Experience An Evening With Rodgers & Hammerstein at Riverside Theatres, Parramatta on Saturday 19 September at 2pm, featuring a live orchestra, choir and beloved Broadway favourites.
There are certain melodies that seem to outlast the decades. They drift from family record collections, theatre stages and film soundtracks, quietly weaving themselves into memories across generations. Long after the curtain falls, the music remains. This September, those familiar songs will once again find a home on the Sydney stage as An Evening With Rodgers & Hammerstein arrives at Riverside Theatres in Parramatta for a special afternoon performance.
Rather than recreating a single musical, An Evening With Rodgers & Hammerstein will gather together the celebrated works of one of Broadway's most influential creative partnerships. Audiences will spend an afternoon moving between stories of hope, love, longing and resilience, guided by songs that continue to shape musical theatre around the world.
Presented by the Sydney Musical & Opera Society, the concert will offer a rare opportunity to experience these classics performed with the scale and richness of a fully live orchestra, choir, dancers and vocal ensemble in one carefully crafted production.
The Enduring Appeal of An Evening With Rodgers & Hammerstein
The music of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II has occupied a unique place in theatre for generations. Their collaborations transformed the musical into something more than entertainment, allowing songs to deepen character, advance stories and create emotional landscapes that still resonate today.
An Evening With Rodgers & Hammerstein will celebrate that legacy by drawing together selections from The Sound of Music, Carousel, Oklahoma!, South Pacific and The King and I. Rather than presenting isolated favourites, the performance will invite audiences to experience the breadth of the duo's catalogue, revealing the common threads that connect each production.
For many, these melodies will carry echoes of childhood film screenings or treasured theatre visits. For others, the afternoon may serve as an introduction to works that continue to influence modern musical theatre. Either way, the concert promises an experience that bridges generations through music that remains remarkably familiar.
An Evening With Rodgers & Hammerstein at Riverside Theatres
Set within Riverside Theatres in the heart of Parramatta, An Evening With Rodgers & Hammerstein will unfold in a venue long recognised for hosting theatre, music and cultural performances that reflect the diversity of Western Sydney.
The performance will feature a fully live 24-piece orchestra accompanied by a cast of 16 performers, dancers and choir. Elegant staging and carefully designed projections will provide visual texture while allowing the music to remain at the centre of the experience.
Unlike a fully staged musical, the concert format offers audiences the opportunity to appreciate the craftsmanship of the songs themselves. Individual numbers flow naturally into one another, creating a musical journey that spans different stories while remaining connected through Rodgers and Hammerstein's unmistakable style.
Running for approximately two hours and fifteen minutes, including an interval, the afternoon performance provides ample time for the music to breathe without feeling hurried.
Songs That Continue to Shape Musical Theatre
Every audience member will likely arrive carrying their own favourite Rodgers and Hammerstein melody.
Some will anticipate the sweeping romance of Some Enchanted Evening, while others will wait patiently for the quiet optimism of You'll Never Walk Alone or the uplifting spirit of Climb Ev'ry Mountain. The cheerful simplicity of Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin', the emotional tenderness of If I Loved You, and the unmistakable title song from The Sound of Music will each contribute to an afternoon built on familiar harmonies.
These compositions have remained enduring not simply because they are memorable, but because they speak to universal emotions. Hope, uncertainty, belonging and love are themes that continue to resonate, regardless of when audiences first encounter the music.
In An Evening With Rodgers & Hammerstein, these songs will once again be performed with the richness of live orchestral accompaniment, reminding audiences why they continue to occupy an important place in theatrical history.
A Shared Afternoon of Music and Memory
Matinee performances possess their own distinctive atmosphere. Afternoon light lingers outside while audiences gather inside, creating a gentler rhythm than an evening performance.
As patrons take their seats at Riverside Theatres, conversations will gradually soften before the orchestra begins to play. Throughout the concert, familiar melodies will prompt quiet recognition, smiles of remembrance and moments of reflection shared across the auditorium.
The performance will welcome seasoned theatre enthusiasts alongside first-time visitors, demonstrating the broad appeal of works that continue to transcend generations. Parents may introduce children to songs they first heard decades ago, while younger audiences discover why these musicals have endured for so long.
Broadway's Golden Age Returns to Parramatta
As the final notes fade and applause fills the theatre, audiences will step back into Parramatta carrying melodies that have travelled through generations before arriving once more on a contemporary Australian stage.
An Evening With Rodgers & Hammerstein will not simply revisit celebrated musicals; it will honour a body of work that continues to influence performers, composers and audiences around the world. Presented with live orchestra, accomplished performers and thoughtful staging, the concert will offer an opportunity to experience these timeless songs as they were intended – to be heard together, shared with others and appreciated in the moment.
For one Saturday afternoon in September, Riverside Theatres will become a meeting place between Broadway's golden age and modern Sydney, where familiar songs continue to remind audiences that great music rarely belongs to just one generation.
Event Details
Event: An Evening With Rodgers & Hammerstein
Date: Saturday 19 September 2026
Time: 2:00pm
Venue: Riverside Theatres, Corner Church & Market Streets, Parramatta, NSW
Duration: Approximately 2 hours 15 minutes (including interval)
Tickets: From $50 (Members from $55)
Accessibility: Assistive hearing, Companion Card accepted, wheelchair accessible
Warnings: Contains smoke haze
Official Website: https://riversideparramatta.com.au/whats-on/an-evening-with-rodgers-and-hammerstein/