When Patrick Whitbread took to the stage in the role of Riff in West Side Story on Sydney Harbour it not only marked his Opera Australia debut, but also his professional debut in a leading role. Whitbread's first ever role was playing Louis in The King and I in...

The new smash-hit Australian play, Fourteen, begins its national tour at Riverside Theatres on 3rd May. Based on Shannon Molloy’s award-winning memoir of the same name, Fourteen is the inspirational true story of growing up gay in central Queensland, adapted into a...

Acclaimed Seymour Centre favourites, Outhouse Theatre Co (Consent, Ulster American) returns with an Australian premiere from one of America’s most celebrated contemporary playwrights. A case for the Existence of God is Samuel Hunter's heart-wrenching, compassionate,...

By Sarah Skubala Qtopia, Sydney’s inaugural performance season kicks off next month with Michael Gow’s Toy Symphony, presented by Ad Astra Theatre Company, the crown jewel of Brisbane’s professional indie theatre scene. Producer and actor Gregory J Wilken will be...

Ting Lim – Enmore Theatre Thursday 16 May – Sunday 19 May https://www.sydneycomedyfest.com.au/event/ting-lim-well-this-is-awkward/ How would you describe the show to someone who knows very little about it? I find it very hard to say no. I’m a yes person. It’s about...

Holding the Man is a play that has been described as the love story which defined a generation. Based on Timothy Conigrave's autobiographical book, Holding the Man traces the devastating results of HIV though the lens of Tim and John and their enduring and tragic...

How would you describe the show to someone who knows very little about it? I’m trying to bring the energy of punk rock into this show. It’s high energy, fun, and a little bit dark at times. It’s what happens when the spirit of DIY falls into the hands of a “Silly...

Set to be one of the most talked about performances of 2024, Gaslight, a modern adaptation of the 1930’s suspenseful thriller by Patrick Hamilton and starring Geraldine Hakewill, Toby Schmitz and Kate Fitzpatrick has opened in Melbourne as part of a national tour...

Shad Wicka - Well, well, well How would you describe the show to someone who knows very little about it? I witnessed an old man fake a heart attack so he could be the first person to leave a packed flight, and it was the most inspiring thing I've ever seen. This show...

How would you describe the show to someone who knows very little about it? Gayer Than I Used To Be is a show about how I am well… gayer than I used to be. To everyone’s surprise, delight, disdain and confusion (depends who you ask) I’ve taken a step off the beaten...

David Williamson's The Great Divide is set to open at Ensemble Theatre later this month. Penned by Australia's most prolific playwright, The Great Divide unfolds in the picturesque town of Wallis Heads, not unlike Williamson’s current hometown Noosa in Queensland. In...

Australia's premier agricultural comedian, Nick Capper, is sick of reinventing the wheel. Now, at the tender age of 40, he's got nothing left to lose – it's time to reinvent the oblong. Don't be a square, come get geometric.  How would you describe the show to someone...

 7 Captiva Road, by Andrea Ciannavei, is an explosive dark comedic drama about three generations of an Italian American family preparing for the death of their matriarch. A potent and intricate work that, for director Cathy Hunt, really grabbed from the outset. While...

  Growing in the Philippines, Carl De Villa had to learn to "hustle and bustle" from a very young age. It was an environment that resulted in traumatic experiences for De Villa, who admits it sounds very vague, but explains it's "too much to handle". The trauma...

Many would know the story of Yentl from the 1983 movie which was directed, co-written, co-produced, and starred the fabulous Barbra Streisand. The story is based on Isaac Bashevis Singer's short story, Yentl the Yeshiva Boy, and traces the desire of an Ashkenazi...

Set to be one of the most talked about performances of 2024, Gaslight, a modern adaptation of the 1938 suspenseful thriller by Patrick Hamilton and starring Kate Fitzpatrick, Geraldine Hakewill and Toby Schmitz, is set to premiere in Brisbane as part of the 2024...

For more than 2 decades, The Wharf Revue has delivered razor-sharp political satire to audiences in Sydney and around the country. Now it’s finally Melbourne’s turn with The Wharf Review - Pride in Prejudice - the latest creation from Jonathan Biggins and the team who...

