Tag Archives: 2025

Review: The 39 Steps (Sydney Opera House)

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Venue: Sydney Opera House (Sydney NSW), Aug 8 – 30, 2025
Playwright: Patrick Barlow (from the John Buchan novel, and the Alfred Hitchcock movie)
Director: Damien Ryan
Cast: David Collins, Shane Dundas, Lisa McCune, Ian Stenlake
Images by Cameron Grant

Theatre review
Richard is a man on the run, falsely accused of murder. The 39 Steps is best known as Alfred Hitchcock’s wryly funny 1935 film, adapted from a 1915 adventure-thriller novel. Patrick Barlow’s 2005 stage adaptation transforms the story into a fully comedic work, frequently referencing the movie version to create a postmodern take on the century-old title.

Director Damien Ryan embraces all the parody and pastiche, delivering a bold and extravagant farce, though the nonstop jokes lack the crispness needed to fully land. The production is visually striking, with James Browne’s sets and costumes impressing through their ambitious scale and refined aesthetic. Lights by Matthew Marshall are commensurately sumptuous, and highly evocative in this monochromatic tribute to early filmmaking. Music and sound by Brady Watkins are full of dynamism, adept at sustaining energies, even when the laughs begin to feel laboured.

Actor Ian Stenlake embodies the leading man with commendable dedication, though he exhibits some limitations in agility for a production characterized by its vigorous intensity. Lisa McCune performs multiple roles with skill and accuracy, bringing a level of refinement to a show that easily spirals out of control. David Collins and Shane Dundas, best known collectively as The Umbilical Brothers, make their trademark humour a distinctive feature of the staging, which ultimately detracts from the overall experience. The pair is unequivocally accomplished, but the narrative momentum is hindered by the production’s insistence on highlighting their expertise.

Humour is inherently subjective. Understanding what makes something funny demands an examination of the milieu from which it stems. While we may live in multicultural societies, much of the artistic output—even in the twenty-first century—remains resolutely monocultural. As a result, for many of us in minority communities, witnessing widespread laughter can often feel nothing short of confounding.

www.the39steps.com.au

Review: Once On This Island (Hayes Theatre)

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Venue: Hayes Theatre Co (Potts Point NSW), Aug 2 – 31, 2025
Book & Lyrics: Lynn Ahrens
Music: Stephen Flaherty
Director: Brittanie Shipway
Cast: Zahrah Andrews, Sara Camara, Paul Leandre Escorrido, Googoorewon Knox, Sione Mafi Latu, Sebastian Nelson, Chaya Ocampo, Paula Parore, Thalia Osegueda Santos, Cypriana Singh, Alexander Tye, Rebecca Verrier
Images by David Hooley

Theatre review
Based on the novella “My Love, My Love” by Rosa Guy, which was in turn inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid”, the 1990 musical Once on This Island tells the story of Ti Moune, a dark-skinned peasant girl who falls for the pale, upper-class Daniel after rescuing him from the wreckage of a car accident. While the narrative may be simplistic and geared toward a younger demographic, the show’s infectious songwriting by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, resonates across generations.

Brittanie Shipway’s direction embraces the innocence of the piece, and together with Leah Howard’s choreographic talents, delivers an entertaining production that also makes an important statement about social justice. Also enjoyable is music direction by Dylan Pollard, which makes full use of the score’s Caribbean influences to ensure an uplifting experience.

Nick Fry’s set and props effectively transport us to a fabled corner of the French Antilles, while Rita Naidu’s costumes add a delightful touch of fantasy. Veronique Benett’s lighting design contributes to this sense of magic, even if the overall staging occasionally lacks visual exuberance.

Performer Thalia Osecueda Santos is captivating and utterly endearing as Ti Moune, bringing unshakable focus and irrepressible enthusiasm that make her considerable technical abilities all the more admirable. Also memorable is Zahrah Andrews, who sings the role of Mama Euralie with soulful intricacy, complemented by Sione Mafi Latu’s impressive timbre as Tonton Julian.

