemble, make their triumphant return to the stage in the world premiere of their fictional home-grown thriller, THE SEVEN, at the Wollongong Town Hall from 21 to 29 November.

In 1964, a group of seven friends are on their way home from seeing a concert in Sydney, when an incident on the train forces them to get off at Helensburgh station. Missing the last train, they decide to try and hitch a ride. In the morning light, it becomes clear that none of them made it back.

After a short-lived investigation into their disappearance, the case is closed, and their story becomes local legend. Until 2024, when a grisly discovery at the Helensburgh Tunnel forces the re-opening of the 60-year-old case, and old grudges and conspiracy theories that have circled the mystery for years, are brought to the fore.