Indigenous Australians were the world's first astronomers, using the stars and planets for navigation, to predict the weather and as part of Dreamtime storytelling. You can get a peek at some of this vast knowledge on an Aboriginal Sky Dreaming Cruise. During the one-hour cruise, First Nations astronomers will guide you through the landscape of the sky and share stories as you float around Darling Harbour. You'll also get to learn about the famous emu-shaped dark installation Gugurmin, an important part of the Wiradjuri Peoples' skylore. A cruise on the harbour can sometimes cost you upward of $200, but this eye-opening experience will set you back just $30. [caption id="attachment_814486" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Destination NSW[/caption]
It is no secret that op-shops are a gold mine for vintage label pieces and one-of-a-kind gems. And what the op-shop is located in one of the most eclectic suburbs of Sydney, there is truly no telling what you might find. Covering off the usual suspects in CD's, books, homewares and fashion, the only guarantee in this store is that the pieces are in good condition and the volunteers are welcoming. Like most op-shops, successful shopping will be entirely dependent on the stock on the day and your outlook. But if your taste mirrors that of the suburbs quirky identity - in that basically anything goes - you're likely to find something.
We've all seen films where star-crossed lovers ride the rollercoaster of romance. And we've all seen films where aspiring artists weather the ups and downs of chasing their dreams. Starting with a series of awkward encounters, and focusing on a struggling actress and a jazz pianist, La La Land offers both. But the thing that makes writer-director Damien Chazelle's musical follow-up to his breakout hit Whiplash shine isn't the familiar path it wanders down. Rather, it's how it takes audiences on that journey. When Mia (Emma Stone) and Sebastian (Ryan Gosling) first meet on the streets of Los Angeles, they're hurling ire at each other in traffic. When they finally get the chance to chat at a party, there's teasing in the air, with a romantic connection soon blooming. As their relationship continues, Sebastian inspires Mia to break free of the soul-crushing audition cycle and write her own one-woman play. In turn, he keeps working towards opening a jazz club, while also taking up the opportunity to pursue something more lucrative and concrete. So far, so straightforward. But all isn't fair when you're simultaneously trying to find love, seek your chosen career and carve out a fulfilling life. While it might not feature J.K. Simmons screaming "not my tempo" a la Whiplash, Chazelle's latest effort certainly doesn't shy away from the costs and consequences of trying to succeed. Nor does the film pull its punches when personal and professional matters fail to align. Instead, erupting with gorgeous colour and energetic choreography one moment, then taking time to brood and contemplate the next, La La Land offers a delicate balance of dreaming big while realising that not every wish can or will come true. Moreover, it does so while celebrating the Hollywood musical genre, and at the same time fashioning its trademarks and style into something bittersweet and melancholy. The traditions of grand song-and-dance flicks gets their time in the spotlight, though in truth they're only one part of the story. As characters shuffle through the streets and float through the air in '50s-style numbers, churn out '80s covers, play contemporary jazz, and croon mournful ballads, audiences will find themselves swept along the entire musical and emotional spectrum. For that, a fair share of the credit should go to co-stars Stone and Gosling. In their third on-screen pairing after Crazy, Stupid, Love and Gangster Squad, both are in stellar, swoon-worthy form. Whether they're belting out a tune, tapping their toes, or quietly expressing the feelings that lurk beneath, the duo navigate the melange that comprises La La Land with the same flair and thoughtfulness as their director, while sharing in his not-to-be-underestimated task. After all, at the heart of the luminous and lively film sits a stark truth: fantasising is easy, but embracing reality is hard. It's no surprise that the movie that results is clearly crafted with this in mind as it soars high but dives deep, evoking affectionate wonder, heartfelt tears and the knowledge that life usually lurks somewhere in between.
Following the success of her debut album Lungs, English vocal goddess Florence and the Machine will be back on Australian shores in November for a one-off show at the Seymour Theatre to showcase songs from her sophomore album, Ceremonials. As part of Debit Mastercard's Priceless Music Series, Florence Welch will provide Sydneysiders with one of the first opportunities to hear her new music performed live anywhere in the world. Known for her whimsical stage presence and costumes (and costume changes), Welch's follow-up album is a solid installment peppered with epic tracks that compliment her vocal range. The success of Lungs - the album won Best British Album Award at the 2010 BRIT Awards and a nomination for Welch as Best New Artist at the 53rd Grammy Awards - has not only attracted comparisons to the chart-topping vocalist Kate Bush, but has established Welch's distinct genre-mixing pop sound. Her preview tracks 'Shake It Out' and 'What The Water Gave Me' don't stray too far from the formula she perfected in songs like 'Dog Days Are Over' and 'You've Got The Love', and the album's production is packed with layer upon layer of instruments - piano, organ, strings, tambourine, drums and signature harp - all of which carry Welch's voice to notes that she delivers with raw intensity. The album will be released in Australia on October 28 and Florence and the Machine will be playing at the Seymour on November 15. To get your hands on tickets to the concert, you'll need to have a Debit MasterCard and register your interest before November 7. Update: The concert is now sold out. https://youtube.com/watch?v=WbN0nX61rIs
