‘Congratulations, Get Rich!’: Ghosts, Karaoke And Family Feuds Hit Sydney Stage

A smash hit at Brisbane Festival and fresh from Singapore Repertory Theatre, Congratulations, Get Rich! (恭喜发财, 人日快乐) arrives at Sydney Theatre Company, promising a wild, heartfelt dive into family, culture and the ghosts, both literal and emotional.

Written by and starring Merlynn Tong (Golden Blood) and directed by Courtney Stewart, La Boite’s artistic director and a former STC Resident Artist, the production has drawn strong praise for its sharp, funny take on family ties and cultural storytelling.

The Sydney premiere continues that momentum, bringing the outrageously fun and deeply personal story to the harbourfront on 21 November.

Tong mines from her childhood spent in her family’s Singapore karaoke bars, creating a larger-than-life musical tale that swings between comedy and catharsis. She channels that world and “very real people” into a playful story that balances authenticity and allowing her imagination to run wild.

Tong describes the piece as a “fantastic” semi-autobiographical work.

 

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The story follows Mandy, played by Tong, a karaoke bar co-owner, staging her last night before closing for good.

To mark the occasion, Mandy plans an all-out reunion—until the ghosts of her mother and grandmother crash the party, upending plans and dragging buried tensions into the spotlight.

Tong performs alongside her real-life fiancé, Zac Boulton, who plays Mandy’s partner Xavier. Rounding out the cast are Kimie Tsukakoshi and Seong Hui Xuan, who embody Mandy’s formidable female ancestors.

Under Stewart’s direction, the trio becomes a generational clash: three women from vastly different eras sparring, reminiscing and wrestling/belting over legacy, identity and the futures they never got to live.

All three women are 38, the age Tong reaches during her run and a year that threads personal symbolism through the show’s chaos.

“As I approach the age when my mother died, I can’t help but ponder about my blood, about this maternal impulse that lives within me,” Tong explains.

That tension shapes the play’s emotional undercurrent, exploring mother-daughter relationships, grief, survival and the urge to break cycles while honouring your heritage.

Visually and sonically, Congratulations, Get Rich! is driven by a powerhouse creative team behind it. Designer James Lew, lighting designer Gabriel Chan, composer Guy Webster, dramaturg Jules Orcullo, music director Alex Van den Broek, and fight/intimacy director NJ Price build a world where karaoke spectacle collides with the supernatural.

Lively songs become confessionals, hauntings turn into punchlines and the afterlife feels only a breath away.

As an international co-production between Sydney Theatre Company, La Boite Theatre and Singapore Repertory Theatre, the production marks a rare cross-border collaboration for Sydney stages.

Audiences can expect a blend of supernatural flair and grounded family drama that collapses the boundary between the living and the dead, all while celebrating the messy, exuberant act of being alive.

Congratulations, Get Rich! (恭喜发财, 人日快乐) runs from 21 November to 14 December at Sydney Theatre Company’s Wharf 1.