Sydney’s major mainstage theatre companies have all announced their 2026 season, so it’s now my duty as a theatre nut to whittle down my top ten most anticipated productions to see!
Note: This is of course my own ‘personal’ taste when it comes to theatre, I’m sure your lists will differ greatly. However, if you’re not aware of what’s been announced or wish to start your own, treat this as a conversation starter. I’ve also only included shows I haven’t yet seen, hence why ‘My Brilliant Career’ isn’t featured on the list. Feel free to share your own lists in the comments section or hit us up over on our Instagram page @theatrethoughtsaus
2026 is shaping up to be an exciting year in the mainstage theatre world, with a few notable things occurring. Over in Surry Hills, Griffin Theatre Company is crashing on their cousin’s couch for the year, taking up residency in Belvoir St Theatre’s downstairs 25A theatre while their own is undergoing the final stages of reconstruction.
At the Sydney Theatre Company, 2026 marks the first year of new Artistic Director, Mitchell Butel’s premiere season. I can tell you from being at the 2026 announcement, Butel is a fresh burst of rainbow energy and joy that may just be what the STC needs moving into the next foreseeable seasons.
Also down by the harbour, Bell Shakespeare are staging two macabre tales that reflect the turmoil of the world and speak to power and ambition, as well as premiering a brand new Australian play. Across the bridge at Ensemble Theatre, there are premiere plays, such as the hotly anticipated The Elevator by theatre favourite Eloise Snape.
Back in the hub of Sydney at Potts Point, the “little theatre that could”, Hayes Theatre Company are staging more world premiere musicals, infusing 2026 with their trademarked “Hayes branding” on some of the biggest broadway hits.
So, what am I most looking forward to? Let’s count down from 10 to 1 shall we? Play the overture!
10. Savior – Griffin Theatre Company
16 May – 14 June
Presented at Downstairs Theatre, Belvoir St Theatre
By: Happy Feraren
Director: Kenneth Moraleda
With Mark Paguio, Chrissy Mae Valentine, Bernie Van Tiel
Described as a Utopia meets The White Lotus satire, this brand new work from playwright and comic Happy Feraren brings first-hand insight from her time working for NGO’s in the Phillippines. I love a good satire and this look at the lines that blur between charity and self-interest is going to get me through the door come May. Saving lives. Sending aid. Swiping right. Just another day at SAVIOR International.
Tickets: https://welcome.griffintheatre.com.au/packages
9. Silver Tongue – Hayes Theatre Co
13 November – 12 December
Book by Jacob Parker and Miranda Middleton
Music and Lyrics by Alec Steedman
We should always support brand new Australian musicals, and the Hayes Theatre is the place to go for some of the best. This bold, funny and wryly inventive re-imagining of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island is created by breakout Australian talents Miranda Middleton, Jacob Parker and Alec Steedman with development by Hayes. So you know the passion is there! With Artistic Directors Victoria Falconer and Richard Carroll at the helm, prepare to set sail for a wild voyage.
Tickets: https://hayestheatre.com.au/event/silver-tongue/
8. The Jungle and the Sea – Belvoir St Theatre
11th July – 2nd August
Co-Produced by Kurinji, and Lingalayam Dance Company
Written and Directed by S. Shakthidharan and Eamon Flack
With Anandavalli, Prakash Belawadi, Emma Harvie, Nadie Kammallaweera, Shiv Palekar, Dushan Philips, Kalieaswari Srinivasan, Rajan Velu and Musicians Indu Balachandran, Arjun Puveendran
Having not seen S. Shakthidharan and Eamon Flack’s The Jungle and the Sea when it first premiered, the accolades and success were enough to get me to see Counting and Cracking when it was staged at Carriageworks. And my god was it bold, brilliant, and beautiful. So when Belvoir St announced a limited return of TJatS, it went immediately onto my most anticipated list. How does a family come together again when the world around them is tearing itself apart? How is peace made? How can we honour the dead?
Tickets: https://belvoir.com.au/productions/the-jungle-and-the-sea-2026/
7. Gutenberg! The Musical! – Hayes Theatre Company
10 April – 10 May
Written by Anthony King & Scott Brown
Directed by Richard Carroll
Starring Stephen Anderson and Ryan Gonzalez
Gutenberg! was a smash-hit on Broadway in 2023-4, where it broke records with its underdog love letter to musical theatre. Broadway starred the iconic duo of Andrew Rannels and Josh Gad (of The Book of Mormon fame), but we have our own iconic duo starring as the loveable Bud and Doug, Sydney Theatre Award winners Stephen Anderson (Titanique) and Ryan Gonzalez (In The Heights).
This is the most important night of Bud & Doug’s lives. They’re staging a one-night-only backer’s audition for their mega-musical about Johannes Gutenberg (you know, the guy who invented the printing press?). With Richard Carroll overseeing as director, this is sure to be an utter joy, especially to whomever gets the job of creating the many, many, many hats required!
