The best musicals in Sydney

From the iconic initial beats of “Pop, Six, Squish…” to the flash and flummox of lines like “Give 'em the old razzle dazzle” – the sassy, sleazy charm of Chicago is undeniable. Kander and Ebb’s 1975 mega-hit is one of those shows that has become part of the fabric of our collective culture, a timeless call-back for anyone who has ever struck a pose on a rickety chair while wearing an imaginary bowler hat, or day-dreamed a (strictly imaginary) bloody revenge fantasy, and all that jazz.  Australia’s latest tour of this jazz-era spectacle of seductive murderesses, greed, corruption and the fickle nature of tabloid infamy struts into Sydney’s lush Capitol Theatre after doing time in Perth and Melbourne. Under the direction of Karen Johnson Mortimer, this staging of Walter Bobbie’s six-time Tony-Award-winning, stripped-back 1996 Broadway revival (the second-longest running show on Broadway) comes a mere six years after it toured Down Under in 2019. Producers Crossroads Live presumably made a safe bet that this show is a surefire seat-filler (and they’d be right). Or, as one pinstripe-wearing Billy Flynn might say: “Give ‘em an act with lots of flash in it, and the reaction will be passionate…” But with the memory of Casey Donovan’s brilliant performance as Matron Mama Morton and Natalie Bassingthwaighte’s delightfully deranged Roxie Hart being so fresh for Aussie theatregoers, many die-hard musical theatre fans are understandably hesitant to splash out on a ticket this time around

To revive and reimagine a classic novel is no easy feat. It takes a particular skill to balance traditional concepts in a contemporary context – and when the novel in question is as enduringly popular as Little Women, the stakes are even higher.  Broadway’s 2005 adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s 1868 coming-of-age classic has arrived for a highly-anticipated season at Sydney’s Hayes Theatre Company under the eye of director and choreographer Amy Campbell (A Chorus Line, Once). Little Women has been churned through countless adaptations (most recently, Greta Gerwig’s 2019 film). The question is – is this musical (with book by Allan Knee, lyrics by Mindi Dickstein and music by Jason Howland) able to capture the charming essence of the original text? And has the local team been able to tap into that spirit of sisterhood love, while also embracing a modern perspective? In some ways, the answer is yes, but the balance is off. ...under Campbell’s direction, Little Women is a uniquely innovative musical that will surprise you until the very end Tanwee Shrestha’s set design is thoroughly minimalist, the stage is almost bare except for some strategic arrangements of stretch cords (2 kilometres in total!). While this modern design is an unconventional choice, it beautifully enables the finely crafted execution of every emotion, thought and action as the performers weave, crawl, and bounce through the cords. It’s a fantastic use of the space, inviting the audience into the March sisters

Nine years on from its Broadway debut, audiences still can’t get enough of Hamilton. While theatre lovers anxiously await Sydney’s exclusive return season of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Pulitzer Prize-winning musical, we also have the chance to go back to where it all began. The hit hip-hop musical’s multi-Tony-Award-winning predecessor, In the Heights, has landed at the Sydney Opera House to heat things up this winter. First hitting the Broadway stage in 2008 (before it inspired the 2021 feature film), this rags-to-riches story returns to the Harbour City with gusto for the first time since 2019. A fiery fusion of poetry and passion, In the Heights is an idyllic love letter to the riches of community, cariños and carnaval! The story is simple enough: Usnavi (Ryan Gonzalez, they/them - Zombie! The Musical), a bodega owner living in the largely Latin-American neighbourhood of Washington Heights in Upper Manhattan, dreams of returning to his homeland and pines for the strong and beautiful Vanessa (Olivia Vásquez, she/her). Amongst the struggles of the day-to-day – the rising threat of gentrification, the cost of living, tighter immigration laws, and heat-induced blackouts – the news of a winning lottery ticket could change everything for the local community, catalysing dreams about what a future beyond the Heights might look like.  The only thing hotter than the Fourth of July is this show and its suave cast. Sydney’s winter chill is soon forgotten at the entrance of the Drama Theatr