Byron Bay's annual Bluesfest is an absolute monster of a festival, spanning all five days of the Easter weekend, and has a supersized lineup to match. But if you can't make it up north for the festival itself (though you really, really need to make that a priority) at least there are some scintillating sideshows to ensure you don't miss out on the incredible roster of artists who will be in the country in March and April next year. To help you with your planning (and to stop the FOMO from totally taking over), we've picked eight of the best sideshows taking over Sydney next Easter. ROBERT PLANT & THE SENSATIONAL SPACE SHIFTERS One of the greatest frontmen in music history returns to our shores with his band, The Sensational Space Shifters. Celebrating 50 years since the release of Led Zeppelin's debut album plus their own 2017 release, Carry Fire, these shows will celebrate a whole lotta music drawn from Robert Plant's peerless back-catalogue. The Sensational Space Shifters formed in 2002, a loose collective of brilliant musicians that take their inspiration from "the roots music of Mississippi, Appalachia, Gambia, Bristol and the foothills of Wolverhampton and drawing on influences collected in a lifetime of meandering and journeying." These shows are truly not to be missed. Friday, March 23 at the State Theatre. THE NEW POWER GENERATION The extraordinary legacy of Prince lives on in The New Power Generation, a band of friends and collaborators that were the driving force behind some of the Purple One's greatest latter-era hits. Led by Morris Hayes, Prince's long-time musical director, The NPG aim to honour the life and artistry of their friend and make sure everyone in the audience parties like it's 1999 — just like he would have wanted. Says Hayes, "This band has a huge repertoire, we have got a lot of music that we've learnt over the years and we're prepared to play whatever. We just want to make sure we touch on things that the crowd connects with and make them go 'oh that's my song! That's my jam'." Wednesday, March 28 at Enmore Theatre. GOMEZ — CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF BRING IT ON When Gomez released their brilliant Mercury Music Prize-winning debut album Bring It On in 1997, Britpop was dominating the charts and Tony Blair became prime minister, signalling a new era for the UK. But Gomez never quite fits alongside Jarvis Cocker, Damon Albarn and the Gallagher brothers, writing songs that were far more bar-room blues than witty, knowing 'cool Britannia'. 20 years later, Gomez is still growling and drawling their way into our hearts, never changing their sound to suit the zeitgeist but instead doggedly persevering, steadfast in the knowledge that great songwriting and rock-solid riffs never go out of style. Saturday, March 31 at Enmore Theatre. HURRAY FOR THE RIFF RAFF At first listen, Hurray for the Riff Raff has all the trappings of so much 21st-century folk music à la Gillian Welch or Laura Marling: intricate guitar playing, lush hushed vocals, songs about introspection. But when you dig a bit deeper you start to hear sounds from New Orleans, from Puerto Rico, from the Bronx — everything that singer and songwriter Alynda Segarra absorbed after she ran away from home at the age of 17 with dreams of becoming the next great blues singer. 2017's The Navigator, their fourth album, sees Segarra becoming more and more confident in the stories she tells and in how she tells them, her life and influences intertwining like two vines growing alongside each other. It's an album about growing up, finding yourself and realising that you are a part of all that has come before you. Monday, March 26 at the Factory Theatre. MORCHEEBA Morcheeba — the legends of lounge, the champions of chill-out — return to our shores after four years away. In a career spanning 22 years, they have been responsible for soulful sounds like 'The Sea', 'Even Though', 'Otherwise' and 'Rome Wasn't Built in a Day' (you're humming it already, aren't you?), and did as much as any act to popularise and make ubiquitous their style of electronic, chilled vibes. Back with a new album and a new lease on their musical life after a few tumultuous years, singer Skye Edwards and producer Ross Godfrey are going to get you grooving. Thursday, March 29 at the Metro Theatre. GOV'T MULE WITH LUKAS NELSON & PROMISE OF THE REAL Gov't Mule are one of the world's great jam bands, carrying the torch of The Allman Brothers Band and The Grateful Dead one spectacular guitar solo after another. Initially formed as a side project by then Allman Brothers Band members Warren Haynes and Allen Woody, Gov't Mule quickly became the main game after audiences fell in love with their big, bluesy sound. Like Gov't Mule, Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real boast unimpeachable music pedigree — Lukas' father, Willie, is a singer/songwriter you may have heard of. Making music with dad was one thing, but when Neil Young picked Promise of the Real to be his touring and studio band a further crash course in all things rock and roll followed. Fans will be in for an absolute treat with these two tremendous bands on the same bill. Monday, March 26 at the Metro Theatre. WALTER TROUT In a career spanning six decades, Walter Trout has learned a thing or two about playing guitar — from John Lee Hooker, from John Mayall, and from Canned Heat — all of whom he has played with for significant stretches. Trout is a bluesman through and through, a guitarist and bandleader with rhythm in his bones. Following a near-fatal brush with liver disease in 2014, Trout is playing and writing music with the zeal of a man who knows he dodged a bullet. His return to health and his long-awaited return to Australia are cause for celebration for anyone whose gospels are drums, bass guitar, a Hammond organ and an electric guitar. Saturday, March 31 at the Factory Theatre. CANNED HEAT One of the iconic rock and roll bands of the 1960s, who played at the storied 1967 Monterey Pop Festival and co-headlined the original Woodstock Festival in 1969, Canned Heat is on the road again to play their hits for audiences in Sydney, Melbourne, Newcastle and Adelaide. Anchored by drummer/band leader Adolfo 'Fito' de la Parra (a member since 1967), Canned Heat are carrying their pioneering band of electric blues into their sixth decade and showing no signs of slowing down. Thursday, March 22 at The Basement and Friday, March 23 at the Factory Theatre. Bluesfest 2017 will run March 29 to April 2 at Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm in Byron Bay. More details and ticket info here. Top image: Bec Taylor.
Simone Weil was one of those 20th-century overachievers who seemed to be everywhere, doing everything at once. Political activist? Check. Groundbreaking philosopher? Check. Mystic? (consults Ouija board) Check. Way to make us feel like we've accomplished nothing, Simone. Now, director Imara Savage, composer Kaija Saariaho and soprano Jane Sheldon will bring a large portion of her crazy genius to Carriageworks with the Australian premiere of La Passion de Simone during Sydney Festival 2019. This one-woman chamber opera will deliver a blast of vocal energy backed up with a fierce ideology, that'll inspire all in attendance to get cracking on their own life goals. Philosopher and author Albert Camus was said to have referred to Weil as "the only great spirit of our times". As we continue to defy and tear down our own heroes at dizzying speed, La Passion de Simone may just point you in the direction of a more durable icon. La Passion de Simone is part of Sydney Festival's dramatic and diverse 2019 program. Check out the full lineup here. Image: Samuel Hodge.