Things take a dark turn when Ti Moune learns about betrayal. The effects of systemic racism on colonised lands make themselves undeniable, when they come crashing down on our young heroine’s hopes and dreams. Many of us too have been shaken out of that stupor, coming to understand the ubiquitous and insidious nature of those violations. Daniel may not believe he intends to harm Ti Moune, but it is precisely that kind of ignorance that perpetuates the deeply entrenched injustices shaping how we live. He may think he has done nothing wrong — but he has just as clearly done nothing right.

www.hayestheatre.com.au | www.curveballcreative.com

Review: Werkaholics (25A Belvoir)

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Venue: Belvoir St Theatre (Surry Hills NSW), Jul 29 – Aug 17, 2025
Playwright: Vivian Nguyen
Director: Nicole Pingon
Cast: Ruby Duncan, Georgia Oom, Shirong Wu
Images by Lucy Parakhina

Theatre review
As an influencer, Lilian is bombarded with conflicting signals about her worth. Each piece of digital content that earns her praise also draws criticism for perceived narcissism. In contrast, Jillian, a struggling actor, endures relentless rejection and financial hardship, yet is considered to be leading a life of apparent integrity. Capitalism is the problem, in Vivian Nguyen’s Werkaholics, a play about two Asian-Australian women who can do nothing right. We watch Lilian and Jillian try to attain success, by following various prescribed methods, only to find the rulebook turning against them.

Werkaholics is a clever and exuberant piece of writing that although tends too often to turn convoluted, offers a thoughtful meditation on modern economics in an era defined by digitised social life and the unprecedented commodification of the personal. Direction by Nicole Pingon is memorable for a charming and irreverent playfulness, that allows us to regard the feminist message in a commensurately subversive, and distinctly queer, manner. The show is one that practises what it preaches.

Set and costumes by Ruby Jenkins are rendered with a simplicity that foregrounds the female bodies that tell a story about worth and exploitation. Video projections by Harrison Hall and Daniel Herten offer seamless enticements into realms of artifice, while lights by Frankie Clarke convey emotional complexity. Music and sound by Christine Pan imbue a charged atmosphere, heightening tension in both its comedic and dramatic turns.

Georgia Oom as Lilian and Shirong Wu as Jillian form a compelling duo, drawing us into a sharp interrogation of social structures marked by deep-rooted injustices along lines of gender and race. Each performer radiates infectious energy, leaving a lasting impression with the bold effervescence they bring to the stage. Ruby Duncan is effective as Sage, a duplicitous character who personifies the sinister hypocrisy of those intent on preserving entrenched institutions that profit from marginalisation and exclusion.

Many of us participate in systems that ultimately work against our own interests, simply because they often represent the only means we know to survive. Indeed, their stratagem involves projecting a sense of inevitability, as it conceals the subterfuge of deplorable injustices. Some believe that we can alter its machinations while operating within it. Others argue that history shows how little meaningful change is effected without radical tactics. In any case, we need to be unafraid of disruption and continue finding new ways to create change, believing that every impact, big or small, will contribute to a consequential resistance that moves us toward something better.

www.belvoir.com.au | www.purpletapeproductions.com

Review: Grief Is The Thing With Feathers (Belvoir St Theatre)

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Venue: Belvoir St Theatre (Surry Hills NSW), Jul 26 – Aug 29, 2025
Playwrights: Simon Phillips, Nick Schlieper, Toby Schmitz (from the novel by Max Porter)
Director: Simon Phillips
Cast: Philip Lynch, Fraser Morrison, Toby Schmitz
Images by Brett Boardman

Theatre review
Recently widowed, a scholar finds himself utterly lost, adrift in grief. As a specialist in the work of Ted Hughes, it is perhaps inevitable that a crow—the most iconic figure in Hughes’ oeuvre—should appear, inserting itself into his life as companion and surrogate. Based on the novel by Max Porter, Grief Is the Thing with Feathers captures with striking authenticity both the frustrating stasis and the slow, almost imperceptible progress that inevitably accompanies bereavement.

