Overview
Dinner and a show: a classic formula for a night out in the big city for a reason. You get your fix of culture, have your horizons broadened and get your stomach filled in one after-hours excursion.
If you're keen to fill your 2024 calendar with this kind of action, start with a subscription to Griffin Theatre Company's 2024 Season. Next year might be Griffin's biggest year yet, with a facelift slated for its iconic SBW Stables Theatre to increase capacity and accessibility and allow Griffin to keep doing what it does best — showcasing exciting and innovative Australian voices — for decades to come. Just like your loo paper or wine subscription, Griffin's will get you a bunch of perks, including up to 20% off ticket prices.
Now the cultural side of your calendar is sorted, let's focus on the food. We've devised dinner and show duos based on Griffin's exciting 2024 lineup. Think of it like a wine pairing — the restaurant experience highlights the finer points of unparalleled storytelling and vice versa.
'THE LEWIS TRILOGY' — THE OLD FITZROY HOTEL
With The Lewis Trilogy, you can experience a trifecta of plays by esteemed dramatist Louis Nowra. The pieces follow the story of protagonist Lewis through his coming-of-age as a teenager in Melbourne (Summer of the Aliens) to his post-university stint directing a production of Così fan tutte in a mental hospital (Così) and, finally, his middle-age spinning yarns in a historic pub (This Much is True). You can see the plays as individual performances over three weeknights or, on Saturdays and Sundays, you can take in the whole trilogy in a day, with the same cast featuring throughout.
If you opt for the weekend marathon, there's a break for dinner after Così, and what better place to head for a feed than the pub that inspired the final act — The Old Fitzroy in Woolloomooloo? It's a 150-year-old pub with a touch of the glamour of theatreland, including portraits of playwrights adorning the walls. The hearty bistro menu comes courtesy of James MacDonald, who's worked in Michelin-starred restaurants throughout Europe. You'll know you'll be heading back to Griffin satisfied before finishing this spell-binding series of performances.
'SWIM' — BUSH SYDNEY
The first work to be performed away from the Stables while it undergoes redevelopment is Mununjali poet Ellen van Neerven's stage debut, swim. Since most people live relatively close to the coast in Australia, swimming is part of our national identity. Van Neerven's story focuses on the municipal pool rather than the ocean, but it's about more than just water — it's a tale of strength, gender identity and family. swim is being performed at Carriageworks throughout its July run, meaning you're in pole position for the best food Redfern offers.
You can't go wrong with Bush, the restaurant that opened in 2019 with its focus on promoting native produce and using invasive species in its cuisine. Both swim and Bush sensitively consider the environment around us, and Bush's menu featuring saltbush, Illawarra plum and Warrigal greens is an excellent accompaniment to the play's powerful message.
'FLAT EARTHERS: THE MUSICAL' — BAR PLANET
Just the title alone is enough to make you want to go and see Flat Earthers: The Musical, right? If you still need some convincing, this story is about two women who meet online and fall in love. Everything is going as well as can be until it's revealed they don't have the same beliefs about, well, what shape the world is. Cue pandemonium as pop bangers soundtrack the couple's descent into a conspiracy theory rabbit hole as they try to find what connects them rather than divides them. A chaotic, queer spectacular that's as iconic as it is tongue-in-cheek.
And speaking of tongue-in-cheek, go and hit up Bar Planet afterwards (assuming you're Team Globe Earth rather than Team Flat Earth). Here, you can discuss what you've just seen and heard in an environment brimming with cosmic décor and friendly faces. Bar Planet might not do its own food — it has a partnership with Turkish restaurant Saray down the road — but the martinis are genuinely out of this world.
'JAILBABY' — TWO GOOD CO CAFE
Back by public demand, Suzie Miller's Jailbaby returns to the Stables in January for a limited run. A thematic follow-up to the enormously successful Prima Facie, Jailbaby shines a light on the criminal justice system in an unflinching portrayal of one young man's harrowing experience in prison. Andrea James directs Lucia Mastrantone, Anthony Taufa and Anthony Yangoyan in a play described as "Miller's writing at its most potent."
This experience shows the audience what can happen when society fails vulnerable individuals, so a meal earlier in the day at Two Good Co Cafe in Yirranma Place is a good fit. Two Good Co's mission is to help the women who need it most by providing employment, safe spaces and community initiatives. The Yirranma Place cafe focuses on seasonal produce and local suppliers and has partnerships with social enterprises such as The Bread & Butter Project, T Totaler and Kua Coffee. There are also plenty of gifts and products to purchase, so you can do even more good while you feel good and eat well.
'GOLDEN BLOOD' — HARRY'S SINGAPORE CHLLI CRAB
Despite featuring only two performers, Merlynn Tong's Golden Blood is broad and ambitious in scope. Tong tells the story of a recently bereaved brother and sister battling against the odds, living in poverty among the high-rollers of the Singapore CBD, and their entanglements with the criminal underworld. Golden Blood premiered at the SBW Stables Theatre in 2022, and its 2024 run is taking place at Sydney Theatre Company.
After immersing yourself in the neon jungle of everyday Singaporean life, a meal at Harry's Singapore Chilli Crab will round the evening off perfectly. An institution for over four decades, Harry's boasts a menu that is like a love letter to the Singaporean staple, with crab cooked every way you can think of, as well as a glut of other seafood options.
Griffin Theatre Company's 2024 Season begins on Thursday, January 4 and runs until Saturday, November 9. For more information and to start your subscription, visit the website.