Whether you're after top-quality hot pot, grab-and-go lunches, or meat and marinades galore, Elizabeth Street's new three-in-one outpost has got you covered. Niku Shiki is a specialty wagyu house, a wagyu butcher and a takeaway restaurant all rolled into one, and it has opened a sibling CBD location to its OG Glen Waverley site. Co-founded by Kai Gu and Executive Chef Yasuo Matsuike (ex-En Japanese Brasserie in New York and Nobu), the wagyu house's newly opened second outpost offers top-of-the-range cuts supplied by Pardoo Wagyu. Chef Ken Kee (ex-Shoya, Shira Nui and Head Chef of Marble Yakiniku) has designed the menu, helping to curate a range starring wagyu sushi, quality cuts of meat, and Japanese classics like donburi and udon. In a texture-filled venue envisioned by Elvin Tan Designs, the atmosphere of Niku Shiki is intimate and inviting. Its black and gold theme, warm lighting and veined black marble — reminiscent of the memorable pattern that you'll find on a slice of wagyu — add a touch of elegance. Niku Shiki translates to "meat for all seasons", encouraging CBD-goers to enjoy its premium cuts all year round. For those on the go, takeaway is available for any of the restaurant's dishes, with a selection of grab-and-go sushi and sashimi taking centre stage. Or, you can opt to dine in at its sleek restaurant and enjoy wagyu sukiyaki hot pots, top-quality sushi and sashimi, donburi rice bowls and thick udon noodle dishes, all of which incorporate luxe ingredients like foie gras, caviar and truffle to elevate each dish. As for the in-house butcher and grocer, it slings a selection of wagyu cuts from hot-pot meat and fillets to steaks, fresh fish with pre-made marinades to pair, sake and specialty rice. Plus, you are also able to grab any cooking utensils you may need or simply want, including your own hibachi grill or hot pot. You'll find Niku Shiki at Melbourne Central, Shop GD070/360 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne — open from 10am—6.30pm Sunday–Wednesday and 7am—7.30pm Thursday–Friday.
Opened in mid 2021, the Melbourne Marriott Hotel Docklands is the suburb's only five-star hotel, featuring a whole swag of onsite hospitality venues, including a swanky rooftop bar and pool. The site boasts 189 luxury rooms kitted out with features like 'retail-inspired wardrobes' and 55-inch LCD TVs. The whole design aesthetic of the petal-shaped building is inspired by the contours of a yacht, so expect sleek curves aplenty, backed by plenty of curated art installations and sculptured statement pieces. It's no wonder why this new addition to the luxury accommodation scene is one of Melbourne's top hotels. Then, there's the hefty collection of food and drink offerings presented in collaboration with the Peter Rowland Group, including one adjacent to the hotel's crowning glory — the stunning infinity pool, complemented by sweeping views to the west. Up here, you'll be swimming in a 28-metre wet-edge pool — or lounging on a day bed enjoying cocktails and high-end panoramas. Rooftop bar Sunset House is a buzzy Palm Springs-inspired destination where punters can lounge while grazing on chic snacks, signature cocktails and a range of Everleigh's bottled spritzes. Think, katsu sandos, duck jaffles, Moreton Bay bug rolls, and tuna sashimi teamed with a green chilli sambal and sesame tofu. Plus, a program of nighttime DJ sets to match. Meanwhile, elegant all-day restaurant Archer's is championing local ingredients and producers through a menu of bold, technique-driven plates. It's got two standout breakfast offerings, while lunch and dinner might feature the likes of ricotta and parmesan gnocchi with wild mushrooms and broad beans, and roast spring chicken with radicchio and sweetcorn. A considered drinks program pours plenty of sips starring local spirits, too. Casual all-day haunt Corsia serves primo St Ali coffee alongside Euro-leaning lunch dishes, pastries and Italian-style desserts. And sophisticated cocktail lounge Ada's is slinging chic bar snacks, revamped classic cocktails and an impressive range of non-alcoholic creations. [caption id="attachment_837297" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Dining at Archer's[/caption] Images: Dianna Snape and Peter Rowland Group Appears in: The Best Hotels in Melbourne
Rinaldo 'Ronnie' Di Stasio and his namesake restaurants are major players in the Melbourne hospitality industry, and they have been for almost four decades. Now, their future existence hinges on whether Ronnie's (and business partner Mallory Wall's) companies can settle the outstanding debts allegedly owing to the Australian Taxation Office — and it appears they have just days to do so. As reported by The Age, two of Di Stasio's companies, Di Stasio Pty Ltd and Di Stasio Citta Pty Ltd, were recently served winding-up applications and given 21 days to settle tax debts totalling just shy of $1 million. The debts of $200,000 and $710,000, respectively, relate to Cafe Di Stasio in St Kilda and Di Stasio Citta in the CBD. The brand's Carlton outpost (where a pizza could set you back a casual $54) is not impugned in the Federal Court action. If the debts are not settled on time, the companies could be deemed insolvent, with a liquidator appointed. The winding-up applications are set down for hearing by the Federal Court on October 31 and November 7. At the time of publishing, it appears that the restaurants continue to trade as usual. Images: Kate Shanasy. Check out the best Italian restaurants in Melbourne now.
This cheery new Brunswick East brunch destination has proved a hit with humans and pooches alike, winning over fans with its all-day bagel menu, house-roasted coffee and one of the most dog-friendly outdoor dining spaces around. Against a dapper backdrop of white tile and navy blue accents, Bellboy is plating up an offering of contemporary cafe gems, running from the scrambled eggs cacio e pepe ($17), to a prawn and crab brioche roll laced with spicy mayo ($20). Meanwhile, a dedicated bagel lineup features crafty fillings like wood-smoked pastrami with cheese and sauerkraut ($15), vegan salad with cashew cream cheese ($13), and a classic muffuletta ($15), all served with house-cut chips. Former Golden Bean winner and coffee legend Mark Leo is roasting two signature coffee blends on site, for espresso and filter options, or you can try your caffeine married with soda water and a hit of orange in the cold brew spritzer ($8). There's also free-flowing sparkling water ($1.50), house-pressed juices ($6.50) and signature cocktails like the apple-infused elderflower gin blossom ($13). As for four-legged guests, they'll be pretty chuffed with the dedicated menu of Bender& Friends doggy treats, the custom Frank & Friends Design 'check-in' kennel and the oh-so-chic ceramic bowls by Houndsome Dog. Images: Julian Lallo
Tim's Bookshop in Kew has been in business for nearly 40 years. The family-owned store is practically a cultural institution in Melbourne's east, particularly for literature lovers who still enjoy turning the pages of a physical book. Whether you're after a heart-stopping crime thriller by the likes of Michael Connelly or an award-winning page turner from Vicki Laveau-Harvie, you'll have no trouble finding something to capture your heart and mind amid the store's shelves. Although, if you do need a little help the staff are always keen to lend a hand. Children's books are a specialty at Tim's, so it's perfect if you need something for the little readers in your life. Images: Tracey Ah-kee.
Mornington Peninsula is home to stacks of world-class day spas and bathing spots, but the Surfcoast has long lagged behind. Fortunately, things are looking up for this side of Victoria's coast, thanks to the recent opening of About Time — a luxe day spa and bathhouse located in Torquay, right at the start of the Great Ocean Road. It comes from the folks who created Little Company (champions of slow, pared-back facials and LED lightroom therapy) and STILL Beauty (massage experts), so you're sure to get some damn good wellness treatments at About Time. The Torquay spa is also fully equipped for all your luxury bathing needs within its brutalist building. Inside, it has a magnesium pool, cold plunge pool, traditional sauna and steam room, plus private infrared saunas and ice baths that can be booked for groups of up to eight people. Step outside to the garden surrounded by towering gum trees, and you'll find hot and cold magnesium pools that are tailor-made for social bathing with mates. You're free to chat out here, but it seems like the indoor bathhouse is more of a quiet self-care space. With so little competition out this way, About Time is set to be incredibly popular with locals and day-trippers alike — be sure to book well ahead. You'll find About Time at 27 Baines Crescent, Torquay. For more information and to book a spot at the spa, check out the venue's website.
If peering at an artist's work is the same as peering into their soul, then staring at a self-portrait is like peeking through a wide-open window. Perhaps Rembrandt believed this? The 17th-century artist certainly loved putting his likeness on paper, whether he was picking up a brush or pencil, or getting etching. Perhaps you can ponder this very notion at Rembrandt — True to Life, which is bringing the Dutch Golden Age master's works to Melbourne's NGV International to brighten up Australia's winter. From Friday, June 2–Sunday, September 10, the St Kilda Road gallery will be home to a wide-ranging exploration of Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn's work — so expansive, in fact, that it's the most-comprehensive Rembrandt exhibition to display Down Under in 25 years. On loan from the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC, 1659's Self-Portrait is one of the star attractions, and one of around 80 images of himself he's thought to have made. Created when the artist was 53 (and three years after he'd declared bankruptcy), it sits alongside ten etched self-portraits. Combined, they let True to Life attendees chart how he saw himself, and conveyed his soul to the world, over three decades. Etchings comprise a significant portion of the NGV's ode to Rembrandt, with more than 100 from its own collection at the heart of the impressive retrospective. In addition to helping to detail his self-perception, they showcase his innovations as a printmaker and also illustrate how widely and deeply he splashed around his artistic talents. If you're heading to a Rembrandt exhibition, you want to see his paintings, of course, an instinct that the showcase capitalises upon. Thanks to pieces borrowed from the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, the Louvre in Paris, the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna and the Teylers Museum in Haarlem as well, the artist's prints are placed in context with his paintings. You'll see how they're connected no matter the subject or theme as True to Life steps through not just his portraits, but also his landscapes, scenes of daily life, depictions of religious motifs and nudes. Among his scenery-focused works, his largest landscape etching The three trees, which dates back to 1643, is a drawcard. From his pieces that hone in on the human form — never idealising them — Diana at the bath, an etching from 1631, is another highlight. Taking its cues from passages from the Gospel of St Matthew, 1648's well-known piece The Hundred Guilder Print is also on display as part of the exhibition's survey of Rembrandt's fascination with faith. His two largest prints similarly fall into the same category: The three crosses from 1653 and Christ presented to the people from 1655. Because the artist transformed them both by making continuous adjustments, True to Life shows them in two different states — early and late side by side. "The NGV is home to the most important collection of works by Rembrandt in the southern hemisphere and this NGV-exclusive exhibition celebrates one of our major strengths: our outstanding print collection. Rembrandt was a master printmaker and his experimentation in the medium reveals his insatiable curiosity and sheer versatility as an artist," said Tony Ellwood AM, the NGV's Director. While taking in all of the above, art lovers will journey through Rembrandt's life from Leiden in the 1620s to his waning years in Amsterdam in the 1660s. On hand to assist: a recreation of his cabinet of curiosities, which featured everything from his own prints and drawings through to musical instruments, weapons, shells and natural objects. Rembrandt's version helped spark his creative impulses, and the NGV has taken its assortment of pieces from its collection, as well as the Melbourne Museum and the State Library of Victoria. Rembrandt — True to Life displays from Friday, June 2–Sunday, September 10 at NGV International, St Kilda Road, Melbourne. Head to the gallery's website for further details and tickets. Images: Installation view of Rembrandt: True to Life on display from 2 June-10 September at NGV International, Melbourne. Photos: Tom Ross.
Located just a stone's throw from Footscray Park and the banks of the Maribyrnong River, this haven of green space offers a slice of tranquility away from the buzz of Melbourne's inner west. Over the past few years, the former quarry has been steadily transformed into a lush public open space complete with picnic areas, rolling green slopes and some top-notch views of the city skyline. But it's perhaps Quarry Park's mountain bike facilities that have earned it the strongest following of late, with a series of bike trails, a dedicated skills park and pump tracks for junior riders all completed in late 2019. A slew of other improvements and additions are also in the works including plans for a Korean War Memorial, which will honour the Australians who served in the Korean War from 1950–53.
Perched just above Thornbury's High Street, this stunning, light-filled yoga studio and wellness space offers an ideal escape from the chaos of the main street below. Upon entering, it's hard not to feel a sense of immediate calm thanks to the space's soothing colour palette and minimalist decor. The space offers different types of yoga for all ability and flexibility levels, including an approachable ten-week course for beginners to begin to understand and connect with their own practice. For more advanced students, teacher training courses are also run here. Aside from yoga, Prana House offers a diverse wellness program that includes counselling, naturopathy, reiki and more. The space also hosts regular events with external practitioners.
Actual rain might be a bit of a drag, but this immersive rainfall-inspired installation is anything but. Random International's famed captivating artwork Rain Room has been a hit since it arrived in Melbourne in 2019, and it's not hard to see why. It's a downright impressive piece of interactive art. Imagine the magical feeling of walking through a 100-square-metre field of continuous rainfall, without getting the slightest bit wet. Rain Room's water droplets are guided by responsive technology, ceasing to fall wherever they sense movement. It's a physical, multi-sensory experience that sets out to explore ways in which technology transforms relationships between humans and nature. Off the back of recent stints at Shanghai's YUZ Foundation, the LACMA in Los Angeles and at the Sharjah Art Foundation, Rain Room has hit Australia as a permanent part of the Jackalope Art Collection, presented in collaboration with the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI). The internationally acclaimed work has made its home in the Jackalope Pavilion, a pop-up purpose-built space on Acland Street designed by March Studio. A ticket will allow you to spend 20 minutes in the Rain Room.
