The best shows to see in Sydney this month

Following the runaway success of theatrical epics Counting and Cracking and The Jungle and the Sea, Sydney’s Belvoir St Theatre presents the world premiere of S. Shakthidharan’s brand new play, The Wrong Gods. Taking an interesting detour from the huge scale of the critically-acclaimed playwright’s previous hits, this gripping tale of local justice and global power unfolds over a short, sharp 90 minutes with an all-star cast of four. 

Some plays roar and plead for your attention. Others hum softly, sitting in moments of elongated silence. American playwright Amy Herzog’s Mary Jane, a quietly devastating story of single motherhood, illness and resilience does the latter – it earns your attention in the silences. As with life, the telling of these stories in theatre takes a village, and Mi Todo Productions have collected a dutiful village for this Australian premiere production at the Old Fitz.

Samuel Beckett’s Winnie, the hapless, half-buried heroine of his 1961 play, Happy Days, is one of those pinnacle roles in theatre. Comparisons to Hamlet are common, but apt. It’s such an actor’s role that it makes sense, arguably with certain caveats, that the actor in question takes up at least one directorial rein. It certainly makes sense to Sydney Theatre Company, who are giving us the legendary Pamela Rabe directed by Pamela Rabe (and Nick Schlieper) in this production.

Two one-act Harold Pinter plays starring three actors across five roles for a total of two hours entertainment plus intermission – if we judged theatre by weight, that’d sound like a pretty good deal. And it is, because you tend to get more than you expect from Ensemble Theatre, and certainly from Pinter, if you’re not ready for him. 

Hold on to your alibis, because the producers of the recent huge national tour of Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap are bringing a brand-new production of her most popular murdery mystery of all time to Sydney’s Theatre Royal, following its premiere season in Melbourne. Stage and screen luminary Robyn Nevin is back in the director’s chair.

Enter the KXT on Broadway theatre, which has been transformed into a brutal and deadly jousting arena. Choose a side, and sit on that side. DO NOT CROSS THE STAGE! THERE ARE SPIKES AND MIRRORS THAT YOU CANNOT STEP ON! Now wait. You’re here for The Anarchy (1138-53). You might like it, or you might hate it, or you might choose to leave...

It’s time to ring that bell and check in for an intoxicating blend of Parisian cabaret, dazzling aerial artistry and breathtaking burlesque. Following sold-out seasons at the Sydney Opera House and the Adelaide Cabaret Festival, L’Hôtel returns to Sydney this winter, taking over the brand new Foundry Theatre.