Month: July 2025
Review: The Glass Menagerie Is A Haunting Memory Play That Still Resonates
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A beautiful and thoughtful production of The Glass Menagerie is on now at the Meat Market Stables in North Melbourne. It is the second creative collaboration by two Melbourne-based independent theatre companies: Victory People Productions and Running with Scissors Theatre. The Glass Menagerie was written soon after the US depression and during World War II. First shown…
Joshua Hinton’s A Place In The Sultan’s Kitchen Brings Music Memories And Home Cooked Meals
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After wowing audiences last year in its MERRIGONGX debut, local theatre-maker and singer-songwriterJoshua Hinton’s A Place in the Sultan’s Kitchen (or How to Make the Perfect One-Pot Chicken Curry) makes its highly anticipated main stage premiere at the Illawarra Performing Arts Centre from 20 to 23 August 2025. The show…
Film Review: The Stolen Painting Is A Masterstroke Of Suspense
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Originally featured as part of the French Film Festival program, and now for general release comes The Stolen Painting from veteran filmmaker Pascal Bonitzer. Highly regarded as a writer, this is Bonitzer’s seventh film as director and is inspired by the 2005 discovery, in the French city of Mulhouse, of a…
Review: Beauty And The Beast Has Perth Under Its Spell
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Beauty and the Beast is deeply ingrained in our cultural zeitgeist. Multiple generations across countless cultures have resonated with some form of archetypal narrative about the transformative power of empathic love. Disney’s 1991 animated classic, Beauty and the Beast, is by far the most beloved, alongside its 2017 live-action remake, and the…
Review: Betrayal Peels Back The Layers Between Love And Deceit
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In the close quarters of the Old Fitz Theatre, there’s nowhere to hide; from the actors, from the truth, or from yourself. Harold Pinter’s Betrayal, in a striking new production by Sport For Jove, crackles with tension and uncomfortable humour. Director Cristabel Sved has crafted something taut, intimate and unflinchingly honest.…
The Construct Unpacks Stigma Of Mental Illness In World Premiere
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In the midst of Australia’s growing mental health crisis, a bold new theatre work is set to challenge the silence and stigma surrounding schizophrenia and psychosis. The Construct, a world premiere production by No Strings Attached Theatre of Disability, brings lived experience to the forefront through an authentic and powerful…
Review: Trophy Boys Shines A Light On Toxic Truths
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“Who gives a f*** about whatever some girl is saying. We can shut her up.” – Owen Since its La Mama debut in 2022, Trophy Boys by Emmanuelle Mattana has played to hundreds of audiences, received a Green Room Award and is currently playing off-Broadway. Still directed by Marni Mount, and with only…
Review: The Book Of Mormon Spreads The Good Word
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Strike the church bells! The Mormons are back! Last night, Sydney’s Capitol Theatre was transformed into Australia’s largest and most wildly inappropriate church imaginable. Complete with jazz hands, an F-bomb (or thirty), and the campest group of Elders you’ve ever seen, The Book of Mormon is a show I will happily get…
Review: Plied And Prejudice Sees Austen Get Tipsy And Terrific
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Chaotic, hilarious, and downright debaucherous. Plied and Prejudice, presented by Alex Woodward of Woodward Productions and the Arts and Culture Trust, is a certified hit and a great night out. The premise is simple. Five actors take on one of Jane Austen’s most famous works, Pride and Prejudice, but there’s…
Review: Emerald City Is A Sparkling Take On Fame And Fortune
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As the lights dim, the stage shimmers alive with Sydney’s seduction. Emerald City is a masterful satire, and this production, by Ensemble Theatre, has it all. From a projected Harbour to slick suits, polished egos, and, at the heart of course, a razor-sharp script by David Williamson. I’m no Grandmaster, but for…
Review: The Visitors Looks At Tradition Tension And Timely Truths
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In an epic opening to Brisbane’s Clancestry festival, The Visitors at QPAC’s Playhouse Theatre is simply genius. Playing for a limited season, Jane Harrison’s innovative masterpiece should not be overlooked. Co-produced by Moogahlin Performing Arts and Sydney Theatre Company, The Visitors takes audiences back in time to January 1788 when…
Review: The Sleeping Beauty Is A Stunning Fairytale Ballet
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In a world of noise and rush, the return of The Australian Ballet to Adelaide offers a welcome escape into a world of opulence and fantasy. With a timeless grace, David McAllister’s The Sleeping Beauty revives the classic fairytale with exquisite detail and grandeur. The audience is immediately swept into…
Announcing Ilario Grant For MJ The Musical Melbourne
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Australian producer Michael Cassel, alongside original Broadway producers Lia Vollack, John Branca, and John McClain, is thrilled to announce that Broadway star Ilario Grant will lead the Melbourne season of the Olivier and Tony Award-winning MJ THE MUSICAL. A powerhouse performer, Grant takes on the iconic role of MJ at Her Majesty’s Theatre following acclaimed performances on…
Review: Circle Mirror Transformation Finds Truth In The Ordinary
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Annie Baker’s Circle Mirror Transformation is a quietly profound play. Through the vehicle of a six-week adult drama class in small-town Vermont, the play reveals the deep longings, connections and emotional wounds between five strangers. Sydney Theatre Company’s 2025 production captures Baker’s signature minimalism with sensitivity and joy. I am…
Review: Hedwig And The Angry Inch Electrifies Carriageworks Sydney
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It may be more than thirty years since Hedwig and the Angry Inch first burst onto the scene, but John Cameron Mitchell and Stephen Trask’s crazily original concept has not lost an inch of its relevance. Since its off-Broadway debut, Hedwig and the Angry Inch has taken multiple forms. An evolving workshop…
