
NEWK (The John Newcombe Story)
Written by Kieran Carroll
Performed by Paul Armstrong
Directed by Ross Daniels
Sound and Lighting – Julian Camara and Justin Gardam
The time is May 2024 and it’s NEWK’s 80th!
Come and join the party as NEWK celebrates the milestone and takes you back in time.
REVIEW – APRIL 2025
The first four star review of the new production starring Paul Armstrong is courtesy of Sydney Theatre Reviews.
NEWK (The John Newcombe Story) @ The Pavilion Performing Arts Centre
THE NEWK TEAM from L to R: tech Julian Camara, playwright and producer Kieran Carroll, actor Paul Armstrong and director Ross Daniels.
2026 DATES
Saturday January 24th – Twyford Theatre, Merimbula
24 January 2026: NEWK (The John Newcombe Story)
Saturday January 31st – Avoca Beach Theatre, NSW
https://events.humanitix.com/newk-the-john-newcombe-story
Sunday February 1st – Cowra Civic Centre, NSW
https://cowra.sales.ticketsearch.com/sales/salesevent/153465
Friday 24th July – Don Russell PAC, Gosnells, Perth
Saturday 25th July – Kalamunda PAC, Kalamunda, Perth
Sunday November 1st – Warners Bay Theatre, NSW
Wednesday November 4th – Griffith Regional Theatre, Griffith, NSW
Thursday November 5th – Tarcutta Memorial Hall, Tarcutta, NSW
Friday November 6th and Saturday November 7th – Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre
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Damian Callinan was the star of NEWK from the show’s debut in January 2019 to May 2024. For a wonderful overview of his time as NEWK, please click onto the link below. Some fantastic photos too throughout of NEWK himself and Damian.
https://open.substack.com/pub/damiancallinan/p/the-newk…


From Glen Street Theatre, Sydney – February 2020
Top Photo: Actor Damian Callinan, Gigi Newcombe, playwright Kieran Carroll, Angie Newcombe, Clint Newcombe.
Above: Damian Callinan, Sue and Roz (Newk’s sisters), Kieran Carroll
Below – NEWK at the bar – Frankston Arts Centre – February 2020
A link to the star of the show, Damian Callinan, can be found here:
Home
Please follow down the page for information about NEWK.
Debut press release

Yan Zhuang’s Sunday Age article about the play can be found below:
Below is the Conversation Hour from ABC 774 where Damian Callinan and I talk about the play. Our part starts about 18 minutes in.
Below is a review of the opening night’s show on Jan 14th, 2019 @ The Butterfly Club, Melbourne.
http://www.whatdidshethink.com/2019/01/
Below is a review from The Toorak Times on Jan 16th, 2019 @ The Butterfly Club, Melbourne.
Newk (The John Newcombe Story)
Below is a review from Keith Gow, Theatre First, Jan 2019 @ The Butterfly Club, Melbourne
http://www.keithgow.com/2019/01/review-newk-john-newcombe-story-by.html
