Mama Does Derby (Sydney Festival) ★★★½

Created by Clare Watson & Virginia Gay. Windmill Production Company. World Premiere Season. Sydney Festival. Sydney Town Hall. 15-22 Jan, 2026.

Mama Does Derby brings roller derby into the Sydney Town Hall… sorta. That may be the overarching gimmick behind the show, but its big surprise is that it isn’t just all spectacle — there’s substance in the mix too.

Sixteen-year-old Billie (Elvy-Lee Quici) and her mum (Amber McMahon) are new in town after a chaotic life on the road. They’re more like best friends than mother and daughter sometimes, but a static life isn’t sitting too well with either of them. Billie struggles to connect with kids at school and pours herself into her art. Mum, meanwhile, is bouncing off the walls… and the men… until she discovers the local roller derby rink.

I’ll get my main criticism out of the way early — there isn’t enough roller derby in Mama Does Derby. The hard-working skaters spend almost two thirds of the show pushing the set around, and when we do get to the derby, the confines of the Town Hall seating make it all feel rather tame. I get it: crash barriers would block sightlines and eat into the space. But “derby” is in the title. I at least wanna see some argy-bargy on wheels.

Thankfully, the show’s secret weapon isn’t its Starlight Express antics, but the fact that Watson & Gay (which sounds suspiciously like a TV detective series) have built a genuine play about a mother and daughter dealing with trauma — one that just happens to have rollerskating happening around it.

Billie can’t sleep when Mum isn’t around. At first this reads as standard coming-of-age anxiety, but the more we learn about their dynamic and history, the clearer it becomes that Billie is worried about… everything. Beyond the existential dread of being a modern teenager, Billie has effectively become a parent to her own mum, and her fears extend to making sure Mum is safe.

It’s a well-constructed story, broad enough to work in a vast, spectacle-heavy space, but with enough emotional investment to feel real rather than swallowed by the bells and whistles.

When Billie’s night terrors take physical form, the show gets a shot of theatrical adrenaline. Embodied by performer Benjamin Hancock, her fear is ethereal, beautiful, and deeply strange as it contorts its way through the darkness. It’s an absolute visual highlight of the night. Designer Jonathon Oxlade and costume maker Renate Henschke knock it out of the park.

Another standout is the kick-ass live band, which delivers high-energy, atmospheric hits throughout the show. Tracks like Beastie Boys’ “Sabotage”, The Pixies’ “Where Is My Mind?”, and Tom Cochrane’s “Life Is a Highway” are performed by the tight three-piece of Joe Paradise Lui, Calliope Jackson, and Antoine Jelk, adding propulsion and grit to the action.

Clare Watson’s direction works hard to keep the story flowing amid some tricky physical constraints. A wide thrust configuration and steeply raked seating aren’t the most conducive set-up for intimate emotional drama — especially not when there’s a racetrack in the middle. Strong sound and lighting design (by Luke Smiles and Lucy Birkinshaw) help focus attention within the cavernous space, while Watson ensures Quici and McMahon’s performances are bold enough to read without tipping into pantomime.

Sydney Festival’s Town Hall shows are always events: large-scale spectacles anchored by a clear artistic vision. Mama Does Derby leans more towards entertainment than art, but it’s still a lot of fun, packed with confident stagecraft and emotional heft. I just wanted more sweaty smash’n’grab from it.