REVIEWS
It’s not always easy to balance sharp political and social commentary with genuinely entertaining theatre, but Emmanuelle Mattana’s Trophy Boys manages to do just this, delivering a show that’s just as laugh-out-loud funny as it is emotionally biting and politically urgent. Making its Brisbane debut at QPAC after a string of sell-out seasons and critical acclaim in Australia and the US, this queer black-comedy offers a gripping interrogation of the pervasive cultures of misogyny and toxic masculinity in private boys’ schools (and beyond).
The Visitors is a must-see show; a relevant, funny, moving and thought-provoking piece that is First Nations storytelling at its finest. The Visitors reminds us of the importance of understanding our own histories, and is a provocation to encourage discussions about how we live today, and how Australian communities deal with visitors, migrants and refugees.
There is much to enjoy in this 2025 Superstar rock concert production: the lead vocals are all strong, it’s great to hear this score played by talented musicians, and the staging is a visual delight. But Jesus Christ Superstar can be so much more than just a rock concert …
This show challenges your expectations from the very beginning. It was set in a theatre pretending to be an RSL pretending to be the theatre again. The cast plays men, playing women. There were enemies playing lovers and lovers playing enemies and frames within frames within frames … DragSpeare is going to challenge you and give exactly what you need all in one big ball of smouldering pouts, puns, gender fuckery and song.
Sometimes it felt like the two acted as friends, or sometimes lovers, in other scenes I felt as if they were reflections of self and shadow self., hidden desires pushing up through layers of societal expectations, repressions and social niceties. The chorus swung in and out and around the two as they journeyed through different trials of purity and expression, emancipation and repression.
If you are not at all familiar with Round the Twist, just go along for the magical ride--particularly if you are looking for a pantomime alternative. Round the Twist The Musical will entertain your age 7-11 grandkids with plenty of fart and smelly feet jokes…and you can all delight in the guy getting his girl, and cheer when the bullies/baddies are defeated.
The Stallion Squad are a singing, dancing, stripping band of kings on a regional tour from Innisfail to Goondiwindi. Feeling stuck in groundhog day doing their usual sexy choreography they decide to get serious and add some Shakespeare to their show. Absolute hilarity, a touch of romance and unabashed queerness ensues.
Perhaps the most apt description I could give to the work is that it is theatre by way of riot grrrl - punchy, witty, and cruel, but with a true sense of camaraderie and sisterhood behind it.
At times graceful and at others deliberately repugnant, these actors gave their all for this show, creating a sense of community with each other and their audience as they progressed. They also involved other artistic elements including electric guitar, puppetry and roving, and it was clear that this is a multi talented, local cast.
Defiance defines this performance. Defiance against those they have closed off the stage, the dancing, the community of kindred spirits. We will take what is ours to have.
What a body does, what theatre does, what doing a body and doing theatre looks like are all for her to decide. She has created a space that is accessible to her in every sense and while this may disrupt the viewers sense of “good” and “polished” theatre, she doesn’t apologise for it and we (or at least I) don’t have a single complaint about it.
Zagazig is a beautiful daydream made manifest, I hope it rises again and again, and for all that it will likely get tighter and have better funding in the future, and possible more rehearsals, actual stage hands, and all that other periphery, this beautiful cacophony of original handmade nonsense will always have a soft spot in my heart.
I cannot contain my excitement as I realise that my ‘wish’ has been granted as I roll myself into the theatre. An abandoned wheelchair similar to my own graces the stage.
I don’t open with ‘this show was created in four days’ as a way of lowering your expectations. In fact, quite the contrary; the fact that Annikki was able to create a work covering hefty themes of identity, culture and gender in such an entertaining way was nothing short of amazing.
The arena was the Princess Theatre, as fierce as the MCG on Boxing Day. The crowd was appropriately tipsy and rowdy for a Wednesday night on the town. The lighting was shmick and the judges were ready to roll. We had the jack of all trades/‘thrower of shit on a wall and seeing what sticks’ Benjamin Law, the pocket-rocket, beatboxing Hope One and the conqueror of the Argentinian men’s water polo team (you had to be there) Reuben Kaye.
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The play is witty, funny and has some great dance moves. Unsurprisingly, as Day, Dombay and Hosie are each credited as co-creators and writers, the artists are well-cast and portray each of their characters as believable twenty-something housemates.
The Island of Misfit Players have approached Saint Joan with a level of respect and earnestness that felt refreshing to me; with no urge to modernise or reimagine the script, what they have achieved is an excellent, straightforward adaptation of the play while still maintaining a very personal stamp on their interpretation.