Tickets: https://hayestheatre.com.au/event/gutenberg/
6. Wake in Fright – Griffin Theatre Company
17 June – 5 July
Presented at Upstairs Theatre, Belvoir St Theatre
A Malthouse Theatre production
Adapted from the novel by Kenneth Cook
By: Declan Greene and Zahra Newman
Director: Declan Greene
With: Zahra Newman
Zahra Newman is an icon of the stage. Her mesmering take in the one-person adaptation of Kip Williams’ Dracula proved it. Now she’s back with Artistic Director of Griffin Theatre, Declan Greene to stage Kenneth Cook’s cult Australian novel and, later, an iconic horror film, Wake in Fright.
I absolutely love seeing horror brought to the stage, only because I’m desperate to see it done well enough to be decently frightening! So I’m ready to descend into this uniquely Australian kind of hell: full of booze, bravado and buried violence.
Tickets: https://welcome.griffintheatre.com.au/packages
Intermission!
While we take a breather, what is 2026 missing? First Nation led stories. There seems to be a gaping hole in the mainstage theatre seasons in 2026. Where are the stories either written from or focusing on our First Nations people? Go and support the ones that are there and send a message for more! In particular, a highlight will be Redfern Renaissance from the 15th-24th January at Belvoir St theatre, co-presented with Sydney Festival as part of Blak Out.
Alright, play the entr’acte…
5. Bennelong In London – Sydney Theatre Company
Wharf 1 Theatre: 18 July – 16 August
Directed by Ian Michael
Written by Jane Harrison
Starring Guy Simon and Googoorewon Knox
A new Jane Harrison play is always a gift, her words provide a means to traverse through the trauma, the vibrancy, and the richness of First Nations’ stories. Subsequently, director Ian Michael is a much loved director whose work with Harrison has produced such hits as the restaged touring production of The Visitors. Now, they’re reuniting for a time-bending conversation on one of Australian history’s most iconic figures, Woollarawarre Bennelong. This is sure to be something wholly unique, new and insightful!
Tickets: https://www.sydneytheatre.com.au/whats-on/productions/2026/bennelong-in-london
4. An Iliad – Sydney Theatre Company
Wharf 1 Theatre: 13 April – 30 May
Adapted by Lisa Peterson and Denis O’Hare
Directed by Damien Ryan
Starring David Wenham
Anyone who grew up during the age where the film 300 was one of the most epic movies to come onto the silver screen will know what I mean when I reference David Wenham’s narration throughout it. Now, imagine that…but an adaptation of Homer’s The Illiad, and just Wenham for the runtime with a live musician. I AM THERE!
Under the direction of Damien Ryan, this one is taking the Ancient Greek saga of heroes, gods and battles and moves it into a modern day exploration of difference, disagreement and the devastation of war.
Tickets: https://www.sydneytheatre.com.au/whats-on/productions/2026/an-iliad
3. A Room With A View – Belvoir St Theatre
3rd October – 1st November
Co-produced with Melbourne Theatre Company
From the novel by E.M. Forster
Adapted by Grace Chapple
Directed by Hannah Goodwin
With Nathalie Morris, Brigid Zengeni
Grace Chapple and Hannah Goodwin’s much-applauded debut work, Never Closer was one of my favourite productions when it premiered in 2023. I mustn’t have been the only one who loved it, as it then got a mainstage transfer from Belvoir’s 25A theatre to the mainstage in 2024.
Now, Chapple is back with an adaptation of E.M Forster’s A Room With A View with Goodwin once again directing. Together, they’re going to be taking us to Florence for sublime art, architecture, and citizens of Tuscany in a theatrical room that may present a very new view.
Tickets: https://belvoir.com.au/productions/a-room-with-a-view/
2. Mackenzie – Bell Shakespeare Company
06 June – 18 July
The Neilson Nutshell
Directed by Virginia Gay
Written by Yve Blake
We all know (or should know by now) Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Macbeth, the Bard’s macabre tale of ambition and the supernatural. There’ve been many adaptations along the ages, but Yve Blake (Fangirls) hasn’t gotten her hands on it yet…until now! Blake asks us: What if Macbeth was a 14-year-old teenage TV Pop Star? Welcome to Mackenzie!
Not only is Mackenzie imbedded with Blake’s iconic voice and biting sense of humour, this production will also be directed by the incomparable star of stage and screen, Virginia Gay. Having seen two workshops of this production already, this play with songs is sure to be an absolute riot for anyone who grew up in the Disney Channel-era of TV, as well as anyone who just wished that Macbeth was just a little more of an ambitious TV ratbag with a Stage Mum Complex.
Tickets: https://www.bellshakespeare.com.au/mackenzie
1. Doubt: A Parable – Sydney Theatre Company
Roslyn Packer Theatre: 30 June – 2 August
Written by John Patrick Shanley
Directed by Marion Potts
Starring Pamela Rabe and Sam Worthington
John Patrick Shanley’s Doubt: A Parable is tremendous in the foundations it shakes in bridging the gaps between belief and truth. It is the argument that theatre is inherently a political space. Add to the mix that we’ll have the incomparable Pamela Rabe as the vicious Sister Aloysius and you have my bum cemented on an STC seat. Chuck in movie star Sam Worthington for a bit of star power and this calls for a hotly anticipated night at the theatre. Together their two opposing forces will speak truth to power in a production that is still unshakeably relevant today as it was when it first opened. Count me in!
Tickets: https://www.sydneytheatre.com.au/whats-on/productions/2026/doubt-a-parable
Other shows to keep an eye out for in 2026
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