Sydneysiders, if you've spent some time in the eastern suburbs over the past few days, you might now need to get tested for COVID-19 and self-isolate. Today, Wednesday, June 16, NSW Health has advised that a new locally acquired coronavirus case has been identified in the area — which means that a new list of exposure sites has just been posted. You know the drill from here, because naming locations and venues that positive coronavirus cases have visited is key element of NSW's containment strategy, and has been for months. The just-reported case is in a man in his 60s who hasn't travelled overseas recently — but he does work as a driver, including transporting international flight crew. Based on the man's whereabouts between Friday, June 11–Tuesday, June 15, NSW Health has identified eight places that Sydneysiders need to note. Some of the venues appear multiple times on the list, but only one requires contacting NSW Health immediately, getting tested and self-isolating for 14 days no matter what: the 1.45pm screening of The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard at Event Cinemas Cinema 1 at Bondi Junction on Sunday, June 13, with the exposure period running from 1.30–4pm. The last time Bondi Junction was listed as an exposure site back in May, a movie session was also named, if you're wondering why this sounds a little familiar. Also on the list this time: the cinema itself between the above window of time, covering all other sessions. If you were there, you'll need to call NSW Health immediately, get tested and self-isolate until you receive further information from the authorities. https://twitter.com/NSWHealth/status/1405038475246596099 The rest of the current exposure sites fall into the same category — so, if you went to them, you need to phone NSW Health right away, get tested and self-isolate until you receive further information. On the list: Belle Cafe in Vaucluse at 9.15–9.50am on Friday, June 11; from 10.20–10.45am and 1.20–1.50pm on Saturday, June 12; from 11.30am–12pm on Sunday, June 13; and from 9.50–10.25am on Tuesday, June 15. Sourdough Bakery at Bondi Junction is also listed, from 12.40–1.10pm on Friday, June 11, as is David Jones and Myer at Bondi Junction on Saturday, June 12 (from 11–11.40am and 11.40am–12.15pm, respectively). And if you went to Washoku Vaucluse between 12–1.30pm on Saturday, June 12 and Rocco's in Vaucluse from 10.55–11.30am on Monday, June 14, you'll also need to follow the same instructions. One other place beyond the eastern suburbs has been named, too: Celeste Catering Macquarie Park Cemetery Cafe in North Ryde from 1–1.20pm on Tuesday, June 15. If you were there then, you'll be calling NSW Health now, getting tested and self-isolating until told otherwise. As it has throughout the pandemic, NSW Health is maintaining an ongoing register of locations that have been visited by positive COVID-19 cases — you can check out the entire list on its website. And, if you need a reminder, the symptoms to look out for are coughs, fever, sore or scratchy throat, shortness of breath, or loss of smell or taste. You can find a rundown of testing clinic locations online as well. For more information about the status of COVID-19 in NSW, head to the NSW Health website. Top image: Westfield Bondi Junction via Google Maps.
In Never Did Me Any Harm, Sydney Theatre Company has collaborated with Force Majeure dance company to create a challenging conversation piece about contemporary family life. Director Kate Champion combines contemporary dance, spoken word, physical theatre and the common vernacular to challenge the idea that parents instinctively know best, or that parenting is simply a natural instinct. Taking Christos Tsiolkas’ controversial novel The Slap as its inspiration, Never Did Me Any Harm uses the stage at Wharf 1 to recreate a 'typical' suburban backyard. Through theatricalised gestures, seven performers transform the audio text recorded over 90 interviews into a feat of physicality that is fiercely immediate and confronting. Does it sound a bit heavy? Rest assured, it isn't. Kate Champion deftly offsets the more depressing vignettes with domestic slapstick and cleverly avoids taking sides by having all the performers play both children and parents. Each disconnected narrative is drawn together by the familiar thread of domestic experience, making you wonder if middle-class Australia will forever be wound up about the 'correct' way to raise children. The diverse stories are alternately painful and amusing, infuriating and touching. One of the performers is heavily pregnant, and it's hard not to wince when she dives into a break-dance tumble routine; however, she's fine, and the fact that she's so conspicuously 'with child' merely adds to the authenticity of the performance and its insistent faithfulness to real-life experience. It's hard to describe something like Never Did Me Any Harm without sounding over-earnest, because the subject matter itself is so intense. But this is candid, controversial and very clever theatre. It explores corporal punishment, the pros and cons of breastfeeding, teenage girls gone feral and the realities of raising a child with a disability, and, unlike the TV mini series of The Slap, doesn’t star Melissa George. Go and see it this week — it certainly won't do you any harm.
Darlings, it's time to beat the Monday blues and kick off your week in truly fabulous fashion. Escape on a desert holiday (hip hip hip hip hooray!) with a night of bespoke cocktails and a screening of one of Australia's most iconic films. Thanks to STOLI Vodka, you can see The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, in all its colourful glory when it returns to the big screen this September. The vodka brand has long been a proud supporter of the LGBTQIA+ community, and it's inviting you to celebrate the film's 30th anniversary with cocktails crafted by martini expert Ana Page. Leave your dreary Monday behind and catch a ride on the budget Barbie camper on Monday, September 16, September 23 and September 30 at Golden Age Cinema and Bar. At just $50, including not only a ticket to the screening but also two STOLI Vodka martinis, popcorn and a choc-top, Martini and Movie Mondays is the best bang for your buck you're ever gonna get, sweetheart! Book your tickets to Martini and Movie Mondays at the Golden Age website and find out more about STOLI Vodka on the website.
