Mother Nature l Australian Calisthenics Theatre Company | Review

Mother Nature was out in full force in Adelaide on 4 July 2025! Australian Calisthenics Theatre Company’s (ACTC) latest performance was nothing short of incredible, treating the audience to a fabulous display of the very best calisthenics talent in Australia.

Review by Jo Parkinson

Titled ‘Mother Nature,’ this sensational show was developed by ACTC co- founders, Brooke Brown and Carly Aherne and Executive Producer Melissa Dunbar. After its first successful debut season last year, ACTC has gone a step further in 2025, including calisthenics stars not only from SA but interstate as well. A change in venue was also needed this year, due to the increased size of the show and needing to accommodate the biggest audience to attend a calisthenics production in history. The Adelaide Entertainment Centre served well and provided a valuable opportunity for the dancers to perform in a prestigious location.

What is Calisthenics?

For those who are unfamiliar with calisthenics, it is a uniquely Australian sport and the word ‘calisthenics’ stems from Greek origin meaning ‘beauty’ and ‘strength’. It is a combination of dance, apparatus (clubs and rods), and includes elements of ballet, singing, gymnastics and marching. It is usually a competitive sport, with many clubs across SA, VIC, WA, QLD and NT.

The Show

Mother Nature is a dynamic, innovative and captivating performance, showcasing a new generation of calisthenics. Split across two massive stages, complete with a live band, the show was divided into six scenes; Earth, Fire, Water, Wind, Light and Sun. Each element represented a journey of human emotion; Growth, Truth, Grief, Battling Choices, Hope and finally becoming Whole. The story flowed well, with ‘Mother Nature’ seamlessly piecing one element to the next, keeping the audience entertained from start to finish. The production was lavish, with extravagant costumes, set design, tech, and an unbelievable show of talent.

120 talented dancers ranging in ages from children to adult, inspired us with their out-of-this-world flexibility, grace, strength and beauty. The fact that the show was put together in just six months and having dancers unable to practice all together due to being interstate is incredible, as the entire performance was smooth and professional. Each of the many costumes was stunning, with exquisite details, super sparkles and even built in lights! Choreography was dynamic and innovative, flawlessly combining the different elements of calisthenics together, which is not an easy task.

The range of music was sensational. Having the live band and featuring vocals from Ten Tenors star JD Smith and Chloe Castledine added to the electric atmosphere. There were some crowd favourite songs from Wicked, ACDC, Frozen and The Corrs, as well as 30% of the music being an original score.

Our highlights included Fire; we loved the smoke effect combined with the light up costumes resembling flames, as well as the Light scene, where audience members either used light up flower crowns or phone torches to light up the arena, giving everyone a chance to feel part of the show. Overall, we just loved the incredible dancing and entertainment value and would highly recommend seeing any performance by ACTC.

ACTC’s Mother Nature is taking the calisthenics world by storm, celebrating this wonderful sport and bringing it into its next era! You can watch Mother Nature when the Company tours in Melbourne on 5 December 2025.

For more information and all enquiries please visit Australian Calisthenics Theatre Company website.

At Play & Go Adelaide we make every effort to provide accurate information to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication. We recommend confirming times, dates and details directly before making any plans as details may be subject to change.

As per all our Play & Go reviews, this is not a sponsored post. The Play & Go team review via media accreditation and when kindly invited.  All photos by Play & Go Adelaide.

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