The Coming World starts off promisingly with a playful display of physical affection between two ridiculously attractive people, but it soon becomes clear that their reach exceeds their grasp in terms of personal happiness. The same could perhaps be said of this play in terms of its conceptual aspirations. Written by Pulitizer award-winning playwright Christopher Shinn, it's a Woody Allen sort of love story, where the path from beginning to end is potholed and eroded. After being robbed of a stash of ecstasy pills, Dora's flaky ex-lover Ed is left in hock to a mobster. He forms a desperate plan to do over the video store where Dora works. At this point, The Coming World is reminiscent of Run Lola Run , but the script is a little harder to follow and substantially heavier on dialogue. Dora finds herself drawn reluctantly into Ed's scheme as one way of escaping the drudgery of peddling mass-produced fantasies at Blockbuster. It's only when Ed's estranged twin brother appears on the scene that the importance of the past in defining the future becomes not only obvious, but crucial. It's not that The Coming World hasn't got its moments — there is some really wonderful dialogue filled with dramatic tension and a sort of hyper-poignancy. The problem is that in tackling the big themes of truth, love, loss and recovery, it taste-tests too many types of ambiguity and trips over its own imprecise perceptions. Ultimately, what undermines this production is the very thing it investigates — the impossibility of achieving your ideal. It leaves you nonplussed and uncertain of your capacity to cope with the isolating impact of technology in the coming world.
Songs of rapture? Yay! Songs of torture? Okay. Sarah Jane Norman's quartet of performances has steadily evolved since 2007 when #1 (Surabaya Johnny) was presented at Performance Space. It is comprised of three durational works and one performance staged for video projection. It is a four-year survey of work by Norman, who has a reputation as one of Sydney's most provocative and magnetic performance artists. Each performance takes the repetition of a popular love song as its basis. Norman aims to challenge both the prevalent cultural narratives of our rom-com society and the pitiful limits of pop songs by manipulating her self-presentation and performative vocabulary. For an unfixed duration of time over four sessions, she will resign herself to a private world of loss and resignation, with no reprieve from the purgatorial repetition of these songs. Norman will sing until her voice breaks, or her heart breaks; whichever comes first. Love as an ordeal? Yes. Romance as endurance? Indeed. Bear close witness to this internalised melodrama and you may find yourself reflecting, as if for the first time, on that flat, high-flown word 'fortitude.'
Jonathan Franzen is a controversial figure. His supremely contemptous essay, 'Perchance to Dream', lamenting the state of contemporary literature, is still a conversation starter fifteen years after it was published in Harper’s. He famously ticked off Oprah after he failed to be sufficiently thrilled that The Corrections was part of her Book Club selection, and he wrote that beautiful book of essays, How To Be Alone. His most recent novel, Freedom, was published to considerable critical acclaim, then recalled, as an early draft rather than the final proof had somehow made it to the printers. What Franzen excels at is sweeping satirical family dramas that, nonetheless, are funny enough to function as a fictive form of popular anti-depressants. The critic James Wood coined a term for his subgenre: hysterical realism. Franzen’s books are warmly peopled, and sprout stories and sub-stories on every page. His defining dread of a bookless dark, and his disdain for muted or insipid novels, found him recently featured on the cover of Time magazine – the first author deemed interesting enough to grace it since Stephen King in 2000. Franzen will be in conversation with Geordie Williamson, chief literary critic for The Australian, as part of a co-presentation with the Sydney Writers’ Festival. He and Williamson will discuss his literary influences, the direction of American tastes, and the death of the great social novel. Come to celebrate being a reader or a writer, and summon up your courage for audience Q&A.
Page One: Inside the New York Times is a fly-on-the-wall look at a year's stories and setbacks at the paper once described as "necessary proof of the world's existence". The documentary, directed by Andrew Rossi, ducks under the media desk and investigates how lay-offs, bankruptcies and digital media have dethroned America's imperial Gray Lady. It opens with a bunch of footage about newspaper closures across America, setting up the premise that print journalism's golden age is well and truly over. But make no mistake, Rossi's film is not an epitaph. Rather, it features indignant Times partisans talking entertainingly, broadly and knowledgeably about the future of the printed word in today's wired world. They passionately defend the nobility of newsprint and humanise a medium that may or may not be past its prime. Curiously, the New York Times wrote a terrible review of Page One, decreeing that it was basically a mess. It's tempting to be cynical and point out that all publicity is good publicity and a headline about the New York Times slamming an account of its own newsroom is a punchy attention-grabber. But this is beside the point. The point is that Page One is not well-structured, but given it's an account of a news industry in crisis, this is hardly surprising. There's something fitting about the fact that Rossi's camera flits from topic to topic, columnist to columnist, source to source, effectively reflecting a world where our stories so often come in random but convenient 140-character bytes.
In A Dangerous Method, early psychoanalyst Carl Jung (Michael Fassbender) pioneers Sigmund Freud's new "talk therapy" on "hysterical" patient Sabina Spielrein (Keira Knightley). Jung, Spielrein and Freud would each, later, change the way the modern world thinks about the mind. But as the film opens in late-19th-century Zurich, Jung is an up-and-coming doctor and the Russian Spielrein is committed to his institution, kicking and screaming. Jung begins his seven-year discipleship (read: professional friendship) with Freud (Viggo Mortensen) by correspondence, coming to meet his idol in person. Spielrein heals, soon studying to become a psychoanalyst herself. Persuaded by the Dionysian philosophy of passing, sick psychoanalyst Otto Gross (Vincent Cassel), Jung allows himself to be seduced by Spielrein, who is still effectively fixated on him as her doctor. A Dangerous Method is engaging. Knightley plays Spielrein with real strength and passion, and it's hard not to become engrossed by Mortensen and Fassbinder's rugged, joint exploration of each other's psyches as Freud and Jung. Each sees his subconcious as virgin territory, to be explored and explained. Director David Cronenberg says that the pair were still exploring the ethical boundaries of therapy. But watching a preview of this film with friends and family who work in mental health, they couldn't help but feel unease at the lightness with which Jung's violation of the doctor-patient relationship gets played for a modern audience. Should Jung have known better, considering what was known at the time? "Yes, is the answer." one tells me. Nor is there enough spotlight on Spielrein, who is rarely seen away from the company of Freud or Jung. But the passion of the the three leads is reason enough to explore this turn in the early days of psychology. And A Dangerous Method remains a striking movie that lingers sharply in the mind. https://youtube.com/watch?v=P_y_oW2S65w
Looking for the paw-fect way to spend a Sunday with your dog in Sydney? Head to BrewDog at the South Eveleigh Precinct with your four-legged friend, and you and your fur baby can be immortalised at a Pooch Portrait session. From Sunday, August 11, until the beginning of September, Brewdog patrons can get a complimentary photo portrait of their dog. A cartoonist will also be on deck drawing caricatures and there will even be an instant photo booth, so you and your photogenic Fido can capture some candid memories together. Don't have your own dog but still love giving pats? Head down to the Interchange Pavilion in South Eveleigh on Wednesday, August 28 between midday and 2pm and you'll find an adorable puppy party where you can cuddle up with a pup. For us humans, playing with puppies can reduce stress and promote relaxation, while stimulation and exercise have myriad benefits for the pooch, so it's a win-win all round. Pooch Portraits and Puppy Playtime are both part of South Eveleigh precinct's month-long winter series of events. "We've loved curating such a community-focused and immersive winter program that really showcases the vibrant precinct of South Eveleigh," Jamie Toko, Portfolio Manager of Mirvac said. "We encourage locals and visitors to enjoy the precinct and take the opportunity to eat and drink at some of our fantastic restaurants and cafes, explore our gardens and community spaces and tour the historic buildings, all while learning something new via these unique activities."
