End of the Rainbow will be part of the Sydney Opera House's summer 2005 season and will be mounted at The Playhouse, July 28-Sept. 3. Following its Australian premiere at the Opera House, the work will then play at the Melbourne Theatre Company Nov. 10-Dec. 17, 2005.

In a statement on the official Sydney Opera House website, playwright Quilter said, "Judy Garland was one of the greatest performers of the 20th century, charming and compelling, but also disturbed and tormented. Offstage, her life was a disaster, a whirlwind of drugs and alcohol. Yet in concert she could bring cries of joy from the audience. End of the Rainbow lifts the curtain on this strange double life and how it caught up with her in a series of performances in London in 1969."

The production will feature such Garland classics as "You Made Me Love You," "Come Rain or Come Shine" and her "Wizard of Oz" anthem, "Somewhere Over the Rainbow."

Caroline O'Connor made her Broadway debut in Nov. 2002 in Chicago playing merry murderess Velma Kelly, a role she also played in the Australian production, where she was awarded the MO Award and the Green Room Award for Best Actress in a Musical. O'Connor received an Olivier Award nomination for her performance as Mabel Normand in the West End production of Jerry Herman's Mack and Mabel, and her other theatrical credits include roles in West Side Story, Piaf and Bombshells. The actress-singer-dancer portrayed Nini Legs in acclaimed film "Moulin Rouge," and her solo recordings include "What I Did for Love," "A Tribute to Piaf" and "Stage to Screen."

For more information visit www.ensemble.com.au.