Reviews

My Brilliant Career

A new musical based on the novel by Miles Franklin. Book by Sheridan Harbridge & Dean Bryant, music by Mathew Frank and lyrics by Dean Bryant. Presented by Melbourne Theatre Company. Directed by Anne-Louise Sarks. Southbank Theatre, The Sumner, 140 Southbank Blvd, Melbourne. 23 January – 28 February 2026.

This iconic Australian novel seems an unlikely contender for a musical adaptation. However, this production transforms the novel into a vibrant contemporary performance that inevitably sweeps the audience away. This is thanks to a variety of strengths that make this an unmissable and fabulously idiosyncratic Australian experience.

Robert the Octopus

By Alex Duncan. Midsumma Festival. Brunswick East Entertainment Festival & PO PO MO CO. Brunswick Mechanics Institute. 29 January – 7 February 2026

Robert the Octopus is a tale of inter-species connection – even romance.  But it’s not like those moving clips on Facebook where, say, a full-grown lion embraces the humans who brought him up, or the goose that comes waddling at speed when the woman who brought her up from a gosling appears.  Yes, there is a hint of bestiality in Robert the Octopus, but this brilliantly performed and directed show is too funny to get icky.  Besides, it has more to say about humans than about octopi (a plural disputed by this octopus in the course of the show).

Speed the Movie the Play

By Natalie Bochenski, Dan Beeston and Gregory Rowbortham. Act React and FringeWorld. Speed Bus at the Pleasure Garden, Northbridge, WA. Jan 21-Feb 15, 2026

Visitors to the Pleasure Garden, Fringe World’s biggest performance hub, may have noticed the unusual presence of a 1977 Mercedes Benz Bus, MTT 171. This bus, borrowed from the Bus Preservation Society, and the area around it, is home to one of Fringe World’s more unusual offerings. Speed, the Movie, the Play.

Australia in Photographs and Songs

Peter Barry and FringeWorld. Civil Court, The Old Courthouse, Fremantle WA. Jan 24-25, 2026

Australia in Photographs and Songs is a gentle nostalgic look at Australia through photographs, accompanied by original songs. It has just finished the first of three FringeWorld “seasons” with later performances at Rockingham and Victoria Park. It builds on previous seasons presented at FringeWorld in 2024 and 2025, and there was clearly a good number of returning audience members.

Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens

By Bill Russell and Janet Hood. Heirlume Productions. The MC Showroom, Prahran, Vic. 29 Jan – 1 Feb, 2026

Melbourne’s Midsumma festival is now in full swing with great offerings such as Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens which gives life and voice to those lost and left behind in the wake of the AIDS crisis.  This new production revives Bill Russell’s free verse poetry and Janet Hood’s music, striking right to the heart of what it means to survive and be remembered.

Taruna Jayawardhana's 'A Classic Tale'.

Written, performed, and presented by Liam Hartley. Based on an Original Story by Taruna Jayawardhana. Directed by Calum Johnston. Good Chat Comedy Club, 29 January, 2026

There is something delightfully audacious about building an entire one man show around a piece of teenage creative writing and then treating it with both sincere theatrical care and merciless comic scrutiny. A Classic Tale, written, performed and produced by Liam Hartley and based on an original story by Taruna Jayawardhana, leans into the audacity with elan.

God’s Cowboy

By Les Solomon. Little Stormy Productions. In association with Lambert House Productions. Directed by Ella Morris. Flight Path Theatre. January 21 - February 21, 2026

Sydney is hosting some high-profile arts events as part of the Mardis Gras Festival – but God’s Cowboy has the bragging rights for most ambitious new Australian work.

How wonderful to see a well-resourced independent theatre production with so much excellent young talent on the stage and behind the scenes.

Producer/Agent Les Solomon has more energy than some people a third of his age. He often produces plays with a queer theme but in this case, he’s penned it himself.  

#Since 1994

By Mei Chi-Ling. Eye Catching Circus, Cluster Arts Global Pty Ltd and Fringe World. The Gold Digger, The Pleasure Garden, Northbridge, WA. Jan 21 - Feb 1, 2026

#Since 1994 features an all-female acrobatic team from Thailand. Impressive, balletic and often funny, this show is in in its last few days at FringeWorld.

The Social Ladder

By David Williamson. Ensemble Theatre, Sydney. Directed by Janine Watson. 23 January – 14 March 2026

Just when we thought he was done with playwriting, David Williamson comes back to his Ensemble Theatre ‘home’ with a new play for the third time in two years. And there’s a 4th play due to open at the end of July when he’ll be 84! Has an elderly Australian playwright ever presented 4 new plays in 2 years before? 

Cirque Nouvelle

Produced by Cameo Rascale Entertainment. Wendouree Performing Arts Centre. 24th Jan, 2026 and touring.

Those living in the major cities of Australia have access to a plethora of entertainment: musicals, plays, concerts, cabarets, indie productions - the list is endless.

But for those in regional cities, the pickings are generally far slimmer, and what theatre there is, usually comes for one night only. And if you have a prior engagement…tough.