Ensemble Theatre is thrilled to present Irish playwright John Breen’s heart-warming comedy Alone it Stands, later this month. A ballsy, true tale of triumph over impossible odds on the field, and based on the famous 1978 rugby match in Limerick, Ireland, this David...

Straight form London's West End, The Choir of Man has been a juggernaut since its original opening at Edinburgh Fringe in August 2017. The show consists of a wildly talented group of instrumentalists, world-class wordsmiths and sensational singers; this cast of nine...

Tiddas, a heart-warming story of sisterhood, is about to make its Sydney debut at Belvoir. The comedy is Wiradjuri Author Anita Heiss’ own stage adaption of her much-loved novel about sisterhood and the deep bonds between women in society and comes to the stage next...

“Haram” is anything forbidden by Islam. But what if that applies to the very essence of who you are? Based on lead artist Sadiq Ali’s personal experience and candid interviews with members of the LGBTQI+ community who identify as (ex) Muslim, The Chosen Haram deals...

Big Name, No Blankets is an epic new rock'n'roll theatre show celebrating the legacy and impact of Australian music icons, Warumpi Band, told from the perspective of founding members, the Butcher Brothers. From Papunya (a small town in the Northern Territory) to...

An actress, writer, director, improviser and internationally renowned cabaret performer, Sarah-Louise Young comes to Sydney Festival for An Evening Without Kate Bush – a glorious celebration of the irresistible forces and incandescent genius of Kate Bush and the fans...

It is the opening night of director-writer Shane Tweed’s new murder mystery, Midnight Murder at Hamlington Hall. Seven of the amateur theatre company’s cast are down with the dreaded lurgy. So, the Middling Cove Players’ director and two of the remaining actors, and...

Wit Incorporated are thrilled to be bringing the first English translation and production of Stan Lai’s script, I ME SHE HIM | 你和我和她和他 to the stage this month. It's a premiere season of the English version with the Chinese version first being published in 1998 in...

Nicknamed the ‘Olympics of opera’, comprising 15+ hours of music across four evenings, the world's first digital Ring Cycle opens  Dec 1 in Brisbane. After two pandemic postponements, QLD resident, and internationally successful tenor, Rosario La Spina, will be...

First published in 1843, Charles Dickens' classic tale, A Christmas Carol, about the miserly Ebenezer Scrooge who is visited by his former business partner Jacob Marley and the spirits of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come, returns to Melbourne to delight...

The Master and Margarita  is a novel by Soviet writer Mikhail Bulgakov, written in secret in the Soviet Union between 1928 and 1940, during Stalin's regime. Banned and censored for many decades, it wasn't until the late 60's that a complete manuscript was finally...

This November, Malthouse Theatre presents an extraordinary double bill by First Nations company A DATLIGHT CONNECTION, featuring the critically acclaimed productions Whose Gonna Love ‘Em? I am that I AM and the return season of the 2022 hit Chase. Led by visionary...

Running since 2017, ButohOUT! is the only creative platform of its kind in Australia.  Created and run by artists Yumi Umiumare and Taka Takiguchi 滝口貴, it focuses on the distinctive art form of Butoh. ButohBAR 番狂わせ OUT of ORDER is the 2023 finale event from the...

Shelagh Stephenson’s Laurence Olivier Award winning play, The Memory of Water, takes a new look at the age-old traditions of recollecting family stories. A beautiful bittersweet comedy, bound by sisterly love, anger, tears and of course laughter. The 1996 hit British...

Written by Patricia Cornelius, one of Australia’s most awarded and uncompromising playwrights, In The Club is a powerful and compelling work that shines a fierce light on consent, coercion, and sexual violence. Given recent news headlines, a timely piece indeed, and...

An interspecies relationship podcast, silicone shamans, and an ancestral trip to a motherboard factory take centre stage in The Astonishing Comet Boombox. This is a brand-new show from Writer and Producer Vivian Ngyuen created with rising playwright Chenturan Aran....

Le Freak hot on the heels of two sell-out seasons is set to make its return at the 2023 Melbourne Fringe Festival. Featuring world-class, award-winning trans, queer, disabled and sex worker performers Le Freak shines a lens on sideshow and how this artform has...

Australian comedy legends Tony Nikolakopoulos and George Kapiniaris team up once again to bring you the world premiere of The Life of Byron. Following the success of their national 2-year tour of their previous collaboration, The Last Proxy, the duo, along with writer...

