Those familiar with Visual Arts Process Diaries and bodies of work (in the arty sense) will already be clued up on ARTEXPRESS (and hopefully appearing in it). For everyone else, it’s the cream of the crop in terms of Higher School Certificate Visual Art. Only 42 artworks (out of 9500 students) across all media are picked for the exhibition from last year's HSC. Yep, that's a lot of sorting. Exhibiting the works now means that the students have had time to party at schoolies and get to start their year checking out their artworks on the walls of an art gallery. Not a bad start. It’s been happening every year for the last 30 years, and it's one of those exhibitions that can make you feel, well, just a little bit lazy. Running alongside this is also Express Yourself 2013, held at the Manly Art Gallery & Museum (8 February to 10 March), which is showcasing some of the northern beaches' students artwork. (It's also a part of Art Month.) Image: Birds of a Feather by Lilli Stromland, SCEGGS Darlinghurst.
What's in a name? The work of theatre company subtlenuance is full of subtle nuances, but it's their bold strokes that have earned them high standing in the Sydney indie scene. Not only do they produce solely new works, they've stretched the medium through the wine-tasting/theatre hit Blind Tasting, the innovatively developed Political Hearts of Children and now Rocket Man, a smorgasbord of self-referentiality Joss Whedon would be in awe of. This title, too, is one not to accept on surface value. Neil (Daniel Hunter) is an astronaut — or so he's told the woman he hooked up with last night, Veronica (Sylvia Keays). Rockets soar. They also explode. When the new lovers wake up in the morning, he's keen to prolong their playful encounter, and she is too — though even more than that, she wants to get to her morning appointment, an important audition with the Sydney Theatre Company. With increasing persistence, he starts ragging on her for her choice of career. It's an odd move to make on a woman you like, but as becomes clear, Neil has bigger issues than just the minimalistic vs literal staging debate. Dispersing the tension between Neil and Veronica is her housemate, Claudia (Alyssan Russell), not shy of barging into a room, and Claudia's boyfriend, Justin (Stephen Wilkinson), an easygoing guy sheltering one piece of vital information. The way playwright and director Paul Gilchrist manages the tension and spark between the four characters is masterful and fun to watch. No one will love Rocket Man more than the theatre crowd. Some of the best jokes rely on industry knowledge, as do some of the heaviest questions. (At one point, character Veronica actually references another subtlenuance production that actor Sylvia is in. Record!) If Gilchrist's goal, however, is to hold the moral fundamentals of theatre up to the light, he doesn't quite succeed, because it's impossible to side with the volatile Neil. There's a solid wall of ad hominem only the fittest logician can cross. Rocket Man is actually at its most successful as a delicate character dramedy, which is what separates it from last year's serving of sizzling theatre talk, I Want to Sleep with Tom Stoppard. Its characters are whole, affectionately shaded and genuine in a way that outshines the irony. Performances are sensational. The whole thing is, contrary to Neil's binary critique of indie theatre, neither "underdeveloped nor overwritten". (Though I'm only begrudgingly accepting that the central mystery to my eyes — how does Neil know so much about an art form he detests — wasn't answered. I accept it because I believe, from the context, that Gilchrist does know.) One final kudos must go to designer Rachel Scane; subtlenuance have gone for a very literal staging in creating Veronica's messy bedroom. Styling something to look so unstyled is a triumph.
If you've ever held a snow globe in both hands, shaken hard, and wished yourself into the midst of the tiny snowflakes that float back down, you're in for a treat this season at Thredbo. Smirnoff is celebrating two new creations, Smirnoff Honey and Smirnoff Coconut, with one final massive dance party beneath the shelter of an enormous snow dome. Featuring the likes of WHAT SO NOT (DJ set), Sampology (AV show), Sufur (Rufus DJs), SOSUEME DJs and Purple Sneaker DJs, Smirnoff will be turning up the heat on one more sub-zero night on Saturday, 31 August with live snow graffiti, light projections, ice sculptures, glow-in-the-dark bubbles and a host of other late-night surprises. And the best part of all? Entry is as free as you'll be feeling on the slopes the next day skiing the 70cm of fresh snow that has fallen in the past 7 days. So kick off your snow boots, grab a honey and coconut cocktail, and transport yourself into the dome. Drink responsibly. This event is for individuals 18 years and over in age only. https://youtube.com/watch?v=kNdnGlF6YEY
Hola, amigos! It's that time again: The Hola Mexico Film Festival hits Sydney next month at the Chauvel Cinema. But this year's festival comes with a twist. Included in its program will be the Hola Sol Festival Cantina, a pop-up bar that will transport you to the heart and soul of Central America. Who doesn't love an excuse to don a novelty moustache and/or sombrero, or have a reason to drink tequila? Sydney's newest drink spot is sure to have people from all over releasing their inner Mexican. And with this year's festival program bigger and better than ever, Sydneysiders are sure to work up a thirst. In one explosive week, the bar will feature live music from the likes of Gang of Brothers, Baerfrens and Spanish duo Kallidad, art displays, free workshops and festival talks. Have your face intricately painted (think Day of the Dead style) on opening and closing night, check out the retro poster exhibition on the 'Golden Age of Mexican Cinema' or join in a Mexican-themed craft workshop — a chance to make your own floral headpiece or hand-painted cactus. Whether you're there to see a film or just feel like a sneaky Sol and lime before you hit the town, Sol Cantina will be a fusion of filmic passion, Mexican culture and all-round good times. Sol Festival Cantina kicks off on Wednesday, 27 November, and will be open everyday for the film festival week, from 6pm to 11pm weekdays and from 2pm to 11pm over the weekend. And with anticipation for the pop-up quickly rising, there is already talk of taking the Festival Cantina to other cities, nationwide.
Ah, the rock star lifestyle. Who hasn't daydreamed of snorting blow off the nude torso of a nubile groupie, smashing an electric guitar over a close friend's head, and crowdsurfing away into the sunset? If you dig these fantasies but perhaps aren't emotionally insecure enough to live them out literally, why not taste some of the music world's glamour at the Rolling Stone Pop Up Bar? Coming to Darlinghurst for a generous three-week period, the Rolling Stone Live Lodge will create an experience of the legendary magazine in bar form. The good times will flow as the space buzzes with a carefully curated lineup of genuine talent, from the established to the up-and-coming. Open seven nights a week and offering you the chance to hear hot acts before anyone else gets to, it could just be the hottest ticket in town. The VIP Readers' Opening Night features Boy & Bear and the Preatures, while Artists to Watch highlights rising outfits like Pluto Jonze, Glass Towers, Thelma Plum and Melody Pool (how's that for a set of names?). Entry is free, with some events requiring online registration. Here's the full lineup: Wed Aug 21: Official opening night for VIP readers Thurs Aug 22: Franz Ferdinand Pre-Release Listening Party Fri Aug 23: Guest DJs Sat Aug 24: Guest DJs Sun Aug 25: Music Trivia Presented By Sonos Mon Aug 26: Art Battles Grand Final Tues Aug 27: Artists To Watch – Glass Towers, Melody Pool Wed Aug 28: Live Band, The Delta Riggs Thurs Aug 29: Paul Dempsey’s Shotgun Karaoke Fri Aug 30: Guest DJs Sat Aug 31: Guest DJs Sun Sept 1: Music Trivia Presented By Sonos Mon Sept 2: Artists To Watch – Pluto Jonze, Thelma Plum Tues Sept 3: ‘Spring Breakers’ Screening and Live Q&A with director Harmony Korinne Wed Sept 4: Tonight Alive, acoustic album launch – 2 shows (6pm and 8pm) Thurs Sept 5: Hip-Hop Superstars, Pez, Seth Sentry and Dialectrix Fri Sept 6: Grouplove Pre-Release Listening Party, Guest DJs Sat Sept 7: Guest DJS Sun Sept 8: Music Trivia Presented By Sonos Mon Sept 9: ‘The Place Beyond the Pines’ Screening Tues Sept 10: Closing Night Artist TBA
Art plus bar. This almost universal gallery opening deal is a pretty tasty mix already. But the MCA adds extras to this time-honoured tradition with its now SMAC-winning series ARTBAR. They’re evenings of strange and interesting things at play among the art, recurring monthly and curated by a rotating cast of local artists. This month, Maria Fernanda Cardoso asks everyone to embrace her theme of 'Sex Everywhere', art style. You'll have a chance to undress a flower, respond to mating calls, 3D print reproductive systems and view every permutation of recorded animal sex.
