Culture
Theatre
‘It challenged my brain and body’: How theatre’s hardest role came to be shared
When Nikki Shiels signed up as ‘alternative performer’ in The Picture of Dorian Gray, she found a role where millimetres divide success and failure.
- by Nick Miller
Latest
On a wintry evening Rising opened at last, but is it as magical as White Night?
The Age’s reviewer Cameron Woodhead braved a cold, rainy evening to sample Melbourne’s new Rising arts festival, and wondered where the crowds were.
- by Cameron Woodhead
What’s a ‘relaxed performance’ and why is it a Rising trend in theatre?
This year’s winter arts festival in Melbourne aims to set a new standard for accessibility, with shows designed to accommodate the neurodivergent.
- by Nick Miller
Sydney Fringe’s urgent call for venues ahead of its biggest line-up yet
Festival organisers are hunting for new venues to house the live music, dance and circus acts that have been in the works for the last couple of years.
- by Linda Morris
★★★★
Arts
Four stars for a lavish, lovely, chocolate box Cinderella with gowns to die for
No expense was spared to make this musical as spectacular as possible, with opulent sets, magical transformations and a flying fairy godmother.
- by Jesse Lane, Cameron Woodhead and Tony Way
Going to Rising, but not sure what to check out? Here’s where you should start
Expect the unexpected at Melbourne’s new mega festival, which includes a maze of mirrors and an artists digging a very large hole.
- by John Bailey
‘Like having a Red Bull’: international hit musical arrives in Melbourne
Tony Award winners Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss were at Cambridge University when they decided to resurrect the ill-fated wives of Henry VIII.
- by Helen Pitt
★★★★
Review
You won’t believe your eyes with this magical Mary Poppins
A delightful new stage production brings the classic child’s tale to stunning life.
- by Cassie Tongue and John Shand
Digging into toxic masculinity under the skin of a classic hero
A new play, Hercules, springs from a part of the legend that’s often forgotten: he murdered his wife and children.
- by Steve Dow
It’s every actor’s anxiety dream, and COVID is making it real
Mid-morning, Alexandra Aldrich got a phone call telling her that night she would be on stage playing a role she had never rehearsed.
- by Nick Miller
★★★★
Arts
Thinking about seeing the new, shorter Harry Potter? Here’s our critic’s review
It’s still a must-see, though cutting this epic production from two performances down to one meant losing some of the emotional depth.
- by Cameron Woodhead