A new small bar is set to open in Crows Nest this week, and it's specialising in something a little different for the lower north shore: cognac. Hendriks is set to open this Friday, August 21, with more than 30 cognacs from around the globe, as well as cognac-based cocktails and a 100 bottle-strong wine list. Hendricks is run by Crows Nest locals Jakob Overduin and James Knight (who own a creative agency in the same building as the bar) and named after Overduin's father — a big lover of the bar's namesake booze. The duo has signed on Edward Wright as the venue's bar manager, who previously worked as a personal butler at The Goring in London serving some seriously high-profile customers. [caption id="attachment_780597" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Steven Woodburn[/caption] For those who are already into cognac, the small bar offers some extra special drops, such as Frapin VIP XO Grande Champagne, Hennessy XO and a 20-year-old Frapin Millésime Premier Cru Grande Champagne. These nips will cost you a pretty penny, though, ranging from $32–42 a piece. Those new to the French brandy can test the waters with one of the 24 cocktails, including three made with Hennessy: Hendriks (Cointreau, Fireball, fresh orange and pineapple), the Between The Sheets (rum, orange curaçao and lemon juice) and The Major (grapefruit and lemon juice, house-spiced honey syrup, basil and chipotle powder). Apart from the cognac-based sips, you'll find riffs on classics like an old fashioned and a gingerbread espresso martini. [caption id="attachment_780606" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Steven Woodburn[/caption] The extensive wine menu also offers a whopping 23 by the glass — and even more on Sundays, when early-birds can choose to open any bottle to enjoy by the pour. To pair with the wine, there's a six-cheese board for two, along with charcuterie and small plates like mac 'n' cheese croquettes, cheeseburger spring rolls, chilli con carne empanadas and duck pâté with shiraz butter. While the snacks are all good and well, the highlight is the giant jaffles, which are made using loaves from Crows Nest local St Malo Bakery. Choose from the cognac-marinated mushroom; cognac-caramelised shallots and cheese; beef patty with aged cheddar; and a chicken, porcini and speck jaffle with cognac comté for between $18–23. All of these are then drizzled with brandy for good measure. Banoffee and Nutella dessert jaffles bring a sweet touch to the menu, too. Find Hendriks Cognac & Wine at 5/29 Holtermann Street, Crows Nest from Friday, August 21. It'll be open from 12–10pm Tuesday–Saturday and 12–8pm Sunday. Images: Steven Woodburn
PJ Harvey is a musical darling of long-standing reputation, first making a name for herself in the early nineties as a raven-haired siren with a crooked smile and a heart-shaped face. Over the twenty-odd years she's been in business, her music has evolved in ever more stunning and heart-wrenching directions, with her most recent output, 2011's Let England Shake, being the fastest selling and certainly one of the most praised albums of her entire career. Recorded in a 19th century church on a cliff-top in Dorset, Harvey's home county, Let England Shake earned her the prestigious Mercury Music Prize for the second time since 2001's Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea. This made her the only artist to ever receive the award twice, beating out the likes of James Blake and Adele much to the consternation of some very foolish folk. Now, PJ Harvey returns to Australia for the first time since 2008 as the musical headline for this year's Sydney Festival. Her Sydney Festival performance will feature many of the songs on Let England Shake as well as work from her past albums, all of which are worth a listen. She will be joined on the stage of the magnificent State Theatre with long-time collaborators Mick Harvey, John Parish and Jean-Marc Butty. The performances are likely to be some of the best you will ever see, so we highly recommend getting along to see her if you've got your wits about you. https://youtube.com/watch?v=Va0w5pxFkAM
Spare a thought for the St George OpenAir Cinema team, the folks behind one of Sydney's favourite outdoor cinema spots. When picking their summertime lineup each year, they're battling fierce visual competition: Mrs Macquaries Point's spectacular panoramic view of the city. Accordingly, every movie that graces the cinema's big screen has to hold its own against the stunning sights glittering away behind it. Don't worry — boasting everything from Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep in the newspaper trade to Greta Gerwig's latest effort as a director, their 2018 program achieves that feat. Kicking off on January 7 and running until February 17, the outdoor cinema's new season commences with the Australian premiere of The Post, which sees America's nicest actor and the Oscars' most nominated actress join forces for filmmaker Steven Spielberg. It's just one of the movies making sure it'll be starry not only in the sky above, but on the 350-square-metre screen rising from the harbour. And with lineup featuring the likes of Daniel Day-Lewis in Paul Thomas Anderson's fashion flick Phantom Thread, Margot Robbie hitting the ice in I, Tonya, Jessica Chastain playing a poker kingpin in Molly's Game, the first film directed by Aussie actor Simon Baker, and a session of Star Wars: Episode VIII — The Last Jedi under the stars, it well and truly delivers. The list goes on during OpenAir's 43-night-season, thanks to previews of Gerwig's aforementioned Lady Bird before it hits regular theatres; the latest flick from Veep's Armando Iannucci, The Death of Stalin; Guillermo del Toro's monster romance, The Shape of Water; and Ridley Scott's newly re-cast kidnapping drama All the Money in the World. Or, revisit Blade Runner 2049 in scenic surroundings, watch Liam Neeson wreak havoc on a train in The Commuter, or settle in for 50 Shades Freed (hey, if you've been keeping up with the franchise so far, you might as well catch the final movie). Off-screen, expect culinary stars to join the fold as well, with OpenAir partnering with Matt Moran's Chiswick. They'll be delivering a signature menu to hungry movie-goers each and every night during the cinema's 2018 run — but with 2000 patrons expected every evening, expect them to be busy. Speaking of, when tickets become available at 9am on Monday, December 11, they're likely to go quick. Last year, more than 30,000 tickets sold within the first 30 minutes of sale. St George Openair Cinema 2018 runs from January 7 to February 17. Tickets are on sale at 9am on Monday, December 11. Visit the website for updates, or follow them on Facebook and Twitter.
The writing of Arthur Miller still feels exhilarating. Working in the mid-20th century (sometimes while playing husband to Marilyn Monroe), he crafted American suburban dramas that expound on the great incompatibilities of family, capitalism, morality and social responsibility. In that way, they're basically the postwar generation's Breaking Bad. And, as we presume will be the case with BB, his works have a lot of wit, wisdom and heartache to impart to audiences 60 years on. All My Sons, Miller's first commercially successful play, follows a neighbourhood reunion in the American mid-west. The joy and nostalgia of the moment is darkened by secrets, upsets and deceptions planted long ago. Everything revolves around the household of Joe Keller (Marshall Napier) and his wife, Kate (Toni Scanlan). His grown-up son, Chris (Andrew Henry) is back in the house to greet Anne (Meredith Penman), who may as well be family — she's Chris's childhood friend, his MIA brother's former girlfriend and the daughter of Joe's former business partner. She'll be even further embedded in the family if Chris's planned marriage proposal is accepted. There are obstacles: Kate still believes her son Larry will return from war and she won't entertain notions otherwise. Anne's brother, George (Anthony Gooley), is on his way with a message from his jailed father. The endless stream of neighbours traversing the Kellers' lawns has a way of stirring the pot. And there are those pesky, swirling secrets. This production of All My Sons is inaugurating a brand-new theatre space in Sydney, the Eternity Playhouse, the new home of the Darlinghurst Theatre Company. It's great to see Sydney's theatre scene expanding so — the venue (created with the City of Sydney and Tonkin Zulaikha Greer architects) looks smashing and this show is an auspicious beginning. While the production is quite staid — period costume, literal staging, none of that 'director's theatre' jazz that so irks some people about recent projects at STC and Belvoir — it's done very, very well. And it's right that there should be a space for that sort of traditional, playwright-centred theatre in Sydney (though that's not all that's going on at the Darlinghurst Theatre Company. The 2014 season includes a show titled The Motherf**ker in the Hat, so it's not all that stuffy). It's the performances from the stellar cast that make All My Sons so exceptionally riveting. The permutations of characters on stage are constantly shifting, and with each actor's entrance comes a new, different wave of energy that perks you up in your seat. It helps that this dynamic is hardwired into the script, with characters constantly gossiping about whoever's not present so as to prod your anticipation. Napier is a commanding presence in a role that recalls his work as that other American patriarch, Big Daddy, earlier in the year. A touch of vulnerability is essential to pulling off Joe, however, and Napier handles that balance with finesse. Scanlan is an equal wonder as Kate, who always knows more and exerts more control than you think she can — until the moment she can't. It's a big cast, and under the direction of Iain Sinclair, no-one lets the side down. I could take or leave the production and sound design, by Luke Ede and Nate Edmondson respectively. Two gaping entrances in the back wall prove a confusing and pointless distraction (if they're a permanent feature of the configuration, well, good luck with that, future Eternity set designers), while the cascading white clapboard background does not inspire the imagination as was intended. The sound design often interferes in an obvious fashion, with the swelling music in the show's climax the worst offender. Nevertheless, All My Sons is a joy. Go see a timeless tale and welcome a theatre honouring Eternity. Image by Brett Boardman.
