Reviews

The Sunshine Club is essential viewing – foremost for the joyous musical talent of its cast, but also for its story of local history and optimistic message of community strength in diversity. The story centres around the Doyle and Morris families in post-war Brisbane. As Rose Morris takes up a singing gig at the glamorous Cloudland Ballroom, her neighbourhood friend, Frank Doyle, has returned from active war service just in time to see her perform.

Producer Matt Ward has a mission – to bring full scale musicals to the Gold Coast where so many Main Stage A1 musicals never play. After a stunning production of Mamma Mia! last year, he is succeeding beyond all expectations. Priscilla is a triumph in entertainment.

For anyone who has been living in a cave since the last century, the story is of three friends, two drag queens and a trans gender woman, who take a road trip on a battered bus named Priscilla, to perform their show in Alice Springs, where one has a “secret” wife and son.

Barrister Tessa (Jodie Comer) in wig, gown, jabot, and tailored suit is alone on stage -  a stylised barrister’s chambers, mahogany furniture, green shade desk lamps – but dominated on all sides by towering shelves of files – hundreds and hundreds of white ring binder files of past cases, files of current cases – some won, some lost.

When Queensland Ballet’s Artistic Director, Li Cunxin, started in his new role 10 years ago, a new centre of arts excellence for his company of dancers was just the spark of an idea. The company had been rehearsing in the old Thomas Dixon Centre in Brisbane’s West End – an old boot factory – since 1991. That working space is now a state-of-the-art creative hub, with its own 350-seat Talbot Theatre, public art and workshop spaces for creatives.