I've been dreaming of this moment for years, but I don't know that I ever truly believed it would happen. But one of the most-beloved hip hop ensembles of all time are reuniting to return to Australia six years after their breakup. With four MCs and two DJs (including the wonderful, world-famous Cut Chemist), the ensemble is incredibly versatile, and their chemistry and the speed of their overlapping wordplay gives the impression of one single, unified organism rather than a series of individuals. Combining incredible lyricism with huge party tunes (like 'What's Golden', 'Quality Control' and 'Concrete Schoolyard'), there ain't no party like a J5 party. https://youtube.com/watch?v=XsZKrctSDaw
Deep in the woods of an Argentinian forest, Pedro (Viggo Mortensen) leads a simple life. He lives on his own in a cabin, tends to his bees with local girl Rosa (Sofia Gala) and is involved in less legitimate activities with childhood friend Adrian (Daniel Fanego) and the latter's slow-witted godson Ruben (Javier Godino). But when he begins coughing up blood, he knows he is quickly succumbing to cancer and he decides to make a rare trek into the city to see his brother. Meanwhile, in the city, his identical twin brother Agustin, a paediatrician, leads a comfortable but unhappy life and feels only numbness when his wife tells him they can adopt a baby. When the scruffy, chain-smoking Pedro visits unexpectedly and offers him a cash reward for treatment, Agustin seizes a chance to take his sibling's life and kills him, leaving his body to fake his death, enabling him to return to the cabin in Pedro's place. Agustin soon realises his brother's life was no idyllic backwater breeze, however, as he has to feign his sibling's ailments while piecing together his estranged brother's life and figuring out how to extract himself from the kidnapping scheme Pedro got himself involved with. The bees which make their way into his unfamiliar beekeeping suit turn out to be the least of his problems as he inherits a vendetta with the owners of a local general store, further isolating himself from the remote community. He also has to navigate an uneasy relationship the gun-toting, bible-quoting Adrian and convince Rosa that he hasn't been acting strange since he returned from the city. Everybody Has a Plan is a ponderously paced though richly atmospheric affair, its picturesque setting all broody swamps, hazy sunsets and fields speckled with ghostly trees. But a strong sense of place isn't matched by the story, which is thin and difficult to ever really care about. Similarly, the romance with Rosa feels underdone. The main reason to see this, a debut picture from Argentinian Ana Piterbarg, is Mortensen, who turns in not one but two intense and convincing performances, in Spanish no less. Mortensen remains a great screen presence, but he needs a better avenue for his considerable talents. https://youtube.com/watch?v=cJ8W01suq-c
Ah, an endless summer. Forever soaking up the sun, ruling from atop your sandcastle and lounging by the refreshing waves of the ocean, fruit-inspired cocktail in hand. What a wonderful dream — and now reality. Amidst a cacophony of festival cancellations this year, the news of a brand new festival emerging in the Shire should be music to everyones ears and have you ready to farewell 2013 with fond memories. Endless Summer touts itself as a "three-day celebration of art, culture, and most importantly, community" — and will be celebrating in style. Australian music heavyweights Bluejuice lead a line-up that includes the smooth tones of Asta, the dance-inducing duo of Touch Sensitive, rock makers Amy Meredith and a host of DJs and other acts to make sure the festival is turned up to fun from midday each day, right through until 9pm. Throw in some live art displays and Endless Summer is sure to showcase the great side of the Shire. Plus, it's free, so what is stopping you really.
Philadelphia indie-rockers The War on Drugs have revealed they will play a Sydney sideshow alongside their Australian debut performances at Falls Festival and Southbound. Devoted fans will no doubt be crossing their fingers that some material from their much-awaited third album will be unveiled during the tour. The War on Drugs emerged onto the scene back in 2005 as a musical collaboration between frontman and creative honcho Adam Granduciel and Kurt Vile, who has since left to pursue a solo career with his backing band The Violators. If you've never heard of them but you like your rock and roll a little bit classic (think a bit of Petty, a splash of Springsteen and, vocally, a whole lot of Dylan), then you may want to grab tickets to a show.
Electro highflier Gold Panda (aka Derwin Powers) first popped onto the radar in 2009, and has constantly thrown EPs and 7"s at us since. He's dropped two critically praised albums, 2010's Lucky Shiner and 2013's Half of Where You Live. This latest album holds truth in its name. Half of Where You Live is an electronic echo of the producer’s experiences: having lived in Japan and travelled extensively, he's now based in Berlin. With tracks such as 'An English House', 'Enoshima' and 'My Father in Hong Kong 1961', our ears get an ambiguous, aural journey through Powers' experiences and geography.
Whole seasons of the newly-resurrected Doctor Who have focused on the dangers of getting close to its semi-titular hero, the Doctor. Fellow time travellers have been left stranded, blithe or in trauma after the show's various writers were done with them. After that sort of warning, you may not want to get too close to the show's manic star. The ABC are attempting to solve this problem. At their Sydney headquarters they're hosting the Doctor Who Celebrating 50 Years of Adventures in Space and Time exhibition. It features the Doctor's props and costumes, but for your safety, crushingly, leaves out the man himself. In the show itself, visiting this sort of exhibition might be exactly the way that an adventure through time and space would start. And while the ABC doesn't promise in any way that their mannequins will come to life and attack you, it's still probably no bad thing to scope out the exits routes on your way in. The exhibition is open Monday to Friday, 9-5, except for election week September 2-8. It will be open weekends from 10-5 only the weekends of August 17-18, August 31- September 1, October 5-6, November 2-3 and 23-24 and the Australia Day weekend, January 25-27. Image of the Earl's Court police box (which may, or may not, contain a TARDIS) by Phillip Perry.