The history of opal mining in Lightning Ridge dates back to the 1880s, when miners discovered valuable gemstones hidden beneath the earth's surface. You can get a thorough education on these mineral-like creations at The Big Opal – the first opal mine licensed to open to the public. While there are stunning handcrafted pieces to admire in the gallery, taking a tour underground provides a more immersive perspective. With this place operating as a working mine for much of the year, wandering the sandstone tunnels offers a glimpse into this century-old treasure trove. You can even try your hand at fossicking while you're there, too. Image: John, Flickr
Sydney's much loved Marrickville nursery PlantGirl is ushering in spring with a massive sale across its entire in-store and online range of low-maintenance beauties. Every plant in the place (and on the website) will be 20-percent off for one week from Monday, September 7 through midnight on Friday, September 11. In store, you can get your hands on ficus ruby, fiddle leaf figs and large dracaena janet craig plants. Online, there are spider plants, birds of paradise, dragon tails and golden barrel cacti — to name a few. PlantGirl is run by inner west local Felicity Keep, who wants to add a bit of quirk to your indoor plant game. Customers can mix-and-match any combo of plant and pot, with the goal of creating a highly styled, personalised gift or cute new green baby for yourself — with predominately hard-to-kill plants on offer. And the nursery is now open daily, so you can get your plant fix any day of the week. For those still after delivery, PlantGirl continues to offer door-to-door service within a ten-kilometre radius of their Marrickville shop, which includes all of the inner west and the CBD, plus a chunk of the eastern suburbs and a bit of North Sydney and the lower north shore, too. You can check out the map on the store's website. If you order before 11am, you can opt for same-day delivery on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. But, when the weekend rolls around, the only place you'll be able to get your hands on these goods is in store. The PlantGirl Spring Sale runs from Monday, September 7–Friday, September 11, both in-store and online.
It's time to step back in time with a wine in hand at Rewind in the Vines, a new festival that combines the goodness of the music of yesteryear with delicious local food and wine. ARIA Hall of Fame artist — and crooner of everyone's favourite equine ballad — Daryl Braithwaite will headline, alongside legendary Daddy Cool and Mondo Rock front man Ross Wilson. Ghetto-dubsters Bootleg Rascal and a host of local and up-and-coming bands will round out the lineup. The festival takes place on Easter Sunday at the Miranda Winery in Griffith and, alongside some of Australia's premier musical talent, will showcase delightful food and wine from the local Riverina area. Pre-sale has already sold out, and first release general admission is nearly gone too, so make sure you hop to it and snap up some tickets ASAP.
Celebrated in Mexico and the USA, Cinco de Mayo is a holiday that fits in seamlessly with our ongoing obsession with everything Mexican, so we partnered with Corona to throw Cinco de Mayo celebrations in Sydney's best Mexican bars. Here's how the night went down.
Contemporary Korean rooftop bar Jung Sung is serving up one of the city's most luxe bottomless lunches every Saturday and Sunday. Now running at the Chippendale venue every weekend for the foreseeable future, this decadent spread offers your choice of four- or six-course meals paired with bottomless drinks. You won't find your typical bottomless brunch items — think: charcuterie boards and arancini balls — on the menu at this lunch. Instead, this degustation features Moreton Bay bugs served two ways, raw tuna salad and MB9+ grade wagyu beef. For $120 per person, you can enjoy the tuna; your choice of wagyu beef, crispy pork or spring lamb; the catch of the day served with white asparagus; and a lemon basil dessert — plus a cocktail on arrival and two hours of endless prosecco, house wine and beer. For an extra $40 a head, you can elevate the meal to a six-course affair and add on the Moreton Bay bugs and sweet corn with soy sauce caramelised pistachio. If all of this still isn't up to scratch for your weekend lunch, you can also add on matched wines from Jung Sung's wine list for 50-percent off the experience's usual price. That's $25 for the four-course lunch, or $35 for the six-course meal. Images: Leigh Griffiths
New Works by Emerging Artists 2 focuses on homey things. Windows, knit fabrics, carpentry and books. At the centre of Kevin Platt’s Arms and Ends is a freestanding, round stained-glass window, Western Window. It's windmill-like, with purple, orange and improbable black panes pointing inward. Nearby, Ritual (being forgotten) sets a book open on a lecturn with one name written over and over in blue ink, then crossed out. The motif of Western Window repeats, eye-like, in his other work. Daniel Edwards’ boho-homo-hobo has something of the grandad-chic to its collection. Woollen tapestries knitting out bearded men (and one man-less beard), a fireplace popping up in the middle and an arrangement of heraldic devices. Flickr Bohemian stands out, a woollen tapestry of the torso of a thinly-dressed woman. From the shawl she is wearing, fringes flow off the frame at the bottom into three dimensions of scraggly, multicoloured life. In Go Kill Everybody and Come Back Alone Joseph Breikers puts cowboy motifs against footage of rural idylls, while his sculputre Surtur Rising gives rise to the rare occasion of listing ‘googly eyes’ in an art catalogue. There's a map on the wall in Zine-maker Vanessa Berry’s Biblioburbia. It's a masterpiece: a gargantuan exercise in community mapping which fills the back wall of the gallery, where Sydney's libraries are laid out with ink, images and coloured lending cards — mirroring her blog's similar progress from stack to stack. Each of these thirty one libraries is sketched in the same black and white as the coast, train lines and sea monsters that populate her vision of the city. Fragmentary vignettes are typed out alongside. Berry works with the voice of Lemony Snicket, but has stolen her passion for Sydney's forgotten history from an oral historian. Simon Yates has also proffered Bookface in collaboration with Berry. It features interesting books laid out on a set of shelves, that on closer inspection turn out to be 2001-like fakes. They have the weight of balsa wood, and only the feel of book-shaped things. Firstdraft is open Wed-Sun, 12-6. Image of Biblioburbia courtesy of Vanessa Berry.
In the lead up to the Mardi Gras parade weekend, the Australian Design Centre is holding a makers' market centred on the theme of adornment. On Saturday, February 25, Palmer Street will become a mecca for lovers of all things original and handmade, as 20 local designers and creators set up shop for the day at Adorned Makers Market. Among the wares available for sale will be bespoke bags by Karmme, handcrafted jewellery by VAN EWYK Studio and nature-inspired clothing by alexis, eclectic. While you browse the goodies on offer, be sure to sample some handmade gyoza and fresh yakitori from Japanese-inspired food truck Shisho Fine. And, if after a series of successful purchases you're keen to check out more creativity, check out ADC's current exhibitions Chili Philly: Crochet Social and Annie Gobel: Edge In. Both further explore the concept of adornment in intriguing ways.