Praise be! Bonafide showgirl and one of Australia’s most-loved musical theatre stars, Rhonda Burchmore, has been confirmed to join Casey Donovan and Genevieve Lemon in this heavenly musical hit. Rhonda will star as Sister Mary Lazarus in the Australian premiere of Sister Act.  If you're not already familiar national treasure Rhonda Burchmore, it's time for an education – this flame-haired beauty is essentially Australia's number one glamazon. The 63-year-old has popped up in various movies, television shows, stage productions and national tours over the decades – long before she arrived in the South African jungle for I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here, she was seen on the West End stage with Mickey Rooney. Burchmore has appeared wearing a nun's habit in a video shared across social media, and in it she says: "I have been performing for 42 years, and this is the most comfy I have ever been." We're sure this showgirl is gonna be a delight to watch. Get it, Rhonda!  View this post on Instagram A post shared by Sister Act The Musical (@sisteractmusicalau) After collecting five Tony Award nominations on Broadway, Sister Act will open at Sydney’s Capitol Theatre from August and Melbourne’s Regent Theatre from November (all after a triumphant return to London’s West End earlier this year). Leading the cast is Casey Donovan, in the biggest role of her career to date. Casey will be stepping into the sparkly shoes of the quick-witted disco diva Deloris (played by Wh

Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived… Holy Six! Australia can’t get enough of Six the Musical. The pop-powered global phenomenon has already had multiple record-breaking seasons across the country. And now, due to popular demand, the disgraced wives of King Henry VIII are warming up their voices for another lap Down Under. The tour is kicking off at Melbourne’s Comedy Theatre from August 2024, before hitting the Sydney stage at the Theatre Royal from October 2024, and bringing it home at QPAC’s Playhouse in Brisbane from January 2025.  Have you had enough of modern royal gossip? Hanging your head in shame over those cracks about Princess Kate secretly getting a BBL? Distract yourself with this modern twist on British Tudor history, it’s packed with pop bangers so catchy that they’ll flush any other thoughts out of your head. As our critic described it in their four-star review: “What if the Spice Girls did a concept album about King Henry VIII’s wives, and Baz Luhrmann directed the concert video?”  That, in a nutshell, is the vibe. More like an 80-minute concert than a traditional musical, Six has become a cultural phenomenon since its premiere in 2017, redefining the boundaries of musical theatre and engaging audiences of all ages. Every year, it is seen by over 3.5 million people worldwide.  The premise is sort of hilarious: all six women who married old mate Henry are forming a pop band, and they’re battling it out to determine who will be crowned the lea

Music theatre fans, hold onto your hats. A new production of a beloved Andrew Lloyd Webber classic is coming our way – and it's bringing a revered star soprano. Sunset Boulevard will shine with the glitz of old Hollywood in a brand new lavish production at the Sydney Opera House for a strictly limited season in August 2024, starring the one-and-only Sarah Brightman. If her name is familiar, it's because she was the *original* Christine Daae in The Phantom of the Opera on both the West End and Broadway. The British international superstar has since gained global acclaim as a beloved soprano and recording artist, and is now returning to the stage to play her first role in a musical in more than three decades – right here in Australia. Brightman will play the lead role of Norma Desmond in this lavish production from Opera Australia and GWB Entertainment, a character made famous by Glenn Close in the Tony award-winning musical. (Does the phrase "Mr. DeMille, I’m Ready for My Close Up!" sound familiar to you?)  Based on the 1950s film noir by Billy Wilder, Sunset Boulevard features music by prolific composer Andrew Lloyd Webber (the mastermind behind treasured musicals like Jesus Christ Superstar, Cats, Evita and more) and a book and lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton. The original 1994 Broadway production won six Tony Awards including Best Musical, Best Original Score and Best Book, and had the highest ever ticket pre-sales in Broadway history at the time. The new Austr