This article is sponsored by our partner The City of Sydney. With Sydney summer approaching, it's time to ponder the best ways to reveal a bit more skin. Enter Sydney is Fashion. Uniting Sydney's sartorial villages and fashion events throughout August and September, the festival presents the perfect way to ogle new garb, rediscover the experience of bricks-and-mortar retail and have bundles of aesthetically pleasing fun. Starting things off is the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Festival. This four-day fashion celebration, running from August 21-24, offers you front-row seats to the trends of spring/summer 2013/14 with fashion shows and sales throughout the city and online. General Pants Co. will kick off proceedings with an exclusive preview of their latest buys (think RVCA and new label B.BAM) as well as model Stef 'Bambi' Northwood-Blyth's debut collection has us on tenterhooks with promises of eclectic street fashions. Seems her fiancee Dan Single, of former Ksubi fame, has rubbed off on her — his latest DAAN collection will also feature in the show. Once the models have cleared out, ticket holders will be the first in Australia to shop the new looks, and will also receive a 10 percent discount in-store and online. Pick up tickets at select stores, and check out the website for details. Grab some shopping inspiration from the two world-class fashion shows that will run nightly throughout the festival. A highlights show from this year's fashion week, The Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia Trends event features local talents like Emma Mulholland, Romance Was Born and the effortlessly athletic HAN. For your glamour hit, head to the InStyle Red Carpet Runway, where gowns from Alex Perry, Collette Dinnigan and other high-end favourites will dominate the runway. Other events to look out for include shows from Sportscraft and Market HQ, and a styling session with Kash O'Hara, one half of the sibling-run OHARA label. Styling at the Tea Salon will dish up dressing for your shape tips with a side of champagne and scones, before your half-hour professional stylist consultation and then round the day out with a stylist-assisted 30-minute 'power shop'. That last bit sounds like a Moet et Chandon fuelled mini-Boxing Day brawl, but it is sure to be one of this festival's more hotly contested tickets. Image: Bec & Bridge, photography by Lucas Dawson.
If a bit of physical theatre gets your toes tapping, sashay along to the latest offering from award-winning dance theatre makers Force Majeure at the Seymour Centre. In a double bill masterminded by director Byron Perry, first up is Gogglebox, a nostalgic piece exploring our relationship with the soon-to-be-superseded television. Next is Double Think, embracing opposition in all its manifestations. Performers interact with light and set, staging is crafty and there's bound to be some very playful choreography. You've never seen dance theatre before? This one-hour show may be the perfect introduction to how expressively our bodies can do the talking for us. Already a fan? Squeeze into the free post-show Q&A between dancer/choreographer Martin del Amo and Byron Perry on Saturday, 24 August. And for the uninitiated, get a little glimpse of what you're in for with this clip of 2011's Melbourne Festival performance of Double Think. https://youtube.com/watch?v=I8KjhetKgMM
We love street artworks, because they enliven the built environment for jaded city dwellers. And we love cocktails, because they too enliven the built environment for jaded city dwellers. The guided tour East Sydney: Contextualising Art in the Streets cleverly marries the two, as artist, curator and publisher Joseph Allen Shea of Izrock Mixed Business helps you bespoke-drink your way through the small bars of Darlinghurst, Surry Hills, and Chinatown, discovering local commissioned street artworks and mingling with the creative minds who executed them. Works to be viewed include Reko Rennie’s Always Was, Always Will Be in Taylor Square, Jason Wing’s In Between Two Worlds in Chinatown, and more. 4-7pm, March 16. Places are limited (book) and drinks are $10 each. East Sydney Street Art Tours are part of Art Month 2013. Check out our guide to the festival's ten best events here.
If you’re one of those creative types (or want to be) and love the handmade aesthetic, Object's Make.Play workshops in March and April that might make your ears prick up. Object is already focused on all things design-y, so it makes sense to make some new goods within their walls. Stefanie Ingram (who has appeared in Frankie magazine) will teach you how to create your own terranium (like those ones on etsy), artist/graphic designer/food styler Bianca Spiegel will show you the art of folding, cutting, stenciling, oragami and all things paper in her Paper Love workshop, or you could transform an ordinary plastic shopping bag into a 3D object with Reverse Garbage. There are also courses on bike care, macrame garden accessories, lampshade making, and more. So when someone compliments your new macreme plant holder you can respond with “oh that old thing, yeah, I made it. No big deal.” And wait for the compliments to pour in.
The first day of March marks the first day of autumn, but when you’re at El Loco it’s never not summer. So if you are a fan of spicy tortilla, colourful flags, icy margaritas, floral oilcloth or general happiness, chase the ephemeral form of Sydney’s favourite Mexican cantina to its new home in the Slip Inn courtyard. If you made to the pop up at Sydney’s Opera House you’ll know the deal: Kitschy décor, a killer snack menu featuring Dan Hong’s infamous tacos and cheese-drowned hot dogs, and a “secret taco” that always tends to increase in appeal as the bucket of Coronas diminishes. Everything is priced around the $6 - $10 mark, including a few additional items made exclusively for the CBD’s brightest pop up. Between Wednesday and Saturday there will be live entertainment kicking on until last Coronas are called, which on weekends will be well after midnight. El Loco at Slip Inn will be open Monday to Thursday, from midday til midnight and Friday & Saturday, from midday til late.
It's been four years since Los Angeles-based philosophy student Romana Gonzalez (a.k.a. Nite Jewel), then an undergraduate, started experimenting with an eight-track cassette recorder. A mellow, richly textured, lo-fi electronica emerged, over which Gonzalez's lyrics floated in obscurity. With her second LP, One Second of Love (her first release on Secretly Canadian) Gonzalez has developed a cleaner, sleeker, more minimalist pop sound. Where before we were watching shadows in the mirror, we're now peering through sun-kissed glass. However, on her first Australian tour, Gonzalez will be travelling with a four-piece band who will undoubtedly inject a healthy dose of rhythmic fervour into the live experience. They'll be performing originals at Goodgod on 31 January ahead of their appearance at Laneway, and fans of Kraftwerk won't want to miss Nite Jewel's interpretation of Computer World at the Famous Spiegeltent for this year's Sydney Festival. https://youtube.com/watch?v=3YMmX1f5sQI
One photograph of Bondi's iconic Icebergs Pool is all it takes to spark manic pangs of homesickness in the heart of the most seasoned Sydney expat living abroad. Its ethereal beauty in the dawn sun is forever the subject of the hugely popular Aquabumps email newsletter, inspiring 40,000 daily readers with its architectural grace and spritely regulars. In fact, there's little not to love about a spot where you can have a sauna by the sea immediately prior to a long lunch at the quintessential Icebergs Dining Room. In the first week of 2013, however, the pool's swimming lanes will be closed for the evening to allow the Australian men's water polo team to host an international all-star team in an exhibition match set to showcase this rugged sport to a new generation of fans. Visitors to Water Polo by the Sea will be treated to an Olympic-standard match backed by DJs on the pool deck from 5pm.
Aerial acrobatics, light projections, synchronised crowd 'fireworks', and the big ones — those world-famous Sydney Harbour fireworks. Be clever about it; pick a vantage point, (according to the Sydney NYE website there are 71), plan your food, drink and toilet options (usually no BYO alcohol), and be prepared for the crowds. The action starts at 6pm, and this year creative ambassador Kylie Minogue has chosen the pretty colours and things. Download a free smartphone app to be part of the mobile phone ‘fireworks’ on the night.