Who isn't going to see Avengers: Age of Ultron? Since 2008, almost everyone has watched at least one movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, this being the 11th. It's the TV approach to film, with an episode or two released each year. By now, we've all consumed enough to get hooked on superhero shenanigans. Such a history might seem like a blessing, sending audiences to cinemas; however, it can also be a curse. Viewers know what Marvel excellence looks like; they've seen it, and they've laughed and cried along. They also know when a comic book adaptation doesn't make the grade. And, in good but not great efforts, they can spot the formula at work, see when a film is stuffed with a few too many characters, and recognise when it feels like it's going through the motions. That's where Avengers: Age of Ultron lands, a by-the-numbers outing not without its issues, but still enjoyable. Everyone's favourite gang of better-than-average folks is back, and this time they're responsible for their new worst enemy. That'd be the titular addition to the fold, a program with artificial intelligence created by Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) and Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) in the name of world peace. Alas, after taking robotic form, Ultron (voiced by James Spader) has different ideas about how to protect the planet. Basically, it's the Frankenstein narrative, as the creation turns against its creator and the uncaring masses. It's not an original story, but it remains intriguing, exploring Iron Man, the Hulk, Captain America (Chris Evans), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) coming to terms with the reality of their powers, roles and ability to play god — and Thor (Chris Hemsworth), too, even though he genuinely is one. Joss Whedon being Joss Whedon, the returning writer/director dresses it all up with more than a few complications — think ideological clashes and romantic subplots — plus comic touches. He's simply doing what he does, as fans of his television shows like Buffy and Firefly will recognise. He crafts scenes of spectacular chaos and continent-hopping carnage thankfully given time to play out, and wraps up the standard set-pieces and fight sequences in pithy quips. Yes, you've seen and heard much of it before, and yes, the film can never quite shake that feeling. Instead, flitting from one drama to the next and giving everyone their moment, it relies upon the fact that you already know and love the characters, the actors and their camaraderie. While spending time with the bulk of the bunch and spotting other familiar faces is hardly a chore, veering off in different directions is certainly welcome, particularly when twins Pietro and Wanda Maximoff (Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Elizabeth Olsen) — aka Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch — join the fold. That's where the entertaining yet never game-changing effort shines brightest, actually: in setting up the next offerings in a long list of Marvel movies, including two Avengers sequels already slated for 2018 and 2019 respectively. Age of Ultron may not be the best instalment so far, and you'll walk out well aware that what you just watched was only the latest chapter, but you're still enthused for things to come. Next stop: Ant-Man.
UPDATE, April 7, 2021: Weathering with You is available to stream via Netflix, Google Play, YouTube Movies, Amazon Video and iTunes. To watch as Weathering with You roams around Tokyo, wandering through its alleys and roving beyond its well-known tourist spots, is to almost feel like you're walking through the sprawling city yourself. That's an uncanny achievement for an animated film, however it speaks volumes about the level of detail evident in Makoto Shinkai's first movie since his huge 2016 hit Your Name. The luminous lights, towering structures and Shibuya's famous scramble crossing all feature, rendered as vividly as they demand. Also present: the rows of nondescript buildings that stretch across the Japanese capital, its maze of laneways, the blue vending machines on every block, and everything from everyday cafes to love hotels to small markets. While Weathering with You serves up a mix of romance, fantasy and drama in its narrative, it is fiercely determined to steep even its most fanciful narrative leaps in a realistic setting — and that choice has an impact not just visually, but emotionally. Three years after Your Name became the second-highest-grossing Japanese animated release ever around the globe — a feat that places it behind only Studio Ghibli's beloved Spirited Away — Shinkai's latest film once more ponders love, disaster and whether some things are just meant to be. Like the director's last movie, it also pits star-crossed teenagers against forces outside of their control, and aims for something offbeat yet insightful in the process. Themes of identity and self-exploration bubble to the fore again, albeit without Your Name's body-swap gimmick this time around. Instead, Weathering with You ponders societal and environmental changes, placing its high school-aged protagonists in the middle of both figurative and literal storms. If Hirokazu Kore-eda's Palme d'Or winner Shoplifters swapped actors for anime, added teen relationships and otherworldly elements, and examined global warming as well as life on the Japanese margins, it might actually look like this. Introduced on a boat approaching Tokyo just as a typhoon hits (and just as he's saved from a grim watery end by a stranger), 16-year-old runaway Hodaka (Kotaro Daigo) is a fresh-faced arrival in the big city. He has nowhere to stay, no job and no way to scrape by, failing to even find work in seedy bars or to get a moment's rest behind bins in an alleyway. When he first crosses paths with the orphaned Hina (Nana Mori), she's a fast food employee who gives him a free burger. When they meet again, he saves her from an exploitative new gig. A connection springs, but it's Hodaka's new place of employment that intertwines their fate. Hired as a live-in assistant to the jaunty Suga (Shun Oguri), who runs an occult-focused magazine out of his house, the teen is charged with tracking down people who can reportedly control the weather — and, following an eventful visit to a rooftop shrine during a time of trauma, that's a skill that Hina happens to possess. Writing as well as directing, Shinkai soon tasks his central duo with starting their own business to make the most of Hina's gift. As Tokyo's prolonged spell of unseasonable rain just keeps falling day after day, she brings sunshine to folks needing a reprieve — in small spots, only for short periods and for a fee. Of course, as many a movie has stressed, with great power not only comes great responsibility, but considerable consequences. It's here that Weathering with You starts weaving its various threads together — and although they don't all shine as brightly as the rays that Hina commands, the film still offers a smart and moving contemplation of one's place in, and impact upon, the world. That's true when it's poking into life at street-level and taking the planet's changing weather systems in a drastic direction, and remains the case when it's exploring