Sometimes the arts and sport are pitted against each other. But next month, the two will unite in the award-winning new romantic comedy, Become The One, which is playing at Riverside Theatres from Thursday, May 19 till Saturday, May 21. The play explores the relationship between Tom — a celebrated AFL player on the cusp of retirement from sport — and his new love interest, Noah. As the relationship intensifies, the characters are forced to question their identities and consider how they'll manage their private lives in the public sphere. Become the One flips the script on a stereotypical closeted sportsperson and asks audiences to consider a scenario in which it's the partner, not the athlete, that is pushing to dismantle heteronormativity within Australian sport. It'll make you laugh, potentially cry and you'll likely question what you would be willing to sacrifice for the one you love. Keen to check it out? 'Become The One' will play from Thursday, May 19 till Saturday, May 21 at Riverside Theatres. For more information and to book, visit the website. Images: Jodie Hutchinson.
If you have plans this Saturday, take a raincheck. AdHoc.FM, Preservation Records and Rose Quartz are throwing one hell of a night at Dirty Shirlows, a warehouse that holds cultural events and gigs that are for people looking for something a little left of field. The name of it is ASTRALWERKS, a night of cosmic and psychedelic music to send you straight into the stratosphere. The set list is as follows: DEEP MAGIC (Los Angeles) SunAraw Preservation PIMMON Preservation Stunned SECRET BIRDS No Kings Sonoptik ANGEL EYES Melbourne NotNotFun FOUR DOOR Naked On The Vague + Holy Balm + Guest Djs: Tom Ellard (Severed Heads), DJ Preservation and Ears Have Ears DJs til late From the former editors of Pitchfork’s experimental blog Altered Zones, Ad Hoc (http://adhoc.fm/) is a Brooklyn-based, 100% independent, daily music and visual culture publication that brings together music bloggers, writers and active imaginations from all across our global grassroots community. It aims to expose pockets of DIY culture the world-over, strengthen ties across countries, and foster scenes that are working in the shadows cast by the gleam of traditional cultural focus. In line with this, Astralwerks compiles some of Australia - and the world’s – leading practitioners of mind-bending and forward-thinking music. All proceeds from the event go towards the Ad Hoc project. Rose Quartz (http://rosequartz.blogspot.com/) are five dudes from Australia and New Zealand. They started blogging about great new music at the start of 2007 and since have hit the publish button over 1500 times, put on gigs in New York, the UK, Australia and New Zealand and been one of the founding members of Pitchfork’s collaborative sister blog, Altered Zones. If you want to know what everyone else will be listening to in months to come, this will be the place to hear it.
There's something oh-so-relaxing about staring at the sea; however, even when Sydney is basking in glorious sunshine, we can't always all hang out on the beach. Or near rivers or in pools for that matter — but you can head to the Ocean Film Festival World Tour. Between March 3–11, it'll unleash a cinematic feast of water-focused wonders onto the big screen — at the Hayden Orpheum between Tuesday, March 3–Thursday, March 5, Chippendale's Seymour Centre from Wednesday, March 4–Thursday, March 5, and the Randwick Ritz between Tuesday, March 10–Thursday, March 11. Film-wise, viewers will spend time both above and below the ocean's surface thanks to a compilation of shorts from around the world. Expect to chase big waves, explore a range of sea life and get a hefty ocean rush, plus a heap of other sea adventures. The program is united by a love of the ocean, an appreciation of the creatures who dwell in its waters and a curiosity to explore the substance that comprises more than two-thirds of the earth. It's the next best thing to diving in, all without getting wet. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5BZV6IoSX8&feature=emb_logo Image: Travis Burke.
Iconic? To say the least. Blockbuster? Yes and yes. Summer is coming boys and girls and what better way to while away those melting January days than by swinging open those glass doors to the MCA and sneaking in for some AC comfort and a little celebrity self-indulgence. Annie Leibovitz's photographs are dreams upon dreams. Sinking. Beautiful. All that is sumptuous and glossy and far, far away. Not just a survey of Annie's infamous celebrity pics, this globe-trotting touring exhibition, Annie Leibovitz: A Photographer's Life, 1990–2005, serves us with lashings of the artist's private life on the side. Facebook not voyeuristic enough for you? We've got your poison. Personal photographs of Leibovitz's sprawling tribe of family and friends as well as chronicles of major family peaks and troughs like the birth of her three daughters and the deaths of her father and longtime lover, Susan Sontag. Its vanity fare, baby. And we are lapping at the bowl. *Free entry for members and children under 12
To celebrate truffle season, NOMAD has launched a limited-time brunch menu to celebrate the fancy fungus. Running every Sunday for four weeks from June 12, all dishes are served with approximately two grams of Manjimup black truffle from WA, so you can really itch that seasonal truffle craving. Start with a three-cheese manoush ($25), followed by ham hock hash browns with baked eggs and wood-roasted tomatoes ($19). A smokey date glazed bacon ($22); wood-roasted mushrooms with Jersusalem artichokes and pinenuts ($32); and a warm French cheese from Bruny Island cheeses served with honeycomb and crudites ($65) serve as lazy grazing nibbles. The brunch banquet is finished with an ice-cream sandwich, featuring olive oil ice cream and pecan cookies ($19). For those looking to make the brunch boozy, there is a range of specialty cocktails available for additional purchase. Think: NOMAD's signature bloody mary ($22), a seasonal bellini ($18), mimosas ($35) and espresso martinis ($22).
Not content with bringing rum distilling back to Sydney's inner city, making batches of it in a 1200-litre still and serving up more than 150 different varieties at its onsite bar, Brix is adding another aspect to its operations — custom 20-litre casks that Sydneysiders can help design and make (and then drink, obviously) themselves. Fresh from opening back in August, the Surry Hills distillery has launched a barrel program, which enables rum lovers to whip up their own concoction. Customers will choose their own barrel style (including lightly or heavily charred, ex-whiskey, Chardonnay or Shiraz) and create a rum to their preferred taste. Next, they'll help head distiller Shane Casey during the distillation process, before filling the barrel themselves. The cask is then signed, sealed, stamped, stacked and stored at the Bourke Street spot, for a minimum of two years. As the rum fully matures across that period, barrel owners can pop in for a taste and sample whenever they like — and choose when they think the spirit is ready to drink. As you might've noticed, there are a few caveats. Firstly, you do have to be willing to wait two years to take your boozy barrel home with you. Secondly, you'll need a lazy $3,500 + GST lying around, although the price does include excise. If you're patient, cashed-up and raring for your own rum, you'll also receive with a Brix tour and tasting for four people with your barrel purchase, plus 10 percent off at the bar for life. Find Brix Distillers at 352 Bourke Street, Surry Hills. Its regular opening hours at 12pm–midnight Monday–Saturday, and 12pm–10pm Sunday.
Recently we have been truly spoilt by the number of DIY festivals popping up Australia-wide. Sparked only a few years ago, arguably by the team at Secret Garden Festival, the boutique festival scene is now at an all time high. Goulburn-based newcomer Marmalade Skies however, finds a unique grounding for its first year by being completely crowdfunded. Earlier this year they launched their Pozible campaign which saw them raise above $22,000, surpassing their intended budget by over $7000. Unfortunately the team have faced their first festival production hurdle; yesterday the team issued a statement that during a site inspection the Goulburn Mulwaree Council — alongside the local fire and police department — have decided to postpone the festival due to fire hazards threatening the area throughout December. New dates will be announced within a week. Refunds have been offered, but the team have pleaded with guests to give them a chance "Once we announce the new date we will set up a refund option for those no-longer able to come; but for those that can, we ask you, please, to keep the faith a little while longer. You have invested in upcoming, young, Australian music, in a new production company, in a fresh new face on the Australian festival scene. Please allow us to prove you right. We at Marmalade Skies Festival are still confident of putting on an incredible party just, this time, on the other side of summer." But the festival organisers shouldn't be too concerned yet. Marmalade Skies has seen an overwhelming amount of support and popularity, even before the lineup was announced — teams of local graphic designers and many other volunteers have been offering to assist the festival organisers for months. It is truly becoming the 'festival for the people' the team hoped it would be. The all-Australian lineup — featuring the likes of Fishing, Kilter and Luen — is one of the summer's most underrated (and largely unknown) lineups we've seen. Stay tuned for Marmalade Skies' new date announcement over the next week.
