Imagine the excitement of sitting down in a theatre ready to see one of the great classic musicals- but having absolutely no idea which it will be! The starting notes begin and the crowd slowly cheers as the first recognitions start to trickle through like a wave. This excitement of discovery is all a part…
Read More
Cosi fan tutte to me was like a girls movie night at the opera. My friend and I were full of wistful sighs over corsets, eye rolls over relationship silliness, swoons over dashing (yet infuriating) men, endless giggles and pensive frustrations over wondering who will end up with who. All in all- a great night…
Read More
As part of the 2016 national tour, Riverside Theatres will present Opera Australia’s brand new production of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro this August. We caught up with Director and recent Helpmann nominee Michael Gow ahead of the tour to chat about Mozart’s classic comedy, stunning sets and opera in English! Can you tell us a little bit…
Read More
The 2016 Rob Guest Endowment Awards have been officially launched today, opening applications for all award categories. The Rob Guest Endowment is a scholarship program providing financial assistance and industry support to the next generation of musical theatre stars, creators and musicians. This years winners will be announced at the Concert held in Sydney in November….
Read More
A king desperate to find a way to make his melancholic hypochondriac of a son, the crown prince, laugh; a clown who employs the help of tumblers and strange colourful creatures to put on a performance to get that laugh; a wizard, a sorcerer, a quest; princesses who come out of oranges and a cross-dressing…
Read More
The Friends of The Australian Ballet will be hosting the Australian Premiere screening of the Royal Ballet’s new production of FRANKENSTEIN next week. The Royal Ballet, based in London’s Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, have turned Mary Shelley’s gothic classic into a full-length story ballet. Described as heart-wrenchingly beautiful, the period adaption returns to the original…
Read More
“Love is a bird that nobody can tame” sing Carmen. Nobody but director John Bell it seems, in the latest dramatic and colourful retelling of the popular opera. Right from the opening notes the music is familiar. The set is like that of a film, lending beautifully to the very film-like opera and bringing everything to…
Read More
Heathers opened at the Sydney Opera House last Thursday night to standing ovation. Make sure you don’t miss one of your final chances to see one of the best new musicals to premiere in Australia in the past year. Still need more convincing? Here’s five very good reasons: 5. You loved the film If you worry…
Read More
In The Block Universe time happens simultaneously, so just as you’re reading this interview every other moment in the history of Time is also happening exactly now. Scary huh? We sat down with Briallen Clarke, who stars in the premiere of this new Australian work, to talk about the play’s existential time concept. So… Could you…
Read More
Chances are you’ve seen the 80s cult classic film Heathers, with its darkly humorous story of high school cliques, power-crazy scrunchie-wearing girls and trench-wearing bad boys. The off-Broadway smash hit musical translates all of this glory straight to the stage, and now after a sell-out season at the Hayes theatre Heathers is marching its shoulder-pads…
Read More
The Imperial Bells of China is all at once a vivid display of colour and sound and a glimpse into a revived culture right before your eyes, and I’m not sure which part I enjoyed more! Narrated in Chinese, the staging offers English subtitles so we can follow the tale. We are introduced to State…
Read More
Who knew the old trope of the hard-boiled detective paired with eager up-and-coming youth set to solve crime and make safe the streets could be so smoothly re-imagined as a musical? An utterly hilarious musical at that! Ian Ferrington, writer of “The Detective’s Handbook” sure did. For hilarious it is. The audience could hardly save…
Read More
Set in the Chicago 1950s The Detective’s Handbook follows Frank Thompson and his young partner Jimmy Hartmann as they investigate the murder of two policemen. Rob Johnson plays Hartmann, a new recruit determined to do it “by the book” who clashes hilariously with the world-weary Thompson. We caught up with Rob during rehearsals to find…
Read More
Just when you thought you were so sure that you knew the story of Grease, Squabbalogic is here to revive THE ORIGINAL GREASE for all of our grimy reeducations. The original is dark and dingy, full of the sex and swearing of the rock ‘n’ roll era that our bubblegum Pink Ladies and swarve T-Birds know…
Read More
“Turandot!” cue gong in the form of a giant flame-throwing dragon. “Principessa!” cue Turandot’s dazzling appearance at the top of the tall metal tower to descend towards the stage. “Vincero!” cue the dramatic note of Nessun Dorma proceeded with fireworks in the night sky above Sydney Harbour. Handa Opera really knows how to put on…