Adapted for the stage by Simon Phillips, Nick Schlieper, and Toby Schmitz, this transposition pulses with an aggressive rhythm and a tonal grandeur that echoes both the literary references and the visceral experience of sorrow and despair. There is a regrettable emotional distance in its delivery, yet the sheer theatrical ambition of this reimagining of Porter’s novel remains undeniably impressive.

Phillips’ direction is boldly imaginative, capturing the poetic chaos of the widower’s interactions with the crow in a production that is truly dazzling for the senses. Video design by Craig Wilkinson, along with illustrations by Jon Weber, form a highly evocative element of the staging, especially useful in bringing to life its supernatural dimensions. Schlieper’s lighting is endlessly creative and exquisitely beautiful, masterfully evoking a universe of shifting realms. Sound by Daniel Hertern and music by Freya Schack-Arnott add immeasurable power, in their dynamic auditory renderings of this surrealist presentation. 

The widower is played by Schmitz who proves himself a commanding leading man, and a detailed artist who encourages us to regard the work with curiosity and discernment. As his young sons, Philip Lynch and Fraser Morrison deliver wonderfully spirited performances, injecting a vital effervescence into a production that might otherwise risk becoming overly sombre.

Grief is rarely a constant emotional state, but it can leave a lasting imprint, reshaping a person’s disposition into something permanently shadowed. While there are steps one might take to prevent such a descent, the most enduring strategy is often to weather the storm, trusting that its force will eventually subside. It can be a sad thought that those we have lost might one day be forgotten, but there comes a time when their memory must be gently placed in the recesses of the mind, to make room for living.

www.belvoir.com.au | www.andrewhenrypresents.com

Review: Babyteeth (KXT on Broadway)

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Venue: KXT on Broadway (Ultimo NSW), Jul 18 – Aug 2, 2025
Playwright: Rita Kalnejais
Director: Kim Hardwick
Cast: Jane Angharad, Philip D’Ambrosio, Esha Jessy, Jeda Osorio, Campbell Parsons, James Smithers, Rachel Thomas
Images by Phil Erbacher

Theatre review
Milla is only 14 and dying of a terminal illness when she meets Moses, a 23-year-old drifter. As their sexual relationship unfolds, her parents, grappling with the imminence of her death, choose to tolerate the dubious romance in the hope it brings her some joy. Babyteeth by Rita Kalnejais may be criticised for courting controversy without adequate justification, but setting aside its arguably precarious moral stance, the play remains an intriguing work.

Kim Hardwick’s direction is marked by a lightness of touch that lends the production a certain grace, though at times this subtlety borders on vagueness, leaving the production’s intentions feeling somewhat unclear. Lights by Topaz Marlay-Cole and sound by Michael Huxley, are both subtle in execution, occasionally striking but generally unobtrusive in how they support the storytelling.

Actor Rachel Thomas is convincing as a teenager, with a vulnerability that makes Milla an endearing personality. Campbell Parsons brings extraordinary naturalism to the role of Moses, coupled with a confident pacing that truly mesmerises. Milla’s parents are played by Jane Angharad and James Smithers, with unassailable commitment. Philip D’Ambrosio and Esha Jessy offer wonderful comedic dimensions that provide much needed uplift to the experience, as does Jeda Osorio who proves a delightful presence.

It is rare to be given an opportunity to examine someone like Moses. Our instinct is to see him vilified and punished, but Babyteeth leaves that act of castigation to the viewers themselves. This of course is a dangerous choice, one that opens the door for the depraved to impose repugnant interpretations, even going so far as to advocate for behaviour that ought to be regarded as unequivocally heinous. Milla dies in Babyteeth, but we can only imagine what Moses moves on to, after the curtain falls.

www.kingsxtheatre.com | www.whiteboxtheatre.com.au

Review: The Book Of Mormon (Capitol Theatre)