Neil Gaiman jumps genre easily, and casually knocks off any number of impossible things before breakfast. As a young journalist his rediscovery of comics lead to an award winning-run on Sandman that effectively redefined the medium to something with mainstream appeal. He’s a blogging pioneer, who helped bring Miyazaki to western screens well before Spirited Away and has staked out a career as a novelist with books like the soon-to-be-adapted-by-HBO American Gods. Not to mention that he’s also Mr Amanda Palmer and writes some of the best Doctor Who scripts (spoilers) around. With a chocolate, mid-Atlantic fusion of midwestern and English vowels, his live readings tend to seduce the ear, even as they also tend to scare you senseless. This so-called Master of Modern horror is returning on one of his now semi-regular visits to Australia to promote his upcoming novel The Ocean at the End of the Lane at An Evening With Neil Gaiman, presented by the Sydney Writers' Festival. Although you can console yourself with a trove of his free work online, get in quick if you want a closer look at the flesh. His readings sell out in a blink. Tickets should go on sale at the City Recital Hall website from 9am, Wednesday December 19. Doors open at 7pm for an 8pm start.
Some striking new art tech and an emerging informal nightlife: Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec’s art captured two twin changes of his times and pinned them together in glorious motion. His knack for kinetic postering is the subject of a retrospective exhibition, Toulouse-Lautrec, Paris and the Moulin Rouge, at the National Gallery of Australia down in Canberra that opened this week. As part of the pre-show, pre-Christmas shopping season the gallery is setting up shop in a pop up on Oxford Street with Parisian gifting in mind and a few exhibition tickets also on sale. As well as the opportunity for early-season gifting, the shop will be host to a little live performance in the vein of the Moulin Rouge Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
Car parks are usually thought to be places to simply park a car. Or a slightly different vehicle. But lately they’re being used for more arty happenings. First a Kings Cross car park was used in SafARI, and now The Vic’s abandoned car park is been transformed into a beer garden and multipurpose creative space called The Projects. Street art is a big part of these arty bits n’ pieces, most likely because they have a handy giant 20 x 8 metre wall to play with. Every fortnight it’s going to be graffiti-ed or street art-ed up by artists including Sofles, Roach, Pudl, Numskull. They’re also going to do bike swaps, designer markets (curated by the Lo-Fi Collective), an open air cinema (perfect for summer), workshops, live music, basketball and foodie treats (like rotisserie meats). You can even bring your kiddies (if you have any — you could always borrow some off a friend for the day), or dog. The team behind this? It’s the same crew that runs the Lo-Fi Collective and the Tate at the Toxteth Hotel. It’s going to be a place to hang.
For the summer season Opel Moonlight Cinema offers advance previews, and contemporary, cult and classic movie screenings on the darkened lawns of Centennial park. With onsite catering offering everything from pulled pork to nachos and steak sandwiches, the open air environment offers cinema goers a refreshing alternative to the cramped and stuffy theatres in town. Over the next few months a varied program of movies will be offered, with great films like Skyfall, Ted, Looper, The Hobbit, Taken 2 and The Master. You can even bring along (well behaved) dogs, provided they're on a short leash. So, if your Shitzu enjoys the comedy of Seth MacFarlane, or your Great Dane can’t get enough Daniel Craig, they're as welcome as you are. Entry is via Centennial Park's Woollahra Gates, on Oxford St.
XXXMas will see Sydney’s best and biggest beat masters take to the stage to thrown down and show off their grind-inducing grooves. Headlining the night is globally recognized producer Elizabeth Rose, fresh from collaborating with Sinden and releasing her debut EP, Crystallise. Her astral beats, shadowy samples and pop melodies have seen her experience a meteoric rise since she burst onto the scene last year, enjoying the praise of Triple J and FBI Radio. Elizabeth Rose will be joined by Park Life festival tour attendees Softwar, Olympic Ayres with their just-released single "The View", Fleetwood Mac and El Guincho-influenced indie-poppers Jubilants, house DJ Antoine Vice (AKA Moonchild) and Debonair.
The only thing better than seeing one of your favourite new bands in a tropic-themed dance hall for only $12 is seeing two of your most deservedly hyped bands in a topic-themed dance hall for only $12, and it’s the latter combination Goodgod are throwing together this Thursday. World’s End Press are the ones you’ll know from the bassy, synthy, funk-pop single they’ve had circulating on triple j since mid-year, and they’ll be playing a slew of new stuff from their upcoming debut album. Collarbones are the ones that are impossible to define in pretty much any respect, making things sound as complex geographically (Sydney’s Marcus Whale and Adelaide’s Travis Cook met on the internet and compose the majority of their music by sending digital files back and forth) as they are sonically (their music blends electronica with RnB and ghost noises). Somehow it all works though. You’ll also get a taste of super-chill disco duo Polographia, who are giving away download of their Sunsets EP here.
There's no doubt Sydney is passionate about its food. With restaurants like Quay, Tetsuya’s and Marque among the best in the world, the city is shaped by its food and the culture it brings. But how does what we put on our plate affect the world outside our kitchens, and vice versa? Two of the city's driving forces in its bustling food scene, the City of Sydney and the Sydney Morning Herald, have partnered to present a panel on just this issue, titled Recipes for Change: How food is changing the cultural and community life of cities. Around the world, many cities are searching for sustainable and ethical ways to source food. Lord Mayor Clover Moore, who has steered Sydney towards a small bar revolution, will discuss how local initiatives like community gardens can help cities plan for a food crisis. With a star-studded culinary line-up including Merivale CEO Justin Hemmes, OzHarvest founder Ronni Kahn, and food writer Jill Dupleix also speaking, it's any foodie's dream. The city's army of food trucks will be waiting outside to make sure guests are well fed and ready to listen about Sydney's food future. Recipes for Change is listed as full, but uncollected (free) tickets will be rereleased to grab in person from 6.25pm on the night.
'Success' in the music world isn't the easiest word to define (being only slightly less tricky than 'indie rock'), but it's hard to think of a description that Bloc Party would fall outside the parameters of. They've released four commercially successful albums (the most recent being last year's assertive Four), they defy decades with a unique blend of razor-edged sonics and catchy pop hooks, and they're still really cool. This March the East London art rock quartet are hitting Future Music Festival (where they sit directly opposite Steve Aoki near the top of the impressive line-up), and have just announced a string of satellite shows too. It'll be the band's first appearance following a hiatus in 2009 when singer/guitarist Kele Okereke moved to Berlin to focus on his solo work. Four marks a return to the sound that first shot Bloc Party to fame nearly ten years ago, which means angular guitars on top of anthems on top of anthems. https://youtube.com/watch?v=p1CSMdDIRGg
Tired of queuing up for outdoor cinemas over in the eastern suburbs and only managing to secure, like, a 4x4cm patch of grass? Well, fret no longer, outdoorsy-types. Over on the other side of the bridge, North Sydney's Starlight Cinema is returning for a full season of killer films, and the best bit is there's grass aplenty for your picnicking pleasure as it's staged on A SPORTING OVAL. Chillax over a stack of films we've fallen in love with this past year, including feelgood hit The Sapphires, the surprising Oscar-contender Beasts of the Southern Wild, and the Ang Lee stunner Life of Pi. But what we really love is the ample parking available on site, not to mention the fancy Star Class seating, which offers prime film viewing, reserved deckchair seating, drinks wait-service, and a food hamper filled with dinner and dessert. FYI, it’ll set you back $55 per person, but if you're out to impress, it’s worth every penny. Gates open at 7pm and screenings start at sundown. That's around 8.30pm in January and 8pm in February and early March.