In the world of floral artistry, Kate Hill has earned a reputation as a master of luxury and queen of the special occasion bouquet. So if it's some wow-factor you're seeking, her namesake Southbank studio is the place to start your hunt. Just ask the many celebrities, upscale boutiques and high-end hotels for whom she's created works. Up your gifting game with a signature arrangement or vase-held design, or let the team put together a custom piece crafted around your preferred colours and style. Or hey, why not treat yourself to a sweet-smelling bouquet, orchid or peace lily to brighten up your own pad?
We often need to give ourselves a reason for a day at the zoo. Whether it be some friends from out of town visiting, or a babysitting gig you're unprepared for — it's rare we just allow ourselves the pleasure of eating fairy floss and staring at some monkeys. Now, to lure you in, Melbourne Zoo has announced a series of high-profile musical acts to perform in their beautiful grounds over summer. If you didn't already have a reason to go to the zoo already, you definitely do now. Over a six-week line-up, Melbourne Zoo will play host to a variety of performers including Xavier Rudd, Josh Pyke, Fat Freddy's Drop, Something For Kate, Dick Diver, Dan Kelly and Neko Case. With a recurring theme of dreamy summertime tunes, the Twilight Series will be a perfect destination for hot and lazy nights with the option of bringing your own picnic along and chilling out on the lawn. There will also be a number of food trucks and takeaway options to supply those who may be less prepared. Of course, your ticket cost also gets you entry into the zoo's exhibits and you'll have plenty of opportunity to roam wild among the animals. You can do so with a clear conscience too, as all proceeds from the shows go towards the zoo's work to fight wildlife extinction. For a full lineup go to the Melbourne Zoo website, and remember, don't bring any alcohol or glass in your picnic baskets.
To the dismay and disbelief of some (and to the giggles and chuckles of others), the recent Anthony Weiner sex scandal in American politics is producing some very interesting coverage. For instance, today's New York Post headline has created plenty of controversy as it brazenly proclaims 'Obama Beats Weiner'. The headline relates to President Obama's comments about Weiner's resignation, and while many are growing tired of the constant double entendres others are enjoying watching how far the joke can be pushed. The House Majority Leader, John Boehner, made comments earlier today calling for Weiner's resignation. Potential suggestions from Twitter for tomorrow's headline include 'Boehner Hard On Weiner'. While some suggest that this kind of childish joke-making is degrading American politics, it is hard not to laugh when you consider other recent political news. Fox Business host Eric Boilling yesterday remarked "What's with all the hoods in the hizzy?" after President Obama hosted rapper Common and Gabon President Ali Bongo at the White House recently. Boilling later apologised for "getting a little fast and loose with the language" but not for his comments about Obama "chugging 40s". And of course who could forget Sarah Palin, who continues travel around the United States on her One Nation tour, obviously inspired by her Australian political counterpart Pauline Hanson's One Nation party. Let's just hope the entire presidential campaign continues to be this much fun. https://youtube.com/watch?v=0XnLjDaREXs
Sitting pretty on the main stretch of Mornington, Store Fifteen is full of coastal cafe charm. The space itself has a home-spun industrial feel, all polished concrete, reclaimed timber and foliage hung from the ceiling — a setting primed for laidback weekend visits. But it's the natural-leaning menu — full of wholefoods, raw dishes and preservative-free fare — that's designed to really put a spring in your step. Here, you'll find a swag of healthy creations, from thyme-infused mushrooms on toast, matched with house-made cashew cheese and pepita basil pesto, to a sprouted black rice coconut porridge, starring maple toasted coconut chips and caramelised banana. Espresso comes courtesy of Melbourne roasters Dukes, though a hefty collection of alternative lattes might just sway you away from coffee and towards turmeric, matcha or beetroot. Smoothie fan? Store Fifteen's lineup is downright impressive, with blends like the Pumpkin Spice: a mix of roast almond butter with almond milk, pumpkin, maple syrup and dates.
Not content with filling a Tokyo warehouse with some of the most dazzling and immersive art you're likely to feast your eyes on — not to mention play with — art collective teamLab is now turning an old oil tank into a digital waterfall. With the interdisciplinary outfit's Borderless Digital Art Museum open for less than a year and proving one of the Japanese city's hottest tickets, the group is set to bring a collection of eye-popping works to China. Coming to the new Tank Shanghai from March 23 to August 24, teamLab: Universe of Water Particles in the Tank features cascading waterfalls, blooming flowers, rushing waves and scattering cherry blossoms as part of an engaging series of digital, interactive and interacting pieces. There's no such thing as a dull artwork where teamLab is concerned, but the undisputed highlight of its next foray into China is Universe of Water Particles in the Tank, Transcending Boundaries. Spearheaded by art collector Qiao Zhibing, Tank Shanghai's 60,000-square-metre space is built out of five empty oil tanks, so there's nowhere better to project streams of falling water. teamLab's piece will take over one tank, running over the interior surface. And, when folks stand on the waterfall's floor or walk up to its wall of digital water, it'll react to their presence, with the flow changing direction just like it would if you were standing underneath the real thing. Living up to the 'transcending boundaries' part of its name, Universe of Water Particles in the Tank will also interact with other works. When its trickles hit floral piece Flowers and People, Cannot be Controlled but Live Together, Transcending Boundaries - A Whole Year per Hour, which represents 12 months' worth of blossoming and wilting as its moniker suggests, the digital stream will cause petals to scatter. Both pieces are reminiscent of works also on display in Tokyo, but that doesn't make them any less glorious. The same applies to Black Waves: Lost, Immersed and Reborn, which projects one continuous wave across multiple walls. teamLab: Universe of Water Particles in the Tank runs from March 23 to August 24 at Tank Shanghai,2380 Longteng Avenue, Xuhui District, Shanghai, China, with tickets currently on sale from 199 renminbi. Images: teamLab.
A tasty new go-to for the hungry and time poor has arrived on Elizabeth Street. Chunky Town is a hole-in-the-wall serving up a cheesy Korean street food favourite inspired by carnivals and childhood memories. The 'Chunky' (as it's called) is a little like the Australian dagwood dog, but cheesier. It's made using a crisp batter and hunks of gooey cheese — and comes in seven different flavours. In Korea, it's served at one of the 200 Chung Chun stores around the country (the chain opened its OG store in Seoul's Gangnam district). In Australia, you'll find it at Chunky Town in Melbourne's CBD. How it works is simple: you pick your Chunky and your cheese filling, sprinkle it with sugar and load it with sauce at the counter. The bestsellers are the original Sausage Chunky with cheddar ($5.50) and the upgraded OG with stretchy mozzarella ($6.50). Other flavours include the Potato Chunky, the Noodle Chunky (which is dipped in crushed noodles), the black Squid Ink Chunky (all $7.50) and a vegetarian version with no sausage and lots of cheese. We suggest adding a side of crunchy waffle fries to your order for a salty hit, too. To drink, pick up one of the Korean bubble teas. The Thai-style milk tea and mango green tea are our top picks, but there are 21 different flavours to choose from. In the future, it's rumoured that Korean doughnuts (called Chunky Balls) will be added to the menu, too. The doughnuts are drizzled with maple syrup, condensed milk and seeds. It was Adam Ong, one of the four owners — alongside Adam Wang, Charles Park and Derek Lo — who wanted to bring the Korean treat to the Australian market. And, according to the group, there are big plans to expand across the city and country. So, keep an eye on this space for future openings. Images: Julia Sansone.
Art lovers are absolutely spoiled in Melbourne — on any given day, you can track down works by some of the best and most prolific artists in the world. But if your culture vulture tastes are at odds with your bank account, swinging the entry fee to a museum or gallery can be a little tricky. There's no need to fret, dear art fiends. All you have to do is pop on your comfiest pair of shoes and take a wander through the inner city, because Melbourne is filled with vibrant murals which you can see for free. Sure, you're not going to see anything by Picasso or Matisse, but if you look hard enough — or know where you're going — you'll come across works by some pretty famous street artists. Here are four works by well-known and celebrated street artists that you should get your eyes on. Some of these works have been around forever — and you've probably walked past them dozens of times without realising their significance. [caption id="attachment_748707" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Dean Sunshine[/caption] FIN DAC – WAJAHBARU Where? Brunswick Inspired by the Aesthetic Movement of the 19th-century, London-based Fin DAC takes the genre, based upon the idea of 'art for art's sake', and gives it a modern twist. Recognised for his depictions of elegantly dressed women wearing eye masks with bursts of colour, the Cork-born artist unites contemporary stencil art with stunning portraits. On his vast tour of Australia earlier this year, Fin DAC unveiled this Melbourne artwork, Wajahbaru, which can be found tucked away in Brunswick's Sunshine Lane. The attention-grabbing work features local industrial designer Heidi Chaloupka dressed in beadwork from Indonesia's Toraja region, which is symbolic of her family's heritage. [caption id="attachment_748708" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Dean Sunshine[/caption] KEITH HARING – JOHNSTONE STREET MURAL Where? Collingwood Melbourne's streets are undoubtedly alive with some wonderful examples of street and public art, but few are as beloved as Keith Haring's mural on Johnstone Street in Collingwood. In 1984, the world-renowned artist made his way to Melbourne to speak at the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, but couldn't resist producing some of his iconic figures on the blank canvas adorning the old Collingwood Technical College. Haring has influenced countless street and traditional artists that followed in his footsteps, so this long-standing Johnstone Street mural is an indisputable Melbourne treasure. PHLEGM – CHAPEL STREET MURAL Where? Prahran Phlegm's wondrous black and white works of odd creatures have brought him worldwide acclaim. The basis of his works is comic-based, so his highly detailed illustrative style is distinguished against traditionally graffiti-based street artists. You can find these intricate hand-drawn murals in urban landscapes all around the world — including your own backyard. Following two years of planning, the UK-based artist made his way to Chapel Street for the 2017 Provocare Festival of the Arts, where he created this towering four-storey robot on the northern wall of the historic Love and Lewis building. [caption id="attachment_748709" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Dean Sunshine[/caption] SMUG – WOOD STREET MURAL Where? Fitzroy When it comes to photorealistic graffiti, you won't find many artists more talented than Smug. Depicting a slightly crazed self-portrait positioned alongside an array of cute characters (that look a little worse for wear), this mural in the backstreets of Fitzroy pops a little more than most. You can find another of Smug's massive murals — a portrait of his own grandparents— near the corner of Lonsdale and Spencer Streets, gracing the huge wall of a former power station. Impressively, Smug's murals are always produced freehand; he paints using only aerosol cans for days or even weeks. Top Image: Smug – Wood Street via Dean Sunshine.
The family-friendly suburb of Bentleigh East isn't exactly booming in the breakfast business, but Astroluxe might be changing that. The odd kid out on dilapidated Chesterville Road, Astroluxe is delivering unpretentiously refined dishes for an area in dire need of fresh faces. The interior is by design firm Robson Rak Architects, who — usually well-known for high-end residential work —have made this their first foray into hospitality. As such, Astroluxe features sleek, custom-designed steel lights that sit above the cafe's open kitchen, vintage woollen couches and upmarket marble benchtops, and bring the space together nicely. It's warm, yet polished, and there are plans for an outdoor garden in time for spring. The menu itself reflects what co-owners Adam Nicholl and Stu and Tanya Billard enjoy eating. With a strong focus on local produce (meat and vegetables are sourced from the butcher and grocer on the same shopping strip) the offering incorporates a refreshingly mismatched range of flavours. American, Asian and Middle Eastern-inspired dishes all make cheeky appearances throughout. The menu rotates seasonally, but at the moment highlights include a vibrant Asian soba noodle salad with sliced pan-fried flank steak, shredded cabbage, sprouts, basil, roasted macadamia nuts and a hint of chilli and lime ($19.50). For early morning sweet tooths, fluffy buttermilk pancakes with caramelised banana, French crème patisserie, raspberry, toasted coconut, pistachios, dark chocolate and honey cardamom syrup should more than satisfy ($18). Coffee is by Five Senses and tea comes from Larsen & Thompson. Smoothies, plump milkshakes and a range of organic drinks are also on offer. Plus, Cobb Lane doughnuts on weekends means everyone will be kept astro-nomically happy.
At this stage in the pandemic, we're no longer spending all of our time at home. That doesn't mean we can't treat ourselves to impressive desserts when we are just staying in and kicking back on the couch, though. After serving up plenty of tasty specials during 2020's lockdowns, Gelato Messina is still tempting everyone's tastebuds with its limited-release sweet treats — and, if you've enjoyed its big Iced VoVo, Viennetta-style, choc-hazelnut and cremino tubs in the past, you're going to want to try its new basque cheesecake version. Initially, the gelato chain made a small batch of this dessert hybrid for Sydney's Firedoor; however, now it's scooping a heap more into tubs and making it available across the east coast. The catch: like all of its specials, it'll only be on offer for a short period. Wondering what exactly Messina's basque cheesecake tub entails? It combines basque cheesecake gelato, naturally, then tops it with a slice of toasted basque cheesecake. In other words, it's the ideal option for when you can't pick between gelato and cheesecake — a choice that no one ever wants to make. The latest release in Messina's new 'Hot Tub' series, the basque cheesecake tub can only be ordered online at 9am on Monday, May 17, with a one-litre tub setting you back $30. You can then go into your chosen Messina store — other than The Star — to pick up your tub between Friday, May 21–Sunday, May 23. Gelato Messina's basque cheesecake tubs will be available to order at 9am on Monday, May 17, for pick up between Friday, May 21–Sunday, May 23 — keep an eye on the Messina website for further details.
