I admit it’s something of a cliché to say that This is the Moment – but that really is how it feels for the many Australian musical theatre fans who have waited 25 years to see Anthony Warlow play the dual title roles in the musical Jekyll & Hyde live on stage, after his peerless, electrifying performance on the 1994 2CD concept album.

In fact, as the crowd entered the auditorium for the first of two Melbourne performances, to be followed by one in Sydney, a man behind me was excitedly singing the show’s most famous song This is the Moment.

Anthony Warlow and Jemma Rix. Photograph © Phoebe Warlow Photography

And it was a momentous night, at the end of which everyone in Hamer Hall leapt to their feet for a rousing standing ovation. Some of the soaring, demanding, climactic notes in two of the big songs that Warlow sings may not have landed as they should, which was a shame, but a quarter of a century on, he is still singing with beauty and theatrical insight, differentiating the two roles exceptionally well.

The gothic musical thriller by Frank Wildhorn (music) and Leslie Bricusse...