Lifelong allergy sufferer, Uma Dobia, knows a thing or two about navigating the world while looking for danger in every crumb. In her playful new cabaret, Intolerant, Uma uses her genre-hopping vocal, storytelling and comedic skills to confront her obsessions with...

After taking Australia by storm with People Are Gonna Lose It & The People Have Lost It Tours, Vlad is back with his follow-up tour and third show CATASTROPHA! Welcome to the rabbit hole of culture, ethnic traditions versus Aussie life, modern-day problems, and...

Created by Matthew Lutton and Keziah Warner, written by Keziah Warner, and directed by Matthew Lutton, Hour of the Wolf invites audiences to Hope Hill, a fictional town that is yours to freely explore on the longest night of the year. This is the world premiere of a...

Following its phenomenal success in the UK, Mythos: Ragnarök will be making its international debut at Melbourne Fringe Festival this October. The creator of the show, Ed Gamester, is delivering a spectacle truly unique in the world. Dexterously weaving ancient myths...

Back from sell-out international and national tours, GODZ, the Winner of the 2022 Melbourne Fringe People's Choice Award now returns to the Fringe at  Festival Park . This adults-only, jaw-dropping offering from the Head First Acrobats boys sees their unique mix of...

 One of Australia’s favourite writers, Debra Oswald, (film, television, stage, radio and children's fiction) will take to the stage in a totally honest exploration of the ups, downs and in-betweens of being a writer and how to navigate things post the success of...

The Queen and her Checkmates   When CLOC Musical Theatre takes to the stage in October with its production of Chess, Rosa McCarty, a mainstay of Melbourne musical theatre, will be revisiting one of her favourite shows and roles as Florence Vassy.  ...

Zahra Newman steps into the iconic role of Billie Holiday this month performing in Belvoir’s Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill.  Newman, who was very attracted to the project initially because of the inherent creative and technical challenge, says to portray a...

Sydney's Ensemble Theatre's latest offering is the world premiere of Summer of Harold, a trio of cracking comedic plays about adventure, obsession and hope from award-winning playwright Hilary Bell. Comprised of two monologues and one two-hander, this powerful new...

Force Majeure's new work, idk, is a movement and narrative performance examining the nuances of navigating consent and the shifting nature of boundaries. Australian-Malaysian artist Gabriel Comerford is one of three performers in the work and says he has been a big...

Actor Albert Mwangi is currently deep in Ensemble Theatre's season of Mr Bailey’s Minder, but has taken some out to speak about the power and humanity of the piece. A potent drama by beloved Australian writer Debra Oswald, Mr Bailey's Minder was written in 2005 and...

Sense of Place is the latest offering by Weave Movement Theatre and, as the title suggests,  is an exploration of the spaces and places in our hearts, minds, memories and everyday reality through physical theatre, soundscape, and visual projections. Co-Director Zya...

Australian author Charlotte Wood’s bestselling novel of friendship and the wisdom of age, The Weekend, is set to make its world premiere at Belvoir early next month. Adapted for the stage by the acclaimed playwright Sue Smith the play explores growing old and growing...

Musica Viva Australia is thrilled to present Chopin’s Piano, a stunning fusion of chamber music and theatrical performances honouring Frederick Chopin’s revolutionary 24 Preludes, as well as the history of a small, craftsman’s pianino. For acclaimed actor Jennifer...

Running at the Werribee Park Mansion since 2003, Essence Theatre Productions will very soon be celebrating their 1000th performance of What Was That?, a play written by Alaine Beek and based on the true story of The Chirnside Family. Beek's 20 year commitment of...

Presenting a tri-lingual show for the first ever time on a Sydney mainstage, Miss Peony is a glitzy, glamorous and slightly-unhinged dive into the world of beauty pageants, featuring projected captions in English, Cantonese and Simplified Chinese simultaneously...

  Earlier this month, one of Andrew Lloyd Weber's most successful musicals reached a significant milestone: Starlight Express celebrated 35 years in Bochum, Germany.   During those 35 years more than 839 artists from 36 countries have performed well over...

