The 10 live shows you don’t want to miss in 2026

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From a Pulitzer- and Tony-winning Broadway drama landing at Wharf 1 to Bad Bunny igniting a stadium and Wagner thundering to a close under Simone Young’s baton, there’s no shortage of live entertainment – from pop spectacle to high art – on Sydney stages this year. Whether you’re chasing zeitgeist, goosebumps or sheer escapism, these are the 10 shows – on stage, in concert halls and under open skies – you won’t want to miss in 2026.

Purpose

Wharf 1 Theatre, February 2-March 22

Fresh from its 2025 Tony Award win for best play and a Pulitzer Prize for drama, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ acclaimed masterpiece arrives for its Australian premiere. Sydney Theatre Company is bringing the Broadway sensation to the local stage, with tickets already moving fast. The drama follows a powerful African-American family, seemingly inspired by civil rights activist Jesse Jackson and his family’s scandals, as their estranged son returns and they come together for a tumultuous reunion in which secrets are spilled. Zindzi Okenyo directs Grace Bentley-Tsibuah, Deni Gordon, Markus Hamilton, Tinashe Mangwana, Maurice Marvel Meredith and Sisi Stringer.

Lorde

Qudos Bank Arena, February 18-19

The New Zealand songwriter has been one of the more interesting voices in the musical landscape since her unexpected success in 2013 as a teenager with her debut album Pure Heroine. The confessional but catchy tunes from her most recent record, Virgin, were considered by some as a return to form after 2021’s polarising Solar Power. Hear her emotive vocals live as she brings out her arena tour for two dates in Sydney. She’s joined by American rapper and singer Kevin Abstract of hip-hop collective Brockhampton as a special guest for the shows.

Mighty Hoopla Sydney

Bondi Beach, February 21

Kesha will headline Mighty Hoopla when it lands in Sydney for the first time.

London LGBTQ music festival Mighty Hoopla is landing in Australia for the first time ever for a day of pop-tastic delights. American singer Kesha, perhaps best-known for her 2010 worldwide No.1 smash Tik Tok, headlines the event and is joined on the musical line-up by international acts Becky Hill, Countess Luann and Rose Gray, as well as local talent Jessica Mauboy and Delta Goodrem. The festival is also a celebration of queer culture, so there will be plenty of drag performers appearing, including spots from Bimini and Miss Ellaneous.

Bad Bunny

Engie Stadium, February 28-March 1

The dance floor will be ablaze as the global superstar, multiple Grammy winner and soon-to-be Super Bowl headliner brings his Latin trap sounds to Australia for the very first time on his current world tour. Such is Bad Bunny’s immense popularity that a second show at this stadium had to be announced to meet fan demand, which means music lovers can still pick up tickets to check him out. His last album, Debi Tirar Mas Fotos, raked in the critical acclaim, topping many best-of-2025 polls with critics calling it a fitting tribute to his homeland of Puerto Rico; it cleverly fuses contemporary reggaeton with more traditional music.

Anastasia

Sydney Lyric Theatre, April 7-July 5

The Broadway hit adaptation of the 1997 historical fantasy animation has already opened in Melbourne and is set to make its Sydney debut later this year. With lavish costumes and sets, it draws on the rumoured escape of Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia, with a who’s who of Aussie musical theatre in the cast. Georgina Hopson stars as Anya, an amnesiac hoping to unravel her past who is drawn into a scheme with a pair of con men to pass her off as a Romanov. Robert Tripolino, Joshua Robson, Rodney Dobson, Rhonda Burchmore and Nancye Hayes round out the bill.

Flora

Sydney Opera House Joan Sutherland Theatre, April 7-18

While powerhouse dance companies Bangarra Dance Theatre and The Australian Ballet have joined forces before, their coming co-production marks their first full-length collaboration. The world premiere of the new work draws inspiration from the living history of Australia’s spectacular flora, the resilience of which echoes that of First Nations people. Bangarra’s artistic director and co-chief executive, Mirning woman Frances Rings, brings her choreographic talent to the piece, with acclaimed composer and Kalkadunga man William Barton providing the original score as 35 dancers drawn from both companies blend their different movement techniques together.

Mackenzie

The Neilson Nutshell, June 6-July 18

Yve Blake certainly made a splash on the theatre scene, with her award-winning musical Fangirls capturing hearts all over, from its sell-out Australian debut in 2019 to going global with a run at London’s Lyric Hammersmith Theatre in 2024. She’s returning with the world premiere of her latest, Mackenzie, for Bell Shakespeare’s 2026 season. It’s a darkly funny retelling of Shakespeare’s Macbeth directed by Virginia Gay, but Blake’s “play with songs” transforms the Scottish general into a 13-year-old child star from the early 2000s, with Lady Macbeth morphing into a ruthless stage mum. Sydney is lucky enough to get the first look at the campy fun before the show tours to Melbourne.

Pride and Prejudice (sort of)
Sydney Opera House Drama Theatre, July 16-August 30

Pride and Prejudice (sort of) is at the Sydney Opera House.

Centuries on from her death, Jane Austen is as popular as ever, and her work remains endlessly ripe for reinvention (remember Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, anyone?). The latest twist on her genius is this West End smash from Isobel McArthur’s pen, which picked up an Olivier Award for best comedy and reimagines Austen’s novel as a fast-paced and hilarious romp, with a cast of five women playing all the roles. There’s even karaoke folded in with nostalgic top 40 tunes like Young Hearts Run Free, The Lady in Red and You’re So Vain woven throughout.

Waitress

Sydney Lyric Theatre, August 1-September 20

The Broadway hit musical is based on a 2007 film.

The Broadway hit musical, based on the 2007 comedy-drama film starring Keri Russell, debuted in America in 2015 and has made its way Down Under for its long-awaited Australian premiere. The plot follows a skilful pie baker working at a diner who is trying to find a way out of her abusive marriage and turn her life around. While no official announcement has yet been made for the cast of the Aussie version it should prove a charming night out regardless, as the show is expertly powered by the pop chops of American songstress Sara Bareilles, who composed the score.

Simone Young conducts Gotterdammerung

Sydney Opera House Concert Hall, November 19 and 22

Sydney Symphony Orchestra chief conductor Simone Young, a renowned Wagner interpreter, has for years treated audiences to the Ring cycle in concert, receiving five-star rave reviews along the way. Since starting the epic undertaking she has been named conductor of the year at the 2024 International Opera Awards and was the first woman and first Australian to conduct the Ring cycle at the Bayreuth Festival in Wagner’s native Germany. Now one of the centrepieces of Young’s SSO tenure is coming to a close, with the final part of the composer’s most ambitious work arriving for the orchestra’s 2026 season. Also on board for the conclusion are German-Italian soprano Anja Kampe as Brunnhilde and German tenor Klaus Florian Vogt as Siegfried.

Which live shows are you most excited for in 2026? Let us know in the comments.

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