Musicals in 2017 and Beyond
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The Book of Mormon
It has taken almost seven years for this nine-time Tony Award winning musical, written by the team behind South Park, to open in Australia. Fans are counting the days until the opening at Melbourne’s Princess Theatre in January.
The Book of Mormon has a flimsy set, plain costumes and the most implausible of story lines. It does have some catchy songs and the sharpest array of religious satire. Amazingly some Mormons (secretly) enjoy going to see it, even though it roasts the central tenets of their religion.
It’s about a pair of Mormon boys sent on a mission to Uganda. Things go haywire so they end up setting up their own religion with some rather lewd characteristics. Leave the children at home for this one.
Photo (from the Broadway production) by Joan Marcus.
Muriel’s Wedding - The Musical
The most keenly awaited musical of the year is opening as part of the Sydney Theatre Company season in November. For Muriel’s Wedding The Musical, original writer-director PJ Hogan has updated his own screenplay. Muriel Heslop, stuck in her deadbeat life in Porpoise Spit, ends up with everything she ever wanted – a man, a fortune and a million Twitter followers. That’s when things start to go really wrong.
One of the many memorable lines from the 1994 movie is from Muriel when she says that her life is “as good as an ABBA song - as good as Dancing Queen.” With the popular Swedish pop group an integral part of the story, the co-producers Global Creatures waited patiently for two years to get permission to from ABBA to use the songs before the season was set. New music is also being composed by Kate Miller-Heidke and Keir Nuttall.
Director Simon Phillips and designer Gabriela Tylesova head the creative team.
Click here to read about the cast.
Aladdin
Disney extravaganza Aladdin plays in Sydney until early 2017, then flying on its magic carpet to Her Majesty’s Theatre Melbourne from April, and no doubt the rest of Australia after that.
It has the most extravagant set and tamest of storylines. The best scene is when young Aladdin steps inside a cave filled with eye popping gold and treasure.Magic tricks and a frenzied choreography add to the sumptuous kaleidoscope that includes songs from other Disney classics.
The young thief rubs the lamp to squeeze out the true star of the musical - the Genie. He is a pantomime Dame in the finest traditions.
As Disney does not offer concessions it is expensive to take a whole family along, but if you can afford the tickets it will excite interest in musicals in young ones for many a year.
Photo- Aladdin - Ainsley Melham. Photo By Deen van Meer
Ladies in Black
Queensland Theatre season kicks off 2017 with the encore season of Ladies in Black, as part of a national tour beginning at the Lyric Theatre, Sydney in January.
This stylish story of fashion, friendship and 1950s Australia won the Helpmann Award for Best New Australian Work and features over 20 original songs written by singer songwriter Tim Finn OBE (Split Enz, Crowded House) and some 30 custom-designed and created dresses and suits.
The adaptation of Madeleine St John’s 1993 novel, The Women in Black has been brought to life on the stage by Australian screenwriter Carolyn Burns, together with Finn and director Simon Phillips.
Photo by Rob Cromwell
My Fair Lady
John Frost and Opera Australia’s exquisite recreation of the original production of My Fair Lady, under the direction of Dame Julie Andrews, will play seasons in Brisbane and Melbourne and will return to Sydney’s Capitol Theatre in August 2017.
The original season of the Lerner and Loewe classic broke box office records at the Sydney Opera House.
A sumptuous trip down memory lane, it features exact replicas of the original Broadway set and costumes from the 1956 season.
Leading lady Anna O’Byrne as Eliza, Alex Jennings (who will be replaced by Charles Edwards, from Downton Abbey in 2017) as Higgins and Reg Livermore as Doolittle are the stand out performers.
My Fair Lady plays at QPAC from 12 March, Melbourne’s Regent Theatre from 11 May, and Sydney's Capitol Theatre from August 24.
Photographer: Jeff Busby
The Bodyguard
Paulini, first introduced to Australia in the inaugural series of Australian Idol, will play the leading role of Rachel Marron in the Australian Premiere of The Bodyguard. Prinnie Stevens will play the role of Nicki Marron, with Kip Gamblin as bodyguard Frank Farmer.
Based on the Warner Bros 1992 film starring Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner and written by the acclaimed, Oscar-nominated screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan (Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Big Chill, The Empire Strikes Back), The Bodyguard will commence at the Sydney Lyric Theatre in April.
The score includes a whole host of Whitney Houston's greatest hits including ‘Queen of the Night’, ‘So Emotional’, ‘One Moment in Time’, ‘Saving All My Love’, ‘Run to You’, ‘I Have Nothing, Greatest Love Of All’, ‘Million Dollar Bill’, ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’ and one of the greatest hit songs of all time – ‘I Will Always Love You’.
Former Secret Service agent turned bodyguard Frank Farmer is hired to protect superstar singer Rachel Marron from an unknown stalker. Each expects to be in charge – what they don’t expect is to fall in love.