On the fairly unassuming Hallenstein Street in picturesque Queenstown sits one of the most luxurious new offerings in New Zealand's hotel portfolio, offering a personalised accommodation experience worth travelling for. The Carlin is the brainchild of US-born hotelier Kevin Carlin, a property developer with a special connection to the region after buying up large swaths of land here decades ago in a move he says people claimed was "nuts". But unlike other hotels in the area, his newest venture and namesake does not sit on the crowded shores of Lake Wakatipu. Instead, it's found quietly up Queenstown Hill and therefore boasts jaw-dropping views of the lake and CBD. For those after a luxurious hotel experience, The Carlin is fairly unmatched. If you're looking for a typical five-star experience look elsewhere – this hotel modelled on the luxury hotels of Europe offers a range of spacious suites with 88 to 500 square metres of indoor and outdoor living space, and boasts a ''beyond five-star' experience. The "beyond five-star" features include (but are not limited to) private butlers, private chefs, private massage, a separate private entrance and access to a private jet and luxury vehicles — you can take a Bentley for a quick shopping sojourn into town and save your legs from the hike back up the hill afterwards. While most hotel balconies are an afterthought, that's not the case here – instead, your outdoor space has been maximised to make the most of those views. You'll find a spa, a fireplace and a full-sized dining table for entertaining. Want to host a dinner party? Your suite has a fully stocked kitchen — although you'll probably want to leave cooking preparations to your private chef. Our experience: Our arrival at the Carlin for a recent stay was marked by an extensive tour by the man himself. While clutching our welcome cocktails (dirty gin martini for me, spaced rum old-fashioned for my partner) we were taken around the various one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom suits – including a peek at the penthouse. More resembling a full-scale apartment, The Carlin Skyhome is the largest penthouse suite in Australasia. It has seven bedrooms spanning three floors, and a separate quiet entrance "for when Tom Cruise comes to stay", according to Carlin. If you want to book in hoping to spot celebs or royalty you'll probably be out of luck as discretion is the name of the game here. The hotel only accommodates a maximum of 50 guests at one time and can even be booked out by single groups – Carlin told us he has a family taking over the whole hotel for a week in December. Once you've settled into your suite and noticed the unique touches luxuriously appointed in gold and marble, showered with the Molten Brown toiletries and tried out the wildly exciting modes on the toilet (turn it into a heated bidet if you're so inclined), it's time to head downstairs for dinner. Oro (meaning 'gold' in Italian and Spanish) is the hotel's single restaurant, and hospitality brains will notice the clever separate hot and cold pass system designed by Kevin Carlin himself. This eatery offers a further elevated experience and one not reserved solely for hotel guests – you'll spot a mix of Queenstown locals taking the opportunity for a special occasion meal. The menu has a local lean, making the most of suppliers from the region. Standouts include the grilled ora king salmon, South Island venison, line-caught seafood and lamb rack from Royalburn Station — a name that will stand out for fans of Nadia Lim's television series Nadia's Farm. We opted for steaks, and upon learning my partner was a scotch man, the wonderfully attentive front of house brought out various examples on offer on a board so he could choose the most appealing cut. It's that attention to detail that most stands out at the Carlin — nothing is a bother. And while you're drinking, dining and chatting you'll realise the tinkling piano playing while you dine isn't a Spotify playlist, but the work of the hotel owner himself, taking a quick 10 minutes to entertain guests with a virtuoso performance in the corner. Attention to detail, indeed.
In today's cafe game, serving a stock standard latte with a slice of undercooked banana bread just isn't going to cut it. Things have to be done properly, thoroughly, and with extra, indefinable zest; a cafe should be a 'creative space', a coffee an 'experience'. And while cafe kingpins are scattered high and low around Melbourne, there's one humble jack-of-all-trades that sits comfortably off Brunswick's Sydney Road: Acustico. Snuggled on Union Street, so close to the train tracks you'll feel like the fat controller while snacking on breaky, Acustico is a cafe well worth veering off the main strip for. It's a sustainable environment in both its direction and delivery, designed by Mike Sharp and Jessica In from The Summer Office. The interior has been constructed using recycled materials, and its intimate, yet open plan setting encourages conversation as well as shared eating. This is a real bonus given the coffee here is extra mean, and the food is so good you'll want to be showing it off to those around you. Whether or not there's something on the main menu that takes your fancy, be sure to scope out the specials. Their lemon ricotta pancakes with caramel, hazelnuts and strawberries ($15) are light, fluffy, and will have you pleased and perplexed at how one simple ingredient can strangely enhance a century-old breakfast staple. Otherwise, the chorizo baked eggs ($16) are a solid go-to, and their range of toasties are addictively perfect — you can safely order one and know it's going to be hearty and absolutely crisp, cheese-laden, and cholesterol-spiking. Second to a cafe, Acustico may as well sell itself as an artistic space. Its tables are wide and sturdy, the wifi is strong, and the music and conversation of other patrons never tends to be intrusive. Almost always at Acustico, there's a cafe-goer hard at work, headphones in, typing away on a Mac — usually sharing a table with someone doing the same. The space is just as welcoming for families; the menu and wait staff are super accommodating to tots, and there's even a little playroom out back. If you can overlook all the lights and allure of Sydney Road, Acustico is a safe and satisfying detour for a coffee and a meal. Whether you're with friends, family, flying solo or just catching up on some work, let Acustico show you what fine coffee, food and eco-ethos is all about.
When the conversation turns to acquired tastes, the oyster is a natural example; our first oyster is typically offered up by an uncle-type (who probably introduced you to beer a few years later) getting his Christmas kicks from watching the next generation squirm, and then we hit 25 and suddenly we're knocking them back. But whether mum's reassurance that you'll like them you're older came true or not, many of us are still in the dark when it comes to this most lauded of mollusks. So we sat down with The Morrison Bar and Oyster Room's chef Sean Connolly to take the guesswork out of oyster culture. Oyster basics Let's start with some introductions: there are three different types of oysters grown in Australia: Sydney rock (or estuary), Pacific and Angasi. The last one, a rare goliath, is an Australian native that is attracting a lot of attention for its fleshy consistency — so oyster beginners should work up to this one. It can also command some pretty steep price tags, but according to Sean that isn't putting off the punters. "When you have Angasis [on the menu] they fly out the door." These days most restaurants will at least offer you a choice between Sydney rock or Pacific oysters. Now the simplest way to think of these two is tastier versus creamier. That doesn’t quite cover the full spectrum of differences between them, but it’s a nice launching pad for developing your pallet. If you can, split your order between the two—it gives you an edge of sophistication, and will help you learn the differences. Do you count as an oyster lover if you like toppings? No. Just kidding, the oyster community welcomes one and all, but maybe whisper your Kilpatrick (that's with cheese, Worcester sauce and bacon) requests. In Sean's mind it is simply about respecting the oyster, although he does seem pretty perturbed by oyster mornay (basically grilled cheese oysters). "That is the worst — haven't cooked one in years." What should you be embarrassed to order? Oyster lovers are undoubtedly a touch purist, but Sean insists "to a certain degree it's all good". If you are not quite ready to talk about the taste of the sea and how fresh shucking is paramount to good eating, just have a bit of fun. Order some of them deep-fried, use the juice for a dirty martini or pop an oyster in your shot glass. But remember, never the mornay. For the beer lovers amongst you, it could be time to head over to Young Henry’s Brewery in Newtown and check out their limited release oyster stout — Mother Shucka. The do's and don'ts of oyster shucking Nothing says host with the most like some freshly shucked oysters, so if you are ready to take home entertaining to the next level, buy yourself an oyster knife and get ready for a few cuts along the way. First off, make sure you have a good base (read bread board) and do not attempt doing this in the air, in your hand, or anywhere else that momentarily seems logical. Make sure that the curved side is on the bottom, and hold it down with a tea towel-clad hand. Now, edge your oyster knife into the side of the oyster, then prize it open by running the knife along the join. Once you have traced the entire edge simply flex the knife sideways to move the shells apart. "There is sort of like a 75 percent chance that you will hurt yourself," warns Sean. "Even I hurt myself shucking oysters at Christmas." I would probably add buy some protective gloves and download a how-to-guide. How to eat an oyster Discounting my childhood trauma theory, Sean doesn't see there being any real reason why people wouldn't like oysters — unless you're not eating them properly. So, here is his final word on how to eat an oyster: swirl it around your mouth, chew it twice and swallow. It sounds like something Lauren Bacall would purr in To Have and Have Not ("You know how to eat an oyster, don't you Steve?"), so it is a handy piece of trivia for your next dinner date, and it means you are getting all of the flavour you can out of your oyster. What to wash them down with There is good reason that people are known to enjoy the finer things in life, not the finer thing; well-paired delicacies have a habit of making evenings memorable and this brings us to the wine match. Take your time with the wine list, you do not want to lose all that freshly shucked deliciousness in the depths of a juicy shiraz. When matching wine to oysters some key words are minerality, acidity and flinty. I wouldn’t look further than something white and from Burgundy, but Sean points to a good savvy-b or dry riesling. Remember, if this is all new to you, grabbing the attention of your sommelier is always a good move and chucking in the word 'flinty' is sure to earn you bonus points. The best places in Melbourne to enjoy oysters Just recently, over 18,000 oysters were consumed within a few hours at the Albert Park Hotel's Oyster Frenzy. You may have your doubts about the shells from the sea, but you can’t deny the numbers — Melburnians love to knock back an oyster. Classic seafood venues such as the Albert Park Hotel's Oyster Bar and Grill and The Atlantic go through thousands of them every week, but many smaller venues are shucking oysters around the city, such as Fitzroy’s Panama Dining Room and the newly opened Saint Crispin. Or, why not head down to Oyster Bar at South Melbourne Market and slurp them straight from the sea — standing up, sitting down, or as you order another round. Do they really have an aphrodisiac effect? The standard response to this question is a smirk and some nod to personal experience — the more erudite might even referenceCasanova’s breakfast — but a little research shows this theory has real legs. First of all the high zinc content keeps all of us generally strong and virile, plus it staves off herpes (pop that in the good-to-know basket). But, the science really heats up when you start talking amino acids. These little critters actually house two pretty unusual ones (D-aspartic acid and N-methyl-D-aspartate) that have been shown to boost testosterone in men and women's oestrogen levels. Who knew? The Italians were right all along. Do I need to know where they come from? Waters are to oysters as soil is to wine, so regions can say a lot about what an oyster is going to look and taste like before it gets to the table. It's all a little too involved for this article, but oyster masterclasses are held regularly all around Sydney if you are keen to learn more. But we can give you a few cheats: names to look out for include Coffin Bay (SA), Clyde River (NSW) and St Helens (TAS). Don’t be alarmed if your favourite restaurant starts offering you oysters from different regions; like most produce, the best oyster-producing region depends on the season. Ultimately, as Sean notes, it is about having "trust in the chef, trust in the establishment and then the proof is in the eating". How do Aussie oyster lovers rate internationally? We've had Europe lording it over us for years with their tails of natural sophistication, but Sean disagrees. "It's part of our culture," he insists in a broad Yorkshire accent — stopping to note that after 20 years in the country he has earned the right to say 'our'. It's marginally more than my years of life so I don’t fight him. Plus, he has a point; we have got some of the cleanest waters in the world for growing the things. “When I opened Astra [his first restaurant], about 17 years ago," Sean goes on, "we were shucking oysters to order and the clientele were sending them back because they were salty … But now everyone recognises a good oyster and everyone is look for that taste of the sea."
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, there was hardly a shortage of streaming platforms and online viewing services, all offering up plenty of movies for avid cinephiles to watch from the comfort of their couches. Since cinemas closed a few months back to help stop the spread of to the coronavirus, even more digital options have hit the market, including FanForce TV, Quibi and the Amazon Prime Video Store — as well as the latest newcomer, At Home. A video-on-demand service, At Home has a major point of difference: it's run by the team behind four Australian cinemas. Offering up recent and retro pay-per-view films for online rental, it's the new venture from the folks at Sydney's Ritz and Melbourne's Lido, Classic and Cameo cinemas. Launching today, Thursday, May 14, At Home's range spans movies from well-known distributors like Madman, Umbrella, Roadshow and StudioCanal — as well films that mightn't have received much attention in Australia otherwise, such as classic genre movies from sources like the American Genre Film Archive. New titles are added weekly, with the lineup curated by the teams from the four cinemas. Prices start at $4.99, with movies available for viewing over a 48-hour window. That means that film buffs can currently check out the straight-to-streaming movies like Hugo Weaving-starring Aussie drama Hearts and Bones and sci-fi mind-bender Vivarium; see recent cinema releases such as Parasite, For Sama, Color Out of Space and Portrait of a Lady on Fire; and look back at flicks from the past few years, including God's Own Country, Aquarius and Shoplifters. Themed strands focus on female filmmakers, LGBTQI+ cinema, and Jewish and Israeli films, as well as Australian flicks, music and fashion documentaries, and weird and wonderful genre fare. If the idea of cinemas jumping into the streaming game sounds a little out of character, that's understandable. As the battle between the big-screen experience and streaming at home has heated up in recent few years, cinemas and online platforms haven't always gotten along. Case in point: the number of Australian picture palaces that have been reluctant to screen films such as Roma, The Irishman, Marriage Story, Brittany Runs a Marathon and True History of the Kelly Gang, which all released in theatres just a few weeks before they made their way to streaming services such as Netflix, Stan and Amazon Prime Video. That makes At Home an interesting move, with Ritz, Lido, Classic and Cameo owner Eddie Tamir seeing the VOD service as complementing watching a movie in cinemas — when they reopen. "We are thrilled that our new At Home platform allows us to present great films of the recent and distant past alongside our cinema experience," he said in a statement. "Our At Home platform allows us to place the new releases in our cinemas in context of what came before them." For more information about At Home, visit the Ritz, Lido, Classic and Cameo At Home sites.