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Venue: Capitol Theatre (Sydney NSW), Jul 15 – Dec 31, 2025
Book, Music & Lyrics: Trey Parker, Robert Lopez, Matt Stone
Directors: Casey Nicholaw, Trey Parker
Cast: Nick Cox, Matthew Hamilton, Sean Johnston, Paris Leveque, Simbarashe Matshe, Callum Rigg, Tom Struik, Augie Tchantcho
Images by Daniel Boud

Theatre review
Given its divisive and often problematic influence on politics, religion today can be seen as a troubling force in the United States. Things were markedly different in 2011 when The Book of Mormon first premiered. Those now feel like more innocent times, when lampooning theology was able to seem almost good-natured by comparison. Also different is how the musical’s depiction of Uganda now feels. What once came across as cheeky and daring is increasingly veering toward the objectionable.

It could therefore be argued that the show’s appeal has diminished, yet its unique irreverence and playful lack of earnestness still allow The Book of Mormon to stand out in a crowded marketplace. Although somewhat outdated and no longer the fresh or shocking revelation it once was, the production remains tremendously entertaining, offering an edginess that musical theatre lovers will find hard to match elsewhere.

This return season features an excellent new cast, with performers like Nick Cox making a remarkable impression as Elder Cunningham—animated and precise in his approach, delivering some of the biggest laughs in what is surely one of Broadway’s funniest shows. Sean Johnston brings great energy and unequivocal vibrancy to the role of Elder Price, though he could benefit from dialling up the camp factor to embrace a more satirical style. The wonderful Paris Leveque is extremely charming as Nabulungi, with believable expressions of emotion and a stunning voice, that really help to sell the story.

In 2025 there is no longer anything whimsical or indeed cute, about those who reject critical thinking in favour of bizarre doctrines and conspiracy theories. The so-called ‘religious right’ continues to expand its influence, demanding that government policies align with beliefs rooted in supernatural thinking, often at odds with the broader public good. The Book of Mormon reminds us of a time when churches could be met with light-hearted derision, when we were perhaps oblivious to the harm they were willing to inflict, often even upon their own. While the cultural climate has undeniably shifted, one truth remains: we need laughter now more than ever.

www.thebookofmormonmusical.com.au

Review: Emerald City (Ensemble Theatre)

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Venue: Ensemble Theatre (Kirribilli NSW), Jul 18 – Aug 23, 2025
Playwright: David Williamson
Director: Mark Kilmurry
Cast: Aisha Aidara, Danielle Carter, Rachel Gordon, Matt Minto, Tom O’Sullivan, Rajan Velu
Images by Phil Erbacher

Theatre review
Reaganomics and Thatcherism were in full force when David Williamson’s Emerald City first emerged—a play in which a screenwriter grapples with his artistic integrity in a world determined to commodify everything. Almost four decades on, the conflict between art and commerce remains and has become so subsumed into our daily realities that watching an artist navigate those old quagmires now seems strangely quaint.

Direction by Mark Kilmurry is thankfully taut and energetic, with leading man Tom O’Sullivan bringing commitment and valuable charisma to the not-always-likable role of Colin. His wife Kate is made a powerful figure by Rachel Gordon’s confidence and panache. Matt Minto is appropriately dubious as the opportunistic Mike, while Aisha Aidara’s portrayal of his partner Helen surprises with warmth and a compelling naturalism.

Production design by Dan Potra depicts the era with some accuracy, but can appear somewhat simplistic in approach. Lights by Morgan Moroney improve the viewing experience by effecting subtle shifts as the production transforms in tone and temperament. Music by Madeleine Picard add a dimension of ephemerality to the way we feel about this straightforward story.