In May, the Sydney Opera House launched UnWrapped, a performance series that highlights smaller Australian artists, independent companies and producers and allows them to further develop their shows. And now it's back with a new collection of works for an August instalment. This time round, three performances will showcase a range of Australia's natural talents. Lucy Guerin's dance work Split is one not to miss as Guerin's stellar choreography scored her a Helpmann Award this year. Ich Nibber Dibber (a trio consisting of Zoe Coombs Marr, Natalie Rose and Mish Grigor) blends drama, comedy and political commentary in a collaborative performance based upon a decade of friendship. Finally, Australian singer-songwriter Mojo Juju will present an intimate performance from her newest album, underlining her Indigenous heritage and the stories that have inspired her writing. The best part? The tickets are less than fifty dollars. That's a cheap date night at the Opera House. UNWRAPPED AUGUST PROGRAM Split — Wednesday, August 8 – Saturday, August 11 at 7.30pm + Sunday, August 12 at 5pm Ich Nibber Dibber — Wednesday, August 15 – Saturday, August 18 at 7pm + Sunday, August 19 at 5pm Mojo Jujo: Native Tongue — Sunday, August 19 at 7.30pm Image: Document Photography.
Titus Andronicus is, as this performance's director Kate Revz points out, "gods and monsters" stuff, the kind of thing you have to step up to. Classical in its unabashed gross-outs as well as setting, a fictionalised imperial Rome, this is an elemental play with a plot that plays out in a series of horrifying events the logic of which is put brutally before the audience. The play operates with regard to invention and internal consistency rather than to relatability or immersivity: it is firmly in the realm of the spectacular. But here we are in the 21st century, and Cry Havoc's aim is "the pursuit of fearless interpretation, collaboration and re-birth of canonical texts of the human experience," so things here are played a lot more specifically pitiable than they would have been for audiences more used to allegory. And the playing is rather great. The actors are clearly all very, very comfortable with the text — there's not any of that awkward 'here is my Shakespeare voice' that detracts from so many performances of his plays, and the physicality of the individual characters and of the ensemble scenes communicates mood very clearly. The audience was laughing where they were supposed to, wincing where they were meant to and generally thoroughly caught up in what was going on. I had some doubts about where and how some of these atmospheres were created and reactions provoked, though. There seemed to be a lack of justification for why some of the horrors were played straight and others camped up to the max, for one thing. Also, the viscerality of some of the violence, the abstraction of the choreographed interstitial scenes and the thematic flinging and daubing of brightly coloured powder going on at decisive moments did not really do one another any favours. This is an interesting attempt at a difficult play. Cry Havoc have made an admirable effort to produce theatre with contemporary relevance that doesn't get stuck at the kitchen sink and that does classical without presuming scholarship. In the end, though, it pushes both the ultraviolence of the ancients and the contemporary relevance that has in terms of family and war a little too hard, and the audience ends up sold a little bit short.
Wishing you had time for a quick country getaway, but just can’t fit it into your ridiculously crazy schedule? Take a deep breath and write the words 'Taste Orange Food and Wine Festival' in your diary. Orange’s growers and wine-makers know that we city-folk can’t always make room for the 257km journey to their town. So, in conjunction with the Watsons Bay Boutique Hotel, they’re doing us a little favour and coming to Sydney for a day. On Sunday, May 25, Watsons Bay’s Robertson Park will transform into a mini-Orange (with the benefit of Harbour views!) filled with food stalls offering the best of local produce, from irresistible cheeses to dips to antipasti, which you’ll be able to pair up with one (or many) of a hundred or so wines. By way of entertainment, there’ll be acoustic music from The Silver Lining and an old-fashioned, country-style apple bobbing comp. Keep your day at an appropriately lackadaisical pace by catching the ferry there and back. Taste Orange Food and Wine Festival is part of Aussie Wine Month.
While it doesn't seem like earth will be home to a real-life Jurassic Park anytime soon, you can visit something close to it in the Blue Mountains these summer holidays. Jump on the Scenic Cableway and journey 66 millions years back in time as you descend into the Jamison Valley. Here, you'll find a fossil-filled alley and roaring dinosaurs scattered throughout the ancient rainforest. The life-sized T-rex, triceratops, stegosaurus and more all make up Scenic World's new openair Dinosaur Valley experience, which is running until Sunday, January 31. It's definitely an experience kids would enjoy, but there's nothing saying adults won't either — even if it's just another excuse to get out of the city and explore the wonders of the Blue Mountains. You'll probably learn a think or two about earth's prehistoric residents, too, with facts scattered throughout the exhibition and knowledgeable guides on hand. When you've finished exploring, you can take the world's steepest passenger train, the Scenic Railway, out of the valley. And, if you want even more excitement, you can also grab a Scenic Pass, which includes the glass-bottomed Scenic Skyway — an invigorating ride on the 270-metre high cablecar that takes in some of the mountains' most spectacular vistas.
It can be assumed that whoever started the old wives' tale warning against pairing whisky and oysters just wanted to keep the secret to themselves. The Wild Rover — and those who have ventured through the bar's green door — know better. The Surry Hills bar is so into oysters it's bringing back its entire week of celebrations dedicated to them for a third year. Its famous lamb sausage roll will be forgotten for the week with a special menu that gives oysters the limelight — and from Monday, October 28 through to Saturday, November 2, you'll be able to slurp down a dozen fresh oysters for $15 (which is just $1.25 a pop). For the week, the bar will be serving up a special list of whisky-heavy cocktails all featuring Talisker. The exact drinks have no yet been released, but are expected to be posted on the event page imminently. The mollusc-filled week will also kick off with an oyster and whisky tasting from 6.30–8pm on Monday, October 28. For $30, you'll be able to taste your way through five different Talisker whiskies and slurp down some oysters while chatting to NSW oyster farmer Paul Ryder. Then, the week will wrap up with a two nights of live tunes with The Flying Seamen on Friday, November 1 and Saturday, November 2.
Creators Modular and Carriageworks have spun together a Vivid Sydney event of seriously epic proportions. Between Friday 6 and Monday 9 June, Carriageworks will be transformed into a music-art-food extravaganza, to be headlined by The Pet Shop Boys in the only Australian shows of their 2013/14 multimedia Electric tour. Plus, there'll be a one-off appearance from bizarre yet beautiful experimenters Liars, and a full-day showcase presented by LA indie label Wild Records, whose current darlings include Gizzelle, The Delta Bombers and Luis and the Wildfires. Innovative culinary delights will be provided by Sydney favourite Porteno in pop-up mode — Friday to Sunday from 5pm and Monday from midday. We had a good ol' chat with the lads from Porteno ahead of the weekend, head over here for a sneak peek at the event with rock and roll chefs Ben Milgate and Elvis Abrahanowicz. https://youtube.com/watch?v=gn-ofIAbv-w
What's the best job title in the world? That's hard to say, but Puppy Raiser surely ranks highly. 'Nice work if you can get it', you may well cry, but such a gig does exist — and it exists for a very good cause. Guide Dogs NSW is searching for its new intake of volunteer puppy foster parents who will care for the winter litter of labrador pups destined to be the next generation of working service animals. Volunteers typically foster a guide dog puppy for a year, providing a safe and loving environment as well as basic training, ensuring their fur baby grows up socialised and ready to begin their formal guide dog training just after their first birthday. At the Puppy Raiser Open Day, set to be held at the Liverpool Golf Club on Saturday, June 22, prospective fosterers can learn about what it takes to nurture a guide dog in waiting. There will also be training demonstrations that will reveal firsthand the kind of vital basics successful foster parents will need to teach their pup, including sitting while being groomed, behaving inside the home and walking confidently on a leash. These may sound like fairly standard skills (and they are), but without them, the golden-coated youngsters won't be able to add the extraordinary repertoire of abilities that will one day make them a life-changing assistant for someone with a visual impairment. "We are looking for people that are home most of the time and who are interested in putting effort into training and socialising the dog," said Guide Dogs NSW's Puppy Development Advisor My Lindqvist. "What you get in return is a life-changing experience and knowing that you've positively contributed to your community." Guide Dogs NSW takes care of the usual expenses of pet ownership, including providing food, veterinary access, and flea and tick prevention. A dedicated Puppy Development Adviser is also assigned to every Puppy Raiser to offer guidance and answer any questions. So, if you reckon you have what it takes to bring up a four-legged, wet-nosed superhero, make sure you book a session at Guide Dog NSW's Puppy Raiser Open Day.