The Australian tour of The Bodyguard will also play at the Lyric Theatre, QPAC, Brisbane from July and the Regent Theatre, Melbourne from August.
Photo - Paulini (photographer: Daniel Boud).
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical
The multi-award winning Broadway hit will make its Australian premiere at a newly refurbished Sydney Lyric Theatre from September, with Esther Hannaford in the role of Carole King.
From a teenager who shows chutzpah in getting her songs published, to making pop classics for Afro-American stars, juggling a career, relationships and motherhood, to her own solo career, the production covers the full tapestry of her extraordinary life.
A stunning set adds to the spectacle.
Esther Hannaford to play Carole King
Click here for full casting announcement.
Kinky Boots
The Tony Award winning musical with songs from Cindy Lauper, currently playing in Melbourne, will leap into Sydney’s Capitol Theatre from the April 2017.
Based on the film which tells the story of the northern English shoe factory that is saved from oblivion by the style of a drag Queen, it has joyous music and a gutsy story with a young Australian cast.
Photo: Toby Francis as Charlie in Kinky Boots. Photographer: Matthew Murphy.
Cabaret
The Kit Kat Club is returning to Sydney in all its decadence for a new Australian revival of Cabaret at Hayes Theatre Co. in January starring Paul Capsis as The Emcee and Chelsea Gibb as Sally Bowles. The production, which will also feature Kate Fitzpatrick, Marcus Graham, John O’May and Debora Krizak,will then play the Athenaeum Theatre, Melbourne from April 27.
Photo: Paul Capsis as Emcee - www.johnmcrae.com
Green Day’s American Idiot
American Idiot, the rock musical based on Green Day’s Grammy® Award-winning multi-platinum album, makes its way down under for its Australian premiere season at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC).
The Playhouse, QPAC will be transformed into a grungy mosh pit for the exclusive to Brisbane, Australian premiere season, running from 23 February 2017.
Winner of two Tony® Awards (for scenic and lighting design) and the 2010 Grammy® Award winner for Best Musical Show Album, American Idiot features an all-Australian cast and includes every song from Green Day's album American Idiot, as well as several songs from follow-up release, 21st Century Breakdown.
Matilda
Fresh from winning a truck-load of Helpmann Awards and dazzling audiences in Sydney and Melbourne, Matilda swings into Brisbane this month ahead of a Perth season in February, and Adelaide in May.
Photographer: James Morgan.
Read more about Brisbane and Perth seasons.
Read more about Adelaide season.
Mamma Mia!
Mamma Mia! will tour Australia in 2017 – 2018, commencing its national tour in Canberra in November before moving on to five other capital cities.
Cast announced - read more here
The Wizard of Oz
John Frost and Suzanne Jones have announced that Andrew Lloyd Webber’s London Palladium production of The Wizard of Oz is coming to Australia. The Australian Premiere will be held in Brisbane in November, then travel to Sydney in December. Leading the cast as The Wizard and Professor Marvel will be Australia’s leading star of musical theatre, Anthony Warlow.
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Dream Lover: The Bobby Darin Musical - Melbourne season
Producer John Frost and Chief Executive Officer of Arts Centre Melbourne, Claire Spencer, have announced that they would unite to reinstate the tradition of the annual summer musical in the State Theatre of Arts Centre Melbourne from 2017.
The first musical which will celebrate the return of the summer musical at Arts Centre Melbourne will be Dream Lover – The Bobby Darin Musical, which had its world premiere at the Sydney Lyric Theatre late last year and audiences fell in love with this new Australian hit. David Campbell will return to star as the Grammy award-winning singer and Oscar nominated actor, Bobby Darin, in the Melbourne summer season, with further cast members to be announced shortly.'
Jersey Boys Returns
The musical Jersey Boys will open its Australian tour in September 2018 at Sydney’s Capitol Theatre. This premiere season has been secured for Sydney by the NSW Government through its tourism and major events agency Destination NSW.
Priscilla Queen of the Desert Returns
Aussie musical Priscilla Queen of the Desert is off on a national tour, starting in Melbourne in January 2018 with stops in Sydney, Adelaide and Brisbane.
After playing Broadway, the West End, Europe and Asia, Simon Phillips' production Priscilla Queen of the Desert makes a returns to Australia for its 10th anniversary.
The musical is based on the film about Mitzi, Felicia and former Les Girl, Bernadette – who hop aboard a battered old bus named Priscilla bound for Alice Springs.
Musical Theatre Concert Tours
Lea Salonga in Concert
Tony® and Olivier Award winning star Lea Salonga will return to Australia next February marking her Sydney Opera House debut with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. She will also perform concerts at Arts Centre Melbourne with Orchestra Victoria.