The cast, without a doubt, was first-rate. The performances themselves were a true showcase of their craft. There was something magical about everyone singing together, blending their voices so beautifully, that gave me goosebumps. I walked out the theatre door with the musical tunes still stuck in my head, and the audience clapping along even after the curtain fell. If you haven’t experienced this famous production yet, I invite you to experience it. Have an adventurous evening deep into the woods—just don’t wander too far off!
I couldn’t confidently tell you what BIOS - INFERA was strictly ‘about’, aside from the description given by the artists themselves, but I can tell you what it made me feel. The work is patient and meditative, never feeling like it has to speed up to match pace with modern attention spans. I was reminded of my experiences growing up backing onto bushland, walking barefoot surrounded by birdsong and the breathing of trees. I haven’t felt quite so small in a long time, and BIOS - INFERA gave me the same feeling of cosmic insignificance in the best way.
As an exploration of ‘why do we gravitate towards certain people,’ FUSE presents audiences with several chapters or movements that illustrate moments of connection, provoking reflection about the nature of family, friendship, and partnership. While the five performers each have their moment at centre stage, I found the interactions between the cast to be most compelling, which is unsurprising for a show that explores how ‘we are emotionally wired to connect.’
Ian Stenlake is a great choice for the role of our unsuspecting hero, Richard Hannay. Lisa McCune is a talented actor: charming as the foreign spy, highly amusing as the farmer’s wife, and fabulous as Hannay’s love interest. Casting The Umbilical Brothers is a great idea; the duo is an experienced comedy partnership, which means that Collins and Dundas are very capable of improvising and working hard to see if they can each ‘corpse’ their fellow artists.
Taliani expertly leads the audience on a journey through krump, bounce, and other hip-hop or street styles; vogue femme and hands performance; and the intersection of these styles with his contemporary dance background as well as his First Nations cultural practises. I use expertly here in the senses that he is (1) a phenomenal technician of all these styles, (2) an exceedingly evocative storyteller, and (3) the master of the world this work takes place in
I wasn’t sure what to expect from a one hour long, free opera sung in English, but after seeing The Telephone, I can say it was a delight. Cleverly presented and beautiful. The Telephone entertained and amazed the audience in a packed-out venue, ultimately providing an accessible entry point to opera for a modern audience.
Great art happens when the artist is willing and able to externalise the most true and human parts of themselves on stage for an audience. Chatter is absurd, funny, confronting, and feels deeply real and undeniably honest. It is a compelling rollercoaster of an hour that loops through the silly and sad with a deft artistic hand and slick sound and lighting design. I only wish that I had been able to review this show at the start of its season, so I could have told everyone I know that they simply had to see it.
White Noise is a piece of performance art that communicates aspects of lived experience as a mother with disability, and encourages us all to ‘consider our place in the conversation.’ Dance and circus are at the centre of a show that is an all-encompassing artistic event that incorporates voice, animation, art, microphone manipulation, and an excellent soundscape.
The Natural Horse is a deeply strange play, in more ways than one. A dark comedy about an ex-Soviet family and their struggles with the American dream, it's a work with a lot of lofty concepts and low-brow comedy, much of which is achieved with a scrappy heart that I appreciated.
Director / scriptwriter, India Rose has assembled a stellar cast to deliver her powerful autobiographical unflinching script that addresses what it means to live with this unseen disability. All in a mere sixty minutes.
The play is witty, funny and has some great dance moves. Unsurprisingly, as Day, Dombay and Hosie are each credited as co-creators and writers, the artists are well-cast and portray each of their characters as believable twenty-something housemates.
The Island of Misfit Players have approached Saint Joan with a level of respect and earnestness that felt refreshing to me; with no urge to modernise or reimagine the script, what they have achieved is an excellent, straightforward adaptation of the play while still maintaining a very personal stamp on their interpretation.
Ian Stenlake is a great choice for the role of our unsuspecting hero, Richard Hannay. Lisa McCune is a talented actor: charming as the foreign spy, highly amusing as the farmer’s wife, and fabulous as Hannay’s love interest. Casting The Umbilical Brothers is a great idea; the duo is an experienced comedy partnership, which means that Collins and Dundas are very capable of improvising and working hard to see if they can each ‘corpse’ their fellow artists.
The Natural Horse is a deeply strange play, in more ways than one. A dark comedy about an ex-Soviet family and their struggles with the American dream, it's a work with a lot of lofty concepts and low-brow comedy, much of which is achieved with a scrappy heart that I appreciated.
Director / scriptwriter, India Rose has assembled a stellar cast to deliver her powerful autobiographical unflinching script that addresses what it means to live with this unseen disability. All in a mere sixty minutes.
A Place in the Sultan’s Kitchen made for heartwarming theatre. Its soulful unfolding is a testimony to the transformative power of stories, especially the ones we relish and rely on for the sustenance of our selfhood.