Bear Witness is the artistic output of Ehren Thomas, a multimedia artist, DJ and filmmaker from Ottawa Canada. He remixes appropriated images and sound to create video assemblages that speak of his interest in the portrayal of aboriginal people in mainstream media. A member of the Cayuga Six Nations that comprise the Iroquois Confederacy, Bear Witness examines not only his own history but the way in which popular culture and art history leave their mark on a broader indigenous identity, without any notions of finger-pointing. As part of the free arts program of this year's Sydney Festival, Bear Witness will collaborate with community members of the local Darug Nation to create a new video based piece as part of an art exhibition titled The Only Good NDN. The works will be shown in the recently founded Parramatta Artists Studios.
A pulsing, undeniable groove bursts forth from this South African sextet led by London-based saxophonist Shabaka Hutchings, an acolyte of the legendary Sun Ra Arkestra. Their album Wisdom of Elders was recorded in a single day, which tells you everything you need to know about this ensemble's connectedness and singular vision. Exploring the vagaries and intricacies of modern jazz and boldly going towards an Afrofuturist future, this is music that will challenge, surprise and entrance you – and will make you get up and dance. Image: Leeroy Jason
Chris Town has traveled the world and collected, well, bits and pieces. Posters, bandages, ticket stubs, cigarette packets and bodily fluids are all assembled in collages that remind one of the horror vacui of some Grateful Dead posters. I liken Chris Town’s work to the 'Poubelles' of Arman, a Nouveau Realist artist from 1960s Paris. Arman and his friends worked to promote what Camille Bryen called the “adventure of the object”. Arman, and Town in turn, are indebted simultaneously to the Cubists who championed the use of shallow space, and the Dadaists who constantly suggested the absurd. Perhaps Town’s work has not really conceptually furthered the ideas of Arman, but there is something to be curious about here. The use of collage allows Town to suggest the disorientation that capitalist subjects experience as they rely more and more on objects to construct their sense of identity and place. Town’s works are dense, colourful accumulations. Go down to China Heights on Friday, enjoy an early evening beer, and let Town lead you through his accumulated history.
This June, Sydney's Taylor Square will be transformed with an explosion of colour, as it plays host to a vibrant inflatable art installation celebrating four decades of Mardi Gras. Titled 40 Years Of Love, the work was today announced by Lord Mayor Clover Moore as the winner of the City of Sydney-supported Taylor Square Public Art Project. The eye-catching piece is the work of local artists Matthew Aberline and Maurice Goldberg, who've described it as a "big, bold and sassy artwork based on concepts of public protest, joyous celebration, community activation and engagement". The pair's colourful installation will be draped around a big aluminium truss, creating a light-filled pavilion for the public to enjoy. Mardi Gras CEO Terese Casu said the artwork would celebrate an important part of Sydney's ongoing story. "With the work's vibrant energy and complexity, we share that Mardi Gras isn't a singular thing but a cacophony of diverse ideas, people, histories, politics and expressions," she said. 40 Years Of Love will grace the square for three months, after it's unveiled on the anniversary of the first Mardi Gras, on Sunday, June 24.
It's not every week that starts with a mini food truck festival for your Monday lunch. Get out of the office and nab some delicious food truck fare in Martin Place, thanks to the bighearted team behind A Taste of Harmony. A not-for-profit organisation celebrating the rich cultural diversity of Australian workplaces, A Taste of Harmony are keen to celebrate you and your coworkers through tasty, tasty food. They're gearing up for a huge initiative in March, and have launched this mini food truck festival in the lead-up. Grab some Monday eats from the culturally diverse likes of Urban Pasta Food Truck, Eat Art Truck, Cantina Movil, Jafe Jaffles and Thai in a Box between 12 and 2pm in Martin Place — maybe share some with those coworkers of yours. If you're taken by the idea of celebrating cultural diversity in your workplace through noms, you can get amongst A Taste of Harmony's big event running March 17-23. Workplaces around Australia — big to small, culture websites to major banks — are being encouraged to register and hold a work lunch made up of different cultural cuisines. No better way to bond with your workmates and high five your roots than over a feast of bánh mì, shakshouka and rookworst. Get amongst it.
It's a decades-old inner west tradition: watching the Newtown Jets' home footy game, from up on the hill at Henson Park, on a Saturday afternoon each July. But things have been dialled up a few notches over the years and it now coincides with the annual Beer, Footy & Food Festival, which celebrates its fourth outing on Saturday, July 27. A winter ritual for footy-lovers, foodies and everyone in between, the event is set to dish up a huge afternoon of family-friendly fun. As well as that famed game of rugby league, expect a celebration of another inner west triumph — craft beer. Keep that thirst in check with drops from over 20 different brewers, including Grifter, Wayward, Batch, Yulli's Brews, Young Henrys, Frenchies, Willie The Boatman and a heap more. Organisers have roped in a good number of food vendors, too. Get ready to enjoy snacks form the likes of Mary's, Arepa, The Oxford Tavern, Rosa Cienfuegos and Salt Beef Beigel, among others. And kidults and littlies alike are sure to be kept busy with a petting zoo, obstacle course and even a couple of jumping castles. As an added bonus, dogs are welcome, too.
Even the most adventurous of foodies have their limits, don't they? New documentary Bugs aims to put that idea to the test — and to make audiences squirm in the process. You don't make a film about two researchers from René Redzepi's experimental Nordic Food Lab exploring the culinary value and environmental benefits of eating insects without causing a reaction, after all. The eye-opening doco is one of 12 titles set to screen at the Antenna Documentary Film Festival from October 11 to 16 in Sydney . Regardless of how experimental your eating habits are, the flicks unveiled should whet the appetite of factual cinema fans thanks to a wealth of thought-provoking content. When the fest isn't trying to get viewers pondering their next meal, it'll be inspiring discussions about everything from a ladies man living with HIV to the impact of nuclear waste in a small Russian town. The former comes courtesy of moving opening night film The Charro of Toluquilla, while the latter informs documentary City 40, which examines the people trying to survive in one of the most contaminated places on earth. And for a change of pace, anyone keen on an Italian holiday without the cost of an airfare should put Rome-set road movie A Present from the Past on their must-see list. Aussie effort A Mother and A Gun, which has its world premiere at the festival, is also certain to get attendees talking as it explores the life of Shelly Rubin, the woman who fell in love with the leader of the Jewish Defense League. Elsewhere, environmental effort The Islands and the Whales, a tribute screening of Abbas Kiarostami's Close Up, and the latest chronicle of Bobby Sands and his famous hunger strike — as previously brought to the screen in Steve McQueen-Michael Fassbender collaboration Hunger — also feature among Antenna's list of films. The fest's 2016 lineup looks as varied as it is interesting. Images: Lloyd Dirks, Tom Truong.