individual decisions and influential relationships, too. As he did with Your Name, Shinkai packages his tale with an upbeat pace, expressive character animation, delicate voice work and music from Japanese pop band Radwimps, with the group's songs given pride of place across the picture's many montages. Indeed, while the filmmaker helms his sixth movie (with Children Who Chase Lost Voices and The Garden of Words also among his credits), Weathering with You often feels like it's following closely in its immediate predecessor's footsteps. That's where the film's finessed use of detail not only proves pivotal, but makes an immense difference. Its gorgeous frames serve up more than just something vibrant to look at, although they easily tick that box. A strikingly lifelike, never-romanticised vision of Tokyo anchors the narrative's Shinto-inspired spiritual and supernatural leanings. More importantly, it gives weight to both Hodaka and Hina's sizeable struggles, and to the movie's musing on where massive weather events could take today's society. Embracing fantasy, yet always ensuring that it remains equally enchanting and grounded, the result is a dynamic, stunningly animated outsider story with a heart and a conscience. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ouLO5iPc1yo
Inspired by the theme "fearless", the 2019 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras is promising more than 100 events and over 400 artists running across 17 days. In addition to the signatures — including the Mardi Gras Parade on Saturday, March 2 — there's a bunch of new happenings this time round. One of the most anticipated is the Strictly Kaftan Party, a new pool party to be held at the Ivy on Tuesday, February 19. Don your favourite kaftan or hottest moo-moo and spend the day kicking back to New Zealand country duo The Topp Twins and various DJs. There'll be prizes for Best Kaftan, Best Cabana Lounging Ensemble and Most Outrageous Summer Accessory. Meanwhile, the Sissy Ball is back for another round, after selling out last year. Taking over Carriageworks on Saturday, February 23, this NYC ballroom-inspired event centres around vogue battles in the categories of dance, movement, fashion and air. In between watching acts of unabashed self-expression, you'll be kicking back to live music and DJs. On a more solemn note is the Requiem Mass: A Queer Divine Rite, which will fill the City Recital Hall with song on Thursday, February 21. This choral work, written by American composer Holcombe Waller in collaboration with LGBTQI+ communities, is informed by research into the persecution that LGBTQI+ people have experienced over the past 50 years. It'll be performed by Sam Allchurch and the Sydney Chamber Choir. The Seymour Centre, Newtown, will host Mardi Gras Central, the festival hub. Head down there anytime to catch theatre, music, dance, circus, cabaret and burlesque shows. Among the headliners is the inaugural Bent Burlesque, a feast of outrageous underground cabaret, circus, drag and performance art to take place over February 16 and 17 , as well as Club Briefs, set to bring you disco hits and dance moves from Wednesday, February 20 till Friday, March 1. You can look forward, too, to the return of longstanding favourites, including Fair Day at Victoria Park on Sunday, February 17; Pool Party at the Ivy on Monday, February 25; the Mardi Gras Party on Saturday, March 2 at the EQ Moore Park; and Laneway – the Parade's official recovery party – on Sunday, March 3 at The Beresford, Surry Hills. The 2019 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras will take place February 15– March 3, 2019. Check out the rest of the program over here. Images: Jeffrey Feng and Clare Willcox.
The last time that Joaquin Phoenix appeared in cinemas, he played an overlooked and unheard man. "You don't listen, do you?" Arthur Fleck asked his social worker, and the entirety of Joker — and of Phoenix's magnetic Oscar-winning performance as the Batman foe in the 2019 film, too — provided the obvious answer. Returning to the big screen in a feature that couldn't be more different to his last, Phoenix now plays a professional listener. A radio journalist and podcaster who'd slide in seamlessly alongside Ira Glass on America's NPR, Johnny's niche is chatting with children. Travelling around the country from his New York base, C'mon C'mon's protagonist seeks thoughts about life, hopes, dreams, the future and the world in general, but never in a Kids Say the Darndest Things-type fashion. As Phoenix's sensitive, pensive gaze conveys under the tender guidance of Beginners and 20th Century Women filmmaker Mike Mills, Johnny truly and gratefully hears what his young interviewees utter. Phoenix is all gentle care, quiet understanding and rippling melancholy as Johnny. All naturalism and attentiveness as well, he's also firmly at his best, no matter what's inscribed on his Academy Award. Here, Phoenix is as phenomenal as he was in his career highlight to-date, aka the exceptional You Were Never Really Here, in a part that again has his character pushed out of his comfort zone by a child. C'mon C'mon's Johnny spends his days talking with kids, but that doesn't mean he's equipped to look after his nine-year-old nephew Jesse (Woody Norman, The War of the Worlds) in Los Angeles when his sister Viv (Gaby Hoffmann, Transparent) needs to assist her husband Paul (Scoot McNairy, A Quiet Place Part II) with his mental health. Johnny and Viv haven't spoken since their mother died a year earlier, and Johnny has previously overstepped when it comes to Paul — with the siblings' relationship so precarious that he barely knows Jesse — but volunteering to help is his immediate reflex. As captured in soft, luxe, nostalgic shades of greyscale by always-remarkable cinematographer Robbie Ryan (see also: I, Daniel Blake, American Honey, The Favourite and Marriage Story), Johnny takes to his time with Jesse as any uncle suddenly thrust into a 24/7 caregiving role that doesn't exactly come naturally would. Jesse also reacts as expected, handling the situation as any bright and curious kid whose world swiftly changes, and who finds himself with a new and different role model, is going to. But C'mon C'mon is extraordinary not because its instantly familiar narrative sees Johnny and Jesse learn life lessons from each other, and their bond grow stronger the longer they spend in each other's company — but because this tremendously moving movie repeatedly surprises with its depth, insights, and lively sparks of both adult and childhood life. It's styled to look like a memory, and appreciates how desperately parents and guardians want to create such happy recollections for kids, but C'mon C'mon feels unshakeably lived-in rather than wistful. It doesn't pine for times gone by; instead, the film recognises the moments that linger in the now. It spies how the collection of ordinary, everyday experiences that Johnny and Jesse cycle through all add up to something that's equally commonplace, universally relatable and special, too. Conveying that sentiment, but never by being sentimental, has long been one of Mills' great powers as a filmmaker. He makes pictures so alive with real emotion that they clearly belong to someone, and yet also