This month we profile one of Australia’s most remarkable creative exports, playwright Suzie Miller. Since Prima Facie transformed her from an acclaimed Australian dramatist into an international theatrical phenomenon, Miller has continued to tackle complex social issues with intelligence and humanity.

As Jo Litson discovers, her latest work, Strong is the New Pretty, explores another revolution – the birth of the AFL Women’s competition – examining not only the struggle for equality in sport but the broader question of who gets to shape our cultural narratives. It’s a reminder that theatre can still change minds as well as move audiences.

Questions of identity and reinvention surface elsewhere in this issue. Countertenors were once regarded as a curiosity, even an oddity, by many concertgoers. Today, they occupy a central place in opera houses and concert halls around the world. Shamistha de Soysa traces the extraordinary journey of the high male voice, from the controversial legacy of the castrati to today’s flourishing generation of singers reclaiming repertoire and expanding expectations.

A musical, yes, but one with uncommon depth, Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods is a sophisticated meditation on morality, responsibility and the stories societies tell themselves. With two Australian opera companies preparing new productions, Jansson J. Antmann examines why the musical continues to reward audiences decades after its premiere.

Also this month, Emily Thornton investigates the fallout from the Australian National University’s abandoned Renew ANU proposal, which threatened the future of one of Australia’s most important music schools. Although the restructuring has been halted following sustained opposition, the episode raises larger questions about how Australia values arts education, cultural infrastructure and the next generation of musicians. It serves as a reminder that cultural institutions require constant vigilance as well as celebration.

Elsewhere, we look ahead rather than back. Liam Heitmann-Ryce-LeMercier previews a rare large-scale celebration of Philip Glass ahead of the composer’s 90th birthday, while in our regular Cutting Edge feature, we talk to Thomas Meadowcroft about one of the year’s most delightfully unconventional world premieres: a concerto written not for traditional soloists, but for two Foley artists armed with an assortment of everyday objects. 

We also hear from Dutch piano duo Lucas & Arthur Jussen, who discuss life as brothers on the international concert circuit and from the American musical theatre star Will Swenson, who reflects on bringing Neil Diamond to Australian audiences in A Beautiful Noise. 

In our World Premiere column, composer Katia Beaugeais introduces a new piano concerto complete with improvised bird calls, and in Playing Up, Thomas Dunford champions the expressive possibilities of the lute.

Australian tenor Michael Petruccelli – who features in August’s Australian World Orchestra concerts in Melbourne and Sydney – answers our Five Questions and John Waters shares the soundtrack of his life in My Music. 

Clive Paget guides us through another rich month of new recordings, including the latest from recent Australian visitors The Gesualdo Six, orchestral music by Martinů, Shostakovich and Bach, and something utterly original involving accordion and percussion.

Pondering life from his soapbox, Guy Noble finds unexpected philosophical lessons while chopping firewood, and of course, no issue of Limelight would be complete without our comprehensive arts industry news, concert listings and broadcasting and streaming highlights.

We hope you enjoy the August issue.

The August 2026 issue of Limelight will be available online from Monday 20 July. Subscribe by Sunday 12 July, 11:59pm AEDT to receive the print edition as soon as it’s available.

Subscribe, renew or gift by 23 August for your chance to win a double pass to an exclusive preview performance of Lerner and Loewe’s iconic musical My Fair Lady in either Sydney or Melbourne. The Melbourne prize also includes a overnight stay with breakfast for two at Sofitel Melbourne On Collins.