Photobombing is an art attempted by many, yet perfected by few. Ruining somebody's photo in the most humorous way possible takes impeccable timing and swift movement. Now, photobombing experts will have their work cut out for them as software company Scalado look set to release their new Remove technology. As the name suggests, Remove allows you to erase unwanted objects from those precious picture moments. When a photo is taken, Remove actually takes a lightning-quick succession of snaps, and detects moving objects within the lens. It then gives you the option to simply remove any moving objects, leaving the regular background unscathed. If you're a little vain and a strict perfectionist, Remove will be right up your alley. Not only will you be able to erase immature friends who sneak into your photos, but you also won't have to worry about flying birds, speeding cars or annoying pedestrians. Taking the perfect picture for your bedside table has never been so easy. No word on when it will be available to the public, but we're guessing that plenty of teenage girls will be eager for this one. Check out the video below and see how this technology works. https://youtube.com/watch?v=flNomXIIWr4 [Via Mashable]
The days are getting longer and hotter (mostly), meaning that spritz season has well and truly arrived in Melbourne. And to celebrate the start of summer, Pier Farm in Williamstown will be slinging $15 spritzes from 4–6pm, starting on Friday, December 1. Thankfully, the deal will run daily all the way up until the end of summer, so you've got heaps of time to get down to the marina-side restaurant for summery sips. And you don't have to stick to Aperol. The team has also jumped on the limoncello and Hugo spritz craze, with the latter made with St-Germain elderflower liqueur. In the spirit of spritzes, the Pier Farm team has curated a selection of Italian aperitivo snacks, from burrata to fresh oysters and melon wrapped in prosciutto. For those after something more substantial, the waterside restaurant also serves up woodfired pizzas, pasta and a heap of seafood — the perfect accompaniments for a summer spritz sesh.
St Kilda Festival, Melbourne's long-running celebration of live music, is officially returning this February for its 42nd edition. Scheduled to run from Saturday, February 18 to Sunday, February 19 at the iconic St Kilda Foreshore and surrounds, the jam-packed summer event will see a lineup of big-name acts and emerging talents alike playing across multiple stages. And, as always, it's free, and welcomes visitors of all ages. Saturday go-ers are invited to join First Peoples First, a celebration of First Nations music, culture and community, with performances from the likes of Christine Anu, Jem Cassar-Daley, Lady Lash, Dean Brady, Jungaji and more performing at O'Donnell Gardens and the St Kilda foreshore main stage. The Archie Roach Foundation has curated a good chunk of the lineup — and that same evening, the late Uncle Archie will be further honoured with a musical tribute featuring a range of special guests. [caption id="attachment_885113" align="alignnone" width="1920"] www.nathandoranphotography.com[/caption] On Sunday — also known as Big Festival Sunday — Aussie musical legends Hoodoo Gurus and electro-pop act Confidence Man will take the main stage, so be sure to get in early to nab prime position. Genesis Owusu, Yothu Yindi, Hatchie, Alice Ivy, Mick Harvey, Ashwarya, Phoebe Go, THNDO, Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers, JK-47, Jen Cloherand and more will also be showcasing their talents throughout the day. Both days of the festival will also see plenty of family entertainment, sports demonstrations, market stalls, local community group activations and street performers popping up around St Kilda to add to the festive vibe. For more information and to check out the full lineup, head to the St Kilda Festival website.
Thanks to Keith Courtney, Melburnians have already been able to walk through a huge house of mirrors in the past few years. And, with his help, moseying through an eerie and endless labyrinth of doors became a reality, too. The homegrown installation artist isn't done setting up massive mazes just yet, however — and his latest is designed to resemble a huge, human-sized kaleidoscope. Called Kaleidoscope, fittingly, this installation isn't small. It's a 700-square-metre expanse of glass, steel, mirrors and moving prisms that features a labyrinth of corridors decked out in a revolving showcase of lights and colours. Set up for this year's Rising Festival, but sticking around until Sunday, July 24, it's currently shimmering and luring Melburnians in the Art Centre Melbourne forecourt. Both House of Mirrors and 1000 Doors have also graced the same space — and, like them both, this one has been crafted to be immersive as possible. Expect to have your senses disoriented while you're strolling through, including both motion and gravity. Expect to see plenty of shifting illusions among the ever-changing array of light and colour as well, and to be drawn in by the installation's soundscape in the process. "No one will have the same experience in Kaleidoscope – this is a multi-sensory and at times physical experience where the visitor is completely submerged in sound and light – a vortex of serenity to somewhere or nowhere," explains Courtney. In bringing the massive piece to life, the artist has teamed up with visual artist Ash Keating, composer Tamil Rogeon and artist Samantha Slicer, plus a team of highly skilled technicians. After its Melbourne stint — which is open daily from 12–10pm, with tickets costing $15 — Kaleidoscope will head to Brisbane, then take an international tour. House of Mirrors premiered at MONA's Dark Mofo in 2016, then headed to 12 cities across the globe, while 1000 Doors debuted at the Melbourne International Arts Festival, then went on a 10-city tour of Australia and New Zealand. Find Kaleidoscope at the Art Centre Melbourne Forecourt, 100 St Kilda Road, Melbourne, until Sunday, July 24 — open daily from 12–10pm.
This summer has been all about rooftop bars. Bomba this, Loop Roof that — it's as though no one's noticed the apocalyptic heat and general exhaustion of the entire city. On the fifth day of a 40 degree heatwave, a roof is the last place you want to be. Perched at the top of a concrete jungle with some saccharine monstrosity melting in a martini glass? I'll be at my local, under the trees, with a cold pint pressed to my forehead, thanks. So, to save you the trouble, here's our round-up of the best beer gardens — the quiet achievers of a summer wisely spent in the suburbs. The Brunswick Green This large and welcoming watering hole is a mainstay of Sydney Road's already impressive pub circuit. Inside, the place is decked out in a loving and knick-knacky fashion that will make you feel snug and homely during winter, and outside, the expansive paved beergarden provides a relaxed oasis during summer's hotter days. Drop in for a cheeky pint during the day, or catch up with a group of friends under the coloured fairy lights at night. Note: bring your pocket money, it's unfortunately a cash only bar. 313 Sydney Rd, Brunswick, (03) 9381 2413 The Boatbuilders Yard We're not 100 percent sure if this is considered a beergarden, but it sure is pretty. Located right on the harbour at South Wharf, this relatively new bar is the place to go if you like your drinks served with a view. Designed by Six Degrees architects — the same people behind Auction Rooms and De Clieu — the venue operates with a functional simplicity that's refreshing to stumble upon on a summer's day. And, owned by the same people behind Riverland, the venue has some decent bar know-how. Aside from the extensive wine list, punters can look forward to pitchers of summer cocktails including a Spiced Rum Cooler, Aperol Spritz and the classic Pimms No. 1. 23 South Wharf Promenade, South Wharf, (03) 9686 5088, theboatbuildersyard.com The Standard Even Fitzroy locals would be forgiven for not knowing this place exists. Strategically tucked away on a one-way road off Brunswick Street, The Standard seems to punch well above its weight. Outside, an outdated Carlton Draught sign hangs from the awnings coated in flecking old paint, but inside lies a labyrinthine and tree-shrouded beergarden that's up there with the best of 'em. Similar to The Brunswick Green, the bar offers a comforting retro vibe with accumulated clutter covering the walls and faithful old bar staff that seem equal parts dependable and scary. But outside is where you'll be spending most of your time — a breezy little oasis that's well worth the search. (NB: If this were an article about parmas I would rave a little about their offering, but for now just trust me — it's good.) 293 Fitzroy Street, Fitzroy, (03) 9419 4793, thestandardhotel.com.au Village Melbourne Located on the former grounds of the much-loved Belgian Beer Cafe, Village Melbourne is a platinum player in the local beergarden circuit that has already made a huge name for itself anew. Located just off St Kilda Road, this sprawling and versatile venue was the home of last year's extremely popular Trailer Park, and will operate this summer as a stand-alone bar and brasserie with a largely American-inspired menu. Hello chilli dogs! 557 St Kilda Rd, Melbourne, (03) 9529 2899, villagemelbourne.com.au The Great Northern Carlton is known for its poky little places. There are hundreds of small pizza joints with very large men spruiking them, there are great cafes down tight laneways — but people don't talk much about its big sprawling pubs. The Great Northern is a pub for pub-lovers — the ones who like to watch the footy and really know their beers. Boasting 22 taps with a regular rotation of craft beers including Mountain Goat, 2 Brothers, Stone & Wood, and a selection from the ever-present Brooklyn Brewery, this is definitely the place to go for a pint. 644 Rathdowne Street, Carlton North, (03) 9380 9569, gnh.net.au College Lawn Hotel Nestled in the terrace-lined backstreets of Prahran, this southside pub and bistro is a dependable local that no doubt gives its neighbours some grief over the weekend. In addition to a main bar, dining area, public bar, and bottle shop, the large astroturf-lined beergarden can house hundreds on hot summer days, and conveniently has an outside bar to cater for it. While it can be hard to get a table during their infamous Sunday Sessions, during the week this place is a relaxed little hideaway from the hustle and bustle of Chapel Street and offers great specials on pub grub including a $12 locals' night on Mondays. 36 Greville Street, Prahran, (03) 9810 0074, collegelawnhotel.com.au Northcote Social Club As you know, this place is an institution of the Melbourne music scene. But what you may not remember from those groggy head-banging nights, is that it also has a pretty decent beergarden out back. With big timber tables and some of the strangest assortments of people you'll ever see, NSC is not only a great venue to catch a cheap gig (seriously, most things still sit at around the $15 mark), but also the perfect meet-up for parmas and pints. It may not have a degustation menu or a long list of craft beers, but hey, maybe you can sneak into a show for free. 301 High Street, Northcote, (03) 9489 3917, northcotesocialclub.com Windsor Castle The brightest offering of the bunch, Windsor Castle, comes from the same school of thought as the Carlton Club — everything looks better with taxidermy. Sporting a kooky exterior coat of pink and lime-green paint, and a kookier interior of antlers, tusks and peacocks, this southern gem is really trying to make you take notice. That's not a bad thing though — you should. Come summertime, you'll want nothing more than to abscond to its suburban wilderness and bask in the light of its neon pink elephants. 89 Albert Street, Prahran, (03) 9525 0239, windsorcastle.com.au The Retreat This aptly-named Brunswick local is a step back in time — a time where pubs had character, live music was free, and every chair was vinyl. Still standing after 150 years, The Retreat is the first point of call for the Brunswick faithful, and a worthwhile trip for outsiders. The menu is a strange (but totally great) mixture of regular pub grub and mexican food, the drinks flow freely till 1am, and the beergarden, with its beautiful overhanging tree and constant buzz of laughter and conversation, might just be the best in Melbourne. 280 Sydney Road, Brunswick, (03) 9380 4090, retreathotelbrunswick.com.au Disclaimer: the author of this piece is currently employed pulling pints at the College Lawn Hotel. She was not influenced to include the venue by her managers, but rather by how nice it is to spend her breaks in its big beergarden over summer.
