9 March 2025
The overturning of Roe v. Wade by the US Supreme Court sent shock waves around the world. With abortion access back in the political firing line here, this panel explores if the horrifying restrictions imposed in the US could ever happen in Australia.
| Date | Time |
| Sunday 9 March 2025 | 6pm |
| Ticket | Price |
| Standard | $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.
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9am, Tuesday 14 January 2025
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9am, Wednesday 15 January 2025
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9am, Thursday 16 January 2025
Wheelchair accessible:
There are a number of wheelchair and companion seating locations in our theatres. To book accessible seating contact Box Office:
Telephone
+61 2 9250 7777
(Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm AEST)
Email bookings@sydneyoperahouse.com
Find out more about accessibility at Sydney Opera House.
Run time
This talk runs for approximately 60 minutes.
Event duration is a guide only and may be subject to change.
Age
Recommended for ages 15+.
Florynce Kennedy, author of Abortion Rap (1971)If men could get pregnant, abortion would be a sacrament.
Useful information:
A chilling state of the nation
The right to choose seemed to have been settled in Australia with every state and territory now having legalised or decriminalised abortion. But reversal of Roe v Wade in America has incited some locals to try to revive the divisive debates of the past.
Attempts to overturn these laws, or restrict their scope, are suddenly occurring on both sides of politics. Abortion restrictions were recently proposed in at least two Australian states, while debate is raging about whether publicly funded hospitals can refuse to perform this medical procedure. Some medical practitioners are demanding they be exempt from any obligations when it comes to abortion.
This expert panel discussion will canvass the current state of debate in Australia and examine how seriously to take these recent threats. Could it really happen here?
Presented by Sydney Opera House
Jane Caro (she/her)
Jane Caro AM is a Walkley award winning Australian columnist, author, novelist, feminist, public education activist and social commentator. She was also awarded the B&T Women in Media Lifetime Achievement Award in 2023. Once upon a time, she was also a multi-award winning advertising copywriter and an academic. These days, when not tweeting up a storm to her 190,000+ followers, she is a full time writer, novelist, speaker, MC and TV, radio and media pundit. She has published 13 books. Her latest, The Mother, is a best seller.
Her novel Lyrebird will be released in April 2025. In 2024 she interviewed Miriam Margolyes at the Sydney Opera House and Newcastle’s Civic Theatre, Bryan Brown at Cremorne Orpheum and Jodi Piccoult at Four Seasons, in between writing her columns for Nine Media and the Big Smoke, articles for the Saturday Paper and the Monthly, appearing on Nine’s Today and Today Extra and ABC’s the Gruen. She will also continue saying yes to any other interesting work that comes her way including Writer’s Festivals, speaking engagements and developing a TV series with co-creators Julian Morrow and Jennifer Robinson.
In her spare time, she is a beef producer and a timber grower.
Dr Summer May Finlay (she/her)
Dr Summer May Finlay (CSCA, TAE, GC-EDHE, BSocSC, MPHA and PhD) is a Yorta Yorta woman and associate professor at the University of Wollongong. She has over 20 years of experience working in and with the tertiary sector, state and federal governments and Indigenous organisations. Over the last 10 years, Finlay has established an extensive and unique research program in Indigenous health. Her program, with a focus on Indigenous health service delivery, policy and overcoming health disparities, is driving change. It encompasses young Aboriginal people, mixed methods health services research in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander primary care, and evaluations and women’s health, offering a fresh perspective on these critical areas.
Dr Finlay holds significant positions in key organisations, such as being the co-chair of the Aboriginal Health and Medical Research Council of NSW Ethics Committee, and Deputy Chair of Thirrili, Australia’s only Indigenous suicide postvention organisation. Her previous roles include co-vice chair of the World Federation of Public Health Associations Indigenous Working Group and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander vice president for the Public Health Association of Australia, as well as the Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander Special Interest Group co-convener. Her contributions have been recognised with three awards from the Public Health Association of Australia (Presidents Award 2017, Fellowship 2020 and Presidents Award 2021), and she was also the University of Wollongong Open Access Week Indigenous award winner in 2024.
Charlotte Mortlock (she/her)
Charlotte Mortlock is a broadcast journalist with 12 years experience, working in New York, Sydney and rural Australia, including as a political reporter and news anchor for Sky News.
In 2021 Charlotte moved into politics as an advisor, and in the same year established The Clock, a podcast celebrating all the different paths women taking in their 30s.
After garnering a better understanding of the Liberal Party and it’s machinations, Charlotte combined her passion for politics and advocacy for women; launching Hilma’s Network, a recruitment drive aimed at getting women aged 30-60 joining the Liberal Party as members.
More than 1,200 women have subscribed to Hilma’s Network and as of this year, there are representatives and events in five states and territories.
Charlotte is most passionate about democracy, social unity, freedom of speech and women.
Gina Rushton (she/her)
moderator
Gina Rushton is a reproductive rights journalist, author of The Most Important Job in the World and the former editor of independent news outlet Crikey. She was the inaugural Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists media excellence award winner and an Australian Human Rights Commission media award finalist for her coverage of reproductive rights.
Plan your visit
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 six 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.
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The Baby Boycott
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As more potential parents question the ethics of bringing a child into the world, is opting out of reproduction a generational trend or a sign of the times?