One of the surprise hits of 2009 was Ruben Fleischer's offbeat black comedy Zombieland, a violent yet somehow delightful (and even romantic) parody of zombie horror movies that perhaps even bettered Shaun of the Dead. Zombieland brought together a diverse cast, a sparkling script, and gorgeous cinematography to create something quite unlike anything else seen that year. Four years later, those same ingredients seemed in place for Fleischer's next film Gangster Squad, particularly in the casting, where a covetable blend of old (Sean Penn, Nick Nolte, and Josh Brolin) and new (Emma Stone, Ryan Gosling, Anthony Mackie, Robert Patrick, Michael Pena, and Giovanni Ribisi) created a credits reel almost as long as The Hobbit. And yet, to paraphrase Jeff Goldblum in Jurassic Park, the principle of tiny variations can vastly affect an outcome. Goldblum's character called it 'chaos theory', and while Gangster Squad might not quite be chaotic, its imperfections are far more noticeable than those on Laura Dern's wrist. Moreover, and not unlike the mindless flesh-eating hordes in Zombieland, this film tends to feed off a collection of other, better, films in a desperate attempt to survive. It tells the 'based-on-a-true-story' story of '40s LA gangster Mickey Cohen (Penn), a boxer-turned-kingpin whose ambitions saw him aspiring to control all gambling operations across the entire US west coast. Cohen's power and influence rendered him altogether UNTOUCHABLE, with police and politicians either too corrupt or too afraid to stand against him. One good cop, however — war hero Sgt John O'Mara (Brolin) — refuses to lie down and watch his city fall into darkness. Deciding that Cohen represents a CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER, he LA CONFIDENTIALLY forms a secret team of vigilante law enforcers and together those MAGNIFICENT SEVEN take on Cohen at his own game. In short, Gangster Squad apes several other great stories to tell its story of how the only honest cop in LA turns into a vicious vigilante murderer and is then lauded for it. With shootings, bashings, and blowings-up on both sides of the war, the moral compass swings around so fiercely in this film it's surprising it doesn’t wholly take off. Visually, it's a delight to behold, with elaborate set pieces, sumptuous period costumes, and grand architecture giving it a glamorous sheen; however, it can't gloss over the hammy script and one-dimensional characters whose journey only goes from A to A.
If there remains a yet unexplored way to keep Shakespeare as lively and relevant as he was in Elizabethan England, you can be sure that John Bell and his Company will seek it out. For the next six weeks, they're offering audiences a rare and exciting journey to witness creative genius at work. In a new pop-up space in The Rocks, known as Bell Shakespeare’s Closet, you can take a hands-on journey through the company's innermost workings. While writers are throwing around ideas in a room upstairs, costume makers are designing, trimming, and sewing in preparation for Bell's first production for 2013, Henry IV, which will open at the Sydney Opera House Drama Theatre in May. A gorgeous window display hosts costumes and props from the Company’s 23-year history, including a soldier’s jacket that featured in Macbeth (2012), a magnificent dress worn in Pericles (2009) and masks from Much Ado About Nothing (2001).
Do you have trouble reconciling your green thumb with the clamorous reality of city living? Sydney Council's new initiative might put some of your frustration at ease. They're in the middle of developing plans for a city farm, with the goal to promote healthy, sustainable living. While it'll be a little while before those seeds are sown, you can get a glimpse of what’s to come on January 19 with the opening of a Summer Garden at Sydney Park, St Peters. Open till March 24, the Garden will host more than just your average home-grown tomato. You can expect an array of unusual and tasty-looking crops that will challenge some of the limits often associated with growing-your-own. If you're keen to pick up a hose or a trowel, you can sign up as a volunteer. Furthermore, weekly Saturday workshops will focus on subjects as diverse as no-dig gardening, bee-keeping, scarecrow-building, and market gardening. There’ll even be an old-fashioned sheep dog trial on February 9, and you probably won't want to miss the finale: a hoedown and harvest on March 23.
There’s a plethora of first person narrative around the traps lately. If it’s not the Campfire Collective, then it’s Yarn or Tell Me a Story. Sydney’s story right now is being told, one person at a time, at small bars, former warehouses and late night libraries. Not to mention international storytelling blow-ins like Ira Glass and Mike Birbiglia. One venue that has been toying with the same idea is the near-virginal Opera House, which has dabbled occasionally in first person narrative, but over the summer it’s planning on going all the way. The gentle, funny and awkward off-Broadway production My First Time is coming to Bennelong Point with a local cast bringing its gentle, funny and awkward stories of virginity lost. Stories are drawn from submissions to the venerable, confessional website MyFirstTime.com. Never heard of it? There’s a first time for everything.
What would a grandmother have to say who, in her time, has been a revolutionary, an Aboriginal activist, beaten nearly to death in her home country and an architect of its current power-sharing deal? The Sydney Peace Prize is giving you the chance to find out this year by inviting 2012 winner Senator Sekai Holland to give its annual Sydney Peace Prize Lecture: A Story of Courage and Peace at the Sydney Town Hall. Zimbabwe’s political history is a tough and difficult topic to catch up on. But you don’t need to be an expert to want to hear Holland speak. And let the complexities this important, but struggling, country come to you.
Brooklyn psych experimentalists and Laneway sophomores Yeasayer will play a headline show at the Metro Theatre when they head back this way next January. The band spent summer here last year after the release of their last album Odd Blood, and now have a brand new 11-track offering crammed with sounds ranging from Italo-pop to warped electronica and R&B. That offering is called Fragrant World, and each track is a different unconventional yet accessible blend of wide-ranging influnces — "No Bones" is an excellent amalgam of astral spasms and glitchy synths that is still strangely danceable. Yeasayer's live performances are equally captivating, whether you're blissing out under the midday sun or in the entrancing darkness of the Metro Theatre. If you won't be doing the former, get your license to do the latter here. https://youtube.com/watch?v=ml9oNH4UjzQ
The term 'media circus' might have been coined to describe the hoopla that accompanies the US presidential election every four years. Manning Bar at the University of Sydney is hosting an Election Day Spectacular where for $12 ($8 concession) you can have a front-row seat for all the shenanigans. In partnership with CNN International, live coverage of election results will be shown on the big screen. If you're bi-partisan curious, experts from the US Studies Centre will be on hand to explain the complex process and offer blow-by-blow analysis. Surround yourself with fellow news junkies and root for your team. There will be prize giveaways and the opportunity to have your photo taken with the candidates. Counting millions of ballots sure can raise an appetite, so your ticket also gets you US delicacies including popcorn, a hot dog lunch, and fairy floss — which you should order by its American English name, 'cotton candy'. Uncle Sam says he wants YOU to attend.
