The arts are finally on Australia’s national agenda. We need the ABC to cover it
As the government passed landmark legislation for the arts, it was jarring to see the national broadcaster take steps in the other direction
Hot in here: music, books, stage and more to keep you cool in a heatwave
From taking an idyllic boat trip to drying out your trunks on a Porsche, our critics select culture that can cope when the heat is on
On my radar: Milly Alcock’s cultural highlights
The Australian star of House of the Dragon and Upright on her favourite podcast, an immersive art experience and a novel of ugly emotions
Gays on Broadway by Ethan Mordden review – stage whispers
A gossipy, insightful survey of the (often closeted) gay contribution to American theatre
The Enormous Crocodile among latest Roald Dahl books to be adapted for stage
Roald Dahl Story Company announces new shows, including a large-scale circus and a reading of The Magic Finger
Brokeback Mountain review – perfectly pitched staging of the heartbreaking love story
The desolately poignant tale is brought into stark relief in Jonathan Butterell’s production through Eddi Reader’s beautiful vocals and a compelling cast
Anna Karenina review – sparky feminist reading of Tolstoy
Lesley Hart’s adaptation of the classic novel is driven with tremendous energy following its tragic heroine as she discards bourgeois convention
A moment that changed me: a brutal attack ended my dreams of being a boxer – but I found a new passion
Happy in my life in the theatre, I sometimes wonder if that assault in the park was meant to be
Loaded review – Danny Ball is magnificent in Christos Tsiolkas adaptation
The stage adaptation thrums with dark energy – but the stakes and politics that drove the 1990s novel don’t quite land when it’s set in the modern day
We Need New Names review – playful staging of NoViolet Bulawayo’s novel
Director Monique Touko keeps the tone lively with this tough story of Mugabe’s Zimbabwe in which the actors switch race, age and gender with ease
Tim Minchin: ‘Politics affects my mental health … I feel gaslit’
He’s the anarchic comedian behind the musicals Matilda and Groundhog Day. He talks about dashed Hollywood hopes, the dangers of modernising Roald Dahl and feeling out of step with his progressive fanbase
Gregory Doran: ‘Shakespeare defines things when you can’t’
As the RSC’s artistic director steps down after 35 years and 50 shows, he talks about the productions he’s most proud of, his new memoir, and the loss of his husband, the actor Antony Sher
Like Captain Planet with marsupials: First Dog on the Moon steps on stage
First Dog has to ‘suffer the agonies’ of adapting his book The Carbon Neutral Adventures of the Indefatigable Enviroteens into a play. He and the cast talk about making climate change fun
007 meets the occult: why spies and sorcerers are a perfect fit in fiction
Espionage and magic share codes, secrets and rituals and a new cohort of writers are now casting their literary spells
On my radar: Johnny Flynn’s cultural highlights
The actor and musician on attending an ancient wisdom school, indulging in Polish antiques, and the history book Suella Braverman should read