The city of Sydney serves as a fitting backdrop for this reflection on commercialism and its entanglement with human life. Money, undeniably, shapes much of who we are here—as it does in any city—and while we recognise that ‘the love of money is the root of all evil,’ it is equally true that our relative affluence underpins many of the pleasures we associate with life in this frankly magnificent place.

www.ensemble.com.au

Review: Betrayal (Old Fitz Theatre)

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Venue: Old Fitzroy Theatre (Woolloomooloo NSW), Jul 18 – Aug 10, 2025
Playwright: Harold Pinter
Director: Cristabel Sved
Cast: Andrew Cutcliffe, Matt Hardie, Diego Retamales, Ella Scott Lynch
Images by Kate Williams

Theatre review
Emma has been sleeping with her husband’s best friend for years. It would appear that she loves both men deeply, but convention deems this highly improper, forcing all parties to endure stages of anguish as they grapple with the perceived transgression. Harold Pinter’s Betrayal is almost half a century old, yet it seems little has changed in terms of middle-class values and the cultural dominance of monogamy. The play suggests an absurdity in the weight we assign to traditional matrimony, yet Pinter’s narrative remains relevant, even in 2025.

Directed by Cristabel Sved, the work unfolds with ample earnestness, often at the sacrifice of irony and humour. Characters understandably take their circumstances extremely seriously, but it can be argued that the actors should adopt a more observational and discursive approach to improve our intellectual engagement with the show.

Debonair actor Andrew Cutcliffe rises to the challenge as Robert, delivering a satisfying theatricality with his sardonic interpretation of the text. Ella Scott Lynch plays Emma commendably, capturing psychological accuracy even though some of the comedy is compromised. Matt Hardie, too, places emphasis on the realism of the piece but misses the opportunity to create a more entertaining portrayal of Jerry, the secret paramour. A brief appearance by Diego Retamales as a waiter at an Italian restaurant, offers moments of idiosyncrasy that really benefit the production.

Set design by Melanie Liertz is minimally rendered, but certainly sufficient in helping us engage with interactions between friends and lovers. Her costumes however could be more detailed in their depiction of timelines. Lights by Verity Hampson and Luna Ng are immensely helpful in creating the many spatial transformations. It is arguable whether the video projections by Aron Murray are necessary, but they are nonetheless a pleasing sight. Music by Steve Toumin, along with sound design by Johnny Yang are appropriately subdued, and are effective in enhancing the production’s relentlessly serious atmosphere.

Infidelity is painful to go through, but it is also highly comical. We insist on making promises we are incapable of keeping, only to torment ourselves trying to escape the messes we inevitably create. Betrayal does not explain why we allow Emma only to sleep with one man, but it can be seen that her turmoil becomes increasingly meaningless over the course of the play. Traditions deserve scrutiny, and often, what appears deeply important may not be so at all.

www.oldfitztheatre.com.au | www.sportforjove.com.au

Review: Hedwig And The Angry Inch (Carriageworks)

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Venue: Carriageworks (Eveleigh NSW), Jul 17 – Aug 3, 2025
Text: John Cameron Mitchell
Music and Lyrics: Stephen Trask
Directors: Shane Anthony, Dino Dimitriadis
Cast: Seann Miley Moore, Adam Noviello
Images by Eugene Hyland, Shane Reid

Theatre review
Hedwig does not love. Having only experienced deception, betrayal and cruelty throughout her life, Hedwig has little capacity to show affection or kindness, even to Yitzhak who offers only dedication. John Cameron Mitchell and Stephen Trask’s iconic queer masterpiece Hedwig and the Angry Inch stands as one of the few prominent titles in a musical canon that, although held in high regard by many queer lives, rarely places LGBTQIA+ stories at its centre. Thirty-one years since its original conception, protagonist Hedwig remains defiantly and resolutely queer — a figure who resists all manner of classification, and who challenges the values not only of middle-class life, but also of how we think about art and creativity.

Co-directed by the formidable pair Shane Anthony and Dino Dimitriadis, Hedwig and the Angry Inch is both spectacular and poignant, fully satisfying our need for something transcendentally fabulous, while remaining unequivocally meaningful. Together with soulful choreography by Amy Campbell, they deliver a production that saturates and satiates our senses, making us hopelessly mesmerised every second, before finally hurling us somewhere unfathomably moving.

