In a sweetly personal and impressive homage to Frank and Nancy Sinatra, Adelaide’s own Emma de Maria debuts her new Cabaret show to instant success amongst audiences. Emma has constructed a classic cabaret that is all class. There’s sequins, tap dancing, a live jazz band and feather fans, transporting audiences at Bavarde into an underground Parisian bar.  Sinatra e De Maria is Emma’s raw exploration of the influential figures in her family - she unpacks her heritage, childhood memories, family stories and mental health by matching these anecdotes to classic hits by Frank or Nancy Sinatra. As emerging local talent, Emma is one to watch if this is what she creates as her first solo debut. She’s vocally certain, and grew in comfortability on stage with her audience interaction, owning the vulnerability of live performance - this is what cabaret is all about!  Sinatra e De Maria is a thoroughly entertaining cabaret escape that oozes a golden-era glamour, establishing Emma ...

  Throwing their biggest hoedown party at the Adelaide Fringe this year, is Boombox Bootscoot, a roaring 6-piece country style-band! Setting the scene at Plant 4 Bowden, the band is decked out in their country garb, and the audience is ready in their cowboy hats for a roaring ride of hits from the 80s and 90s with a bootscootin’ flair! Boombox Bootscoot masters all the elements for a hootin’-tootin’ Fringe Show - an incredible live band, fun costumes, classic American country accents, and just the right amount of audience participation. The show is not just a concert, the cast encourages the audience to lean into the fun, orchestrating line dancing and sing-alongs throughout.  Inspired by Bluegrass cover bands, Boombox Bootscoot consists of Adelaide-based musicians Mikala Lane Wood, Crafty, Jacob Howard, Shelley Pantic, Kane Jones and Tim Shephard. Musically, the band combines Mikala and Shelley on vocals, with the others on instruments such as the banjo, fiddle and bass. They...

What better way to talk through the issues facing individuals in our current climate than with a microphone and a piano at the Adelaide Fringe. South Australian cabaret icon Millicent Sarre has done just that. Her new show titled, Millicent Sarre is Too Tired to Smash (Patriarchy), is a genius collective reprieve for audiences also feeling the weight of the world at the moment.  Going in, I honestly expected a comedy cabaret that poked fun at patriarchal systems. Where the show actually takes the audience though, is through a raw, honest, and hopeful musical TED Talk about society’s feelings of expectation and burnout. The show is a poignant societal analysis of life as we know it through song.  It is already known that Millicent Sarre is an incredible performer and vocalist. This time, she harnesses her solo talents, looping her voice to layer the harmonies of her original songs. She is calm, commanding, and keeps the audience in an utter trance throughout the show. The appro...

Calling all over-achieving, family-event-planning eldest daughters with a most-likely case of undiagnosed OCD, THIS SHOW is about us! Recovering Eldest Daughter by Rachel Tunaley is a hilariously self-aware unpacking of eldest-daughter syndrome, but make it a witty solo musical cabaret!  This is Rachel Tunaley’s third self-produced cabaret show, and I believe she has fully nailed it with this new work. Out of the gate the narrative is clear, we are introduced to Rachel herself having just arranged the Mother’s Day present and breakfast (who else has been there before? ha!). When her brother announces their gender transition, suddenly Rachel’s title of Eldest Daughter can be relinquished! Eager to rid herself of the stereotypical expectations, what follows is a cleverly executed plot about Rachel exploring those inner workings of her identity, the role within her family and her mothering-relationships with gamer boys… Tunaley is truly a powerhouse performer, brimming with a bold se...

  Returning to Adelaide as one of The Garden’s big headline acts, is Stut & Fret’s five-star Circus Cabaret hit La Ronde. True to its name, La Ronde rejects the idea of a “best seat,” and delivers a 360-degree spectacle beneath its colossal disco ball. La Ronde instantly sweeps you into a sparkling, seductive swirl of cheeky, wild fun! This all star cast has been assembled from around the world - each highly professional in their respective acts and performance quality. A highlight for me was the show’s vocalist Gigi Mcfarlane, as a disco music lover I was instantly won over! The music choices alongside her vibrant stage presence had us all grooving along! The circus acts certainly impress. There’s stunning aerial work by Jenny Zvadskaia, Sergiy Mishchurenko, Diana Bondarenko and LJ Marles, who were all equally seamless and mesmerising on all disciplines from ropes to trapzeze. From Australia, Danik Abishev's hand balancing acts were an absolute riot!   As with all ...

  R-O-L-L-I-C-K-I-N-G: an adjective to describe Funk Soul’s Production of the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. meaning: exuberantly lively and amusing . I was very excited to return to a Funk Soul Production to kick off my 2026 season of community theatre. Last year’s production of ‘The Guy Who Didn’t Like Musicals’ was a personal standout, and after last night, I continue to remain utterly impressed at what a theatre company with an average age of 22 years old can accomplish! The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee follows a group of zany middle school students competing in a local championship spelling bee. However, the audience is quick to learn that this competition is about more than just spelling, as the contestants reveal their personal insecurities, inner quirks and suppressed dreams. As the students continue to fire back correct answers to (suspiciously made up) words, the pressure mounts too high for some, revealing the vulnerability and resilience of pre-adole...