As any Sydney seafood aficionado should know by now, The Morrison has a constant focus on the not-so-humble oyster. But in August, when the month-long Oyster Festival takes over, that focus turns into an overwhelming obsession. One of the major drawcards is 'Oyster Hour'. Between 6pm and 7pm every single day, you'll be able to eat as many oysters as you can handle at just $1 a pop. If you fancy something a little, well, fancier, you can opt for a 'Wine and Oyster Flight' (three wines and three matching oysters). Plus, throughout the month, seafood expert and chef Sean Connolly will be conjuring up his favourite oyster dishes, from carpetbag steak to chowder. What's the ideal number of times to chew an oyster? Brush up on your knowledge of the mollusc with our Bluffer's Guide to Oysters.
If you're setting off on a day-long walk through the Atlas Mountains, who better than Viggo Mortensen to act as your guide? That certainly proves true in Far From Men, first in a story that sees an accused murderer trek towards an execution, and then in a film that goes on an existential wander towards the true meaning of courage and honour. With plenty of empathy lurking beneath his penetrating gaze and no-nonsense attitude, Mortensen is the ideal candidate for both journeys. His rural schoolteacher, Daru, displays the kind of patience that clearly stems from a complex past — and the type of fortitude that will serve him well for any future troubles. At the beginning of the Algerian struggle for independence from the French in 1954, he finds the latter when a lawman deposits Mohammed (Reda Kateb) into his care, asking Daru to escort him to court to face the consequences of his actions. First, Daru refuses, not wanting to be complicit in the fate everyone knows awaits. When Mohammed won't leave on his own, he reluctantly agrees to the deed, leading his charge over rocky terrain and through opposing troupes of fighters. Based on Albert Camus' The Guest, Far From Men might turn a short story into a stately adventure of sorts, assembling an episodic series of encounters as it does; however this always thoughtful, often tense film never shies away from the complicated emotions at the heart of what becomes a North Africa-set western. Indeed, it's in expressing the stoic sympathy of the feature that Mortensen demonstrates his worth, proving perfectly suited to playing a tough guy with a softer centre. Of all the roles the actor has taken since The Lord of the Rings trilogy in an attempt to steer clear of mainstream movies, this might just be his most subtle and stirring — and his finest. Making only his second feature, writer/director David Oelhoffen doesn't just rely upon his star to sell his feature, as great a feat of casting as the filmmaker has pulled off. The slow-building interplay between Mortensen and the equally excellent Kateb is never less than captivating, as is the camaraderie these two strangers eventually cultivate. But the visuals that surround them are even more so. Lingering looks at furrowed faces and steely stares abound, as do long shots of the stark, dusty, scrubby plains. Each provides their own style of landscape — as marked by their own worries — that the eyes of the audience feel compelled to explore. Oelhoffen matches such striking images with a similarly sparse yet rousing score by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis, ensuring Far From Men haunts in its soundscape as much as it does in its performances and cinematography. As a result, when it comes to intelligent updates of the western that contemplate the stark realities of conflict in intimate detail, this delivers the full package — along with the best actor to lead you through it.
Ever watched a film, then wanted to spend more time with the characters? Maybe there’s more to their story you’d like to glean, or events you’d like to see fleshed out. Perhaps you’d prefer one person’s point of view over another. In deconstructing a relationship tinged with tragedy, that’s a choose-your-own-adventure experience The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby can offer. That, and getting a certain Beatles’ song stuck in your head, even though it doesn’t feature on the soundtrack. Writer/director Ned Benson’s first feature is actually three features, with fitting subtitles: Them, Him and Her. The individual parts came first, showing love consumed by grief in a he-said, she-said fashion. Combining and condensing them into one movie was an attempt to make the project more mainstream-friendly. Benson has advised that they can be watched in any order, but only Them is screening in Australian cinemas, with Him and Her available on video on demand. The tale the films tell is that of Eleanor (Jessica Chastain) and Conor (James McAvoy), a couple whose happy days seem long gone. To escape their troubles, she disappears from their apartment, moves in with her parents (Isabelle Huppert and William Hurt) and goes back to college. He searches for her then tries to win her back, while struggling to keep his bar open. Though shot and edited like memories of the past rather than living in the present, it’s a simple, emotional story of fading romance and misfortune seen many times before — “all the lonely people, where do they call come from?” and all that. Them works fine as a standard, standalone relationship drama, its mood of melancholy leaving a firm imprint, and its excellent lead performances by Chastain and McAvoy — both close to their career-best — lifting the well-worn material. What’s missing is anything more than broad strokes, in the narrative and about the characters. Them tells us very little, other than the obvious: she’s unhappy, he’s lost without her, they love each other but can’t find a way to move forward together. Supporting players such as Eleanor’s sister (Jess Weixler) and college professor (Viola Davis) and Conor’s best mate (Bill Hader) and father (Ciarán Hinds) also seem flimsy, each just someone to lean on. The merged film sketches an outline of everyone and everything, leaving Him and Her to fill in the gaps. Also absent in the abridged package are differences in perception and perspective. Here, more is more; it is difficult to see Eleanor and Conor’s varying takes on their marriage and its downfall when it’s all smashed together. Not the broad strokes, of course, but the detail. Showing how they each view the same events, exchanges and conversations in distinctive ways isn’t just a gimmick — it’s crucial in understanding the characters and the scenario. In that respect, perhaps Them does exactly what it is designed to do: whet the appetite, spark fascination and inspire viewers to seek out the rest of the story. That’s certainly our recommendation. There’s a familiar tale told well, shot stylishly and acted with aching insight in The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby, as long as you get the whole picture.
Partway into Unfinished Business, three Americans go to Berlin. It’s a busy week in the German capital, with hotel rooms hard to come by. The youngest of the trio, Mike Pancake (Dave Franco), books into the only place he and his 67-year-old colleague, Timothy Winters (Tom Wilkinson), can afford: a youth hostel. Their boss, Dan Trunkman (Vince Vaughn), unknowingly opts for a “habitable work of art”, where he’s on display in a museum. The level of comedy shown here, of the “old folks doing young things”, “look how mismatched everyone is” and “isn’t this a ridiculous idea” variety, are actually some of the film’s best work. That’s not a compliment. But when much of the movie makes fun of unusual names, of a man wearing women’s clothing, and of the difficulties someone identified as challenged has in understanding certain words, well, the bar hasn’t been set very high. Also on the hit-list of Unfinished Business’ allegedly humorous subjects: gawking at naked women, the stereotype of women acting like men to make it in business, women compared to vending machines, gay nightclub culture and steam rooms. Contrast that with the film’s supposedly softer side, attempting to address bullying, fitting in, standing up for yourself and chasing what you believe in. That the combination of crassness and schmaltz is as muddled and messy as it is ill fitting is hardly surprising. The plot stems from a Jerry Maguire moment, as family man Dan quits his job selling metal shavings to go out on his own, and Mike and Timothy follow. A year later, they’re up for a lucrative contract – but despite being told the gig is theirs by their contact (Nick Frost), they’re pitted against Chuck (Sienna Miller), their previous employer. Though both teams travel to Berlin, it seems that smarmy exec Jim (James Marsden) has already made up his mind. Dan is forced to take drastic action to succeed, and to take care of everyone counting on him. Why Hollywood is convinced that audiences want to see Vaughn making the same kind of movies – especially these kind of movies – remains a mystery. He’s a likeable enough presence, but continually playing a big-hearted underachiever trying to get his life back on track via fratboy-like antics doesn’t do anyone any favours. Vaughn and his director Ken Scott obviously disagree, re-teaming after the thematically similar Delivery Man. If you’ve seen that, or The Internship, then you know what you’re in for here. The scattershot approach shown in the script doesn’t help matters, rushing from one scene to the next as fast as it can, even though the film always feels like it is dragging. Nor does the insistence that more is more: more crude gags, more cliches, more over-the-top exploits and more drama. And then there’s poor Franco and Wilkinson, saddled with one-note characters, but trying hard. At least someone is. Otherwise, Unfinished Business is an overstuffed, underdone mess that lives up to its name – and a film easily bested by its stock image marketing campaign.