Stewart Reeve, star of the hit show Rebel, returns to the Melbourne stage this July with his award-winning one-man show, Chameleon. Catering to all ages, Chameleon is a family friendly event and a great way for music-loving parents to introduce their children to all...

Michael Gow's iconic Australian work, Away, is set to o open at Theatre Works early next month.  Clever, funny yet deeply moving, Away has become one of the  most widely produced Australian plays of all time.  Set in the Australian summer of 1967-1968 the play...

This July, Malthouse Theatre presents Ash Flanders’ new work, This Is Living, a semi-autobiographical play that turns The Malthouse into a Hepburn Springs getaway. The work is described as the saltiest, sweetest, and most honest look at love and friendship you’ll see....

Tamzen Hayes brings her sensitive and vulnerable show, Never Said Motel, to the 2023 Bondi Festival, on from 30 June to 16 July. Part solo performance and part installation piece, Never Said Motel,  first premiered at Melbourne Writers Festival in 2019, then went on...

Writer Michael Frayn, creator of international hits Copenhagen and Noises Off, explores what it is to be human in a statistically driven world, in Benefactors, his Olivier Award-winning 1984 comedy set in the late 1960s. Presented by Sydney's Ensemble Theatre and...

Eric Turro Martinez, of Buena Vista Social Club fame, has got a brand new show that is playing this  June for one night only at The Palms. Buena Vista Dance tells the story of Cuba's golden age through narrator and dance and will be a fascinating look at Cuba's...

 Konstantin: Grandmother’s Tongue, is a multicultural, multidisciplinary, slyly political and highly creative performance piece about chickens and human migration set to take the Loft Theatre stage at Chapel Off Chapel from 23 – 25 June. Five years in the making, the...

The well respected Melbourne Independent Theatre Co.  Hearth Theatre, is currently on tour with Arthur Miller's classic 1949 play Death of a Salesman. Following on from their hugely successful season in 2022 this extraordinary ensemble of Melbourne actors will be...

 When you wore Braces is Rachel Edmonds' taut, thrilling debut play about sisters, families, secrets and the dark recesses of the fragile human psyche. It deftly explores the raw intimacy of sibling reklatinship0s and the ways they expose a person's capacity for...

I Wanna Be Yours is the widely acclaimed debut play from London Laureate and poetry slam champion Zia Ahmed, a contemporary cross-cultural romance.  Directed by Resident Director Tasnim Hossain, it is a compelling new work exploring identity, racism and love, this...

An action-packed graphic-novel fiction fantasy by Declan Greene is about to erupt at Theatre Works - Moth is a love-letter to every teen… and to those who used to be. Directed by Briony Dunn, Moth spotlights a climactic bullying incident that devastates a friendship...

This June, multi-award-winning director Bronwen Coleman (Dirt, Naomi, Ignis) and the Anthropocene Play Company breathe immediacy and new life into Anton Chekhov’s renowned classic, Uncle Vanya. First published in 1898 and first performed in 1899 at the Moscow Art...

Our Top 10 Coronation-themed Musicals   10. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat  Joseph's ability to interpret the king's dreams is pivotal to his journey. In 'Song of the King' the Pharoah asks Joseph to interpret his confusing dreams.   9. Pippin...

  Singing was merely something Ruva Ngwenya considered to be her "party trick". Instead, Ruva Ngwenya describes herself as being a sports fanatic during her early years at Kew High School. "I did all the sports - volleyball, netball," commented Nwenya. "And then...

 After five years, 200 episodes and countless legal threats Sammy J is stepping away from his weekly ABC TV spot – but not before throwing a giant farewell party. Come and farewell Government Coach, Playground Politics, National Yoga, bush poet SJ Paterson,...

According to NetWorthRanks, Nicolette Minster is a 6ft, 30-year-old worth $15mil. Except she’s not. She’s a 38-year-old who shops in the same Woolies she used to work at and whose career highlight was starring (featuring) alongside Meryl Streep at age three. But what...

​Andrew Hansen, 'the good one from The Chaser', is about to take his Andrew Hansen is Cheap gig on tour. Just finishing up his MICF stint, 2023 Adelaide Fringe Winner, Hansen, talks show, comedy, music and more.​ ------------------------------------------------ - How...

