Australia - Sydney Theater Reviews: Best Shows & Critic Recommendations

BWW REVIEW: THE END OF THE WHARF AS WE KNOW IT Is The Fabulous Final Season For The Wharf Revue
by Jade Kops - November 24, 2024

For a quarter of a century Jonathan Biggins, Phillip Scott and Drew Forsythe delivered an annual examination of Australian and International politics in the form of intelligent satire.  This year’s offering, THE END OF THE WHARF AS WE KNOW IT, is listed as the last Wharf Revue that the trio will pro...

REVIEW: The 50th Anniversary Tour Of JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR Provides Contemporary Clarity To The Musical That Started Life As A Concept Album
by Jade Kops - November 14, 2024

Timothy Sheader’s (Director) Olivier Award winning production of Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber (Music) and Sir Tim Rices (Lyrics) JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR arrives at Capitol Theatre 52 years after the rock musical made its Australian premiere on the same stage....

REVIEW: TITANIQUE THE MUSICAL Is A Camp Celebration Of Celine Dion And James Cameron’s 1997 Blockbuster Movie
by Jade Kops - October 24, 2024

Following on from a successful debut Off-Broadway, Marla Mindelle, Constantine Rousouli and Tye Blue’s (co writers, with Blue also Director) musical comedy tribute to Celine Dion and James Cameron’s cinema hit, TITANIQUE THE MUSICAL is delighting Sydney audiences....

REVIEW: YENTL Explores Gender Politics, Religion, Gender Identity and Sexuality In A New Adaptation.
by Jade Kops - October 21, 2024

YENTL, Gary Abrahams, Elise Hearst and Galit Klas’ adaptation of Isaac Bashevis Singer’s Yentl the Yeshiva Boy, comes to Sydney following a successful Melbourne season. Read the review. ...

REVIEW: THE QUEEN'S NANNY Is An Entertaining Insight Into The Woman Who Really Raised The Late Queen Elizabeth II.
by Jade Kops - September 11, 2024

New work from Melanie Tait, THE QUEEN’S NANNY, is an amusing and enlightening tale about Marion Crawford, the Governess to the Princess that would become the UK’s longest reigning Queen....

REVIEW: SUNSET BOULEVARD Showcases Australian Talent But Brightman Doesn't Quite Get The Return Her Norma Wanted
by Jade Kops - September 02, 2024

Andew Lloyd Webber (Music), Don Black (Book & Lyrics) and Christopher Hampton’s (Book & Lyrics) SUNSET BOULEVARD is given a reworking for Opera Australia and GWB Entertainment by director Paul Warwick Griffin.  ...

Review: HAMILTON Returns For a Final Sydney Season
by Jade Kops - August 10, 2024

In 2021 Lin-Manuel Miranda’s (Book, Music and Lyrics) multi-award-winning musical HAMILTON blew us all away and it is back for a final encore season at Sydney’s Lyric Theatre. ...

REVIEW: Jane Harrison's STOLEN Is Presented With Powerful Simplicity By Sydney Theatre Company
by Jade Kops - June 25, 2024

Ian Michael’s (Director) presentation of STOLEN reminds the audience that Jane Harrison’s (Playwright) Kate Challis RAKA Award winning play retains a relevance in the 26 years after it premiered. ...

REVIEW: Outhouse Theatre Co's ULSTER AMERICAN Is Revived For An Encore Season at Ensemble Theatre
by Jade Kops - May 19, 2024

Shane Anthony’s (Director) presentation of David Ireland’s (Playwright) ULSTER AMERICAN returns to the Sydney stage at Ensemble Theatre....

REVIEW: Reuben Kaye Delivers Another Insightful And Intelligent Evening Of Comedy And Cabaret With APOCALIPSTIK
by Jade Kops - April 29, 2024

Reuben Kaye, the Glamazon international icon of intelligent cabaret returns to the Enmore Theatre, Sydney, with his latest creation, APOCALIPSTIK....

REVIEW: Guest Reviewer Hamavand Engineer Shares His Thoughts On ELVIS: A MUSICAL REVOLUTION
by Jade Kops - February 19, 2024

ELVIS: A MUSICAL REVOLUTION offers a captivating glimpse into the life and music of Elvis Presley...

REVIEW: Guest Reviewer Hums Engineer Shares His Thoughts On ODE TO JOY (HOW GORDON GOT TO GO TO THE NASTY PIG PARTY)
by Jade Kops - January 18, 2024

sex, drugs and techno (sorry, no rock and roll in these homosexual nightclubs), with the portrayal of Gordon’s (Lawrence Boothman) journey to self-discovery at its centrepiece. ...

