Who is Chrissy Amphlett? No, really, who the f**k is Chrissy Amphlett? After seeing Amplified at Belvoir St Theatre, I’m beginning to get an idea. Chrissy Amphlett was one of those artists who didn’t just perform her songs but became them.
The opening night crowd of people my Dad’s age crackled with energy, charging the room before the first chord was even struck. Then, as soon as the band entered the stage, they erupted. This wasn’t nostalgia. It wasn’t tribute karaoke. It felt like a time bomb ticking away, the spirit of Chrissy – all lace, leather, snarl and startling vulnerability – was about to be plugged back in.
Written and performed by Sheridan Harbridge, and co-created with director Sarah Goodes and musical director Glenn Moorhouse, Amplified was commissioned and developed by the University of Melbourne Arts and Culture (UMAC) with support from Geelong Arts Centre.
Running a tight 80 minutes, the show blends cabaret, biography and concert, charting Amphlett’s meteoric rise from pub stages to global success with the Divinyls. It’s less a cradle-to-grave retelling and more a live-wire immersion into her artistry – the woman who fronted a band through blokey crowds and made sexuality, rage and fragility inseparable.
Harbridge fronts a four-piece band, weaving anthemic hits with stories drawn from interviews, collaborators and fans. We hear about the myth, the mischief, the magnetism – and the cost.
Rather than impersonating Chrissy, Harbridge channels her, letting the music do the heavy lifting. The result is a portrait not only of an icon, but of a generation learning how to take up space loudly, learning about the revolution she started will be… amplified.
From the opening number, the show surges with muscular sound and unapologetic attitude. You leave buzzing – not in a neat, sentimental way, but with the messy exhilaration that only rock can deliver. The audience oscillates between reverent silence and full-throated recognition.
Harbridge is extraordinary. As writer, co-creator and performer, she carries the evening with ferocity and wit. Vocally, she doesn’t mimic Amphlett’s rasp so much as find her own edge within it – gritty, elastic, emotionally exposed.
There’s humour here too, and a sharp intelligence underpinning the storytelling. Under Sarah Goodes’ direction (also co-creator), the piece is almost an act of summoning rather than imitation, honouring the fact that no one could BE Chrissy – only reach for the spell she cast.
Musical director and co-creator Glenn Moorhouse anchors the show from the guitar, joined by musicians Ben Cripps, Dave Hatch and Clarabell Limonta, forming a tight, responsive ensemble that feels both polished and gloriously raw. The sound design by Michael Waters ensures every lyric lands with clarity while still feeling like a pub gig turned up to eleven.
Visually, Michael Hankin’s set and costume design captures the grit and glamour of Amphlett’s world – a true playground for performance. Paul Jackson’s lighting design bathes the theatre in saturated rock hues and intimate cabaret shadows, shifting seamlessly between concert and confession.
Ultimately, Amplified is not about canonising a legend; it’s about reigniting her charge. It reminds us who Chrissy Amphlett is and why she mattered. Not just because she was provocative, but because she was precise, intelligent and emotionally fearless.
Sheridan Harbridge and this formidable creative team have crafted a blistering, big-hearted rock odyssey that roars. If you have ever belted a Divinyls chorus, if you have ever felt too loud or too much, come witness Australian theatre go full throttle and plug in.
Amplified: The Exquisite Rock & Rage of Chrissy Amphlett is presented by Belvoir St Theatre runs to 8 Feb. Upstairs Theatre, Belvoir St Theatre, Surry Hills NSW 2010.
Tickets: https://my.belvoir.com.au/overview/14644
Website: https://belvoir.com.au/productions/amplified/
Socials: https://www.instagram.com/belvoirst/ and https://www.instagram.com/amplified.show.live/
Photo credits: Jade Ellis
2026 Tour Dates:
Ballarat 11 February, Her Majesty’s Theatre
Geelong 12 – 13 February, Geelong Arts Centre
Melbourne 19 – 22 March, Comedy Theatre
Sydney 15 – 25 April, Seymour Centre
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3 responses to “Review: Amplified Brings Chrissy Amphlett Back With Leather, Lace & Voltage”
Homage? Tribute? Theatre? Concert? All and more; very much more. Whether you ever saw the Divinyls or not, the arrangements of these memorable songs – both powerful and sublime – are, by themselves, worth the cost of admission. Add on the one woman (with full supporting band) show and you get to fully experience the term ‘another level’. Ben’s review tries to communicate the atmosphere for you. But, really, just like with the original concerts, you’ve got to be there. So stop reading this and go!
Your review nailed it. Thank you. I hear that Amplified is to return to Sydney in April? I hope it attracts a younger audience. It deserves their patronage. They need to experience Amphlett”s story. She was an extraordinary human being and a Star who was never really truly acknowledged as an icon until after her death. I was unaware of her magnificence until I saw Amplified. Sheer brilliance. A beautiful heartbreaking homage to a unique talent.
I am SO glad you liked it! And I 100% agree that more young people need to go see it. I’m 22 and had no idea about Chrissy, but my Dad did. We went together and I was blown away. I haven’t stopped telling my creative friends to go see it because it is such a good show and her story is magnificent.