Australian musical theatre performer Christie Whelan Browne (who has starred in shows including Xanadu, Muriel's Wedding and Britney Spears The Cabaret) has brought a lawsuit against Oldfield Entertainment, alleging victimisation after she complained of alleged harassment by Craig McLachlan, her castmate in a 2014 production of the Rocky Horror Show.
McLachlan was acquitted of alleged sexual assault in December 2020 and dropped defamation action against media outlets and Whelan Browne in 2022.
Whelan Browne's federal court lawsuit has been filed against the theatrical company and does not seek relief from McLachlan. Her case against Oldfield centres on alleged discrimination experienced during the show and in the company’s responses to her complaints from 2017 onwards.
“I know that I deserved better treatment, that I deserved to feel safe and respected in my workplace,” Whelan Browne said in a statement on social media earlier in September.
“Other women in the arts deserve better and I won’t accept that anything less than that is ‘just the way it is’.”
Mediation is planned for late November to potentially avoid a trial.