A black comedy tackling the complexities of family, relationships, housing, and child rearing, The Platypus utilises its genre-bending format to unpack our cultural biases and ask uncomfortable questions.
BATSHIT is, well, batshit. It’s a theatrical fever dream, giving a little burlesque, a little verbatim, a little mixed media, and a lot of comedy.
Back to Bilo’s painstaking efforts in amplifying the refugee story with so much attention to detail are praiseworthy. It is a necessary Australian story. One that needs to traverse terrains and timelines across the continent to the enduring hum of humanity.
It’s not always easy to balance sharp political and social commentary with genuinely entertaining theatre, but Emmanuelle Mattana’s Trophy Boys manages to do just this, delivering a show that’s just as laugh-out-loud funny as it is emotionally biting and politically urgent. Making its Brisbane debut at QPAC after a string of sell-out seasons and critical acclaim in Australia and the US, this queer black-comedy offers a gripping interrogation of the pervasive cultures of misogyny and toxic masculinity in private boys’ schools (and beyond).
Great art happens when the artist is willing and able to externalise the most true and human parts of themselves on stage for an audience. Chatter is absurd, funny, confronting, and feels deeply real and undeniably honest. It is a compelling rollercoaster of an hour that loops through the silly and sad with a deft artistic hand and slick sound and lighting design. I only wish that I had been able to review this show at the start of its season, so I could have told everyone I know that they simply had to see it.
Chimera Arts has created a bold new work that explores the ways in which our lives are often closely inter-connected, and the potential of that social network. The use of ‘100 metres of chunky yarn’ is a clever device to reinforce messages about connection, and about the unravelling of power, represented through the excellent set design, and in the ways in which the artists gradually tear down the barriers and emerge from underneath the pieces.
“When you don't allow phones suddenly an audience is more engaged. They're less self-conscious and artists are given sort of a pass to do things that they normally wouldn't feel comfortable doing otherwise if it was recorded…”
Props to the producers, as they’ve assembled one of the hottest team of carnies to hit a stage in Magandjin for some time, bring tricks rarely scene in our corner of the world.
I witnessed empowering moments of redemption when the ensemble flipped the script in two distinct ways. In an act of subversion, the lampshade was treated as a microphone and the closet morphed into a stage the women could stand on top of and verbalise their sentiments.
There were so many excellent moments in Le Retour, but one special highlight for me was contortionist and foot archery artist, Shannen Michaela, who performed her spectacular and technical archery act. The crowd was blown away by the acts, how she was able to set the scene, with accompanying epic music, as well as her charisma and perfect execution.
Without spoiling too much, it was an enchanting blend of artistry, music, and acrobatics that was sensual, whimsical, intense, and dangerous. If you fancy a ride into a sinister and sexy circus netherworld that will leave your heart pounding, then ‘Limbo-The Return’ is the perfect show for you.
Super entertaining, very festival-y in its novelty, and by far the best boat trip I’ve had down the Maiwar (Brisbane River).
I found that the inclusion of movement added so much to the experience of this work. The acrobats were able to bring the more abstract, mystical, violent, grotesque, glimmering elements of Dido and Aeneas’ world to life. Each and every member of the company (both acrobat and singer) brings a level of virtuosity to their work that reminds one why these forms have lasted the test of time.
The three acrobats are the stars of this exceptional show that features incredible hand balance by Daniel O’Brien, a fluid and moving straps solo (and acrobatic ‘dance’) by Kimberley Rossi, and quite amazing strength work by Zac Stephens. In just over 60 minutes, the performers demonstrated their mastery of circus arts to create moments of beauty, strength, power, fear, tenderness, pain, humour, wistfulness, joy, and connection.
“There’s something incredibly empowering in being part of a space where women uplift each other, share their vulnerabilities through art, and grow together. That quiet sisterhood - the shared breath before a performance, and the knowing glance in rehearsal and the mutual respect- has been one of the most beautiful parts of this journey.”
Taliani expertly leads the audience on a journey through krump, bounce, and other hip-hop or street styles; vogue femme and hands performance; and the intersection of these styles with his contemporary dance background as well as his First Nations cultural practises. I use expertly here in the senses that he is (1) a phenomenal technician of all these styles, (2) an exceedingly evocative storyteller, and (3) the master of the world this work takes place in
Elements of Freestyle is the definition of defying gravity— a thrilling collision of dance, extreme sports, and classical music. Imagine raw power meeting refined artistry in a high-octane performance that shatters genre boundaries and challenges every expectation. From start to explosive finale, it held the audience spellbound. You can’t afford to look away. Simply put: Wow!
Immersed in Bad Nature, and in the worlds created by the talented team of creatives and performers, I reflected on the news footage of current wars around the world and the reporting of the climate challenges we all face. Coming out of Bad Nature, I described it to my waiting friends as an otherworldly, thought-provoking, dystopian meeting of The Matrix with elements of The Terminator and other sci-fi favourites.