The art world's love affair with Andy Warhol has lasted far longer than 15 minutes. Australia's fondness for the iconic artist definitely hasn't been fleeting, either. In 2023 alone, not one, not two, but three different exhibitions Down Under have showcased or are about to celebrate his work; however, only the just-announced Instant Warhol is solely dedicated to his skills with a polaroid camera. On the Gold Coast in autumn, Pop Masters highlighted Warhol's pieces alongside works by Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring. In Adelaide around the same period, Andy Warhol & Photography: A Social Media honed in on the artist as a shutterbug. Obviously, Instant Warhol has the same idea as the latter, but it will only be filled with polaroid portraits — 59 of them. [caption id="attachment_906816" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Andy Warhol self-portrait in drag, 1980. © Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. Artists Rights Society [ARS]/Copyright Agency, 2023.[/caption] This time, Warhol's work is headed to Ballarat, displaying from Saturday, August 26–Sunday, October 22 at the Art Gallery of Ballarat during the Ballarat International Foto Biennale. The regional Victorian photography festival is never short on things to see, but Instant Warhol is quite the drawcard for the biannual event. The original snaps that Warhol himself took — when he wasn't painting Campbell's soup cans and images of Marilyn Monroe, of course — will be on display. Even if you haven't seen them before, some should be familiar. One of the reasons that the artist captured polaroids, other than loving them, was to turn some of the famous faces he snapped into his screen prints. [caption id="attachment_906817" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Top image: Andy Warhol, Sylvester Stallone, 1980. © Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. Artists Rights Society [ARS]/Copyright Agency, 2023.[/caption] Drawn from the thousands of photographs he took with the instant cameras between 1958–87, this selection of pictures will also feature images of Warhol himself. They're all coming to Australia thanks to The Brant Foundation, with founder Peter M Brant one of Warhol's early patrons, then a friend, and also the the producer of Warhol's films L'Amour and Bad. "Warhol had an unparalleled ability to chronicle the visual culture of his time. The Brant Foundation is delighted to share our collection of portraits including celebrities such as Mick Jagger, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Liza Minnelli for the Australian public to discover and enjoy," said Allison Brant, The Brant Foundation's current director. 'These original polaroids captured a moment in time and went on to identify our culture, our art form, our view of celebrity. Warhol was the inventor of the 'superstar' and it's fascinating to take a moment to absorb these tiny snaps within our fast and furious scrolling world," added Vanessa Gerrans, CEO of Ballarat International Foto Biennale. [caption id="attachment_906823" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Platon, Cate Blanchett, November 2004.[/caption] As revealed earlier in May, 2023's event will also feature People Power — Platon, which'll span 120-plus portraits by photographer Platon, including images of everyone from Cate Blanchett to the snapper himself. Also already announced: a showcase of Yvonne Todd and Erik Johansson's work, with Todd's The Stephanie Collection making its Australian premiere, and a suite of Johansson's surreal landscapes and optical illusions world premiering in Ballarat. [caption id="attachment_906824" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Erik Johansson, Above All, C-Type, 180 x 135cm.[/caption] Instant Warhol will be on display at the Art Gallery of Ballarat, 40 Lydiard Street North, Ballarat, during the Ballarat International Foto Biennale from Saturday, August 26–Sunday, October 22, 2023 — head to the festival's website for further details. Top image: Photograph of Andy Warhol taking a polaroid picture while sitting with Jack Ford and Bianca Jagger on the Truman Balcony, U.S. National Archives and Records Administration courtesy Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library via Wikimedia Commons.
There's a line towards the end of Drive-Away Dolls that's so glorious, so hilarious and so descriptive of the film's plot that it feels like Ethan Coen and Tricia Cooke's lesbian road-movie comedy caper could've sprung from it alone. The dialogue in question spans eight words that are best discovered by watching, riffing on a familiar phrase — and it's marvellous. Ethan is no stranger to writing sparklingly witty and sidesplitting banter. His filmography is filled with it and, with his sibling Joel, he has two Oscars for Best Screenplay, winning for Fargo's original script and No Country for Old Men's adaption. The Coen brothers' own O Brother, Where Art Thou?, A Serious Man, True Grit and The Ballad of Buster Scruggs also scored them nominations, as did co-penning the Steven Spielberg-directed Bridge of Spies. Ethan and Tricia — who are not only married, but have past experience working together thanks to the latter's role editing some Coen brothers' movies, starting with The Big Lebowski — didn't base Drive-Away Dolls' narrative on that particularly perfect line. That's not how Ethan pens his scripts, he tells Concrete Playground, whether Joel or Tricia is his co-writer. "We write very much, as me and Joel always wrote, in order — in scene order, not knowing, not outlining, and not knowing where we're going in terms of outline, or certainly not in terms of future lines of dialogue that we want to work in," he explains. "So that came up because the situation warranted at that point." What a situation that Drive-Away Dolls dives into; there might be only one Coen attached, but it's still pure Coens. Two lesbian friends attempt to hightail it away from their everyday Philadelphia lives — one after a fresh breakup; the other unable to relax since her last relationship ended quite a while earlier, and just in general — with Tallahassee, Florida their destination. Margaret Qualley (Poor Things) plays the outgoing, confident, as-casual-as-they-come Jamie, who soon has police officer Sukie (Beanie Feldstein, American Crime Story) for an ex. Geraldine Viswanathan (Cat Person) is the perennially stressed and uptight Marian. Their getaway idea: driving a car that needs taking to their destination anyway, aka the eponymous cheap car-hire service. But their mistakenly allocated vehicle has hidden cargo, which sets a couple of bickering and bumbling goons (Plane's Joey Slotnick and The Blacklist's CJ Wilson) on their trail. There's an anarchic everything-that-can-go-wrong-will air to Jamie and Marian's eventful road trip, and to the antics of the men following their every move (and to the storyline's twists, which bring in characters played by The Last of Us' Pedro Pascal, The Color Purple's Colman Domingo, Oppenheimer's Matt Damon and The Burial's Bill Camp, too). But this isn't the soulful Inside Llewyn Davis; rather, Raising Arizona, Burn After Reading, The Big Lebowski, O Brother, Where Art Thou? but queer, touring lesbian bars and featuring wall dildos is the vibe. "I think the only thing that we wanted, we definitely wanted to make it a fun queer movie. And, we thought about Cynthia Plaster Caster very early on. She was someone we were like 'okay, we're going to work something like that into the plot'," advises Tricia. [caption id="attachment_942716" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Margaret Qualley, Beanie Feldstein, Tricia Cooke, Geraldine Viswanathan and Ethan Coen. Photo by Marion Curtis / StarPix for Focus Features.[/caption] How do Coen and Cooke really tie all of those elements together, including the artist — "not famous now, kind of forgotten," Ethan notes — known for making plaster casts of celebrity penises? ("Later on, she also cast women's breasts," stresses Tricia; "she wasn't a one-trick pony," adds Ethan.) Uproariously, in their gleeful version of a B-movie, with a 60s- and 70s-inspired spirit, and while crafting a period piece. The movie's action is set in the 90s, where today's ever-present technology can't simplify the scenario. It feels like a throwback several times over, then, and like writer/director/producer Coen and writer/editor/producer Cooke are having an absolute ball making it. Harking back three decades is a nod to Drive-Away Dolls' history as well, with the film initially conceived and scripted back then under the name Drive-Away Dykes. With that moniker, it was indeed a case of coming up with the title, adoring it, then basing the whole movie around it. With the film that's resulted all these years later in cinemas Down Under from Thursday, February 22, we chatted with its two guiding forces about finally bringing it to the screen — including while Ethan and Joel take a break from their collaborations (Ethan and Tricia teamed up to make 2022 documentary Jerry Lee Lewis: Trouble in Mind first, while Joel helmed 2021's The Tragedy of Macbeth solo). Also covered: how Drive-Away Dolls' narrative came about, digging the script back up, casting Qualley and Australia's own Viswanathan, and loving making comedy capers. On Coming Up with Drive-Away Dolls' Story — and Its Original Title Tricia: "Well, we did come up with Drive-Away Dykes — a friend of mine and I, not Ethan and I. And I went home and I mentioned it to Ethan, and he was like 'that's a great name. We should write that movie'. So it just started out because drive-away — I don't know if you have them in Australia, but here they're companies where you can go and get a car, and you can drive it, and you drop it off wherever the owner of the car wants it driven. So we thought that was an interesting beginning of a road movie. And then, ending up with the wrong car — or what might possibly be in this car that they weren't anticipating. So we started from there." Ethan: "Trish came up with the title Drive-Away Dykes in the Pravda bar in New York, down on Lafayette." Tricia: "Yeah, which sadly is no longer there." Ethan: "I hear they're putting up a plaque there, like Fat Black Pussycat, where Bob Dylan wrote 'Blowin' in the Wind' — but it's where you conceived Drive-Away Dykes." Tricia: "Excellent. I can't wait." On How the Film Finally Come to Fruition Decades After Initially Writing the Script Ethan: "Actually, it was just because me and Trish worked on a documentary together — we made a documentary movie about Jerry Lee Lewis — and we just enjoyed working together. Not that we hadn't before. Trish would cut some of mine and Joel's movies. But we enjoyed working together, and we thought 'hey, we've got this old script that we didn't manage to get made, so why don't we look at that again, and rewrite it again, and make the movie?'." Tricia: "We both had time. Ethan had kind of decided to take a break, and our kids are grown now, and after the Jerry Lee Lewis movie it was kind of like 'okay, well, what we're going to do next? Well, we have this script here, so let's see if we can interest anyone'." On How Drive-Away Dolls' Screenplay Evolved Since the Original Version in the 90s Ethan: "It was not the case that we worked on it over the years. We wrote it and then forgot about it for many years. And when we did come back, we did rewrite it. How is it different? I think it's mainly the main two characters are a little more…" Tricia: "Fleshed out." Ethan: "In the rewrite, the odd couple thing is highlighted. The free spirit versus the uptight woman, that's more pointed in in the rewrite." Tricia: "And we also made it a period movie. When we wrote it initially, it was contemporary and it didn't feel right to keep it contemporary for a couple of reasons. It's a lot easier to find people now with cell phones and the internet, and all of that. And also, all of the lesbian bars and stuff, that was such a big part of my world back then, and that's all changed — not significantly, but it's different now. And so I felt like it wouldn't be a proper representation, and something I didn't know, going to a lot of queer bars in 2022." Ethan: "It's a weird paradox where lesbian birds then were a little more transgressive, or felt at least a little transgressive. And now, now they don't. And there aren't as many, weirdly. I don't know what explains that." On Casting Margaret Qualley and Geraldine Viswanathan as Jamie and Marian Ethan: "They both came in, and when each of them came in, we said 'okay, that's the person'." Tricia: "They went to the top of the list. Geraldine came in very early. We saw her maybe in the first group of people we auditioned. Margaret came in very late. So we kind of had a Marian, we knew we were very high on Geraldine — and had a few other Jamies, but when Margaret came in it was like 'oh, that's Jamie'. She just flopped down in the chair, and she had the spirit that Jamie had. That was a harder part to cast." On Ethan Directing His First Narrative Feature without Joel Ethan: "Weirdly, well, same and different. Weirdly the same because I made it with Tricia — and Trish isn't titularly the co-director, but she is in fact. I mean, we made the movie together. So in that respect, it's kind of familiar. You're just working with another person, and it's all very collegial, and it's the two of you making the movie. So it wasn't different in terms of me working by myself, because I wasn't working by myself. It's different because I'm working with a different person." Tricia: "Joel knows more than I do." On Still Making a Movie That Feels Like a Coen Movie — and Gravitating Towards Comedic Capers Ethan: "It just seems that kind of thing is promising story fodder. You know what I mean? It's what Trish was talking about —a drive-away, you go 'okay, what could make that story go? Okay, there's something in the car they don't know about. And there's bad guys who were after them because they're after the stuff in the car'. You're looking for an engine for the story, something to propel the story — that's a caper." Tricia: "And also, we love just being on the road here in the States. There's such a car culture. So much is out there, there's so much material out there — and it just seems like it could be fun. The scenery is always changing, there's always something of interest out there. So those are good things to play around with story-wise, too." Ethan: "And you get lots of good stuff. The bar at the beginning, the starting point of the trip, and that mirror bar at the end, the end point of the trip — and that's a story." Tricia: "Raising Arizona is definitely, when anyone asks 'what's your favourite Coen brothers movie?', I always say Raising Arizona. Probably because I didn't work on it, but also it's just so much fun to watch them do wacky things — Goodman, and…" Tricia, to Ethan: "Oh, there's another!" Ethan: "Goodman and Bill Forsythe." Tricia: "We're trying to think of all of the dumb men in cars that have been in Ethan's movies." Drive-Away Dolls released in Australian and New Zealand cinemas on Thursday, February 22. Read our review. Images: Wilson Webb / Working Title / Focus Features.