Review: Guest Reviewer Charley Allanah Shares Her Thoughts on MASTERCLASS
by Jade Kops - January 12, 2024

To be blunt, if you’re into theatre of social commentary and/or socially minded comedy, Brokentalkers and Adrienne Truscott’s ‘Masterclass’ is, simply, brilliant.  ...

REVIEW: Guest Reviewer Kym Vaitiekus Shares His Thoughts On A MIGRANT'S SON
by Jade Kops - November 05, 2023

A MIGRANT’S SON is the engaging and passionate story of Michaela Burger’s family history expanding over 100 years. A story of grit, determination, ambition and love that centres around her larrikin father Luke....

Guest Reviewer Hamavand Engineer Shares His Thoughts on THE HEN HOUSE
by Jade Kops - September 12, 2023

If an education in cleaning chicken carcasses is what you’re looking for, you’ll find it at The Hen House....

REVIEW: Oscar Wilde's THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST Comes Up Short Despite Sydney Theatre Company's Bold Aesthetic
by Jade Kops - September 11, 2023

The comedy of Oscar Wilde’s THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST loses power with a performance that fails to trust the source material. ...

REVIEW: Guest Reviewer Hamavand Engineer Shares His Thoughts on RAZOR GANG WARS
by Jade Kops - September 06, 2023

Based on the real life story of when the razor gangs battled for supremacy on the streets of Sydney in the 1920’s, RAZOR GANG WARS is staged in the unique setting of a 200-year-old sandstone crypt beneath St James’ Church in Sydney...

REVIEW: Cameron Mackintosh's Revival of MISS SAIGON Arrives In Sydney With A Stronger Focus On The Fallout Of American Arrogance
by Jade Kops - August 26, 2023

Presented by Opera Australia, Cameron Mackintosh’s Revival of MISS SAIGON reunites the creatives from the 2004 Touring Production, which reached Australia in 2007, to reincorporate elements of the 1989 West End original while shifting the focus to make a more powerful message than the central love s...

REVIEW: MURDER FOR TWO Pairs A Multi-talented Duo With Hilarious Take On The Classic Murder Mystery For An Incredible Night Of Theatre
by Jade Kops - August 15, 2023

Kellen Blair (Book and Lyrics) and Joe Kinosian’s (Book and Lyrics) clever comic murder mystery MURDER FOR TWO is brought to life by Gabbi Bolt and Maverick Newman under Richard Carroll’s direction. ...

REVIEW: Miranda Michalowski's SATURDAY GIRLS Is A Heartwarming And Humerous Exploration Of Navigating Female Friendships And Adolescence.
by Jade Kops - August 13, 2023

Presented as part of Belvoir St Theatre’s 25A series, SATURDAY GIRLS is an honest expression of the teen female experience with the added challenge of sexual discovery. ...

REVIEW: Bernadette Robinson Takes On Ten Great Ladies Of Music with Her New Show DIVAS.
by Jade Kops - August 08, 2023

Australian singer and actress Bernadette Robinson brings her latest vocal tribute to Sydney with her latest cabaret concert, DIVAS. ...

REVIEW: SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET - A MUSICAL THRILLER Is Given A Gloriously Gothic Treatment
by Jade Kops - July 31, 2023

Victorian Opera’s incoming Artistic Director Stuart Maunder AM revives his a deliciously dark but incredibly clear expression of Stephen Sondheim (Music and Lyrics) and Hugh Wheeler’s (Book) SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET – A MUSICAL THRILLER....

Review: WALANBAA YULU-GI: BURN THE FLOOR at The Palms At Crown
by Josh Stent - July 25, 2023

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REVIEW: THE HERO LEAVES ONE TOOTH Considers What Happens When Myths Become Reality But 'Evolution' Still Hasn't Fully Fixed Things.
by Jade Kops - July 23, 2023

Erica J. Brennan’s new play THE HERO LEAVES ONE TOOTH reimagines a world where female superpowers are more than just cautionary myths. ...

REVIEW: The Challenge Of Living Across Cultures as Australians with Chinese Heritage Is Contemplated In the Heartwarming and Humorous MISS PEONY.
by Jade Kops - July 16, 2023

Michelle Law (playwright) draws on childhood memories of when she finally saw people like herself on screen to create MISS PEONY, a work that celebrates retaining a connection to her heritage while challenging what it means to identify as Chinese in 21st century Australia. ...