By Louise Rugendyke
Stage shows playing in Sydney include (from left) Six the Musical, Moulin Rouge! The Musical and Hairspray.Credit:James D. Morgan/Getty Images, Daniel Boud, Jeff Busby
Everything old is new again across Sydney’s stages, as classic musicals, stage shows and proven hits dominate the city’s theatres. Feel-good is in, downbeat is out.
“I think the public coming out of COVID and, in these sorts of times, where there are wars happening around the world and life’s a bit ho-hum, people want to be taken on a bit of journey,” says veteran theatre producer John Frost.
That sentiment is reflected in ticket sales, with flashy shows such as Moulin Rouge! The Musical burning up the box office, while tested hits such as Six and Come From Away are proving strong for the Theatre Royal, which struggled to fill seats with the Alanis Morissette musical Jagged Little Pill.
While the Theatre Royal’s general manager Houri Tapiki blamed that musical’s struggles on the surging omicron wave and ongoing bad weather, theatre insiders have suggested the show’s themes of drug addiction and trauma were out of step with the current mood.
“It’s no different to saying, OK, every Friday night, my partner and I go to the Italian restaurant on the corner; we know the spaghetti is good there, we know the wine is great,” says Frost. “But a new restaurant has opened across the road, and you go, well, do I want to give that one a go? How don’t I know the spaghetti is going to be as good?
“You invariably stick to what you know because you haven’t got that money to experiment because your mortgage has gone up and power is expensive. People are much more cautious.”
Frost, who has three shows playing across the country, plus the upcoming murder mystery The Mousetrap, says he has also seen an increase in door sales, whereas people used to book tickets months in advance. “We used to sell 20 tickets a day [at the door],” says Frost. “Now it’s more like 100.”
And while nostalgia is ruling the box office, that doesn’t mean original shows can’t succeed. Sydney Theatre Company has just extended its run of the acclaimed Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, while Belvoir’s original musical Fangirls has made it to the Opera House after two sell-out seasons and a tour.
“If you press the right buttons and think very carefully about what you’re going to write and produce, you’ve got a pretty good chance,” says Frost. “But people really aren’t going to want to sit through a play or a musical about some tragedy. They will, but not at the moment. It goes in cycles.”
The 14 shows to book now
Manali Datar stars as Edna, who is obsessed with singer Harry, in the musical Fangirls. Credit:
Fangirls
Since its debut at Belvoir in 2019, this ode to the power of teenage girls has screamed its way into the hearts of audiences. It’s now back for a third time, with an all-new cast telling the story of 14-year-old Edna, who is infatuated with Harry from the boy band True Connection. When she can’t get tickets to his show, Edna must think of another way to meet her one true love. I’ve seen it twice and it’s the most fun you’ll have in a theatre, like, ever. Until September 4, Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House
Des Flanagan and Alinta Chidzey as Christian and Satine in Moulin Rouge! The Musical.Credit:Daniel Boud
Moulin Rouge! The Musical
It’s the hottest ticket in town and you still have a couple of months to catch the musical adaptation of Baz Luhrmann’s 2001 film. The soundtrack has been given a complete revamp, with Beyonce, Lady Gaga and the Rolling Stones among the new additions. Des Flanagan and Alinta Chidzey shine as the doomed lovers Christian and Satine, while a special shout-out goes to Andrew Cook for his magnificent, sleazy Duke. Until December 18, Capitol Theatre
Josh Piterman, Amy Manford and Blake Bowden star in The Phantom of the Opera. Credit:Jake Terrey
The Phantom of the Opera
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s classic musical finally gets its turn at the, well, Sydney Opera House (so obvious, you have to wonder why it hasn’t been done before). Australia is only the third country to stage Cameron Mackintosh’s acclaimed production, which grossed $US400 million ($579 million) over the course of its seven-year run in the US. And if you’re thinking, “Didn’t I see The Phantom of the Opera on Sydney Harbour this year?” you are correct, except that was the old-school Broadway and West End version, while this one, says Mackintosh, is grittier and introduces a love triangle that is not in Gaston Leroux’s novel or other versions of the story. Josh Piterman plays the Phantom, who is obsessed with Christine (played by Amy Manford), while Blake Bowden plays Raoul, Vicomte de Chagny. Until October 16, Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House
Loren Hunter, Chelsea Dawson, Phoenix Jackson Mendoza, Kala Gare, Kiana Daniele and Vidya Makan reign supreme in Six The Musical. Credit:Getty
Six The Musical
Back for its third run in Sydney, this modern musical re-telling of the lives of Henry VIII’s six wives has been wowing critics and audiences since its Australian premiere in early 2020. The show puts those royal plus-ones – Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anna of Cleves, Katherine Howard and Catherine Parr – centre-stage, with each wife loosely modelled on a modern-day singer. Catherine of Aragon, for example, is a mix of Beyonce, Jennifer Lopez and Jennifer Hudson, while Anne Boleyn channels Miley Cyrus. The show has become a worldwide smash, which is remarkable when you consider it was written by a couple of Cambridge University students and premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Slay, queens, slay. August 26 to October 1, Theatre Royal Sydney
The London cast of The Mousetrap. An all-Australian cast is bringing a 70th-anniversary edition of the show to the Theatre Royal. Credit:
The Mousetrap
