The last outing of Graeme Murphy’s staging of The Merry Widow marked Opera Australia’s return to the Joan Sutherland Theatre after the Covid lockdowns. After the deprivations of the preceding 10 months, we were all in desperate need of a good laugh, and this decadent update of Lehár’s operetta delivered in spades.

Five years later, it’s back with Murphy and his Creative Associate Janet Vernon at the helm, but this time it comes with a healthy dose of humanity thrown in.

Of course, it’s as beautiful as ever, with set designer Michael Scott-Mitchell and costume designer Jennifer Irwin going to town on their updated 1920s setting, lit here by Damian Cooper.

The cast is resplendent in period fashions that perfectly complement the spectacular Art Deco scenery with its Lalique-style pressed glass panels and a mural based on Monet’s Water Lilies – its reveal eliciting applause as soon as the curtain goes up.

Alexander Lewis and Julie Lea Goodwin in Opera Australia’s The Merry Widow. Photo © Carlita Sari

Murphy’s choreography is as fresh as ever and beautifully executed by the Opera Australia Dancers who animate the stage in a variety of styles, from a...