News

RISING Unveils 2026 Program

Image: Exposure - Branch Nebula

RISING, Melbourne’s premier festival of music, art and performance has unveiled its full 2026 program, unfolding across the city from 27 May to 8 June. At the start of winter, theatres, town halls, railway ballrooms, civic squares and galleries will be reimagined as sites of shared experience, welcoming artists and audiences from Australia and around the world to gather, move and encounter new ideas at scale.

My Fair Lady Cast Members Revealed

Producers Opera Australia and John Frost for Crossroads Live have announced cast members for the upcoming 70th Anniversary of My Fair Lady, which will premiere at the Sydney Opera House in September before a season at the Arts Centre Melbourne’s Ian Potter State Theatre. 

Little Anastasia Cast Members For Sydney Revealed

Image: Arianna Lorusso, Willa Valaris, Maya Porragas and Willow Wilson. Photographer: Cameron Grant Parenthesy 

The Producers of the Broadway musical ANASTASIA have today revealed the talented young Sydney performers who will be sharing the role of Little Anastasia in the from April at the Lyric Theatre Sydney.

The 2025 Matilda Awards

Playhouse Theatre, Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC). 2 March 2026

This year’s 2025 Matilda Awards were so tremendous, it took two Stage Whispers writers – Kitty Goodall and Beth Keehn (pictured below) – to cover the action! This was a celebration of Queensland theatre excellence from a packed 2025 season, covering independent theatre makers and mainstage productions from across the state, with 20 trophies awarded – from Best Set Design to the Gold Matilda.

STAGE WHISPERS MAGAZINE: MARCH / APRIL 2026 EDITION OUT NOW!!!

IN THIS EDITION

 

The Musical Circle of Life – A Heart Connection

The return of The Lion King and why certain musicals remain timeless

Steel Magnolias’ Star Cast

The classic drama of enduring friendships centred around a beauty salon is on tour

Reg Livermore’s Ned Kelly: The Musical Gets a Victorian Goldfields Revival

Victorian Opera announces the cast for its upcoming revival of Reg Livermore’s Ned Kelly: The Musical. Following its original seasons in Adelaide and Sydney in the late 1970s, this landmark musical returns to the stage for the first time in 48 years. Audiences can experience this exclusive, limited-run season across two performances only at Her Majesty’s Theatre, Ballarat, on Saturday 28 March.

Caroline O’Connor Melbourne-only Concerts Encore! Songs from the Musicals

Caroline O’Connor will perform in three Melbourne-only concerts Encore! Songs from the Musicals singing show-stopping hits, alongside a cast of Australian star performers and backed by Orchestra Victoria, at the Regent Theatre from 28-30 May.

Hair Returns to Sydney

Following its Melbourne season, the new production of HAIR will open at Theatre Royal Sydney from 6 June 2026. The Grammy and Tony Award‑winning American tribal love‑rock musical, which first played in Sydney in 1969, returns to the city with its story of peace, freedom and rebellion for a new generation of audiences.

Mrs. Doubtfire Musical For Australia

Mrs. Doubtfire, the comedy musical based on the film will premiere in Australia at Melbourne’s Princess Theatre from November 2026.

Featuring all the moments you know and love, plus new songs and dance numbers, Mrs. Doubtfire is directed by four-time Tony Award winning Jerry Zaks. 

Directing ART

Kitty Goodall chats with Lee Lewis about directing ART, which is touring Australi