Talk about a classic: this Agatha Christie whodunit has clocked up more than 28,500 performances since it debuted on London’s West End in 1952. It’s still running today, but you don’t have to travel to London to see it, as this all-Australian, 70th-anniversary production brings the murder-mystery to Sydney. Stage legend Robyn Nevin is directing, with My Fair Lady’s Anna O’Byrne playing Mollie Ralston, who owns the Victorian-era estate that has been turned into a guesthouse. The problem is, a murderer is on the loose and each of her guests in some way fits the murderer’s description. Awkward. As a side note, Charlotte Friels, daughter of Australian acting royalty Judy Davis and Colin Friels, is making her professional stage debut in the show. From October 8, Theatre Royal Sydney
Silvie Paladino and Shubshri Kandiah make magic in Cinderella.Credit:Ben Fon
Cinderella
We all know the story of Cinderella, right? Girl stopped from going to a ball by her mean stepmother is transformed by magic into a radiant beauty, who then takes a pumpkin-turned-carriage to the masked ball, leaves a shoe behind and is then tracked down by the prince. Happily ever after, etc. It’s not the most modern of stories, sure, but this Tony Award-winning Rodgers and Hammerstein production gives our heroine a little more oomph – she cares about the workers! – and sass. Stepping into Ella’s glass slippers is Shubshri Kandiah, while Ainsley Melham is Prince Topher. Tina Bursill brings comic relief as the stepmother, while Silvie Paladino waves her magic wand as Marie, the fairy godmother. When it opened in Melbourne, The Age called it “lavish and lovely”, and praised Kandiah for having a voice so radiant she could “charm small woodland creatures from their burrows”. Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo, indeed. From October 23, Sydney Lyric
Come From Away turns a tragedy into a feel-good musical. Credit:
Come From Away
This feel-good musical is back for its third round in Sydney, after COVID predictably disrupted its earlier runs. The story is based on the true story of Gander, a tiny town in Canada, that became a haven for planes needing somewhere to land after the September 11, 2001, terror attacks. Within a week, 38 planes carrying 7000 passengers descended on the tiny town, and the musical tells the story of Gander’s residents and those passengers they helped. Since its debut in 2013, it has become a worldwide smash, with audiences responding to its message of kindness. Word of warning: it contains thick Newfoundland accents. From November 5, Theatre Royal Sydney
Todd McKenney, Asabi Goodman, Mackenzie Dunn, Shane Jacobson and Carmel Rodrigues in Hairspray.Credit:Jeff Busby
Hairspray
Yes, it’s the musical that stars Shane Jacobson in drag as larger-than-life mum Edna Turnblad, but what’s even more remarkable is that the show’s star, Carmel Rodrigues, was plucked from an open-call casting process. Rodrigues plays Tracy Turnblad, a “pleasantly plump” teenager in 1952 Baltimore, Maryland, who becomes an overnight sensation when she wins a role on The Corny Collins Show. Tracy then uses her newfound celebrity to campaign for racial integration on the show. The production is based on John Waters’ 1988 film of the same name, and the stage adaptation won Best Musical at the Tony Awards in 2003. It’s packing in audiences in Melbourne and lands in Sydney next year. From February, Sydney Lyric
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat
It’s not often the words “musical comedy” and “Book of Genesis” go together, but Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice have turned the Old Testament story of Joseph into a West End hit. If you haven’t checked the Bible recently, the story follows Joseph, who is given a brightly coloured coat by his father Jacob. Enraged with jealousy, Joseph’s 11 brothers decide the best option is to kill him. As I said, it’s a comedy. The stunt casting of AFL great Shane Crawford as the Pharaoh in the Melbourne production caused a kerfuffle, so it will be interesting to see if the producers pick another sporting legend for the Sydney version. Matthew Johns, anyone? From February 11, Capitol Theatre
Tina: The Tina Turner Musical is heading to Australia in 2023.Credit:
Tina – The Tina Turner Musical
The only question to ask is: who doesn’t love Tina Turner? The musical icon’s life story is built for the stage: big songs, big wigs, tragedy, triumph and, we hope, rugby league. In the US, the show’s lead, Adrienne Warren, was praised for her “”star-making” performance, so we can only imagine the auditions will be hotly contested. Time to break out the Nutbush. From May, Theatre Royal Sydney
Courtney Stapleton as Belle and Shaq Taylor as Beast in the Broadway production of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast: The Musical, which is coming to Sydney.Credit:Johan Persson
Beauty and the Beast: The Musical
Just announced, this splashy Disney musical is the latest pawn in the Sydney v Melbourne musical wars. The story, of course, is well known: Belle is held captive by the Beast until she realises she, ahem, loves him. The show promises new sets, state-of-the-art technology, spectacular costumes and a healthy dose of romance (if that’s what you want to call it.). From June, Capitol Theatre
And if you want to go down south …
Hamilton Do we even need to explain Lin-Manuel Miranda’s blockbuster about one of the US’s founding fathers, Alexander Hamilton? For Hamifans, the real interest lies in new cast members Sami Afuni and Rowan Witt taking on the roles of Hercules Mulligan/James Madison and King George respectively from September 27. Her Majesty’s Theatre, Melbourne
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child The original two-part mega production has been seamlessly rolled into one three-and-a-half-hour show. The story begins 19 years after the events in the novel Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and follows Harry, who is now head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement at the Ministry of Magic, and his son Albus. Princess Theatre, Melbourne
& Juliet You know the end of Romeo and Juliet, where Juliet dies? Well, what if she didn’t? What if Romeo died instead? This jukebox musical, featuring the songs of the Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, Katy Perry and Justin Timberlake, aims to answer that question as it sends our heroine on a wild trip from Verona to Paris. The Guardian gave the West End production four stars and called it a “witty story of self-discovery”. From February, Regent Theatre
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