If you’re the forgetful type and your keys often go rogue then this new technology may be the solution for you. KeyMe is a cloud-based key management platform where you can now store your keys digitally so you no longer need a physical key in order to make a copy. KeyMe’s newly launched free mobile app which scans a copy of your key and generates a set of instructions that you can give to any locksmith to create a new key from scratch instead of bringing in a physical key to make the copy, very handy when you’ve misplaced the original. KeyMe can even mail you a key within two to three weeks if you’re not in a rush. The app also allows you to share your digital keys and create digital key chains to share with flatmates or overnight guests, but be wary of you who trust with your digital keys, once shared you can’t revoke them. Currently only available in the USA, this technology will be a saving grace for the almost 90 million forgetful folks who get locked out of their homes each year. Now just makes sure you don’t lose your mobile phone with your keys. [via mashable]
Sometimes, you can fall out of love with your city, get stuck in a monotonous 9-to-5 routine and start to feel a little like you're living in Groundhog Day. The best thing to do is pack your bags and get outta town for a couple of days, maybe more. Sydney is teeming with new places to while away a sunny day, it's the perfect destination if you want to escape the Melbourne weather or hightail it out of Brissie for a long weekend. But you don't want to get stuck visiting the same old tourist traps. To help you out, we've partnered with Qantas and curated sunrise-to-sunset guide for Sydney's hip 'n' happenin' inner-city suburbs, so you won't miss out on a thing. First destination: Coogee. There's more to this chill beachside suburb than a broad sandy beach, our step-by-step itinerary will show you how to pack the most into a day-long Coogee frolic and see all the best sites. From sunrise boxing on the beach to lounging on the rooftop at Coogee Pavilion, outdoor yoga at the Baths to dog-spotting on the foreshore, you can have an active, ocean-drenched, food-filled day all at once down at one of Sydney's most laid-back eastern suburbs beaches. Now, it's time to explore. 6AM: GO BOXING ON THE BEACH Book one of Beachfit and Wellbeing's outdoor boxing classes to kick-start your day with the zest of a lifestyle blogger. Coogee Beach itself gets fairly packed on sunny days, so the best way to enjoy the sand between your toes is to get down there early. Like, sunrise early. Meet at the centre of Coogee Beach, watch the sun come up and smash out a workout before most of Sydney has even registered that it's a new day. Don't forget to snap an Insta pic to make your interstate friends jealous. 7AM: GRAB COFFEE AND BREKKIE AT THE LITTLE KITCHEN Rinse off the sunrise sweat at one of the council's outdoor showers, and walk towards the south end of Coogee to The Little Kitchen. A family-run cafe open from 7am daily, you'll find modern Aussie cafe food in a relaxed, freshly refurbished setting. Pick a seat at one of the long tables inside away from the sun. Double Roasters coffee or cold drip takes care of all your caffeine needs. Keep brekkie simple with a humble order of fruit toast and ricotta, or have the grilled chorizo with roasted peppers, herb salad, hummus and labne for a more substantial feed. Don't forget to bring a book or the paper — anyone who gets up before 8am truly earns the right to savour that morning coffee. 8.30AM: ENJOY SOME PRIME DOG-SPOTTING Scientific fact: dogs are freaking cute. But you can test this hypothesis for yourself if you must. Grab a coffee to go, meander along the boardwalk towards Trenerry Reserve and you'll be in the heartland of peak dog-spotting action. Remember to wear a hat, some sunscreen and sunnies as those Sydney rays can be quite strong if you're not used to them. 9.30AM: PRACTICE YOUR SUN SALUTATION AT OUTDOOR YOGA Keep the active-wear on for a relaxing outdoor yoga session. From the dog park, just wander 100 metres back towards Coogee Beach to the historic Wylie's Baths for a wholesome al fresco Hatha Flow. Run by Wylie's Wellness, classes take place in the shade of a marquee overlooking the sea, so you can enjoy stunning ocean views while you're stretching it out. 12PM: FISH AND CHIPS AT CHISH N FIPS After an active morning, it's time to chill. Lunch from Chish N Fips is a local favourite and must-try for visitors. It's a reasonably priced, no-frills joint reminiscent of grabbing a feed on a camping car trip with the family circa 1998, but, more importantly, it's very tasty. Order calamari and chips to take away and enjoy unparalleled views of Coogee beach, with the sand beneath your toes and salty ocean breeze on your face. 2PM: COOGEE PAVILION Unequivocally the best place to scout a prime view overlooking the whole of Coogee Beach is from the rooftop balcony of Coogee Pavilion. Nab one of their balcony umbrellas, grab a Pavilion Pina Colada ($18) and some grilled haloumi wrapped in vine leaves ($12.50) and wind down overlooking post-card perfect views of the beach. Ah, how's the serenity? 4PM: SNORKELLING AT GORDONS BAY You don't have to travel to the Great Barrier Reef to live out your marine biologist dreams — check out the teeming aquatic life down at Gordons Bay, the coastal inlet just north of Coogee Beach. The word that comes to mind when describing the bay is 'magical'. This might sound like the overzealous puffery of a high-end Maldivian resort guidebook write-up, but when you're floating in the water looking up at the surrounding cliffs, you will second this assessment. Just think, if you were a Sydneysider you could do this every weekend. 6PM: DINNER AT SUGARCANE RESTAURANT Conclude your Coogee adventure with dinner and drinks at Sugarcane. It's a contemporary Asian dining experience with Japanese, Malay, Thai and Chinese cuisines all featuring on the menu. The decor has Balinese Seminyak vibes, but the ocean view from the restaurant's balcony tables is pure Sydney. Now's probably a good time to start planning your next trip back to this magical place. Ready to get away and experience Sydney? Book with Qantas for great fares to Sydney and NSW until 24 September. Terms and conditions apply.
Winter is in the air — literally — at Johnny's Green Room. Following an extensive Med-inspired makeover last year, the Lygon Street rooftop also scored and a mini winter update earlier this month, which saw part of the space encased within glass sliding panels. Bespoke woollen blankets are also handed out for extra cosy vibes, plus the food and drink menus have been rejigged for cold weather hangs. To celebrate its seasonal makeover, the rooftop bar is throwing a Welcome to Winter party on Thursday, June 27. For $40 per person, guests will get to sample roaming woodfire pizzas as well as cocktail tasters from the venue's new drinks menu. Edd Fisher (Wax'O Paradiso) and Misty Nights will also be on the decks throughout the night, setting the mood for a big late-night party. When visiting, you'll likely notice that the rooftop bar's winter update is somewhat inspired by the Italian Alps — but thankfully, not too heavily. You won't find skis mounted on the walls or fake snow falling from the sky — instead, it's mostly seen in the new food and drink offerings. Culinary Director Karen Martini has reworked the menu to reflect what's in season and Matthew Bax has played around with the cocktail menu to make it more winter-friendly. Leaning into the theme, each section of the cocktail menu is even divided into four sections inspired by Italian ski run difficulty levels — verde, blu, roddo and nera. During the party, you'll be sampling sips from each of these sections. Johnny's Green Room is working hard to make sure Melbourne's rooftop season lasts well beyond summer. Images: Arianna Leggiero.
When it's winter in Australia's southern states, Hamilton Island couldn't be more gorgeous. If you like the cold, a midyear trip to Tasmania might be high on your holiday list. Or, perhaps you're dreaming of a Byron Bay getaway, a vacation to Australia's best beach for 2023 on Kangaroo Island, an excuse to head to the outback or a date with the Red Centre. Whichever of the above applies, Qantas has a sale flight to fit during its latest batch of discounted domestic fares. The Australian airline is serving up more than a million one-way flights across a whopping 100-plus routes — covering everywhere from Queensland's tropics to the Apple Isle's cities, and from Perth to Sydney, too, as well as all the other state capitals, the Gold Coast, Coffs Harbour, Mt Gambier, Broken Hill, Kalgoorlie and more. Get ready to explore your own backyard, with discounts around 30-percent below the normal year-round price on each route. The cheapest, as tends to be the case on all flight sales, is the Sydney–Ballina route, which'll get you from the Harbour City to Byron Bay from $99. The Melbourne–Launceston fare also comes in at $99. While the options from there do crack $100, more than 40 routes on offer during the sale boast flights under $150. That includes heading from the Gold Coast to Melbourne, or vice versa, from $135; from Melbourne to Sydney from $139; from Brisbane to Hamilton Island from $149; and from Perth to Sydney from $309. The sale runs until Wednesday, May 3, so you have some time to get a bargain. That said, if fares sell out earlier, you'll miss out. And, inclusions-wise, the sale covers fares with checked baggage, complimentary food and beverages, wifi and seat selection. Qantas' Australia red tail sale runs until Wednesday, May 3 — or until sold out. Feeling inspired to book a getaway? You can now book your next dream holiday through Concrete Playground Trips with deals on flights, stays and experiences at destinations all around the world.
Once, dance and classical weren't music genres that you'd usually find swirling around in the same basket, unless you have a particular bent for the orchestral 'Sandstorm' covers found in the depths of YouTube. Since 2019 in Australia, however, Synthony has been here to prove that the disciplines go hand in hand — and it's returning for another tour in 2024. Initially founded in New Zealand, and now an annual highlight on Australia's gig calendar, the event gets a live orchestra joining forces with a selection of DJs and onstage performers to play the biggest dance tracks of the last 30 years. Think: tunes by Swedish House Mafia, Basement Jaxx, Fatboy Slim, Avicii, Fisher, Faithless, Disclosure, Eric Prydz, Flume, Calvin Harris, Wilkinson and the like, and as you've never heard them before. Wherever Synthony pops up, the venues that it temporarily call home take a few cues from the nightclub scene, with lights, lasers and mapped video all featured in the experience. And, as the orchestra busts out a selection of dance floor bangers note for note, vocalists also do their part — because this isn't just about instrumental versions of your favourite club tunes. The 2024 run first has a date with Sydney, playing Carriageworks for two nights during Vivid — complete with a 29-piece orchestra — before heading to Brisbane's Fortitude Music Hall, the Adelaide Entertainment Centre and Margaret Court Arena in Melbourne in September. After that, RAC Arena in Perth awaits in October. The lineup of talent for Sydney spans the Metropolitan Orchestra conducted by Sarah-Grace Williams, as joined by Ilan Kidron from The Potbelleez, Emily Williams, Cassie McIvor, Greg Gould, Matty O and Mobin Master. Elsewhere, Queensland Symphony Orchestra will play Brisbane, Southern Cross Symphony will pick up instruments in Adelaide, Australian Pops Orchestra is doing the honours in Melbourne and Perth Symphony Orchestra has its hometown covered. Sarah-Grace Williams is still conducting, and will have company from Ilan Kidron from The Potbelleez, Masha Mnjoyan, Emily Williams, Greg Gould, Matty O, Nate Dousand and Mobin Master — plus Example in Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, then Set Mo in Brisbane. Synthony 2024 Australia Tour Dates Friday, June 7–Saturday, June 8 — Carriageworks, Sydney Friday, September 6 — The Fortitude Music Hall, Brisbane Friday, September 13 — Adelaide Entertainment Centre, Adelaide Friday, September 20 — Margaret Court Arena, Melbourne Saturday, October 12 — RAC Arena, Perth Synthony is touring Australia across 2024 — head to the Carriageworks website for tickets and further information for its Sydney gigs; and to the Synthony website for Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Adelaide, with presales from Tuesday, May 28 and general sales from Thursday, May 30.
Ever dreamt about abseiling down a towering city skyscraper? Well, this charity initiative will let you do exactly that. Altitude Shift is taking Melburnians 113-metres into the sky and placing them atop a CBD building, where they'll proceed to scale down the 27-storey skyscraper — all for a good cause, of course. This adrenaline-fuelled abseil event has actually been running for a few years now, so its not new to the theatrics-for-charity trend. This year, it'll take place over two days from March 29–30 at 535 Bourke Street — just a few blocks from the Yarra and next to Doughboys Doughnuts. So who are you barreling down a skyscraper for? Altitude the Shift fundraises for Anglicare Victoria (a Christian non-profit aiming to protect vulnerable Melburnians) to help support children in foster care. The fundraising target is set at $170,000 for 2019. The set up allows two people to abseil at a time, so it's a big incentive to get your bestie on board, too, though it'll be an expensive outing with the $150 per person rego fee. There's also a minimum $850 fundraising goal per individual. Once you register, you'll be directed to create a fundraising page — so you can start encouraging your family, friends, office mates and casual acquaintances to donate. If heights don't terrify you and fundraising is your jam, go ahead and sign up over here. It's limited to 200 entrants, so, if you're keen, you'll need to register soon. Altitude Shift will take place at 535 Bourke Street, Melbourne on Friday March 29 and Saturday, March, 30. To learn more and to register, head over here.
Some of the most wonderful sentences ever written include two glorious words: Nicolas Cage. Usually when the actor's name comes up, it's because he has a new film in the works — or sometimes a TV show — that makes another weird, wild and wonderful addition to an on-screen resume like no other. Already in 2023, he's added his first-ever western to the list. And, he's playing Dracula in Renfield, which might be the only time ever the iconic star has ever sucked. We could keep naming past highlights, such as stepping into his own shoes in 2022's The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent and crooning Elvis songs for David Lynch's Wild at Heart, or we could jump straight into the next instant must-see project that might feature the one and only Cage: The Surfer. Just announced at this year's Cannes Film Festival, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter, this sadly isn't the only Point Break remake that needs to be made. Like that flick, however — the Keanu Reeves-starring 90s original, not the terrible 2015 do-over — The Surfer has an Aussie connection. Cage looks set to play an Australian expat returning home from America and getting in a beach battle with a local gang of wave riders. An Aussie-set surfing thriller starring Cage? Sold. [caption id="attachment_901586" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Moritz Barcelona via Wikimedia Commons[/caption] Cage's titular character makes the trip Down Under after years in the US, only to get humiliated by other surfers in front of his teenage son. Cue a turf war, plus Cage's protagonist refusing to leave the beach. Cue the stakes escalating and the movie's namesake having his sanity tested, too. The film is set to shoot in Australia from September 2023, with director Lorcan Finnegan (Vivarium) helming, working with a script by screenwriter Thomas Martin. There's no word yet who might co-star with Cage, but you'd expect every Australian actor ever to be lining up to be involved. [caption id="attachment_901587" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Guillaume Paumier via Wikimedia Commons[/caption] Fresh from directing The Dry, Blueback and the upcoming Force of Nature: The Dry 2, Robert Connolly is one of The Surfer's producers, boosting its Aussie ties. Given that Cage's character will have been in America for years, that might help the movie get around needing him to bust out an Aussie accent — but who doesn't want to see the man who has proven a comedic genius for the Coen brothers, dabbled with Marvel in two different ways despite never appearing in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, wordlessly fought demonic animatronics, swapped faces with John Travolta, gotten speedy before the Fast and Furious saga existed, taken to the skies with criminals and acted opposite himself in Adaptation give it a try anyway? There's no release date for The Surfer yet, either, or trailer obviously, but checking out Cage's exceptional work in Mandy is always recommended while you're waiting for his next films: The Surfer doesn't yet have a release date — we'll update you when more details are announced. Via The Hollywood Reporter. Top image: Gerald Geronimo via Wikimedia Commons.
