Reviews and Features
LATEST
Dear Les Miserables
You’re beloved. Iconic. Stop anyone on the street and they’re likely to have seen you in some form in the last 40 years. Even if it’s in the Russell Crowe form. (Nothing wrong with that). Now you’re back here in Australia in the form of an Arena Spectacular World…
Dear Bloom
Your director, Dean Bryant, has done it again. Turned a depressing topic into an uplifting musical. Last year we had songs of hope set against a story of teen suicide (in Dear Evan Hansen), and now you’re giving us inspiring tunes to accompany elder abuse in aged…
Dear Annie
Aww gee, you’ve got heart. There’s a reason your story has endured since the days of being a comic book strip first printed in the 1920s. This famous little red-head has featured in 80 years of comic strips, multiple film adaptations, and junior theatre productions…
Dear Guys & Dolls
If we were any other musical, we’d be stomping our feet and throwing our toys out of the cot right now. You see – it’s a pretty big advantage you have here. Long before your cast have stepped onto…
Dear MJ
When we see a show, we’re accustomed to hearing the ushers remind us: ‘no filming or photography during the show.’ YOUR ushers, however, need to add ‘and no singing.’ That’s how much you know we…
Dear Pirates of Penzance
For nearly 150 years your comedic story has endured: part operetta, part musical. You made John English synonymous with the late eighties and early nineties. You’ve enjoyed being a send-up of…
Dear Hadestown
It’s your first trip to Australia. Very few of us have seen you in the flesh before, and yet, you’ve already gathered a cult following. Impressive work. You combine the mythological story of Orpheus…
Dear Wuthering Heights
You’re grim. Bleak. Dark. We expected this. Your Director, Emma Rice, had explained that your story has been ‘dressed up as a romance by Hollywood over the years, but it’s really not. It’s a revenge…
Dear Lord of the Rings
We had all been wondering – how do you translate to the stage a story that takes 1,216 pages to tell in a book, and 9 hours to tell on the screen? (11 hours if it’s the extended version). After all,…
Dear Six
Oh you are so cheeky. With your catchy, kick-ass anthems, dazzling punk rock costumes, and punchy dance moves. Your creators, Lucy Moss and Toby Marlow, described you as being all about ‘the six…
Dear Jesus Christ Superstar
Have we ever really seen musical theatre if we haven’t seen you? For 50 years, you’ve been the godfather of musicals. When it comes to describing you in this latest production, sentences fail. We…
Dear Evan Hansen
Holy dooly, are you trying to scare the bajeezus out of parents everywhere? If so, you’ve thoroughly succeeded. Right from your opening number, Anybody Have a Map? you’ve left us all slightly shell…
Dear Sunset Boulevard
You’re the musical theatre equivalent of a luxury day spa. Everything about you is lush and extravagant – with your decadent score, glitzy costumes, grandiose sets, and talent that is…
LATEST
Dear Les Miserables
You’re beloved. Iconic. Stop anyone on the street and they’re likely to have seen you in some form in the last 40 years. Even if it’s in the Russell Crowe form. (Nothing wrong with that). Now you’re back here in Australia in the form of an Arena Spectacular World…
Dear Bloom
Your director, Dean Bryant, has done it again. Turned a depressing topic into an uplifting musical. Last year we had songs of hope set against a story of teen suicide (in Dear Evan Hansen), and now you’re giving us inspiring tunes to accompany elder abuse in aged…
Dear Annie
Aww gee, you’ve got heart. There’s a reason your story has endured since the days of being a comic book strip first printed in the 1920s. This famous little red-head has featured in 80 years of comic strips, multiple film adaptations, and junior theatre productions…