How do you remember your childhood? For Abdul-Rahman Abdullah, making sense of his Muslim Australian upbringing has come through the medium of art. In the Name, showing for three weeks at the Alaska Projects space, explores life, death and dinner. Taking a walk down memory lane, Abdullah's installations offer a raw insight into suburban animal slaughter brought about from a lack of halal meat in typical Australian supermarkets. This West Australian artist tackles tough issues of identity and social difference with a refreshing touch. Straddling two cultural worlds, his work draws audiences into memories of youth tinged with bewilderment, curiosity and confusion. With art on display at the Islamic Museum of Australia, Artbank, Campbelltown Art Centre and a string of national awards under his belt, Abdullah is making a serious mark. Head along to the opening night on April 8 from 6pm to see this thought-provoking collection for yourself.
This review was written about the Belvoir Downstairs Theatre performance of The Baulkham Hills African Ladies Troupe in September 2013. The play is returning to Sydney for a run at the Sydney Opera House Studio. There was a row of empty chairs at the matinee performance of The Baulkham Hills African Ladies Troupe I attended. Right in the front row, they seemed to stand in for the thousands, millions of people who have turned away, intentionally or unintentionally, from the stories told in the play. In a powerful two-hour exploration of violence, war, survival and hope in Africa and Australia, the silence, the emptiness of those chairs seemed to cut viscerally. The Baulkham Hills African Ladies Troupe is not like any other play you'll see on a main stage (though it should be.) It's not even very like the other verbatim/community collaboration projects you might have seen recently. It's a bit rougher around the edges, a bit less slick. It doesn't fit so easily into Belvoir's tiny Downstairs space — though it would easily fill a village square. It's a little more naive, and that is absolutely intended to be a compliment. Director Ros Horin is less concerned with exploring theatrical strategies than she is in getting stories heard in the clearest, most fulfilling way, for both the teller and the told. To this end, she uses four African women, all migrants to Australia and attendees of a cultural group organised by one of the performers (Rosemary Kariuki-Fyfe), three actors, a singer and two dancers to explore what brought these women to Australia, what they left behind and how important it is for them to be heard. It is not possible to render in words the absolute horror and degradation these women have experienced, nor can I do justice to the transformative experience of sharing a tiny room, actual air-space and ability to touch flesh with a woman who has not only survived, for example, being a child soldier and sexual assault victim in Sierra Leone, migrated half way across the world, started a family, returned to Sierra Leone retrieve her daughter and bring her to Australia, but is capable of standing in front of a group of one hundred new strangers every night to relieve the experience. There are no flashing lights, no amazing transformations, no clever tricks. Just the truth. Which is absolutely galling. Horin and team navigate this obviously sensitive territory with beautiful sensitivity, laying clear for the audience when an actor is standing in for one of the women, replaying for us rehearsal discussions about boundaries, and perhaps most importantly injecting a healthy dose of humour and joie de vivre into the proceedings, which provides a surely necessary note of hope. You see, the important thing is that these women got out. They got here. And they thrived. And they obviously believe passionately in their right to be heard. Up until relatively recently, sexual abuse of women was not recognised as a war crime. Of the thousands of men who perpetuated sexual, physical and psychological violence against women as members of armies or rebel groups, only the most minute handful have ever been prosecuted. Rape is such a common occurrence that African women are told there is no point complaining about it, to get over it, move on. The Baulkham Hills African Ladies Troupe enact the deeply radical decision to ignore that advice. The Belvoir season is, according to the website, completely sold out — but that's what they said about my matinee. As we hurtle towards an election which has been pockmarked with shallow, personality-based sniping, factual evasions and a race to the subterranean on refugee policy on behalf of both major parties, it'd be well worth your while to spend a few hours camping out at Belvoir in the hope of scoring a ticket to something that might remind you what a real problem looks like. And that Australia — as a nation, and as individuals of conscience — has a role to play in fixing it. Don't let there be an empty seat in the house: these ladies, and the thousands they represent, deserve your witness.
On the scale of personal injustices, there are few more contemptible or infuriating misdeeds than taking credit for another person’s work. In the artistic world it’s considered a violation of such repugnance that it’s said to offend one’s very ‘moral rights’, being both ’the right of Attribution’ (the right to be recognised as the creator of an original work) and ’the right against False Attribution’ (the right to prevent someone else from saying your work is theirs). Big Eyes, the latest film by director Tim Burton, is a true story based on one of the most egregious example of that violation in living history. Beginning in the late 1950s, it chronicles the decade-long deception perpetrated by the artist Walter Keane (Christoph Waltz) and his iconic ‘big eyes’ paintings. The key word there is ‘deception’, because in reality they weren’t his paintings at all; they were painted by his wife, Margaret (Amy Adams). With millions of dollars made from sales and celebrities the world over seeking their own originals, Big Eyes is a fascinating study in sexual politics and the exponential toxicity of deceit, particularly in an age when the status of a divorced single-mother was tantamount to both social and professional exile. In the leads, Adams and Waltz are both perfectly cast. Adams brings a wonderful sensitivity to the role, capturing the irrepressible passion of an artist and the burgeoning guilt of a woman who chose financial security over artistic integrity. Opposite her, Waltz is pure charisma: a salesman with a cheshire cat grin and an undeniable talent for marketing. The man could sell sand to a desert, then convince himself he invented the sand. ‘Delusional Disorder’ is the medical term for his condition, and its destructive powers are neatly showcased here. This is by far one of Burton’s most understated films, eschewing most of his traditional quirkiness and cartoonish aesthetic in favour of a picture most reminiscent of Ed Wood. Even the score, provided almost inevitably by Danny Elfman, opts for the subtle touch with hardly a whole-tone scale to be heard. That’s not to say there isn’t fantastic design at play, with the set, costuming and even colour choices wonderfully recreating '50s and '60s kitsch. It’s all very pretty, but just like its subject matter, Big Eyes is something of a masquerade: a fetching and uncomplicated visual that belies a much darker truth.
