Theo Chen's autobiographical cabaret Pretty Ugly transforms personal struggles with isolation and self-esteem into relatable, dignified reflections on identity and resilience. Reviewed by Jaynie Ng at Qtopia's heritage-listed Substation, 1–5 September, Sydney Fringe 2026.

Eugene Blazejowski Walsh reviews The Streets Are Paved With Murder, an ensemble improv-comedy murder mystery hosted by James Kehoe that borrows the structure of the social-deduction game Mafia, staged at Factory Theatre (19–20 September) as part of Sydney Fringe Festival 2026. Entertaining if occasionally uneven, the show is strongest when individual performers commit to taking their characters overboard — and its most interesting feature, the writer argues, is a feedback loop in which the audience's enjoyment is structurally built into the show's outcome.