Sierra Boggess to Tour Australia
Broadway and West End music theatre star Sierra Boggess, will make her debut Australian tour, beginning in in Sydney on Saturday 3 June, performing Brisbane (8 June) as well as Arts Centre Melbourne’s Hamer Hall (10 June).
Moulin Rouge! The Musical in Development
Carmen Pavlovic, CEO of Global Creatures, has announced that Baz Luhrmann’s film Moulin Rouge! will come to the theatrical stage as a new musical with a book by John Logan, directed by Alex Timbers.
Developmental work on the show is underway, and a production time-line and opening venue will be announced at a later date.
Independent Musical Theatre
Sydney’s Hayes Theatre Co has announced four productions for the first half of 2017. As previously mentioned, the year begins with Cabaret, playing from January 9.
Calamity Jane
Following the sold-out success of its ‘Neglected Musicals’ season in 2016, One Eyed Man Productions in association with Neglected Musicals and Hayes Theatre Co will present Virginia Gay in Calamity Jane from March 8. The cast also includes Laura Bunting, Sheridan Harbridge, Rob Johnson, and Tony Taylor.
Big Fish
RPG Productions in association with Hayes Theatre Co presents Big Fish from April 18. With music and lyrics by Andrew Lippa, and a book by John August , it’s based on Daniel Wallace's 1998 novel, and the 2003 film written by John August and directed by Tim Burton. Tyran Parke will direct, with choreography by Cameron Mitchell
Big Fish centres on Edward Bloom, a traveling salesman who lives life to its fullest… and then some! Edward’s incredible, larger-than-life stories thrill everyone around him – most of all, his devoted wife Sandra. But their son Will, about to have a child of his own, is determined to find the truth behind his father’s epic tales.
Only Heaven Knows
Luckiest Productions in association with Hayes Theatre Co present a 30th anniversary revival of Alex Harding’s Australian musical Only Heaven Knows from May 26, directed by Shaun Rennie. Set in 1940s and 1950s Sydney, Only Heaven Knows tells the story of one young gay man’s discovery of love and life in Kings Cross. Playing the dual role of Lea/Lana is Hayden Tee, Blazey Best will play the role of Guinea, with Matthew Backer as Alan.
In 2017 The Production Company in Melbourne will present Hello, Dolly! starring Marina Prior as Dolly Levi, Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Jesus Christ Superstar with a cast that includes Rob Mills, Alinta Chidzey and Zoy Frangos, and Rohan Browne and Genevieve Kingsford in Lerner and Loewe’s romantic love story, Brigadoon.
Hello, Dolly! opens in Arts Centre Melbourne’s Playhouse Theatre on May 27 for a season of 19 performances.
Jesus Christ Superstar opens in Arts Centre Melbourne’s State Theatre on July 29 for a season of 11 performances.
Brigadoon opens in Arts Centre Melbourne’s State Theatre on October 28 for a season of 11 performances.
Melbourne independent musical theatre company StageArt has announced a 2017 season featuring three productions, The Full Monty, Spring Awakening (Victorian Professional Premiere) and Memphis (Australasian Premiere).
The Full Monty
StageArt will present The Full Monty at The National Theatre, St Kilda from March 2 to 19.
Based on the film of the same name and nominated for ten Tony Awards, The Full Monty tells the story of a group of unemployed steelworkers from Buffalo New York who spy on their wives obsessing over male strippers at a ‘Girls' Night Out’. Jealous, out of work and feeling emasculated, the men come up with a bold and unclothed way to make some quick cash.
The Full Monty will be directed by Drew Downing with musical direction by Nathan Firman and choreography by Rhys Velasquez.
Spring Awakening
StageArt will present the Tony Award winning musical Spring Awakening at Chapel off Chapel from May 18 to June 4.
A revelatory journey from adolescence to adulthood with poignancy and passion that is illuminating and unforgettable. It is Germany, 1891, a world where the grown-ups hold all the cards while the youth struggle through the adversity of coming of age in a time when sexual education is non-existent.
Spring Awakening will be directed by director Robbie Carmellotti, with musical direction by Caleb Garfinkel.
Memphis
Luigi Lucente will direct StageArt’s Australasian Premiere of the Tony Award winning musical Memphisat Chapel off Chapel from October 5 to 22.
Inspired by actual events about a white radio DJ who wants to change the world and a black club singer who is ready for her big break, Memphis is filled with laughter, emotion and rock ‘n’ roll.
Music Theatre Melbourne’s new concert production of Australian rock musical PARIS pays homage to one of Australia’s great performers, Jon English.
John Waters (Ulysses) and Ben Mingay (Achilles) head the cast (which also includes Kerrie Anne Greenland (Cassandra), Matthew Manahan (Paris), and Madeleine Featherby (Helen), that will bring this epic show - co-written by Jon English and music producer David Mackay - to life for just four performances 13- 15 July 2017 at Melbourne Recital Centre.
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