resonate with everyone all at once. With C'mon C'mon, the writer/director draws upon his own time as a parent, after taking inspiration from his relationship with his father in Beginners, and from his connection to his mother and his own upbringing in 20th Century Women. The conversations that the rumpled Johnny and precocious Jesse exchange might be exactly the kind that adults and children always have — the earnest talks that Johnny has with his interview subjects as well, which help place the movie's musings in a broader context — but that doesn't make them any less perceptive and memorable. The key to the film is the key to its central duo's blossoming bond, to Johnny's rapport with the kids on his podcast, and to everything that Phoenix as Arthur Fleck wanted and demanded: genuinely listening. C'mon C'mon builds wonderfully detailed and intricate character studies by doing just that with Johnny and Jesse — and, albeit in less screentime, with Viv. Trips around the US play like big adventures, including when Jesse keeps wanting to explore NY and laps up a New Orleans street parade, but the contents of late-night phone calls, the newly single Johnny's diary-like recorded dispatches about his days, Viv's maternal routine and Jesse's favourite play-acting game — where he pretends he's an orphan — frequently feel just as immense. As C'mon C'mon observes and unfurls these textured slices of life, it also takes the act of listening as seriously as Johnny does. Mills has directed a gorgeous-looking film, any frame of which would make a postcard-perfect memory — its closeups are revelatory, its wide shots that place its characters in their surroundings while surveying the minutiae around them are transcendent — but his soundscape does just as much essential work. Viewers hear the hustle and bustle, the noise of the street, the silence that lingers indoors and the clattering chaos one small boy can incite. Jesse hears it, too, and soon becomes enamoured with listening through his uncle's headphones as Johnny records on-the-ground material for his podcast. The National's Bryce and Aaron Dessner also layer in a melodic and dreamy score that both sets and suits the reflective and warm-hearted mood, while the soundtrack's jumps between genres — opera, Lou Reed and Lee Scratch Perry included — are dynamic. For all of Mills' outstanding choices with C'mon C'mon, a feature filled with them, the care and love he gives his characters and ushers out of his actors is his biggest feat. Phoenix's endlessly impressive work as a man both exhausted and rewarded by pseudo-parenthood is matched by Norman, who turns in a spontaneous and instinctive performance, and by the ever-reliable Hoffman as a woman constantly striving for her own space beyond her roles as a mother, partner and sister. Indeed, watching them together, and seeing their reactions and responses while talking to each other via phone, is as crucial as hearing every word spoken. Yes, C'mon C'mon listens devotedly, but it's just as committed to simply being in these characters' presence, soaking in all that comes with it, and finding the aching and affecting truth in every second.
It's the best action movie of this century. The best Australian flick of the same period, too. And, it's one of the very best in general as well. But, because the arid expanse that usually surrounds Broken Hill was too green when filming took place, six-time Oscar-winner Mad Max: Fury Road was actually shot overseas. That won't be the case with its follow up Furiosa, though. Focusing on a younger version of the character played by Charlize Theron in Fury Road, Furiosa is actually a prequel — and it'll begin filming in New South Wales in June this year. The Queen's Gambit lead Anya Taylor-Joy will be stepping into the formidable figure's shoes, and starring opposite Chris Hemsworth. Watchmen's Yahya Abdul Mateen II will also feature and, although no other cast members have yet to be announced, it's safe to expect that plenty of local faces will pop up as well. It has been six years since Fury Road first motored its way across the big screen, so Furiosa can't arrive soon enough. Exactly when the latter will actually hit cinemas is yet to be revealed, but it'll do so after a relatively short gap by Mad Max standards. If you feel like you've been waiting for ages to see the franchise continue, it's worth remembering that there was a 30-year gap between 1985's not-so-great Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome and Fury Road's triumphant arrival in 2015. NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced the news today, Monday, April 19, noting that the shoot "is expected to support more than 850 local jobs and bring in around $350 million into the NSW economy". And while it's all good and well that the Mad Max series is continuing, that it'll be shot in Australia and that it has quite an impressive cast, that'd really mean nothing if director George Miller wasn't involved. Thankfully, he'll be back behind the lens, as he has been on 1979's Mad Max, 1981's Mad Max 2, and both Beyond Thunderdome and Fury Road as well. Obviously, a sneak peek of Furiosa won't be available for quite some time given that it hasn't even begun shooting yet, but you can relive Fury Road's glory in its trailer below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEJnMQG9ev8 Furiosa will start filming in NSW in June. Exactly when the film will hit cinemas hasn't yet been revealed, but we'll update you with details when they're announced
Travelling from Bengal to Iraq, to the Kimberley, Temporary Certainty explores the tensions between certainty and permanence and doubt and ephemerality through new works by Bangladesh-born Sarker Protick, and Kununarra artist Alana Hunt, and Kurdistan-born, Melbourne-based Rushdi Anwar. All three investigate interactions between identity, geography, political interventions and the passing of time. Protick, in his work-in-progress Exodus (2015–ongoing), takes us to the decaying buildings and overgrown grounds of East Bengal's abandoned feudal estates, which once belonged to rich, powerful Hindu jamindars (landlords). Also occupied with built environments are two works by Anwar. His video and sound installation Facing Living: The Past in the Present (2015) delves into Saddam Hussein's dictatorship over Iraq, while We have found in the ashes what we have lost in the fire (2018) is his response to visiting a church in Bashiqa, Mosul, which lies in territory disputed over by the Kurdistan Regional Government and Iraqi government. Meanwhile, Hunt's Faith in a pile of stones (2018), visits Lake Argyle, a freshwater reservoir 18 times the volume of Sydney Harbour, in Kununurra in the Kimberley. Built in 1971 for irrigation, the structure caused major changes to country belonging to Miriwoong, Gija and Malgnin people, including the drowning of places of significance. If you're willing to get up early on Saturday, September 22, you can join the gallery for a breakfast tour — you'll go for congee in Chinatown, followed by a guided tour of the exhibition. It costs $25 and you can book here. Image: Sarker Protick, Disintegration, from the series Exodus (2015—ongoing). Photographic installation, variable dimensions. Courtesy the artist.
