This year’s Brisbane Festival has plenty of theatre on offer. Take a seat at the hottest club in town with Gatsby at The Green Light, a circus-meets-cabaret soirée, inspired by F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby, co-created and directed by Craig Ilott. Back to Bilo explores the grassroots campaign that brought Priya and Nades (asylum seekers from war-torn Sri Lanka) and their two young daughters home to Biloela in rural Queensland. (See page 65.) Congratulations, Get Rich! by Merlynn Tong also has its world premiere, directed by La Boite Artistic Director Courtney Stewart. Set in a karaoke venue, this vibrant Asian-Australian drama celebrates three powerful women in a supernatural tale. Meanwhile, Shake & Stir Theatre Co presents a new production of Laura Murphy’s pop-infused musical The Lovers inspired by Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Nick Skubij directs a top cast including Natalie Abbott, Jason Arrow, Jayme-Lee Hanekom, Loren Hunter, Stellar Parry and Mat Verevis.

Limelight Editor’s Choice

Congratulations, Get Rich! is a wild, hilarious rush that revels in the messy joy of being alive.

It’s a big night for Mandy. Her heart and soul—her karaoke business—is failing. In a last-ditch attempt to save it, she’s hosting a mega-event: a reunion dinner special!

Things take an unexpected turn when two women arrive. Mandy instantly recognises one as her mother, who died by suicide over two decades ago. But who is the other woman? What do they want, and why are they here?

Penned and performed by Merlynn Tong (Golden Blood), this explosive musical comedy celebrates the vibrancy of Singaporean culture, centering on three powerful women in a supernatural tale.