Author archives: Damien Barrett

Hedwig holds a place unmatched in the queer music theatre cannon. This is the story of “internationally ignored song stylist” Hedwig Schmidt, an East German rock n’ roll goddess who demolishes the theatrical fourth wall in an 85 minute straight to audience rock concert experience. She has had her heart broken…

Hir by Taylor Mac is a sharp, biting satire that delivers a gut punch to conservative societal tropes. In this tight and clever kitchen-sink, single set, four-actor play at the New Theatre, director Patrick Howard gives us a piece of theatre that is both entertaining and thought-provoking. Modern American society, war,…

Cats by Andrew Lloyd Webber (music) and T.S Eliot (lyrics) Theatre Royal Sydney Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cats was the first musical I ever saw. It was a Wednesday matinee and a school bus trip down to Sydney from Newcastle. I remember sitting in the stalls at the Theatre Royal, staring…

Book Thomas Meehan / Music Charles Strouse / Lyrics Martin CharninDirected by Karen Johnson Mortimer Produced by John Frost for Crossroads Live Australia with Fowles Entertainment and Power ArtsCapitol Theatre Sydney In the current political climate we all need a little bit of sunshine. The revival of the much loved Broadway…

Written & Directed by Xavier Coy The New Theatre, Newtown Full disclosure: writing this review has taken me a couple of weeks since opening night. The reason? This piece of work challenges, questions and confronts you, and in all honesty, it took me a while to process it all. This…

NEW THEATRE, NEWTOWN. NSW Australia – WORLD PREMIERE The Australian premiere of ex-pat playwright Samuel Adamson’s highly original dramedy Wife at Newtown’s New Theatre explores the concept of what it is to be a wife, told through a queer lens, over multiple periods with the unifying thread being productions of…

Let me begin by encouraging every theatre lover to support New Theatre and the plays presented there. The works offer a fresh and often queer point of view, and I have never seen a bad show there. It is an underappreciated venue that deserves packed houses for every single performance. …

Peter and the Starcatcher by Rick Elice Capitol Theatre, Sydney Theatre, film, and television have seen quite a few origin stories in recent years—from the theatrical mega-hit and cinematic juggernaut Wicked to Disney’s visually spectacular Cruella and Netflix’s Wednesday and Penguin, audiences love to explore how archetypal characters became the…

Directed by Jon M. Chu  Universal Pictures This world does not deserve Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande or Jon M. Chu. The movie adaptation of Stephen Schwartz’s mega-hit musical Wicked will go down in history as one of, if not the best, movie musicals ever made. You will laugh, cry, and sit on…

Based on the screenplay by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard  Adapted for the stage by Lee Hall – New Theatre, Newtown I have a confession: I have never seen the classic 1998 film ‘Shakespeare in Love’, which won seven Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Actress for Gwyneth Paltrow, and Best…