UPDATE, November 19, 2021: Tick, Tick… Boom! screens in select Sydney cinemas from Thursday, November 11, and streams via Netflix from Friday, November 19. "Try writing what you know." That's age-old advice, dispensed to many a scribe who hasn't earned the success or even the reaction they'd hoped, and it's given to aspiring theatre composer Jonathan Larson (Andrew Garfield, Under the Silver Lake) in Tick, Tick… Boom!. The real-life figure would go on to write Rent but here, in New York City in January 1990, he's working on his debut musical Superbia. It's a futuristic satire inspired by George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four, and it's making him anxious about three things. Firstly, he hasn't yet come up with a pivotal second-act song that he keeps being told he needs. Next, he's staging a workshop for his debut production to gauge interest before the week is out — and this just has to be his big break. Finally, he's also turning 30 in days, and his idol Stephen Sondheim made his Broadway debut in his 20s. Tick, Tick… Boom! charts the path to those well-worn words of wisdom about drawing from the familiar, including Larson's path to the autobiographical one-man-show of the same name before Rent. And, it manages to achieve that feat while showing why such a sentiment isn't merely a cliche in this situation. That said, the key statement about mining your own experience also echoes throughout this affectionate movie musical in another unmissable way. Lin-Manuel Miranda didn't write Tick, Tick… Boom!'s screenplay; however, he does turn it into his filmmaking directorial debut — and what could be more fitting for that task from the acclaimed In the Heights and Hamilton talent than a loving ode (albeit an inescapably overexcited one) to the hard work put in by a game-changing theatre wunderkind? If this was a case of telling viewers that this is Miranda's movie without telling them, the concept would obviously do the trick. So would a few notable cameos in a standout song-and-dance number that's best discovered by watching. There's plenty in Tick, Tick… Boom! that was already layered with musical theatre history before it became a film, too; in the source material, Larson even wrote in a homage to Sondheim's own musical Sunday in the Park with George. That's the level of insider knowledge that's a foundation here, and the film frequently reverberates in an insular, theatre-obsessive, spot-the-references register. As great as it is if you stan the same productions and people, it also makes Tick, Tick… Boom! less accessible and resonant. It's as if Miranda can't choose between indulging his own adoration or truly sharing that love with his audience. (Tick, Tick… Boom! also became a three-person stage musical in 2001, and Miranda played its lead in a 2014 revival opposite Hamilton's Leslie Odom Jr and In the Heights' Karen Olivo.) Garfield's sing-to-the-rafters version of Larson is first seen in faux home-video footage, performing the rock monologue iteration of Tick, Tick… Boom!, his bouncy hair waving about as he croons and plays piano. Miranda and screenwriter Steven Levenson (Dear Evan Hansen) then segue between the lively presentation and the tale it also tells about Superbia, the looming workshop and the impending birthday. In the latter scenes, Larson can't come up with the missing song, earn enough as a composer to keep the power on, or juggle his pursuit of his dream with the complexities of his personal life. The alternative: opting for a safe career, which his ex-actor ex-roommate Michael (Robin de Jesus, The Boys in the Band) has done in advertising, and his dancer girlfriend Susan (Alexandra Shipp, X-Men: Dark Phoenix) is contemplating with teaching. Selling out is the villain here, but while there might've been bite to that idea in 1990, when Tick, Tick… Boom! debuted off-off-Broadway, there's far less in a film that's also an origin story for a famous theatre name. Recognising this, Miranda and Levenson start the feature not just with nods to Rent's success — the reason that Larson's dilemma is absent tension in the first place — but also with the tragic news that their subject died on the morning of Rent's first off-Broadway preview performance in January 1996. The passage of time indicated by the movie's moniker takes on an added dimension as a result, as does all the on-screen frenzy about making it before it's too late. Wanting to succeed now, and to savour every moment, also gets another refrain in a HIV subplot, albeit in a more cursory and gratuitous fashion than Larson must've originally intended. Still, when Tick, Tick… Boom! works, it's largely due to its energy — more so than its attempts to hit huge emotional beats. There's no mistaking the two wellsprings of experience that are so crucial to the film, with both Larson and Miranda working with what they knew or know, but that echoes loudest is the frantic and urgent atmosphere. The movie plays like something that desperately had to come to fruition, both in Miranda's quest to pay tribute, and in Larson's initial efforts to turn his Superbia experience into something creatively meaningful. The feature's seemingly non-stop musical numbers bound across the screen with that type of attitude, and Miranda unsurprisingly has the eye and timing to stage them with flair. Perhaps Garfield's on-screen fortunes sum up Tick, Tick… Boom! best, though; he's always on, eager and singing with his fullest voice, and also always putting on a forceful performance. He impresses with his commitment and gusto, yet is less convincing at finding nuance in Larson's frustrations, the daily grind of trying to start his career, and in his relationships. Trying to do too much and swing too big isn't the worst thing that a film and a lead portrayal can do, especially in a stage-to-screen musical that also doubles as an exuberant eulogy — and weaves in a Rent origin story of sorts via its protagonist's everyday life, too — but it's still noticeable. It's clearly a case of art imitating life, with Larson's enthusiasm for the art form he cherished so feverishly coming through strong; however, it also always feels like a show. Top image: Macall Polay/Netflix.
