Sydney - Whats The Show

Recovering Eldest Daughter

07/06/202607/06/2026 Kirsty Dale🥉

Recovering Eldest Daughter Rating

★★★★★

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Rachel Tunaley’s “Recovering Eldest Daughter” was a riotous way to spend Saturday night. It was her first time performing in Sydney but not my first time watching her perform. I saw her show “Motion Sickness” in Adelaide Fringe in 2025 and absolutely loved it, so I was very interested in seeing what she had cooked up this year. The show’s description gripped me from the outset with mentions of mental illness and eldest daughter syndrome, and it did not disappoint. However, I do not think you need to be an eldest daughter to enjoy the show. It was cleverly Australian and relatable for anyone who has dealt with a perfectionist, overbearing, control freak in their life or just has a family really.

I attended with my housemate and we have both been dealing with another, departing housemate who has her share of mental illness and neurospiciness. “Recovering Eldest Daughter” was the collective, cathartic release we, and all the audience, needed. Rachel cleverly used audience participation to keep engagement and make it feel like a group therapy session. Her connection with the audience was electric and quips breaking the fourth wall were inspired, especially when she was admonishing us for laughing hard in a “serious” song or commenting that she couldn’t have “made it” since she didn’t have a full house. My housemate and I did not stop laughing through the whole performance.

Rachel used brilliantly simple lighting, staging and props to convey big ideas. I always love shows that use a projection to their advantage, especially in this age of social media. Recovering Eldest Daughter did this extremely well with real clips from Rachel’s life showcasing that she has always been a self-proclaimed “Drama Queen”, as well as lyrics for audience sing-a-long participation and really driving her points home visually. Straight away we knew who she was and where the show was going which is reassuring as an audience member. Voice over was also used to add layers and introduce us to other characters though it was just Rachel on the stage.

When I saw motion sickness (if I remember correctly) Rachel was using songs we knew but changing the lyrics to fit the story. This time, it seemed to be original music and that she has found her own voice and something more to say. The pace was perfect, it allowed you to really take in the message but we were not able to get bored. Rachel is a very talented performer with a powerful voice and not only for cabaret or musical theatre style tunes but busts out into rap too. Her dancing and physical comedy was hilarious and she really committed to the bit. “Intrusive thot” was a huge highlight for us, we even bought merch! Throughout the show, Rachel was very open and vulnerable, sharing quite a personal story about her journey to acceptance of her mental health diagnosis and work healing her inner child. Who knew it was as simple as a cheeky dopamine purchase!

I highly recommend seeing this show while Rachel is in Sydney, it’s a very professional and personal take on musical comedy and I think it won’t be long until she is off to Edinburgh!

To book tickets to Recovering Eldest Daughter, please visit https://tickets.qtopiasydney.com.au/Events/Recovering-Eldest-Daughter.

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A Play For Everyone, Not Just Fans Of The Game

06/06/2026 Steve Willems🥈🦉

W Rating

★★★★★

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I’m not a sports fan, and I certainly don’t follow any of the Australian football codes, so I wasn’t sure if W, the new play by Madelaine Nunn, would be for me. Starting with the background noise of a packed stadium, with all the chanting, drums, and noise, we’re introduced to four key players of an AFLW football team and their coach as a talented new player, Casey (Celeste Cortes-Davis) joins the ranks. It’s the start of the season, and each player is individually set up to what their story is going to be. The returning new mum, the talented athlete playing in her brother’s shadow, the veteran captain along with her partner planning a baby.

The story tracks the women through the season as they aim to make the finals. As the drama and conflict begin the escalate, characters are faced with moral dilemmas, sacrifice, and professional expectations. Director Rachel Chant did a fantastic job creating an immersive and enthralling performance, with engaging transitions between scenes mixing mime with dance to bring the game alive. The whole technical team did a great job, and the locker-room set was fully immersive.

While some of the early jokes seemed unnaturally crude and didn’t feel right, most of the dialogue was snappy and well balanced. It took a little while for the story to warm up, but when it did, I found myself thoroughly engaged. The characters were deep and human, led by the veteran captain, Rosie (Shannon Ryan) whose personal struggles between desire, injury, and legacy, threaten to derail the team and their season.

