Of the 12 plays on Melbourne Theatre Company's 2026 slate, 10 are by Australian playwrights and seven are entirely new works.

It's an ambitious step in terms of the company's commitment to local stories, its artistic director Anne-Louise Sarks says.

The season opens in January with the return of made-in-Australia musical My Brilliant Career, which will also tour to Sydney, Canberra and Wollongong, thanks to an enthusiastic reception from audiences.

"Honestly, it's blown me away ... people were coming multiple times, returning with their family or their children," Sarks said.

"It's been a crazy hit for us."

New works include an adaptation of E M Forster's 1908 novel A Room with a View - by playwright Grace Chapple and starring Nathalie Morris - in a co-production with Sydney's Belvoir

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