The Kooks were back in Sydney last week at the tail end of their Australian tour. We spoke with band member, Hugh Harris, about bringing in the New Year at Falls, cooking spag bol and retracing his roots in his spiritual homeland, Sydney. Hey Hugh, thanks for chatting with me today. So you have just landed in Sydney ready for the gig tonight? Well, we arrived last night but I have family in Sydney so we had dinner plans and then after dinner plans. Hopefully I will have time to have a rest today before the gig. But it is great to be in Sydney. I was down in Tassie for Falls so I saw you guys ring in the New Year! Oh, that's great, yeah, I think that was one of the best gigs we played, in Tasmania. And we managed to get the countdown right which was a bonus. Yeah, I was speaking to Alex Turner [Arctic Monkeys] the other day and he was a bit miffed that the countdown didn't really work out at Falls in Lorne when they were playing for NYE? Yeah, well I think in Tasmania it was OK because we had the big screen so it was pretty hard to mess up. In Lorne, there was no TV screen so it would've been hard for the Arctic Monkeys to count down. Have you played a summer NYE gig before? No, no summer NYE before, not on stage. I always think it is better just to have a party, then there is no pressure on anyone to provide the fun. But we have always wanted to do it and the opportunity came up so now we have. And did you get to see Pnau come on after you guys? Pnau? No. I stuck around for a bit. I had my cousins there from the countryside. My sheep shearing cousins. But it is hard you know when you are working, it is hard to know when the partying starts, but we just partied afterwards. Do you guys like playing festivals as compared to standard gigs? Yeah, I mean I think we are a festival band in a way. And it is a happier vibe. You get to play to people who aren't necessarily fans and that is an exciting prospect, you know, to gather a larger following. And you get that at festivals, everyone's drunk and they don't have a choice but to listen! You've been to Sydney a lot and having family here is there anything you really look forward to doing whilst you are here? Yeah, I have this nostalgia route that I take. We used to come here for Christmas because my grandmother was here. And one Christmas I got a skateboard and I used to take this route around Rushcutters Bay. So I will do that. On your skateboard? No, those days are past! I just walk it now. So I start at Rushcutters and then walk up the hill and go to No Frills [an offshoot of the supermarket chain Franklins that no longer exists] in the Edgecliff Centre and get a cake. It's where I used to buy my holiday cakes. And then I will head down to the Golden Sheaf and try and get a beer. And then a swim at that harbour pool. Redleaf? Yeah, Redleaf. So I will try and do that today. I think perhaps the Sheaf might have changed a bit since you were last there.. Yeah, I've heard that. What happened? Well, it is pretty much an empire now. When did you last go? Well, my Dad was here in the 1970s. Yeah, well it is not the Sheaf of the '70s! And neither of us was around then! You guys have been playing now for 7 years and you were only 18 when The Kooks signed to Virgin – did you always want to be in a band? No, absolutely not. I actually wanted to be in espionage, I always wanted to be a spy. And then second I wanted to be in a band. Well, maybe you could be a spy in your thirties? No, I think that might be too late. You know you have to do all this training, martial arts training; I think the dream is over. And maybe it will be too hard, you know needing to be inconspicuous and all? No, I'll shave my head that will be fine! And what do you guys get up to in your free time whilst you are on tour? Do you get into sightseeing or art galleries or whatever? Yeah, art galleries for sure. You hit the nail on the head. I love art galleries and try and go as much as possible. Modern art galleries. And cooking. I really love cooking, but mostly when I get home. I find it really relaxing and I cook a mean spaghetti bolognaise. Like all good boys! All boys have the staple spag bol! Yeah, but I would like to say that I think mine is better than anyone else's! You know, I leave it for a really long time, even cooking overnight, and it just comes alive. Well, not with bacteria hopefully. And other stuff? I like tennis. My favourite colour is yellow. And… Ok, just one more question. Your new clip for Is it me is particularly nostalgic with the typewriter and the 1960s primary colours – considering your musical influences how do The Kooks feel about nostalgia and looking back at the past? Yeah, we love the past. I love my past. And yeah, we are influenced by a lot of music from the past. But I think when we were young we used to go through our parents' record collections and just sift through, you know. But also I like that things from the past are spun and renewed and regurgitated. It's a blending of the past. Like with our new album, you know it is a bit of a bridge. It is The Kooks staple sound but then there are all these warm synthesisers in there so it blends the past and the present. That's what we do.
When a sentence starts with the words "Nicolas Cage plays", there's no bad way to end it; however, one option is better than all the rest. Cage has given the world quite the range of different characters, including ex cons, con men, heartbroken lumberjacks, a version of Spider-Man, lonely paramedics, kooky dads milking alpacas, John Travolta, Elvis obsessives, himself — the list goes on and on, gloriously — but Cage playing Dracula is a next-level idea. Fans of 1988's Vampire's Kiss, rejoice: this is the part Cage has clearly been working towards for 35 years. All those decades ago, the actor played a man who thought he was a member of the undead, so much so that he ran around the streets shouting "I'm a vampire! I'm a vampire! I'm a vampire!" (as you do). Now, Cage is playing the most famous bloodsucker of them all — although Renfield, which has just dropped its first trailer and hits cinemas in April, actually focuses on Dracula's minion and his toxic relationship with his boss. Giving audiences two Nicks for the price of one, Renfield boasts The Great's Nicholas Hoult as titular character, who is getting unsurprisingly tired of doing his master's bidding. Catering to a vampire's every whim for centuries, even when you're given considerable powers in return, is losing its bite for the literary offsider — who, like the Count himself, does indeed hail from Bram Stoker's iconic horror novel. But ending that relationship isn't going to be easy in Renfield, as this sneak peek makes plain. The film's namesake is already doubting his allegiances to the Dark One and the Lord of Death when he crosses paths with traffic cop Rebecca Quincy (Awkwafina, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) and sparks fly — just as his employer does. Accordingly, in a first glimpse that goes big on camp, Renfield mixes up its horror-comedy by giving its lead a love interest. And, if you're feeling shades of Hugh Grant in Hoult's performance, you're not alone. Filmmaker Chris McKay (The Lego Batman Movie) sits in the director's chair for Renfield, working with a script by Rick and Morty writer Ryan Ridley based on an idea by The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman (an idea straight from everyone's dreams, too). And, joining Cage, Hoult and Awkwafina on-screen is a cast that also spans Ben Schwartz (The Afterparty) and Adrian Martinez (The Guilty). Check out the trailer for Renfield below: Renfield releases in cinemas Down Under on April 13.
Music festivals can happen almost anywhere — or so contends the crew behind Wine Machine, Snow Machine and Dream Machine. Tunes amid the vineyards? Yes please. Dancing in alpine climes between skiing and snowboarding? That's a winter treat in both New Zealand and Japan. Hitting a scenic resort for a huge party soundtracked by big music names? That's on the agenda as well — including in 2024. Dream Machine started in 2022 at a secluded beachside resort in The Whitsundays, after initially planning to go ahead in 2021 but getting waylaid by the pandemic. Then, in 2023, it moved to Nusa Dua in Bali. That's where it's returning next year, complete with a packed roster of talent. The dates: Thursday, May 30–Monday, June 3, 2024. The lineup: it starts with Genesis Owusu, Snakehips and Hayden James leading the charge. They'll be joined by everyone from The Jungle Giants and Kimbra to Poolside and Cosmo's Midnight, plus Cub Sport, Miami Horror, Lazywax and more. So, if you've been longing to hear your favourite tunes while surrounded by your friends and also taking a trip to a beachside resort in Indonesia, this fest has you covered — again. 2024's Dream Machine will take place over a five-day, four-night once more, too, for a party-forward good time. Other activities promised, apart from the music, include a 500-person long-table lunch on the sand and a poolside conga line. If the simple activity of grooving to tunes in tropical surroundings, including by the pool and ocean, isn't enough motivation for you, festivalgoers have ten resorts to choose from among the fest's ticketing packages — at The Grand Hyatt and other spots to slumber that are connected to the main site via a beachside path, such as The Laguna, Kayumanis Villas, Mercure Nusa Dua, Novotel Nusa Dua and The Grand Bali. Keen to treat yo'self to a waterfront stay? You can add that to your itinerary. Enjoying kayaking, paddle boarding, jet skiing and waterside cocktails is usually available as well. Unsurprisingly, this isn't a cheap festival to attend, starting at $799 per person. Accommodation, transfers and festival tickets are all included in the fest packages; however, you do still need to buy flights on top. Folks feeling particularly flush can also upgrade their tickets to gain VIP access, which includes a welcome party, plus VIP areas to catch the tunes that come complete with table service and access to private toilets — and start at $299 per person on top of your ticket. DREAM MACHINE 2024 LINEUP: Argonaut Cosmo's Midnight Cub Sport Dice Genesis Owusu Hayden James Jimi the Kween The Jungle Giants Kimbra Lazywax (DJ set) Leisure Mell Hall Miami Horror (DJ set) Old Mervs Poof Doof Poolside Shouse Snakehips Y.O.G.A Dream Machine 2024 takes place from Thursday, May 30–Monday, June 3, 2024 at Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, with pre-sales from 12pm AEDT on Tuesday, October 31 and general sales from 12pm AEDT on Wednesday, November 1 via the festival's website. Dream Machine images: Danny Clayton / Khan Ong. Feeling inspired to book a getaway? You can now book your next dream holiday through Concrete Playground Trips with deals on flights, stays and experiences at destinations all around the world.
What's creepy, kooky, mysterious and spooky, has been around for 84 years now, and just keeps scampering around screens big and small like a mischievous severed limb? The Addams Family, of course. What's finally in the hands of Tim Burton, aka the director who could easily be one of the altogether-ooky crew's long-lost relatives, and has spent his entire career channelling their gothic aesthetic? Yep, that'd be The Addams Family again. It's time to get a witch's shawl on and a broomstick you can crawl on, because Netflix — and Burton — are gonna pay a call on popular culture's most famous supernatural brood. The show in question: Wednesday, starring Jenna Ortega as the titular figure. Indeed, it's turning out to be quite the year for the actor, especially when it comes to horror, with this new take on The Addams Family following her roles in Scream, Studio 666 and X already in 2022. Wednesday will clearly focus on its namesake, aka the Addams' eldest child, who plenty of teenage girls with long black hair have been compared to for decades. Wednesday is indeed a teen in the new series — a high schooler, in fact. As seen in the just-dropped first trailer for the show, she has been terrorising her way through schools, hopping through eight of them in five years. The sneak peek starts with the plait-wearing figure getting the boot from another, too, with some help from a couple of bags of piranhas, then ending up at Nevermore Academy. Her father Gomez (Luis Guzmán, Hightown) and mother Morticia (Catherine Zeta-Jones, Prodigal Son) met at Nevermore, and think that she'll love it — but clearly Wednesday's storyline isn't going to be that straightforward. While she's there, she'll have a monstrous killing spree to stop, and a supernatural mystery linked to her parents a quarter-century ago to solve. Sleuthing, high school antics and all things Addams Family: that's the spell that Wednesday plans to cast when it arrives this spring Down Under (Netflix hasn't announced an exact release date, but you could put money on it dropping in October for obvious reasons). The trailer looks like Burton is filtering his Frankenweenie, Beetlejuice and Edward Scissorhands vibes through Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children — so, it looks exactly like a Tim Burton-directed version of The Addams Family was always going to. Wednesday treads in huge footsteps, though, given that this isn't the first time that The Addams Family has made the leap from a beloved cartoon in The New Yorker to the screen. The 1960s TV series is a gem of the era, and 1991's live-action film The Addams Family and its 1993 sequel Addams Family Values are two of the best movies of that decade. (The less said about the recent animated flick and its own follow-up, however, the better.) Netflix's eight-part series also stars Isaac Ordonez (A Wrinkle in Time) as Pugsley and George Burcea (Comrade Detective) as Lurch, while Game of Thrones' Gwendoline Christie is also set to pop up. And, although exactly who she'll be playing hasn't been revealed, the 90s Wednesday Addams, aka Yellowjackets' Christina Ricci, is also on the cast list. Check out the first teaser trailer for Wednesday below: Wednesday will start streaming via Netflix sometime in spring Down Under — we'll update you with an exact release date when one is announced. Images: Matthias Clamer / Vlad Cioplea / Netflix © 2022.