You probably recognise the above image of Daniel Kaluuya's terrified face, it's been floating around the internet in meme form over the past couple of weeks. It's also a still from Get Out—the highly anticipated new film from Universal Pictures released in cinemas on May 4. Watch the truly terrifying trailer if you haven't yet. The film has accrued a rare 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and critics around the world are biding time until they get the chance to see this gripping thriller, also a timely, provocative commentary on the world's current state of race relations. The story follows a young, African-American man (Daniel Kaluuya) as he meets his white girlfriend's (Allison Williams) parents at their family estate. At first, Chris believes that the family's welcoming behaviour is a nervous attempt to deal with their daughter's interracial relationship, but as the weekend progresses he discovers a number of disturbing things to make him think otherwise and becomes suspicious of the real reason behind his visit. Somewhat surprisingly, the gripping film is written and directed by Jordan Peele (one half of Key and Peele, the comedy duo known for classic skits such as Text Confusion and Continental Breakfast). We're hosting three advanced screenings of Get Out exclusive to Concrete Playground readers. The Sydney screening will be at Event Cinemas George St, at 6.30pm on April 26. Fill in your details below to go into the draw to win one of 100 double passes. [competition]614570[/competition]
Find yourself constantly daydreaming of corsets and spotted dick? Then don your top hat, grab your favourite Edgar Allan Poe novel and take a stroll back into yesteryear with Sydney Living Museums' (who were, until recently, the Historic Houses Trust) Gothic Sunday. Following the rollicking success of Regency Sunday, the newest instalment in the Vintage Sundays series has opted for a decidedly darker and more macabre historical trip: the twisted world of mid-1800 Victorian mourning customs. The rules remain the same as last time - period dress is encouraged, and faux Mr Darcy accents are compulsory - but the game is quite different this time round. Tours through a fully decked-out Vaucluse House by the undertaker of William Wentworth's mausoleum will have you immersed in the Victorian era's dark and decadent mourning process, and the sombre tones of an all-male choir will have you feeling like you have stumbled into a time machine. If you prefer a more hands-on approach to history you can try your hand at jet jewellery making or baking funeral biscuits. And if the doom and gloom of all this becomes too much to bear, then hop into your dancing shoes for your very own Victorian polka lesson.
An old-school oyster, cocktail and piano bar is on its way to Bayswater Road from the mind behind two of Kings Cross's most beloved small bars — Piccolo Bar and Vermuteria. David Spanton, a passionate advocate for the area and Sydney's nightlife will open The Hook in May this year. His most ambitious bar to date, the venue is taking over impressive space previously occupied by the Potts Point outpost of Harajuku Gyoza before briefly being run as Izgara before its CBD move. The new spot will form what Spanton describes as a "Bermuda Triangle of bars", with The Hook, Vermuteria and Piccolo Bar all just a few hundred metres from each other. Together they make up a core part of Kings Cross and Potts Point's small bar revival, with other exciting newcomers like Snack Kitchen and Caravin arriving in the area alongside local mainstays Dear Sainte Eloise, Jangling Jacks and Chester White. [caption id="attachment_831936" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Piccolo Bar[/caption] Sporting 250 metres of space, this is by far the biggest of the three venues. The centrepiece will be the oyster bar, taking over the curved bar used for Izgara's open kitchen. Here you can take a seat and watch your oysters be shucked before ordering them natural, kilpatrick, mornay or rockefeller. "I fell in love with this Horseshoe shape," Spanton told Concrete Playground. "I just don't know of any kind of horseshoe bars in Sydney that aren't pubs." [caption id="attachment_860684" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The exterior of 15 Bayswater Road when it was Izgara, Scott Ehler[/caption] Accompanying the briny delights of the oyster bar will be some heartier eats like cheeseburgers, classic cocktails, a retro New Orleans-inspired fit-out and a piano by the window where performers will provide the soundtrack for the night. A flood of reds, greens and browns will be found throughout the venue, with vintage photographs on the wall and antique beer lights illuminating guests The aforementioned cocktails will find a balance between the tried and true menu of Piccolo and Vermuteria's focus on aromatised wine. At the end of the day, the most important thing is that the drinks pair well with the oysters, with ice-cold martinis, red snappers (a gin take on a bloody mary) and black velvets (a mix of Guinness and champagne) just some of the standards and throwbacks you can expect. The Hook is expected to open at 13-15 Baywater Road, Kings Cross in early May. Follow along with its progress at the bar's Instagram.
What has chess, immensely clever LOLs and a spectacular primal yet graceful consummation of the, er, physical passions? The affairs my fifteen year old self imagined having with Jarvis Cocker and/or Alex James is one correct answer, but the rather more culturally significant one is British Liaisons of an entirely different kind, although both do refer back to youth. The Australian Ballet is revisiting its cultural beginnings this April, paying tribute in a triple bill of classical works from both the 20th and current centuries. First up is Checkmate, a balletic battle of pieces on a chequerboard stage choreographed by Ninette de Valois in 1937, followed by Sir Kenneth MacMillan's virtuosic rigour-and-wit Concerto of 1966, and finally Christopher Wheeldon's 2005 After The Rain, a super-hot romance. It's an historical survey and also a stylistic and thematic one that'll show off the company as well as the material.
This summer, Flickerfest returns for its 27th season of short films screened under the stars, with the internationally acclaimed festival taking over Bondi Pavilion from January 12–21. The jam-packed 2018 program pulls together a dazzling lineup of 55 short films for its Australian competition, and another 33 films as part of its international program, with a whole swag of world premieres on the bill. Highlights from the homegrown lineup include Martha The Monster — which sees Rose Byrne star alongside husband Bobby Cannavale as they navigate an upside-down world where humans and monsters coexist — and the world premiere of writer-director Alyssa McClelland's dark comedy Second Best, which explores the powerful bond between identical twin sisters. In the international competition are hot-ticket titles like the Palme d'Or-nominated Across My Land, produced by Joaquin Phoenix; Irish film Wave from the director behind last year's Academy Award-winning Stutterer; and the world premiere of the UK's Five By Five, starring Idris Elba. Films will be battling it out for recognition across all areas of filmmaking, vying for Academy Accredited awards like the Flickerfest Award For Best International Film, the Virgin Australia Award For Best Australian Film and the Yoram Gross Award For Best Animation. Once the festival wraps up on January 21, its greatest hits will take a road trip around the country, touring over 50 Aussie locations until May 2018. To see the full Flickerfest 2018 program and grab tickets, head to the website.
A bogan paradise can be interpreted as all sorts of things. To actual bogans it means servo meat pies with evenly dispersed cheese, babies with creatively misspelled names and living rooms furnished with Buddhist iconography. To Elizabeth Hurley it means getting a huge sapphire ring from a guy who asks his Twitter followers for “sexy” lunch date suggestions. To Brisbane-born street artist Anthony Lister it’s the dark underbelly of our “she’ll be right” Australian culture, one that manifests itself in acts like pissing in public, swearing at the televised footy match and smoking bongs in front of the kids. Lister’s exhibition Bogan Paradise challenges the positive and negative conceptions of Australian identity, from the innocent consumption of meat pies to the sanctioning of irresponsible and wayward acts. The quintessential Australian larrikin has been the subject of much social commentary and is deeply engrained in our culture — Lister investigates the underside of such a responsibility-free society, bringing DIY tatts and terrible haircuts out of the western suburbs and into an exhausted sex shop in Chinatown. His concern for how the human condition will evolve in an intellectually undemanding society is both comical and frightening, though the huge demand for his works — which often sell out before openings — suggests that there are still plenty of people who like to adorn their walls with stuff that isn’t Buddhist iconography. * Bogan Paradise opens November 4 and continues by appointment only.