Cortes-Davis as Casey, was also great as the talented newcomer who wants to prove herself and become a star like Rosie, but doesn’t yet understand how to navigate the media in professional sport. To be fair, the cast were all really good and gave it their all. For me the highlight was Danielle Cormack as the head coach, Sue. She was funny, charming, and ferocious. Sometimes all at once. I felt like I had to lift my game and play better. I’m Sorry Sue. I’ll follow the system.

It may have been a slow start as I learned about ach character’s journey, by the end of the season I was thoroughly entertained. W a funny and dramatic story about the struggles of professional sport and how every choice has a consequence. A play that can be enjoyed by everyone, not just fans of the game.

W is playing At the Old Fitz theatre in Darlinghurst until the 14th of June.

To book tickets to W, please visit https://www.oldfitztheatre.com.au/w-the-play.

Photographer: Phil Erbacher

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Get Yourself Along To See It – These Are Stories That Deserve To Be Witnessed

06/06/2026 Chantal Harrison Writer🥈

Sheltering Rating

★★★★★

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Sheltering was enthusiastically introduced by Artistic Director and Co-CEO Frances Rings, alongside Director of Community Relations Kirk Page, whom I was already a fan of from Dear Son at Belvoir earlier this year. It was a warm, personal welcome that set the tone perfectly for what followed.

Sheltering is a triple bill that beats with the heart of Bangarra’s community spirit, truth-telling and connection to culture. All three works were developed through Bangarra’s Dance Clan program, founded in 1998, to nurture community-focused, choreographic storytelling, empowering dancers and creators to dream up and express in their own language, under expert mentorship. This season marks Bangarra’s first national tour since being awarded the prestigious Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement in Dance by the Biennale Danza 2026. That context matters. This is a company at the peak of its legacy, and also looking boldly forward.

“Keeping Grounded”, choreographed by Indjalandji-Dhidhanu and Alyawarre person Glory Tuohy-Daniell, is a fascinating piece. The dancers move between the net, the suspension and shakiness of which requires their deep attention, care and uses their energy. In contrast, they move fluidly in tandem with one another when they connect with the ground and their roots.Composer Brendon Boney’s score is a beautiful element throughout, and Karen Norris’ lighting sculpts the space, allowing the dancers to meet each shift in the music with precision and presence. As Tuohy-Daniell writes, this work is “an invitation to notice. To consider how small, almost forgotten actions can create an effect through the body and mind. A step barefoot. A moment of stillness. A return.”

“Brown Boys”, co-directed by Daniel Mateo and Cass Mortimer Eipper, with Mateo performing, is an exquisite piece of dance poetry presented on screen. In just six minutes, Mateo takes us on a journey through the holistic, physical and spiritual experience of brown men navigating identity, belonging and the perceptions imposed upon them, and the quest to come home to themselves. Composer Leon Rodgers’ soundscape holds the film in something both tender and expansive. It is beautiful, and it is genuinely moving. Mateo puts it simply: “I want to give this film to boys who grew up like me, so they can connect, and through that, the village expands.”

“Sheoak”, choreographed by Frances Rings and originally premiering in 2015, closes the evening. Created in response to the deeply offensive “lifestyle choice” comments made by a former Prime Minister about remote Aboriginal communities, it is a work of reclamation; those words taken back, rebuilt, and transformed. Jacob Nash’s set design and Jennifer Irwin’s costuming are impeccable; the visual world of this piece is as layered as its emotional one. Across its three sections; Place, Body, Spirit… we witness systemic trauma, rupture, and ultimately, renewal. It is a deep, at times dark, emotional ride, with movement and choreography that created many audible gasps and intakes of breath.

Afterwards, we were lucky enough to meet the dancers and hear about each of their origins and their time with Bangarra; a reminder that these are not just extraordinary performers but custodians of living stories.

Bangarra has long held a reputation for Black excellence, magnificent storytelling, and uniquely impressive talent. Sheltering doesn’t just add to that history; it extends it, with one eye firmly on the next generation of First Nations creatives being given the space and mentorship to bring their own stories to the stage.

Get yourself along to see it. These are stories that deserve to be witnessed.

To book tickets to Sheltering, please visit https://www.bangarra.com.au/productions/sheltering/.

