Limelight‘s hard-working team of reviewers ranged far and wide in 2022, producing hundreds of reviews of concerts, stage productions and recitals nationwide, from Hobart to Darwin, Sydney to Perth.

We’ve run the numbers and here are the critiques our readers really clicked with – 10 reviews capturing some of the most extraordinary moments in Australian concert halls and stages in 2023.

#10: La bohème

(West Australian Opera)

WA Opera’s La Boheme. Photo © Dylan Alcock / West Beach Studio

Tired of La bohème? If so, you’re tired of life, wrote Will Yeoman of WA Opera’s production. The centrepiece of set and costume designer Charles Davis’ ingenious design, a large, rotating greenhouse, was fantastically effective as the story unfolded.

Visually, everything clicked. “The actual costumes are just as impressive, with Davis favouring a wintry muted palette and cross-class stylishness,” wrote Yeoman. “Being destitute is no excuse for inelegance. When Mimì (a superb Elena Perroni) steps into Rodolfo’s garret and his life, it’s as though one of George Barbier’s languid, angular beauties has sprung to life.”

“The cast has no weak links. Set-piece arias, duets and ensembles and the orchestral score...