Limelight

Independent, in-depth and intelligent, Limelight offers Australia's finest coverage of music, arts and culture. Inside each issue, we invite you to take a deep dive into at least four main features exploring the music, opera, theatre and dance sectors, as well as articles addressing the big issues facing the arts and entertainment industry. Additional interviews, reviews and opinion pieces are included in the Soundings and Coda sections. Plus, discover upcoming events across the country in On Stage, and schedule your at-home listening with On Air & Online, which includes ABC Classic, independent radio and online broadcast information.

Contributors

Limelight

On Stage

In the Limelight

DANGER ZONE • Next year, Peter Sellars brings Perle Noire: Meditations for Joséphine, an in-depth portrait of Joséphine Baker, to the Adelaide Festival. It stars Grammy Award-winning soprano Julia Bullock, who in turn reworks John Adams’ oratorio El Niño which Sellars staged at the 2002 Festival. Jansson J. Antmann talks to Bullock and Sellars about their 15-year association and the art of activism.

Stream Line • Online arts platforms blossomed during the COVID lockdowns as a way to keep artists employed and companies connected with their audiences. Six years on, times have changed. Shamistha de Soysa talks to a number of arts organisations about their digital ventures and the way forward.

On a Roll • A new production, set at a roller derby and performed on skates, tackles a range of issues including parenting and youth mental health, while offering a joyous, exhilarating experience. As Mama Does Derby prepares to premiere at the Sydney and Adelaide Festivals, Lenny Ann Low talks to its co-creators Virginia Gay and Clare Watson.

UP IN LIGHTS • Nancye Hayes is one of Australia's most respected, beloved leading ladies. As she prepares to perform in the musical Anastasia, she talks to Jo Litson about her extraordinary 65-year career.

INTERVIEW Full Circle • Leanne Stojmenov began her professional dancing career at West Australian Ballet, where she recently became the new Artistic Director. She talks to Deborah Jones about her career, her plans for the company and how the appointment is a dream come true.

The 2025 Limelight Recording of the Year • Amid fierce competition, a relative rarity has carried off the top prize.

Category Winners

A Yuletide Spin • This month, instead of his usual On the Record column, Clive Paget recommends some recent Christmas albums, leading to his festive top three.

A Sense of Self • Composer Connor D'Netto talks with Liam Heitmann-Ryce-LeMercier about consolidating a fractured view of his identity in his new album Some Kinda Way.

Celebrating the Diva • The Australian Museum of Performing Arts opens this month with DIVA, an exhibition from London's Victoria and Albert Museum. Patricia Maunder finds out more.

A Haunting Mystery • Hilary Bell and Greta Gertler Gold chat with Jo Litson about their new musical, Picnic at Hanging Rock, opening in New York.

The Power of Music: How Music Connects Us All by Sheku Kanneh-Mason • The star cellist may only be 26, but his story so far comes with plenty of wise words of advice.

The Choral • ½ It may be a little ‘stagey’ and over-polite, but there are pleasures to be had in this gentle drama starring Ralph Fiennes.

State Opera at 50 • Pulling out all the stops, State Opera South Australia's Artistic Director Dane Lam tells Jansson J. Antmann about the company's Golden Jubilee.

On Air & Online

ABC Classic concert program – December 2025

Independent radio & streaming – December 2025

GUY NOBLE'S SOAPBOX Vocal Appliances • As the world becomes ever noisier, Guy Noble admits he'd like a...