Tessa is a young, brilliant barrister. She has worked her way up from working-class origins to the top of her game: defending, cross-examining and winning. But an unexpected event forces her to confront the patriarchal power of the law, where the burden of proof and morality diverge.

Prima Facie by Suzie Miller is an award-winning play that takes us deep into a world where emotion and integrity are in conflict with the rules of the game. After several acclaimed productions in Australia, the play received its West End premiere in 2022, starring Jodie Comer. It was named Best New Play at both the 2023 Olivier and WhatsOnStage Awards, transferred to Broadway to similar critical acclaim, and has been translated and produced in numerous languages around the world.

This edition of the original play was published alongside the release of a major motion picture in 2026, directed by Susanna White and starring Cynthia Erivo, and features a new introduction by the author.



Suzie Miller is an Australian-British playwright, librettist and screenwriter, as well as a lawyer and co-founder of Australian Lawyers for Human Rights.



'A polemical monologue which makes its point in style… the cumulative effect is quite something'



'A play that roars... urgent and powerful'



'A searing, intense indictment of the ways the legal system perpetuates the patriarchal order that has created it in the first place… The relevance of this unsettling drama for our present moment of #MeToo is obvious… joins the ranks of such works as Michaela Coel's I May Destroy You and Nina Raine's Consent… What we come to know is certainly disturbing, but, as in all great theatre, it strikes one as a true privilege to have made the journey'



'An unforgettable moment of theatre'



'An outstanding piece of theatre that has a phenomenal impact'



'A damning portrait of justice denied women… teems with rich nuance, testing sympathies… like a punch to the guts'



'Suzie Miller's script is shrewd and economical in its analysis of how the system treats assault survivors... timely and timeless'



'A striking drama... Suzie Miller's text is pacy and punchy'



'An impassioned play about an important subject... blazing'



'Hugely succesful and hard-hitting... What makes this play especially astonishing is how lived-in its writing feels. Miller's background as a lawyer shines in every line of dialogue... an urgent and compelling work'



'A relevant and deeply disturbing indictment of how our legal system routinely fails sexual assault victims... A seriously important work'