Read More
After the 2015 release of her award-winning chart-topping Decca album, Greta Bradman is ready to bring My Hero tour to audiences across Australia! The tour will begin late next month and will encompass both capital cities and regional centres. We caught up with Greta before the tour to discuss the recording process of My Hero, the…
Read More
Annie, that curly redheaded good-hearted orphan and quite possible epitome of the family friendly musical. It is this charm that makes Annie such a perfect choice for any smaller independent theatre companies. Particularly with a younger cast as there’s just something that gets you in the “smiling” mood about being in a crowd full of…
Read More
Sid, Manny, Diego, Scrat, Ellie, Peaches and all our other favourite glacial buddies from Ice Age will be coming to life on actual ice this month when Ice Age Live! starts its tour down under! We caught up with one of the talented skaters of the show, Vicki Usherwood, ahead of the tour to discuss the show,…
Read More
Little Shop of Horrors, the musical where a giant man-eating plant takes center stage (or majority of the stage really). Oh, and it sings. Very sassily. If that doesn’t sell it for you then maybe you need to revisit your theatre needs. This is a quirky dark comedy is brought to you by the very…
Read More
The world’s most recognized story proves it’s still got something new to share in this latest production of Romeo and Juliet by Bell Shakespeare. Whether it be in the heights of the stage’s scaffold set, or the choreography of its power swordplay, or in the hilarious delivery of well-loved lines that we never knew we…
Read More
The Barber of Seville is a fun, fast-paced opera, with much laughter and giggles and many breathless moments of vocal talent. Two such vocal talents are brother sister duo Jane Ede and David Parkin, who play Berta and Don Basilio respectively. We chatted to the siblings about their joint casting and found out who can hold the longest…
Read More
There is no doubt that Nicole Car is one of the most outstanding young singers to emerge from Australia in recent years. She has sung all over the world, and last year made her debut at Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Now the native Victorian is back in Australia singing the anguished lead in Luisa Miller….
Read More
Romeo And Juliet. The classic tale of forbidden love and the passion of youth, and the first programme by Peter Evans as the new Artistic Director of Bell Shakespeare. We searched for the light through yonder window and found Kelly Paterniti, the productions Juliet, to discuss tackling the world’s most famous leading role, pivotal moments…
Read More
Griffin Theatre Company proudly supports and presents all new Australian works, a fitting program for their stables-turned-theatre venue. “Australian” and “new” means that the work can often hit a little closer to home in terms of language, setting and relevance. In their latest production, Ladies Day, nothing is more fitting then describing it as hitting,…
Read More
Tom Stoppard’s plays are just so damn entertaining and clever. They always give off such a vibe of established sophistication that he easily fits into the most respected playwrights of history, but his writing remains relevant and modern. And when one gets to experience his plays in such a production as Sydney Theatre Company’s latest…
Read More
Luisa Miller is a lesser known earlier opera of Verdi, it’s name perhaps less extravagant then his La Traviata, Don Carlos or Aida, but in its musical telling are far more applicable characters and a genuinely beautiful yet tragic tale of love. This production by Opera Australia is a co-production with Opera de Lausanne of…
Read More
From writing some of our most beloved pieces of musical theatre, including Wicked, Pippin and Godspell, to some of our most treasured songs from the likes of Pocahontas, The Hunchback of Notre Dame and The Prince of Egypt, Stephen Schwartz has touched our music-filled hearts in one way or another. Currently in Australia for Defying…
Read More
Ladies Day takes its audience to the festivities of the Broome races, complete with swishy hemlines, debonair gents and fascinators galore. Amongst the fabulous frocks is a brutal act of violence. It’s a play that is really funny until it’s not. We caught up with Matt Backer, who stars in the world premiere of this…
Read More
Even if you haven’t yet seen a production of West Side Story, chances are you a probably familiar with one of its very recognisable tunes or melodies. From “Something’s Coming” to “Tonight” to “Somewhere” to even the very “Overture”, you’ll recognize something (eh). But really, seeing them all together in their original setting is the…
Read More
The 2015 Glugs Theatre Awards were announced last night at a ceremony at Sydney’s Castlereagh Boutique Hotel. The evening also marked the 50th Anniversary of the group, formed in 1966 from a collection of theatre-lovers including critics, journalists, actors and theatre-goers. The group continues strong to this day and meets on the first Monday of every…
Read More