Gems is a true Brisbane Festival gem, and it was a privilege to experience this artistic event. It is wonderful to see talented dancers, where the creative collaboration that brings world-class choreographers, visual designers, musicians, dancers, and composers creates a special opportunity for our local community.
Through the medium of contemporary dance—strongly supported by cultural dance forms—these three multi-talented Blak females unpacked themes that authentically conveyed their deep connection to Country. Their multidisciplinary approach also unpacked the dehumanising colonisation of First Nations people, the generational trauma of their forced removal, the unjust banishment of speaking their language, the sorrowful devastation of Country brought about through greed, and finally the desecration of Country in order to appease rapidly growing infrastructure—and simple, tangible elements were cleverly used to convey this profound message.
What do Jessica Rabbit, a praying mantis with udders, and a lap dancing Gandalf the Grey have in common? All three were featured in heat 5 of Altimate Showdown at The Brightside, and after attending this show, it’s easy to see why this yearly competition is becoming one of the most anticipated alternative events in the Brisbane arts scene.
The Next 14 Seconds was, in essence, a call to recognise and embrace the humanity in friends and strangers alike in a matter of seconds. Its attempt to answer it in its uniquely unpredictable way was laudable.
They entered in brightly coloured heat mapped leotards and perfectly groomed and shiny Gattaca-esque heads. They moved beautifully, fluidly in one scene, in tandem for a note, again an element of robotic science fiction. The wearing of wigs as a taking on and putting off of the Role Of Woman.
The message of the evening was loud and clear – dance was and is for everybody and EVERY BODY. Every single team served and slayed in its interpretation of its respective chosen theme. Every fibre of their being seemed to scream cries of unadulterated joy.
What do Jessica Rabbit, a praying mantis with udders, and a lap dancing Gandalf the Grey have in common? All three were featured in heat 5 of Altimate Showdown at The Brightside, and after attending this show, it’s easy to see why this yearly competition is becoming one of the most anticipated alternative events in the Brisbane arts scene.
This week we have some killer shows in a huge diversity of formats from horror to musical to drama to classic improvised comedy - it’s something for everyone!
Murder Village is great night out for lovers of absurd comedy, Agatha Cristie style murder mysteries and all those inbetween. With a rotating cast of some of the best improvisers in the country, it’s also the perfect introduction to improv and a show you’ll want to see again and again. And not just because it will never be the same show twice.
With a complete lack of props, set or special effects, they crafted vivid worlds with just their voices and bodies, illustrating the different characters through changes in posture, voice and positioning. A real highlight, I have to say, was watching Imogen portray both the human-eating horse and human being eaten by the horse, both the consumer and the consumed, simultaneously. Bloody funny.
There’s an undercurrent of struggle in Poncho, of wrestling with shame, of being emotionally cauterised by a culture that punishes any deviation to the rigid, limiting forms of male connection and expression that patriarchy demands. But Cabs has an innate talent for balancing tension and levity, which he deployed masterfully during the piñata sequence towards the end. He brought many in the audience to tears (myself included), and then, moments later, had us laughing again.
One of the coolest parts of Cool Story Bro is that every show night is its own opening and closing night. What happened on Friday night will never happen again, and the only people in the world who got to experience it are those who were in the room. So for all those reading this, I’m sorry, but you will never, ever, get to experience the pure extasy of watching a group of people spontaneously assume the role of sperms and egg in the fight for fertilisation.
During the group scenes for the whole audience, the performers really leaned into the silliness of the theme and into interacting with the audience, which kept us giggling along. At times, Murder at the Bowlo almost felt like a pantomime in the best possible ways, with the audience booing, cheering and responding to every character as secrets and accusations flew around the room.
The duo used real-life teenage diary entries to inspire a score of original 80’s pop tunes as lyrically witty as they were melodic. The musical numbers, and the show as a whole, teetered experterly on this line of self-aware cringe. Which, for an audience whose entry was more teens-at-an-80s-concert than stand-up goers, seemed like the perfect fit.
The pace of the show is dynamic. The exercise bike, the treadmill all relevant props in the wake of a life in the day of a typical white woman in her 20’s, privileged and living in the inner-city landscape. The muffin is eaten and referred to as part of what it means to bake consciously. I was hoping they might sit on it, but that’s another show.
Warmed and guided by the hilarious Ting Lim, the night was a riotous display of some great Brisbane comics. More than just the sum of its laughs, Girls to The Front felt like a celebration of talent, of life, of stories, of the things that define us and those that bring us together. I was reminded of the sheer connective power of comedy, the way it builds tension only so that the audience may collectively feel its release.
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