Review: Parade The Musical Is A Haunting Tale Of Injustice And Love
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Bump In Productions has brought the Tony Award-winning musical, Parade, back to Brisbane after two decades. Playing for a three-week season at the Ron Hurley Theatre, this gripping theatrical drama is an unmissable event. Come for the incredible music and writing by Jason Robert Brown and Alfred Uhry, and stay…
Review: Supersonic Marks Bold New Chapter For Illuminate Adelaide
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Pioneering a new chapter for Illuminate Adelaide’s night-time culture, Supersonic ignited the city last night with the whirlwind music event we’ve been waiting for! As one of the final offerings of Illuminate Adelaide 2025, Supersonic was an Adelaide-first, multi-venue music and arts festival. Taking over the city’s West End, Supersonic…
Review: Kiasmos Makes Triumphant Return Via Illuminate Adelaide
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Returning to Australia on tour for the first time in eight years, Kiasmos’ one-night-only show has come to Adelaide as part of Illuminate Adelaide 2025. The annual festival is a celebration of art, light, music and technology, and never fails to ignite the city each year, despite being in the…
Announcing Phantom Of The Opera Return to Sydney Harbour In 2026
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Opera Australia today announced the return season of one of the world’s most successful musicals, The Phantom of the Opera, to the Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour stage in 2026. The production will kick off the iconic show’s global 40th anniversary celebrations in spectacular style. Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom…
Announcing Ben Hall For Pretty Woman The Musical
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Star of stage and screen Ben Hall will be joining Samantha Jade in the cast of the upcoming Broadway and West End smash hit musical PRETTY WOMAN: The Musical. The production will make its debut at Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC) in Brisbane in October before debuting at Theatre Royal Sydney from November. Based on…
Review: Mary Poppins Jr Is Practically Perfect In Every Way
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Charming and brimming with energy, the talented kids of The Young Australian Broadway Chorus shine in Mary Poppins Jr. On now in Melbourne for a limited season, this musical adaptation is based on the 1964 Disney film and the stories by P.L. Travers. A condensed, junior iteration, the show creates…
Review: The Spirit Of Dolly Sparkles In Here You Come Again
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It’s a sparkly, glittery, shiny Wednesday night and Melbourne is ready to party on the pink carpet! Here You Come Again has landed, with Dolly Parton fans gathering in delight at the Comedy Theatre. The opening night is filled with big smiles and fabulous heels, and we know we are…
Review: Cirque Nouvelle Spins A Joyful Circus For All
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Cirque Nouvelle, produced by dynamite husband-and-wife duo James and Rebecca Capener, is a testament to the evolution of the modern circus. For the better part of 170 years, regional travelling circuses have been an integral part of Australian childhoods. The scent of buttery popcorn, the striped canvas and the thrill…
Toby Schmitz On The Strange Beauty Of Belvoir’s Grief
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Belvoir St Theatre is thrilled to present Simon Phillip’s new adaptation of Max Porter’s bestselling novel, Grief is the Thing With Feathers, premiering 26 July. Co-adapted by Phillips, Nick Schlieper and Toby Schmitz, Grief is the Thing With Feathers is an imaginative and poetic take on how a family navigates…
Bespoke By Queensland Ballet Returns With Three World Premieres
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Queensland Ballet’s electrifying contemporary series Bespoke storms back onto the Brisbane stage from 31 July to 9 August 2025 with a program that’s bolder, braver, and more boundary-pushing than ever. Now in its eighth exhilarating year, the mixed bill ballet is a creative collision of brand-new works by former Queensland…
Review: Legally Blonde Is Guilty Of Being Fabulous
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Legally Blonde: The Musical at The National Theatre in St Kilda is an unmissable sparkling triumph in pink. The show from Theatrical Inc. delivers infectious fun, pep, and heart as directed by Aimee Forrest. It delivers exactly what we need to break through the dreariness of a Melbourne winter. It’s warm,…
Review: Welcome To Thebes Is Timely Tense And Thought Provoking
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The Queensland Conservatorium’s Bachelor of Acting Company 2025 presents their final production for the year, Moira Buffini’s Welcome to Thebes. A gripping political drama set in a fictional modern-day Thebes, the play explores themes of justice, power, and the cost of peace. Premiering in London in 2010, Welcome to Thebes…
Ballet Theatre Queensland Premieres Cinderella On The Gold Coast
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Ballet Theatre Queensland (BTQ) is delighted to bring the timeless fairytale Cinderella to the Gold Coast these school holidays. Running from 11 to 13 July at The Star Theatre, Cinderella is perfect for the whole family and marks BTQ’s exciting debut at this premier venue. Under the experienced direction of…
Kimberly Akimbo Review: Growing Old Never Felt So New
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Opening with energy and colour, Mitchell Butel’s Australian premiere of Kimberly Akimbo is brought to life with heart and humour. Book and Lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire and Music by Jeanine Tesori, this Tony Award-winning musical, presented by State Theatre Company South Australia and Melbourne Theatre Company, is sure to win…
Strange And Unusual: Karis Oka Reflects On Playing Lydia In Beetlejuice
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Beetlejuice the Musical has received rave reviews since making its highly anticipated Australian premiere in Melbourne in May. Karis Oka plays the musical’s star, the strange and unusual Lydia Deetz. The Scoop had the chance to sit down with Karis as the season heads into its final months. Karis talks…