Can building a garden win the affection of a royal landscape architect, as well as the respect of the king? That may be the plot of A Little Chaos, but it isn't the point. There are more fascinating things afoot in this period romance. Kate Winslet stars as Sabine De Barra, gifted with a green thumb and fingers to match, as well as the gall to want to use them. She flouts the conventions of 17-century France in other ways, too: in voicing her opinions and in shunning the tradition of manicured lawns that has seen Andre Le Notre (Matthias Schoenaerts) design the outdoor areas of King Louis XIV (Alan Rickman). Yet, something about Sabine intrigues Andre, inspiring him to hire her to assist with a new project. Her vision of an alfresco addition to the Versailles palace, complete with a complex water feature, doesn't conform to expectation — just like Sabine herself. Together, the trio treads a tentative path to a more modern way of thinking, and not just in terms of gardening. This is Sabine and Andre's tale — including the threat to their blooming bond from his promiscuous yet possessive wife (Helen McCrory) — but the king's acceptance of a landscaper outside the norm is key to the story's gentle breaking down of gender stereotypes. Of course, in keeping with the time it depicts, the steps made are small in size, though they remain considerable in their fictionalised impact. Seeing Sabine strive and hopefully succeed always feels like the film's main goal, as paired nicely with a peek into what life was really like for women in the royal court. Indeed, as handsomely acted as the entire affair is, and as swept up in the period details, the slow-burning love story is actually the least interesting aspect of A Little Chaos. It's not that Winslet and Schoenaerts don't sell the romance. Their performances — her sorrowful but spirited efforts especially — are among the highlights of the film. It's just that the script rightfully cares more for the characters' professional rather than personal endeavours, and so does the audience. That would be the doing of Rickman, who co-wrote the screenplay and directed the feature in addition to acting as the monarch in the middle. In his second stint as a filmmaker after 1997's The Winter Guest, the man best known to many as Harry Potter's Severus Snape is delicate and determined, two traits the movie champions. Rickman also takes the obvious route more than once, whether lingering on the sumptuous scenery or letting Stanley Tucci turn up as yet another comic cad, once again stealing all his scenes. The formula behind the finesse is hardly surprising; the feature is called A Little Chaos, after all. The movie's title is clearly designed to reflect its heroine's wild ways within a system of order, and it does so. That it also captures the film's willingness to test boundaries within the tale itself, but not in its treatment, couldn't be more fitting.
To celebrate their first birthday, Petersham nostalgia hub Daisy's Milkbar is hosting a sundae eating competition. These are the real hunger games; a fight to the death to prove yours is the stomach of steel and brain most resistant to freeze. In one year, Daisy's has made a home in our hearts as one of Sydney’s most fun cafes, a homage to retro treats like milkshakes, candy, burgers and banana splits. If the potential title of sundae champ isn't incentive enough, all entrants get a free sundae to slam, and Daisy's is promising "a bunch of cool prizes" for the winner. Register your interest ASAP at hello@daisysmilkbar.com as places are limited. You've got one icey fight ahead of you. May the odds be ever in your favour.
World cinema buffs should check out the upcoming Latin American Film Festival. Reflecting the changing face of Latin cinema thanks to greater arts funding, the 12 days will feature 22 films from 14 different countries, along with a whole lot of food, music and dancing. If you’re in the mood for a party, opening night at the Opera Quays includes a samba performance, a screening of Brazilian actor-director Selton Mello’s comedy-drama The Clown then a fiesta at Ryan’s Paragon Hotel. Budding filmmakers can attend post-show Q&As with directors Hernán Jabes (Rock, Paper, Scissors) and Rodrigo H Vila (Mercedes Sosa: The Voice of Latin America). Or maybe see Arlos Lechuga’s debut, Melaza (Molasses), banned in Cuba for its harsh depiction of rural life. Foodies should watch documentary Peru Sabe: Cuisine as an agent of social change, following renowned chef Ferran Adrià of elBulli on his first trip to Peru, guided by local culinary hero Gastón Acurio. After the screening there’s a Peruvian feast. An added incentive is the festival’s non-profit status: money raised this year goes to Instituto Raoni, an organisation supporting indigenous communities in Brazil. For a full list of films, head to the official festival site. The festival is based at Dendy Opera Quays (4-11 October) and Bankstown Arts Centre (13-15 October).
Indian-born artist Roopa Pemmaraju has earned widespread acclaim for her eponymous fashion label, which fuses bright Indigenous art with modern design. Following her MBFW appearance earlier in the year, we now have the chance to see her collaborative vision up close. The Melbourne artist has teamed up with four renowned Indigenous artists — Pauline Gallagher, Elizabeth Napaljarri Katakarinja, Judy Napangardi Watson, and Rowena Nungarrayi Larry — to digitally transfer their original artwork onto silk and turn them into fashion-forward pieces. The resulting Rhapsody of Colours art installation is now running for free throughout Lane Four at the Galeries until September 30. You can expect the Galeries building to be brimming with eye-popping, vibrant colours over its usual beige. Another plus: Since launching her label in 2006, Pemmaraju has been a strong supporter of Fair Trade practices, meaning you can drool over her work without feeling one ounce of guilt.
Once a month the MCA offers an extra late night party through its galleries. During ARTBAR, general public gets to explore its collection in the new light of late-nite, guided through the after-hours experience by a rotating roster of some of Sydney's best up and coming artists. Each month this curating guest artist peppers the gallery with a selection of live art extras, tours or performance. This month's curator? Lauren Brincat. While a lot of people often get a little worried (and, often, pretty excited) about visiting Mexico, and many are also, more sensibly, worried about the prospect of traversing Mexico City's often chaotic traffic, very few people overcome this anxiety enough to deliberately navigate that city's colonial-era streets by horseback. Lauren Brincat did just that for performance video Mexican Standoff, just part of Brincat's long history of making dangerous art amongst Mexican traffic. She recently brought the same sensibility, Mexican standoff and horses to the Art Gallery of New South Wales during Pythagoras, Praxiteles, Anthemius…. For ARTBAR, the program looks sadly horse free, but there will be processions galore as the Australian Navy Band leads marching tours of the gallery, Bree van Reyk composes Mexico City soundscapes, dancehall lessons abound on the sculpture terrace and Tyson Koh lays out a brief history of how video killed the radio star.
For the third time, the annual Sydney Rides Festival is set to get back into the saddle on October 13. In conjunction with The Spokes People, the festival celebrates all things bicycle as Sydney falls more and more in love with our bikes. The festival is a slew of events that promote the benefits of riding a bike, from family-friendly rides around the city to bike speed dating and the National Ride2Work day. And for those who simply want to watch, the Sydney Rides Film Festival will play shorts and features at Dendy Opera Quays on October 17-18. The coveted green jersey will be awarded to the winner of the Gold Sprints on October 25, and the stationary race will take place at the Alexandria Hotel. On October 27, the inaugural polka dot jersey will be given to the first Mountain Goat Lord in Lycra — the winner of the Hill Climb Race up Observatory Hill. Image: Ian Sane via photopin cc.
2013 marks the first year of the Sydney Intercultural Film Festival, a celebration that aims to connect Sydneysiders with the stories, sounds and tastes of the many cultures of the world. The festival runs from November 13–17 with events and screenings at multiple venues across the city. The hub of the festival will be in Haymarket’s Belmore Park, which will be transformed into Cinema Park for five days of entertainment. The park will host screenings of films from 33 countries including China, India, Vietnam, Korea, Japan, Poland and Australia. The festivities also include music, arts and comedy performances; film workshops, demonstrations and seminars; signing and interactive sessions with celebrities and filmmakers; kid’s rides; costume competitions; raffles and prize giveaways; and more than 100 international food, merchandise and entertainment stalls. Whether you’re a film fanatic or culture crazed, there is something for everyone at Cinema Park. And you certainly know the food will be good. Cinema Park is open from 10.30am-9.30pm. Image: K.P. Jayasankar behind the camera.
