Reviews

Les Misérables: The Arena Spectacular

Music by Claude-Michel Schönberg. Lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer. Original French text by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg. Additional material by James Fenton. Adaptation by Trevor Nunn and John Caird. Presented by Cameron Mackintosh, and Nick Grace Management, in association with Live Nation Australia. ICC Theatre Sydney from 1 May 2025, then Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne from 14 May and Brisbane Entertainment Centre from 28 May 2025

Photograph above by Danny Kaan.

Grand Horizons

By Bess Wohl. Directed by Phil Carney. New Farm Nash Theatre, Brisbane. 9 – 31 May, 2025.

Set against the backdrop of a tidy retirement community, Grand Horizons invites us into a world where appearances are deceptive and emotional complexity lurks just below the surface.  After fifty years of marriage, Nancy calmly announces she wants a divorce.  Her husband, Bill, responds with quiet indifference but their two adult sons are blinded.

Drinking Habits

By Tom Smith. Wyndham Theatre Company. Director: Cody Riker. Lighting and audio: Sam Victoria. Costume design: Amy Lowe. Crossroads Hall, Synnot St., Werribee. 9th – 17th May, 2025

Drinking Habits is high farce with secrets, lost loves, people pretending to be someone else, lightning costume changes, hiding places behind doors, under the table and in a trunk, all contributing to the mayhem. The setting in a very small convent during prohibition in America aids the necessary misunderstandings.

The Lady in the Van

By Alan Bennett. Directed by Barry Park. Old Mill Theatre, South Perth WA. Apr 26 - May 10, 2025

Alan Bennett’s “uplifting, bittersweet comedy” perhaps best known as the film starring Helen Mirren, played to full houses at Old Mill Theatre, presented by Old Mill’s resident company.

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat

By Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. Spotlight Theatre, Benowa, Gold Coast. May 9 – 31, 2025

This all singing, all dancing production is a great experience at Spotlight - part of their 70 years of bringing quality theatre to the Gold Coast.

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s infectious score sets the pace for the story of Joseph to delight audiences of all ages.

Beans Means Love

Writers and directors: Alannah Costello and Kailan Tyler-Moss. Sandgate Theatre, Qld. May 9 to 30, 2025.

With a name like this, it would have been foolish to believe the play would follow the norms. It didn’t. Basically a can of beans comes to life mysteriously to bring a couple together and that couple don’t even know each other’s names.  The other influencers are Commonsense, Caution, Impulsivity and Crystal Home and that covers the range of actions and emotions that we go through in life with some crystal thought to guide us. So the Beans Means Love was born from pain and suffering but ultimately the sense of humour we have.

Hadestown

Music, lyrics & book by Anaïs Mitchell. Presented by Opera Australia & Jones Theatrical Group. Developed and directed by Rachel Chavkin. Her Majesty's Theatre, 219 Exhibition St, Melbourne. 8 May – 6 July 2025.

The evolution of this production has seen it grow from a DIY theatre project to an off-Broadway show and has now become a hugely successful Tony award-winning full-scale musical. The show transforms ancient Greek mythology into a tragic love story. Orpheus (Noah Mullins) and Eurydice (Abigail Adriano) must contend with the ruthless ruler of the underworld Hades (Adrian Tamburini) and his wife Persephone (Elenoa Rokobaro). Their love must overcome the rules that govern these two opposing spheres and the demands they face prove to be too trying for the young couple.

And Then There Were None

By Agatha Christie. Presented by John Frost for Crossroads Live. Directed by Robyn Nevin AO. Theatre Royal Sydney from May 8 to June 1, 2025, then His Majesty’s Theatre Perth, and Her Majesty’s Theatre Adelaide.

Whoever said that crime doesn’t pay? In the case of Agatha Christie, the genre of murder mystery has been a literary gold-mine.

As an ironic observation of what was to come, one of the guests arriving at Soldier Island stated that something peculiar was taking place on their weekend away.

One by one the toy soldiers on the coffee table disappear as the corresponding character shuffled off their mortal coil, in this theatrical adaptation of what was recently voted as Christie’s most popular novel.

Jekyll & Hyde The Musical

Conceived for the stage by Steve Cruden and Frank Wildhorn. Book and lyrics by Leslie Bricusse. Music by Frank Wildhorn. Presented by Swich Up Productions. Directed by Timothy Wynn. Ipswich Civic Centre. 9-11 May, 2025

Fans of musical theatre on a grand scale would have found plenty to swoon over on opening night of Jekyll & Hyde—a production that embraces spectacle without sacrificing substance. A cast that seems to stretch to the horizon impresses not only with its size but with its sheer consistency: not a weak link among them. Every performer, from principals to ensemble, brought their A-game, delivering rock-solid acting, dancing, and vocals with unflinching commitment.

Othello

By William Shakespeare. Presented by the Melbourne University Shakespeare Company. Directed by Elizabeth Browne & Claudia Scott. Union Theatre, Level 2, Arts & Cultural Building, Melbourne University. 8 – 10 May 2025.

As co-director Elizabeth Browne points out, Othello is a challenging text which is “commonly studied and rarely performed” due to its sensitive and controversial content. Racism and domestic violence are at the core of this play. MUSC has openly addressed these aspects and depicted them for what they are: abhorrent. This is a very brave production that wishes to confront the ways in which jealousy, deception, and betrayal fuel these perfidious behaviours.

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