Last fall Baz Luhrmann introduced us to the notion of a period drama set Down Under, and even though Australia didn't exactly set the box office on fire, man were those costumes gorgeous. And maybe we'll get a second chance with Spider Dance, which is, yes, a period drama set in Australia, this one directed by The Duchess helmer Saul Dibb.

Dibb just signed on to the project, according to THR, which is about a young American woman who shocks a repressive part of 19th century Sydney with her forward-thinking ways. The tone doesn't sound all that different from the one in The Duchess, which found Keira Knightley as a scandalous figure in 17th century England. I love the idea of shifting the whole focus to Australia, a country whose history we Americans know virtually nothing about. And if there's a scene half as gorgeous and fun as the fundraiser gala in Australia-- that dress! that music!-- it sounds like the perfect period-piece charmer.