The show is characteristically unruly in its rhapsodical, bohemian expression of the grungy nineties, yet there is an unmistakeable rigour that oversees every aesthetic choice, to ensure unparalleled elegance and sophistication, for a brilliantly elevated presentation of one of musical theatre history’s wildest moments.

Set design by Jeremy Allen conveys glamour while meticulously capturing the details of a distinctly working-class milieu. Lights by Geoff Cobham are emotionally charged, and thoroughly beautiful with the imagery they help to assemble. Unforgettable costumes by Nicol & Ford blend inventiveness with technical mastery, taking our breath away in the “Wig in a Box” number by fashioning a coat filled with imaginative humour and cultural significance.

Victoria Falconer serves as musical director, giving us unwavering passion in a cacophonous combination of rock and Broadway, leaving no stone unturned to hold the audience in heightened states of arousal from start to finish. Along with sound design by Jamie Mensforth and soundscape by Jason Sweeney, we are never in doubt about being situated in an American dive bar, gritty yet adamantly hopeful.

Playing the lead is a captivating and powerful Seann Miley Moore, whose audaciously extravagant approach has us persistently fascinated, but it is their exhaustive and granular familiarity with the material that insists on keeping us absolutely spellbound. Adam Noviello is extraordinary likable as Yitzhak, full of spirit even when portraying the despondency of a painfully neglected companion.

There may have been a surgical error crucial to the formation of Hedwig’s identity, but there is certainly nothing wrong with who she has become. We recognise queer heroes by the destabilisation they bring to unsound hegemonies. They are by nature contrarian, but only from the perspective of the corrupt. To them, Hedwig is an abomination and entirely perverse, where in fact she is truly magnificent and gloriously sacred.

www.hedwig.com.au

Review: Circle Mirror Transformation (Sydney Theatre Company)

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Venue: Wharf 1 Sydney Theatre Company (Walsh Bay NSW), Jul 12 – Sep 7, 2025
Playwright: Annie Baker
Director: Dean Bryant
Cast: Ahunim Abebe, Nicholas Brown, Cameron Daddo, Rebecca Gibney, Jessie Lawrence 
Images by Daniel Boud

Theatre review
A small group convenes over six weeks, for drama lessons at a rural community centre. They focus on acting exercises, which look initially to be incredibly inane, but they lead to deep discoveries of a personal nature. Annie Baker’s Circle Mirror Transformation takes us into a microcosm of North American ordinariness. It is a quiet portrait of the middle class from 2009, years before any hint of the current pandemonium could even be detected. 

If there are any socio-political implications in Baker’s play, they are deeply subsumed and open to all manner of interpretation. Direction by Dean Bryant provides no indication to wider connotations of the story, making for a somewhat pedestrian experience, but the intricacy he puts into the unfurling of subjective narratives, reflects an admirable level of integrity.

The very accomplished actor Rebecca Gibney grounds the work in a hyper naturalistic space as group leader Marty, making for a completely believable depiction of daily life at the dawn of the Obama years. There is a conspicuous blandness to the presentation which, although understandable within context, makes viewing somewhat challenging due to its lack of theatricality.

Fortunately Nicholas Brown and Jessie Lawrence are on hand to dial up the idiosyncrasy. As Schultz and Theresa, both performers bring exceptional depth and colour to the show, allowing us to enjoy more than the mundanity being explored. Ahunim Abebe brings a valuable richness to the humanity that her character Lauren reveals in later sections, and Cameron Daddo leaves an impression with his understated authenticity as James.

Designer Jeremy Allen brings unexpected texture to otherwise nondescript scenic requirements. Lights by Brockman and sound by Clemence Williams, are understandably operative rather than ornamental, rarely attention grabbing but certainly effective.

It is almost peculiar to return to a time when Americans could simply worry about their individual foibles, rather than having to grapple with unrelenting chaos and the impending collapse of their social structures. Circle Mirror Transformation may not even be a score of years old, but the vast changes that we witness the USA undergoing, make the play seem quaint, almost unrecognisable in its representation of modern normalcy.

www.sydneytheatre.com.au