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

Featuring an electrifyingly original pop score and a boldly reimagined script by Laura Murphy, The Lovers is a fresh, in-your-face remix of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream — bursting with heart, humour, and more than a touch of magic.

Romantic, rebellious, and irresistibly fun, this contemporary take on Shakespeare’s tangled tale of love and mischief now makes its Queensland debut.

For centuries, Oberon and Puck have been the ultimate matchmakers, crafting perfect love stories. But in a world where romance is a chaotic mix of swipes, situationships, and ghosting, Oberon worries that true love is becoming extinct. Just when all hope seems lost, four young lovers cross their path — ready for a night they’ll never forget.