Six The Musical – Theatre Royal Sydney (NSW)

Written by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss, Co-directed by Lucy Moss and Jamie Armitage, Choreography by Carrie-Anne Ingrouille

Reviewed by Tessa Miles

Theatre Royal Sydney Until 1st October, 2022 Tickets from: www.sixthemusical.com.au @sixthemusicalau #sixthemusicalau

Back by popular demand, Six the Musical has made its return to Sydney, but this time for a limited 5 week run and in a new venue fit for the six Queens, the Theatre Royal Sydney.

It’s no surprise that Sydney loves Six, with the city having the good fortune of the Queens gracing the Studio at the Sydney Opera House twice; on its initial 2020 tour and reopening in 2021. Six sold out both Sydney seasons, but will it sell out a third? Upgrading venues means the capacity has increased from 280 to 1200. If audiences so far are anything to go by, they shouldn’t have any trouble at all.

While the Studio at the Opera House was an intimate experience, the Theatre Royal gives Sydney what the other states so far have experienced. The element of a bigger theatre means the full staging can be utilised including the purple Tudor curtain for a dramatic reveal and the strobing lights that frame the stage, upgrading it from a Fringe-feel to actual pop concert.

(c) James D Morgan - Getty Images

Six has now been touring Australia for close to nine months, giving the cast the opportunity they missed out on the first-time around in 2020; they have been able to settle into the show and it definitely shows. The cast (Phoenix Jackson Mendoza as Catherine of Aragon, Kala Gare as Anne Boleyn, Loren Hunter as Jane Seymour, Kiana Daniele as Anna of Cleves, Chelsea Dawson as Katherine Howard and Vidya Makan as Catherine Parr) have had the chance to make their roles their own, adding their own pizazz to their characters and playing off each other’s energies, delivering the comedy with perfectly suspenseful timing. But the most delightful difference has been the impressive vocals from each Queen, which really gives ‘riffs to ruffle your ruffs’ a new meaning.

If you saw Six in Sydney once at the beginning of the tour and think that’s enough, you are mistaken. This show only gets better with every additional visit. Die-hard fans would agree, with much of the pre-show chatter coming from total strangers bonding over how many times they have been to the show. Twice, six times, 14 times and in some cases more than 20 times.

Six perfectly serves several doses of female empowerment, perfectly timed comedy, killer vocals, impressive dance moves and a deserved retelling of HERstory. A thoroughly entertaining piece of theatre with an empowering spin to an important part of history.

See our other reviews for SIX below. SIX the Musical – Comedy Theatre Melbourne (VIC) SIX the Musical – Sydney Opera House (NSW) Six the Musical – The Arts Theatre, London

CREATIVES TOBY MARLOW WRITER LUCY MOSS WRITER & CO DIRECTOR JAMIE ARMITAGE CO DIRECTOR CARRIE-ANNE INGROUILLE CHOREOGRAPHER EMMA BAILEY SET DESIGNER GABRIELLA SLADE COSTUME DESIGNER TIM DEILING LIGHTING DESIGNER PAUL GATEHOUSE SOUND DESIGNER TOM CURRAN ORCHESTRATOR JOE BEIGHTON MUSIC SUPERVISOR SHARON MILLERCHIP AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR JASON FRIPP AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATE LIGHTING DESIGNER DAVID TONION AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATE SOUND DESIGNER NIGEL SHAW AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATE COSTUME DESIGNER KYLIE CLARKE AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATE HAIR & MAKE-UP DESIGNER STEPHEN AMOS AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATE MUSIC SUPERVISOR CLAIRE HEALY MUSICAL DIRECTOR CRISTINA D'AGOSTINO RESIDENT CHOREOGRAPHER/ASSISTANT TO THE DIRECTOR/ALTERNATE SWING

CAST Phoenix Jackson Mendoza Catherine of Aragon Kala Gare Anne Boleyn Loren Hunter Jane Seymour Kiana Daniele Anna of Cleves Chelsea Dawson Katherine Howard Vidya Makan Catherine Parr Chiara Assetta Swing Karis Oka Swing Shannen Alyce Quan Swing

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