The story of a university student who leads a protest against an Asian security conference in Canberra which has been organised by his father the Australian Defence Minister. His life and his demonstration become disrupted.

In 1950s Australia, young Celia is growing up with a sense of isolation and mistrust of the world that surrounds her. Her mother and father won't let her play with the kids next door because their parents are communists. Then her pet bunny is taken away because of rabbit overpopulation. And, more traumatizing yet, when her grandmother dies, she's the one to discover the corpse. To cope, she retreats into elaborate fantasies.

Four friends grapple with aging and the march of time in this opera based on Ray Lawler's iconic Australian play. For years, cane cutters Roo and Barney (Gary Rowley and Barry Ryan) have bunked with barmaids Olive (Gillian Sullivan) and Nancy in the summer. But Nancy's moved on, replaced by newcomer Pearl (Elizabeth Campbell). Vacation's no longer the unending party it once was as each member of the quartet arrives at a new understanding of life.

In this offbeat comedy, an unlikely romance develops between a flamboyant, middle-aged piano tuner and an extremely timid office worker.