At Sea, Staring Up

A play by Finegan Kruckemeyer

Five lives. Three continents. One unbreakable force—love.

In At Sea, Staring Up, internationally-acclaimed playwright Finegan Kruckemeyer weaves stories of love in all its forms. Emma sails the seas alone. Noah searches desperately for his wife. Elise drives through the German countryside, her baby beside her. Caleb braves vast oceans. Sylvia leaps across time and space. Their journeys—separate yet interconnected—unfold with the magic, wonder, and heartbreak that define what it means to be human.

Director Helen Trenos says “Finegan Kruckemeyer is one of Australia’s most celebrated playwrights, with 105 commissioned plays performed across six continents in eight languages. A recipient of 42 awards, including the 2015 David Williamson Award for Excellence in Australian Playwriting, his work is internationally recognised. Bringing his work to the Hayman felt overdue.
The play’s magical realism offers an exhilarating challenge—for me as a director, for the design team, and for the actors navigating its shifting worlds.”

Come along on a journey that is at once moving and funny, magical and real. At Sea, Staring Up explores love lost and love found, sweeping between heartbreak and hope. It’s a play that speaks to what it means to be human—and to risk everything for love.