State Theatre Company South Australia in association with Vitalstatistix presents Evil Hour by James Smith.

Some secrets refuse to stay buried…

South Australia. 1850. Lillian Oliver has built her life on faith, obedience and the certainty that God has a plan. But when a young woman fleeing violence arrives at her door, the foundations of everything she believes begin to crack.   

As forgotten histories resurface and strange forces gather around her, Lillian is drawn towards a hidden legacy of women’s knowledge, one whispered through generations but condemned as dangerous. With every revelation, the boundaries between the sacred and the supernatural begin to blur, forcing her to confront the truth about her marriage, her family and herself.   

Evil Hour is a gripping new Australian gothic drama inspired by South Australian history and steeped in suspense. James Smith, best known for his work as an actor, makes his mainstage playwriting debut with a thrilling story where faith collides with fear, myth intertwines with memory, and women who were once silenced finally reclaim their voices.   

Performers Elizabeth and Annabel are known to Vitals audiences through their work with the company, including Elizabeth’s involvement in Transumer by PVI Collective in 2011 and The Lost and Found Museum with Georgi Paech at Adhocracy 2020, and Annabel’s Streetlights and Long Nights by Isobel Marmion in 2025, as well as her involvement in the first development of Evil Hour with James at Adhocracy 2023.  

Evil Hour was developed as part of the Hart’s Mill Residency at Adhocracy in 2023.  

About the Artist

James Smith

James graduated from Flinders University Drama Centre in 2013. Theatre credits include Neighbourhood Watch, Othello, This is Where We Live, Volpone, Gorgon, Vale, Jasper Jones, Limit, Euphoria, Hibernation, Girl from the North Country and Jack Maggs (State Theatre Company South Australia), Emily Loves to Bounce (Patch Theatre Company), Grug, Grug and The Rainbow, Hans and Gret, Creation, Creation (Windmill Theatre), The Young King (Slingsby Theatre Company), The
Aspirations of Daise Morrow (Brink Productions), Lines, How Not to Make it in America (Theatre Republic) and Deluge (Tiny Bricks), Death of a Salesman (GWB & Andrew Henry Presents). His writing credits include Evil Hour (State Theatre Company South Australia), Clio (Theatre Republic) and Bananas in Pyjamas (Windmill Pictures, ABC)

Supporters

This project is supported by Commissioning Collective.