A new winter-themed concert series featuring a family-friendly winter park and a jam-packed lineup of Australian talent is coming to Sydney's CBD this June. Following the tumultuous, yet successful run of Summer in the Domain this March, the Royal Botanical Gardens and The Domain are collaborating for another run of performances set among the CBD skyline titled Winter in the Domain. This time around, the three-week festival will feature two separate spaces, the Big Top stage, featuring an expanded lineup of local musicians, and a seasonal Winterpark, full of outdoor activities, food and drinks. Summer in the Domain's debut activation struggled through two postponements, firstly due to a COVID-19 outbreak before being delayed again due to extreme weather. The four-night concert series did manage to find its feet eventually, hosting standout sets from the likes of Ball Park Music, Vera Blue and Mallrat, and being granted a public health exemption allowing it to become Sydney's first major post-COVID dance party event. Ball Park Music will return for the newly-announced winter series alongside a who's-who of beloved local musicians. LGBTQIA+ party collective Heaps Gay will kick things off on Saturday, June 26 with a dance-heavy carnival to celebrate its eight birthday, while Thelma Plum, Baker Boy and Miiesha will all feature on the Big Top as part of a special NAIDOC Week concert. Elsewhere on the lineup, Hot Dub Time Machine will host two all-ages shows, The Presets will head up a night of heavy electronic music with special guests Choomba and Ninajirachi, The Cat Empire and Boy and Bear will bring their folk-heavy tones to The Domain, and everyone's favourite singer-songwriter Missy Higgins will be joined by Dan Sultan and Coterie. Over in the Winterpark, a free pop-up winter wonderland will be built in the heart of the city with activities for families and CBD workers alike. The park will include an ice skating rink alongside family-friendly carnival rides, food and drink stalls and heated outdoor spots designed for afterwork drinks. The Winterpark is set to open from Saturday, June 26, with more details and session times for the ice rink to become available closer to the festival. [caption id="attachment_804039" align="alignnone" width="1920"] @colebennetts[/caption] WINTER IN THE DOMAIN LINEUP Saturday, June 26 — Heap Gay's 8th Birthday Carnival Saturday, July 3 — Hot Dub Time Machine (Family Matinee) Saturday, July 3 — Hot Dub Time Machine (Evening Show) Friday, July 9 — Thelma Plum, Bakery Boy and Miiesha Sunday, July 11 — Missy Higgins, Dan Sultan and Coterie Friday, July 16 — The Cat Empire and Boy & Bear Saturday, July 17 — The Presets, Choomba and Ninajirachi Sunday, July 18 — Ball Park Music and Holy Holy + More to be announced Winter in the Domain will take place from Friday, June 25—Sunday, July 18. Tickets for Winter in the Domain's music lineup will go on sale from midday on Wednesday, May 19.
Me-Mel may only be 300 metres long, but — like all of Australia — the heritage-listed harbour island has a rich Indigenous history, and was once the home of Woollarawarre Bennelong and his wife, Cammeraygal woman Barangaroo. You can learn about some its history during this three-hour guided tour, as well as the island's native flora. The trip will start with a ferry to the isle, followed by a Welcome to Country. There'll be cultural song and dance performances, too, as well as demonstrations showcasing traditional artefacts. To finish, you'll get a bush tucker lunch and a campfire Q&A session with the performers — before jumping back on the ferry back to the mainland. Image: Tribal Warrior
Sydneysiders have already seen a lot of eased restrictions over the past month or so. Major cultural institutions and art galleries are open, as are gyms, dance studios and beauty parlours and we've been hitting up bars, restaurants and pubs and catching up with mates for a while now. Now, as of Wednesday, July 1, more daily activities that have been off the cards for months are permissible once again. This includes more people allowed in venues, stadiums welcoming punters back and cinemas screening films once again. So, if you've missed dates at the movies or catching a footy game IRL, get ready for life to start to feel a little bit more normal. First up, NSW is removing its 50-person cap in favour of a blanket one person per four-square-metre rule from today, July 1. This follows the Australian Government's guidelines announced on June 12. You can now also make a booking of 20, whereas previously it was a maximum of ten. Nightclubs are still off the cards. [caption id="attachment_733284" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Kitti Gould[/caption] Gatherings of up to 20 people is still the limit both indoors and outdoors. However, for weddings and funerals the limit is the maximum number allowed on the the premises, including places of residence, which is one person per square metre. For smaller places of public worship, funeral homes and crematoriums, a maximum of 50 attendees (without the four-square-metre rule) provided non-household groups can maintain a distance of 1.5 metres. If you've been itching to head to a footy match, you'll be pleased to know that stadiums are permitted to host crowds from July 1, too. Major recreation facilities, including stadiums, showgrounds and racecourses, are now allowed to have ticketed events, with allocated seating areas. The number of spectators must not exceed 25 percent of the venue's capacity, with a maximum of 10,000 people. If it's a non-ticketed or non-seated event, the four-square-metre rule applies, with a maximum of 500. Alcohol will only be served to seated patrons. If you'd rather be on the field, you can now also kick a ball around with your local team thanks to community sport, including training sessions, recommencing. Where it involves more than 20 participants (players, officials and spectators), the organiser must have a COVID-19 Safety Plan and the number of participants cannot exceed 500. [caption id="attachment_656246" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Kimberley Low[/caption] Cinemas are also allowed to reopen, but that doesn't mean that it's popcorn-munching business as usual quite yet. Expect changes to the movie-going experience — including online bookings, allocated seating, contactless payment, social-distancing requirements and extra cleaning. One perk is that you and your mates will be separated from other moviegoers by empty seats on both sides — and some cinemas, like the Ritz, are offering $10 tickets for opening week. Travel is a big one this month, too. If you were hoping to head up north to escape the chilly weather, you can cross the Queensland border from Friday, July 10. Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced the border would be opening to NSW, SA, WA, ACT, Tas and NT but "due to current community transmission levels, the border with Victoria will remain closed". However, you'll need to complete a border declaration form and certify you haven't travelled to Victoria in past 14 days — and the government has advised it'll be checking these statements, and that making a false statement will be an offence. [caption id="attachment_743607" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Whitehaven Beach by Tourism and Events Queensland[/caption] While Victoria's borders remain open, you can't visit any of Victoria's current hotspots. In fact, if you do you could be fined $11,000 and spend six months in jail. Our neighbours in Victoria have seen a spike in the number of cases, which has resulted in Premier Daniel Andrews implementing new stay-at-home orders across ten Victorian postcodes. Despite South Australia speculating it'd open its border on July 20, it no longer will be going ahead. We'll be sure to keep you updated. Major supermarket companies Woolworths and Coles have also reintroduced limits on some everyday items again, such as toilet paper, paper towel, hand sanitiser, pasta and milk. And, as you could have guessed, music festivals won't be happening any time soon. For more information about what you can and can't do in NSW under current COVID-19 restrictions, head to the NSW Government website. Top image: Kimberley Low
The independent music industry has clearly taken advantage of the democratisation of media and information. The internet is a great starting block for a modern band: put up a few songs, get a few fans and start gigging. Danananakroyd found fame by way of a new digital format. Featuring on the FIFA 2010 video game for Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 meant that gamers around the world would hear their song many times throughout the game. Self-described "healing and easy listening fight-pop", the Glaswegian band have gone from strength to strength. On their 2009 tour of Australia, lead singer John Bailie Junior broke his arm while crowd surfing – if that's anything to go by, you better buy tickets to see what else he'll break. https://youtube.com/watch?v=3WOIEdlfh7M
Down a darkened alley off Clarence Street there sits an ambitious, reimagined 1800s British tavern. The aptly named Duke of Clarence is rich in its design — lots of mahogany, red velvet and antique wares — and in its food and drink offering. Traditional pub fare is paired with a lengthy list of cask ales and more than 500 spirits. It's one of the restaurants featured in our New in Town series, where we uncover the newest and most anticipated restaurant openings around Sydney in partnership with Zantac. To celebrate the launch of the new CBD hotspot, we threw an epic ol' English feast. It featured British favourites like mini pork pies, Yorkshire puddings and fish fingers, and ales, wines and creative cocktails to match. It let us escape reality for a little bit. Here are the photos. Images: Kitti Smallbone. Keen to check out more newbies? Have a sift through the newest crop of Sydney openings. To find out more about Zantac, visit the website. Zantac relieves heartburn. Always read the label. Use only as directed. If symptoms persist consult your health professional.