Photographer: Daniel Boud

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MUSE at The Fuse – ‘Putting It Together’ A Sondheim Revue

06/06/2026 Linda Lokhee🏆🥇🦉

Putting It Together by Stephen Sondheim Rating

★★★★★

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Stephen Sondheim, a legendary composer and lyricist, is well known for musicals such as Into the Woods, Company, Sweeney Todd, Merrily We Roll Along and A Little Night Music. These are some musicals amongst many that have captured the hearts of people worldwide. After the immensely successful revue Side by Side which had been performing since 1976, Sondheim and co-creator Julia McKenzie’s musical Putting It Together premiered in London in 1992. They chose songs from popular musicals that Sondheim wrote after 1976, to showcase his acclaimed career.

After the lights dim, we hear what we assume is a pre-recorded voice stating the usual requests before live event plays – that the use of cameras is strictly prohibited, etc. As the warnings continue, the announcer continues, “Please do not crinkle your programs incessantly. Please do not fidget uncontrollably in your seats” and “Don’t go, “Oh!” Whenever there’s a song you know“ and suddenly we see a cast member appear, walking down the centre aisle holding a microphone and looking polished. They continue to give the audience instructions. We are all delighted and have a laugh as we realise that the instructions are part of the opening song of the play, called “Invocations and Instructions” from The Frogs. Man 3, brilliantly understatedly played by Eli Reilly, assumes the role of the narrator, leading the story to oversee and influence the other characters throughout the musical.

The narrative of Putting it Together, directed by Gabriel Way Stamatellis, begins in the 90’s, with five friends having a party in one of the couple’s lavish condominiums. The cast, champagne in hand, barrels out “Rich and Happy #1” in a joy filled celebration of laughter. “All our dreams coming true.. this must be what happy means.. skies are beaming, future bright, prospects gleaming” was presented with the energy that showcased how much the cast loved being onstage together. This was a strong song, with the lyrics communicating their optimism.

Despite the initial reach for everlasting happiness, we start to see the underlying foundations of the couple’s marriage to be shaky, as hints of adulterous flirtation are made clear between the husband, played by Hudson Perry and another guest, Woman 2, performed by Nicola Awad. I really enjoyed seeing the wife, Woman 1, played by Jillian Keith shoot murderous glances at her friend Woman 2; her eyes and body language were perfected to show her hostile emotion. It would be easy to imagine that Keith created the phrase, “if looks could kill”. Her voice was sensational with a huge range to cater for the low to high notes in the songs Woman 2 had to sing. Keith gave a standout performance in all of her songs, but most of all during the song “Getting Married Today” (from Company) which required a rapid-fire fast pace of lyrics, and Keith delivered them with the sheer panic and terror of a reluctant bride-to-be.

Man 2, portrayed by Owen Roubeni, brought the sweet simplicity of longing for love into the group. Roubini’s voice was grounded in a wonderfully mellow tone and conveyed a calmness and earnestness in every song that he sang. He portrayed his character as the good friend everyone should have.

The audience never learns these characters’ names, and they are referred to in the program as Man 1, Man 2, Man 3, Girl 1 and Girl 2. It seems a strategic move to not name his characters, as Sondheim does not play favourites with his characters. All have an equal role in telling stories about the stages of relationships, from flirtations through to relationship highs and then the lows.

Zach Moses and Jonathan Zhang, co-musical directors, brought the freshness of the songs to life and with the band, successfully condensed the sounds of a traditional orchestra into a small person band without losing the grandeur. The band, Jonothan Zhang (keys), Emil Vinad (percussion), Yinfan Lin (Keys) and Rachel Glendenning (bass) were led by conductor Zhang and were situated to the right of the audience, giving the cast a clear accompaniment.

MUSE, the Sydney University Musical Ensemble, provided an entertaining and comedic night of music dedicated to Stephen Sondheim’s fans. Even if you were not familiar with any of Sondheim’s music, you would still enjoy this musical. It is a wonderful thing to see and support these Uni students in the Creative Arts field, and it was easy to see how much they enjoyed putting this musical on, altogether!

Putting It Together is showing at The Factory in the Fusebox. 105 Victoria Rd, Marrickville.
Season: June 3 – June 6 2026
Tickets:
www.factorytheatre.com.au/event/putting-it-together-by-stephen-sondheim

To book tickets to Putting It Together by Stephen Sondheim, please visit https://www.factorytheatre.com.au/event/putting-it-together-by-stephen-sondheim/.

Photographer: jack_k.photography

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