Written and performed by writer/performer Dylan Cole, Case Numbers is a fascinating meta-thriller that analyses the narrative conventions used in writing. It has no beginning or ending and, while there is a middle, it’s entirely pointless. Nominated for Best Comedy...

Professional Hecklers; this one’s for you. With her political aspirations in full flight, right-wing blowhard Sarah Huckabee Sanders has embarked on an international propaganda tour. The former White House Press Secretary (turned Fox News host) is now the Governor of...

Berlin’s prince and princess of art rock and Europop, Otto & Astrid, spent years arguing about which songs should appear on their much-anticipated fifth Die Roten Punkte album. Unable to come to a consensus they decided to tour separately with their own musicians,...

When rising Opera Australia baritone, Alexander Sefton took his bows on the stage of the Sydney Opera House, the moment was much more emotional than he'd anticipated. Alexander Sefton made his role debut as Schaunard in Puccini's La Bohème.  It wasn't the first time...

Kellie Gnauck never imagined she'd be belting out the songs of Meatloaf in a rock arena musical. Her first introduction to the arts was attending opera. "I had a grandad who was quite a famous opera singer and he worked for the Sydney Opera Company," she explained....

Playing as a part of the 2023 Midsumma Festival,  award-winning playwright and poet Amy May Nunn  returns to Theatre Works with their latest work; Lemon Tree on Dreg Street. Nunn confesses that the play emerged from a lockdown writing exercise and was never intended...

Daring you to look into the future, and set to premiere in Sydney this weekend, Darkness is a tantalizing collaboration between artists Andrew Bovell, Zoey Dawson, Dino Dimitriadis, Dan Gioannoni and Megan Wilding. Enticingly, the number of collaborators involved is...

By Nick Pilgrim Established in 1958, Sydney’s Ensemble Theatre is one of the city’s leading independent live entertainment groups. Located in leafy Kirribilli, their harbour inlet home base is a brisk ten walk from Milson’s Point Railway Station on the North Shore...

The Sydney Festival returns this January to its largest line-up of international artists since 2019 –featuring 748 performances traversing 54 venues. Promising to give the city its sizzle with an exhilarating line-up of vibrant ideas, irrepressible creativity,...

Alex Rathgeber has already enjoyed an extensive and diverse international career. He's played Raoul in The Phantom of the Opera on London's West End. He's appeared in numerous television series, and played roles on stage ranging from the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz to...

Our Theatre Matters team of editors, writers and reviewers were asked which musicals they would most like to see have their Australian premiere. 125 votes were cast to create our list of the Top Ten Most Wanted Musicals.   10. Sister Act the Musical The film was...

Blake Bowden has enjoyed an enviable theatre career. "My first show was in my second year out of high school. I was just 19 and, not giving away my age, but I am, I'm going into my 19th year in theatre. I'm almost at that 20 year mark so time does go really quickly!"...

Theatre Works is in the habit of supporting new Australian works with The Mentor, by playwright Joshua White, being no exception. A tour de force two-hander, The Mentor is White's first page to stage production. An exciting work shaped by many creative hands and...

Therèsa Borg co-founded Melbourne production house TEG Entertainment Store/Life Like Touring for whom she wrote and directed over 20 family musicals. Her directing credits, amongst others, include Sweeney Todd, starring Anthony Warlow and Gina Riley at Her Majesty’s...

As a part of the 2022 Melbourne Fringe Festival Head First Acrobats present GODZ -  a hedonistic, head-first dive into the lives of the ancient Gods of Olympus. A truly epic show - the most highly reviewed show at the 2022 Adelaide Fringe Festival  -performer Thomas...

John Owen-Jones has an impressive career that includes having performed the role of Jean Valjean in productions of Les Misérables both in the West End and on Broadway. In an online poll, John Owen-Jones was voted the “Best Ever Valjean” and “Best Ever Performer in Les...

With an ingenious band of fabulous independent theatre makers conjuring up a veritable smorgasbord of fantastic and intriguing independent theatre, Melbourne Fringe is the place to be this October. One of those intriguing works is the gripping premiere season of Ignis...

By Adam Rafferty The first season in three years (expected) to be unaffected by the COVID-19 pandemic, 2023 is full of new beginnings, not the least, the first to be programmed by Artistic Director Anne-Louise Sarks. For the company’s 70th anniversary year, they’re...