You might normally associate the rockstar lifestyle with big boozy nights and sure-fire hangovers, especially when you're talking about a band that actually owns a bar. But Peking Duk are completely bucking that trend with their latest project — the electro duo of Adam Hyde and Reuben Styles have just released their own booze-free brew, dubbed the Fake Magic Lager. Named after one of the ARIA Award-winning band's hit tracks, the new beer has been crafted in collaboration with the experts at First Nations non-alcoholic drinks company Sobah Beverages. "We've been riding the non-alcohol wave for a while now — especially when we're on tour and want to have a few pre-show drinks, without the headache," explained Styles in a statement. It's this lifestyle shift that inspired the pair to team up with Sobah, which has set out to destigmatise the art of socialising sober. Not only has it got some additional healthy connotations thanks to an infusion of lion's mane mushroom, but the limited-edition canned sip will be helping a great cause, with all proceeds going straight to supporting Sobah's work promoting First Nations' arts, culture, language and history. [caption id="attachment_874695" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Peking Duk with Sobah's Dr Clinton Schultz[/caption] If you're keen to try the booze-free beer, you've got just one place to head. The lager will be available exclusively via the new ING Good Finds Market — the banking company's new online store dedicated to social enterprises that are committed to doing good in the world. Think: The Social Outfit, TABOO Period Products, Juluqarly Art Group, Two Good Co, Kua Coffee and stacks more. Profits from all products sold on the site will be funnelled right back into the organisations' various causes and initiatives. It's designed to make it a whole lot easier for Aussies to shop from and support businesses with a conscience. Running across four Saturdays from October 29–November 19, the Good Finds Market will be launching three other exclusive collaboration products over the coming month. That includes a new limited-edition collection by Good Citizens Eyewear featuring all-recycled frames crafted from plastic bottles. Find the Fake Magic Lager exclusively online at the ING Good Finds Market from Saturday, October 29. It'll cost you $19 for a four-pack of tinnies, with a 24-pack coming in at $92.
In The Boys, wins and chaos are rarely far away from each other. Something goes right for its characters — its namesake group fighting corrupt caped crusaders, or vice versa — and then something often goes pear-shaped. Fans of the series are in that situation themselves right now, with season four about to start streaming from Thursday, June 13, 2024, but showrunner Eric Kripke freshly revealing that there's only one more season left after this. The Boys was renewed for season five back in May, before season three hits, but now Supernatural alum Kripke has advised that it'll be a last hurrah. "The Boys season four premiere week is a good time to announce: season five will be the final season! Always my plan, I just had to be cagey till I got the final okay from Vought. Thrilled to bring the story to a gory, epic, moist climax," he tweeted. #TheBoys Season 4 Premiere Week is a good time to announce: Season 5 will be the Final Season! Always my plan, I just had to be cagey till I got the final OK from Vought. Thrilled to bring the story to a gory, epic, moist climax. Watch Season 4 in 2 DAYS, cause the end has begun! pic.twitter.com/3p7Wt4jGA6 — Eric Kripke (@therealKripke) June 11, 2024 Since first making the jump from the page to the screen from Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson's comics series of the same name in 2019, The Boys has told of a version of earth where caped crusaders are real, as are superpowers, and a group called The Seven are placed above all superheroes. But, digging into the dark side of the scenario, not everyone thinks that should be the status quo. The series has always stood out as an antidote to narratives about powerful folks who are supposedly better than most, by both satirising and questioning that very idea. Here, superheroes work for Vought. They're still the main form of entertainment, but they're real, the most-famous celebrities there are and inescapable in daily life. While The Seven are the absolute top talent, most are hardly role models when the public isn't looking. Yes, that has made quite the change from the usual cinematic universes as the Prime Video show has kept notching up the seasons. The Boys has never been afraid to splash OTT violence — gory carnage, too — across its frames along the way, or to parody reality within its superhero tale. The same proved true in 2020's second season and 2022's third, and also in college-set spinoff Gen V, which arrived in 2023 and has been renewed for a second season as well. In the cast: Karl Urban (Thor: Ragnarok), Jack Quaid (Oppenheimer), Antony Starr (Guy Ritchie's The Covenant), Erin Moriarty (Captain Fantastic), Claudia Doumit (Where'd You Go, Bernadette), Chace Crawford (Gossip Girl), Jessie T Usher (Smile), Laz Alonso (Wrath of Man), Tomer Capone (One on One), Karen Fukuhara (Bullet Train), Colby Minifie (I'm Thinking of Ending Things) and Cameron Crovetti (Boy Kills World) — with Jeffrey Dean Morgan (The Walking Dead), Susan Heyward (Hello Tomorrow!) and Valorie Curry (The Lost Symbol) joining for season four. There's obviously no trailer for season five yet, but check out the trailer for The Boys season four below: The fourth season of The Boys starts streaming via Prime Video from Thursday, June 13, 2024. Read our reviews of The Boys season three and Gen V. Season five doesn't yet have a release date — we'll update you when one is announced.
Does Tom Cruise (Top Gun: Maverick) only have one more mission left in him? The title for the eighth Mission: Impossible film might just point in that direction. Viewers won't know until the movie hits cinemas in 2025, but the flick that was initially called Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part Two is now named Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning. Your mission, should you choose to accept it: spending until May wondering if audiences are about to see the last of Ethan Hunt. It was back in 2023 when Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One hit cinemas and left viewers wanting more, by design: when it wrapped up its 163 minutes of espionage antics, everyone already knew that a second part was on its way. Originally, the latter was meant to arrive in June 2024, less than a year after the first film. But amid Hollywood's strikes last year, the film was pushed back almost 12 months. Its release date Down Under: Thursday, May 22, 2025. It was also rumoured at the time that the movie would get a new moniker, so The Final Reckoning isn't a surprise in that regard. But the 'final' part of the title — and a just-dropped trailer that focuses on how every step leads you down a specific path, complete with the tagline "every choice has led to this" — wasn't as expected. "I need you to trust me one last time," Cruise also utters. The film's first teaser trailer traverses everywhere from snow and sky-high heights to under the sea and frozen in ice — and, as always, features plenty of Cruise running. Story details are sparse, however, but of course the film's star is seen hanging off of a plane. Viewers can expect world-hopping intrigue, explosions, chases and fights, though, as regularly occurs when Ethan Hunt and his Impossible Missions Force team return. Also back: a cast including Simon Pegg (The Boys), Ving Rhames (The Wild Robot) and Hayley Atwell (Heartstopper), Vanessa Kirby (Napoleon), Esai Morales (Crescent City), Pom Klementieff (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3), Henry Czerny (Zombie Town), Angela Bassett (9-1-1) and Shea Whigham (Lawmen: Bass Reeves) — and, behind the camera, director Christopher McQuarrie helms again after doing the same on Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation, Mission: Impossible — Fallout and Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One. On-screen, Holt McCallany (The Lincoln Lawyer), Janet McTeer (The Old Man), Nick Offerman (Civil War) and Hannah Waddingham (The Fall Guy) feature as well. Check out the first teaser trailer for Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning below: Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning will release in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, May 22, 2025. Read our review of Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One. Images: Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
Punt Road Wines has established a new outpost in the Yarra Valley, opening a cellar door adjacent to the region's popular Meletos restaurant. The purpose-built venue, set between the vines and orchards, boasts sweeping views of the surrounds and gives day-trippers another reason to head to the Yarra Valley. The new cellar door, centred around a winery barrel hall, will showcase the quality of the vineyards through different immersive experiences. There will be behind-the-scenes winery visits, curated wine flights, and intimate tastings of limited-release and museum wines. The new cellar door will cement the estate, which includes the Meletos restaurant, The Farmhouse accommodation and the Il Massaggio Day Spa, as a must-visit destination in the Yarra Valley, as visitors can experience many of the region's highlights in one convenient location. And with Meletos about to welcome a new head chef, Maxwell Parlas (who knows a thing or two about the area, having spent time in the hatted Tarrawarra Estate kitchen nearby), guests will be welcomed with a fresh approach to dining. This venture honours the legacy of the site, which was once home to pioneering Yarra Valley vineyard, St Hubert's Winery, in its original iteration in the late 1800s. It now returns to its roots, as the Punt Road Wine owners, the Napoleone family, have been growing fruit in the area since 1948. Images: Supplied.
How do you make a huge Charli XCX-headlined festival lineup even bigger? If you're Laneway Festival 2025, you add a piece of Stranger Things to the bill. Before general tickets for next year's events go on sale, organisers have added Joe Keery to the lineup as Djo, who'll be performing live in Australia and New Zealand for the first time ever. When the roster of acts initially dropped, it sparked a question: how much green will be seen at 2025's Laneway Festival given that it's bringing Brat summer Down Under? Now, here's another: how glorious will Keery's hair be when the 'End of the Beginning' talent takes to the stage? [caption id="attachment_728611" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Netflix[/caption] Laneway has also announced another change, with the Sydney event moving locations. Instead of taking place at Sydney Showground, the fest's Harbour City stop is settling in at Centennial Park. For company when the event kicks off in Auckland on Thursday, February 6, the hits Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, Charlie XCX and Djo will be joined by Beabadoobee, Clairo, Barry Can't Swim and Remi Wolf. Also on the list: BICEP doing their CHROMA AV DJ set, Olivia Dean, Eyedress and Skegss — and STÜM, RONA, Hamdi, Joey Valence & Brae, 2hollis, Fcukers, Ninajirachi, Julie, Girl and Girl, and more. [caption id="attachment_975321" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Harley Weir[/caption] The event started by Danny Rogers and Jerome Borazio in the mid-00s is playing Western Springs in Auckland, then hopping over the ditch to Brisbane Showgrounds, the aforementioned Centennial Park in Sydney, Melbourne's Flemington Park, Bonython Park in Adelaide and Wellington Square in Perth. Laneway joins the list of festivals locking in their comebacks after a tough year of cancellations across the live music scene, alongside Golden Plains, Bluesfest (for the last time), Wildlands, Good Things, Lost Paradise, Beyond The Valley and Meredith. Laneway Festival 2025 Lineup Charli XCX Beabadoobee Clairo Barry Can't Swim BICEP present CHROMA (AV DJ set) Djo Remi Wolf Olivia Dean Eyedress Skegss STÜM RONA Hamdi Joey Valence & Brae 2hollis Fcukers Ninajirachi Julie Girl and Girl + Triple J unearthed winners Laneway Festival 2025 Dates and Venues Thursday, February 6 – Western Springs, Auckland / Tāmaki Makaurau Saturday, February 8 — Brisbane Showgrounds, Brisbane / Turrbal Targun Sunday, February 9 — Centennial Park, Sydney / Burramattagal Land & Wangal Land Friday, February 14 — Flemington Park, Melbourne / Wurundjeri Biik Saturday, February 15 — Bonython Park, Adelaide / Kaurna Yerta Sunday, February 16 — Wellington Square, Perth / Whadjuk Boodjar St Jerome's Laneway Festival is touring Australia and New Zealand in February 2025. Head to the festival's website for further details, and to get tickets in general sales from 10am local time on Wednesday, October 16, 2024. Top Djo image: Guido Gazzilli. Laneway images: Charlie Hardy / Daniel Boud / Maclay Heriot / Cedric Tang.
Luck, be a lady tonight: when Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour's famed floating stage returns for 2025, Guys and Dolls will be sweeping audiences off to 50s-era Manhattan from the city's — and the country's — most-stunning performance venue. As one production does each year, the hit five-time Tony-winning musical will unleash its showgirls and gangsters, as well as its incredibly catchy tunes, against a helluva backdrop. Guys and Dolls will play the unique waterfront opera venue at Mrs Macquaries Point from Friday, March 21–Sunday, April 20, following in the footsteps of West Side Story in 2024, Madama Butterfly in 2023, The Phantom of the Opera in 2022 and La Traviata in 2021 — to name just a few shows that've gotten the Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour treatment over the years. This time, expect a new version of a musical that first premiered on Broadway in 1950, then on West End in 1953, and has enjoyed many a revival in the seven decades since. [caption id="attachment_968000" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour 2016 — Turandot, Hamilton Lund.[/caption] The story, as also conveyed in the 1955 Marlon Brando- and Frank Sinatra-starring film — which was nominated for four Oscars — follows Sky Masterson as he endeavours to win big, then crosses paths with missionary Sister Sarah Brown. Also weaved into the narrative: the tale of Nathan and Adelaide, with the former also immersed in gambling and the latter his fiancé. Tunes such as 'Luck Be a Lady', also 'Sit Down You're Rockin' the Boat', 'Adelaide's Lament' and 'I've Never Been in Love Before' will echo across the harbour in the latest take on Guys and Dolls, as directed by Opera Australia's Artistic Director Jo Davies. "Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour is so magical, just the walk through the venue to reach your seat creates such a sense of anticipation. I'm thrilled to be bringing a beloved musical like Guys and Dolls, with its wild ensemble dance numbers and brilliantly sharp comedy, to this incredible stage," said Davies. [caption id="attachment_968002" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour 2021 — La Traviata, Hamilton Lund.[/caption] Helping make the season even more of a spectacle is Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour veteran set designer Brian Thomson, who also demonstrated his talents on La Traviata, Carmen and West Side Story. As always, also included in this Guys and Dolls experience is not just the show on the overwater stage, but also fireworks each evening, dazzling Sydney skyline views and hitting up pop-up dining spots that are constructed onsite each year. [caption id="attachment_968003" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour 2022 — The Phantom of the Opera, Hamilton Lund.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_968006" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour 2024 — West Side Story, Richard Milnes, Alamy Stock Photo.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_968004" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour 2019 — West Side Story, Hamilton Lund.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_968001" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour 2017 — Carmen, Hamilton Lund.[/caption] Guys and Dolls at Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour will run from Friday, March 21–Sunday, April 20, 2025 — with tickets via Opera Australia subscription packages available and general tickets on offer from Tuesday, August 13, 2024. Top image: Opera Australia's Performance of West Side Story on Sydney Harbour 2019, Hamilton Lund.