Choose life. Choose celebrating a movie that defined the '90s, made Ewan McGregor a star and instantly made everyone's favourite flicks of all time list. Choose spending 2017 revelling in all things Trainspotting. Film fans already have long-awaited sequel T2: Trainspotting (which is scheduled for a February release) to look forward to, and now theatre fans in Australia can choose something else: Trainspotting Live. Choose 75 minutes of intense, immersive page-to-stage antics, as based on Irvine Welsh's 1993 novel about Edinburgh heroin addicts, and first adapted for the theatre in the UK back in 1995. Yes, that means that Harry Gibson's award-winning original stage version was written before Danny Boyle's iconic 1996 movie — and you haven't really experienced the story of Renton, Begbie, Sick Boy and company until you've seen it acted out, live and in person, right in front of you. Transporting its all-Scottish cast and their distinctive accents to Adelaide from February 17 to March 19, Melbourne's fortyfivedownstairs from March 22 to April 13, and Brisbane Powerhouse from April 19 to 22, Trainspotting Live does more than that — it also brings the audience into the show, starting with an extended rave, and even including the infamous 'Worst Toilet in Scotland' scene. It's no wonder that the production has been selling out shows in London, and earning rave reviews for its no-holds-barred approach. The fact that it's being staged by In Your Face Theatre should give you an indication of what you're in for. Welsh — that is, the man who literally wrote the book, plus a sequel, prequel and Begbie-focused spin-off, and recently floated the idea of a TV adaptation — called Trainspotting Live the "best way to experience Trainspotting", in case you needed any more convincing. Just don't go confusing it with the BBC television program of the same name, which is actually about looking at railways. Trainspotting Live plays in Adelaide from February 17 to March 19, at Melbourne's Fortyfivedownstairs from March 22 to April 13, and at Brisbane Powerhouse from April 19 to 22, 2017. For more information, visit the production website.
Fair Day is traditionally one of the first events of Mardi Gras each year, but in 2023 it's going one better: it's also the first major event of Sydney WorldPride. Get ready for a family-friendly, pup-friendly, eco-glitter-friendly day in Victoria Park that's inclusive, relaxed and free. This year's Fair Day will feature a fancy dress competition for dogs, over 300 market stalls, pop-up bars, a main stage with leading queer performers in Australian music, plus the chance to shine brightly with your nearest and dearest chosen family. Highlights of the performance lineup include Eurovision champion Conchita Wurst, a Sissy Ball vogue showcase, The Buoys, Nana Miss Koori, Carla Wehbe, Jamaica Moana and Latifa Tee. Elsewhere around Fair Day, the First Nations Circle will celebrate LGBTQIA+SB Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, a live recording of the ABC's The Party Room will be talking politics, The Absolut Dancefloor will be serving up party-starting dance tunes, and the likes of Archie Rose, Little Creatures and Squealing Pig will be supplying refreshing drinks.
A few people are saying the Simon Pegg/Nick Frost/Edgar Wright partnership is getting tired. There might be some truth to that, but it isn't tired yet. The World's End — the third film in their 'Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy', a series of comic genre mash-ups that also happen to feature a random Cornetto ice-cream in each one — is a whirlwind of exuberant humour it's easy to get swept up in. Sure, some of the surprise of the mash-up twist has faded since 2004's breakthrough Shaun of the Dead, but the team has also matured as actors, filmmakers and observers of the human condition. The particular human condition they're concerned with this time around is the sad state of being stuck in one's halcyon days, particularly when they're situated in high school, particularly when you're now nearing 40. Pegg plays the thusly afflicted man-child, and it's far from the loveable, self-effacing type of loser character we're used to seeing him be. As Gary King, he is a real loser, still sporting his teenage sludgy black hair and greatcoat, still driving 'The Beast' registered in someone else's name, still embarrassingly overconfident and still sleazing onto women in the loos. He's so close to being unlikeable, yet there's just enough good in him — and just a smidge of relatability — that we want him to win on his ridiculous quest to unite his high school buddies and claim the victory that should have been theirs 20 years earlier: completion of a 12-stop pub crawl known as the Golden Mile. Gary's more capably adult friends — Andrew (Frost), Steven (Paddy Considine), Oliver (Martin Freeman) and Peter (Eddie Marsan) — want out of the caper not long after arriving back in their insular home town, Newton Haven. But then they discover the place has gone Invasion of the Body Snatchers in their absence, and fighting off invading alien robot hordes takes precedence over fighting each other. All the while, following some spectacular drunk-person reasoning, they continue the course of their pub crawl to the mythic World's End bar. In some ways, The World's End doesn't feel like the final movie of the trilogy; it has the anarchic, careening, appropriately drunken energy of an early oeuvre picture, but one suspects that mood is actually harder to control than it looks. The movie is also unexpectedly mature in its human drama, teasing out the fraught relationship we have with our histories and ultimately encouraging us to go a little less hard on our past selves. There's great joy in watching The World's End, and plenty of rewards in the team's signature brand of comedy. Maybe it is time to move on from the genre mash-up, but this is a thundering way to go out. https://youtube.com/watch?v=7ibQvQUpMTg
Viewing overload may be a thoroughly modern dilemma, but it's one that we can all relate to. And, it doesn't just apply to the sheer volume of options these days — across cinema releases, film festivals, regular television, pay TV and the growing number of streaming platforms, for example — but also to the types of stories told. If you're feeling a little like you've seen every superhero flick, upbeat rom-com tale, cop procedural and bromance buddy comedy ever made, then the SBS Short Film Festival is here to deliver a huge dose of diversity. The new three-day event's main aim: to showcase not only different subjects, topics and formats, but work made by creators who are typically underrepresented in the screen industry. Dropping on SBS On Demand across Friday, September 13 and Sunday, September 15, the festival will feature 14 shorts, all from Australian talents — including folks from multicultural and Indigenous backgrounds, members of the LGBTIQ+ community and those living with disabilities. Different shorts will hit the free platform each day, recreating the real-world film festival experience. Of course, to enjoy this event, you just need a TV, laptop or smartphone. Highlights include the Aaron Pedersen-starring Out of Range, which sees the acclaimed actor plays a father trying to reconnect with his estranged son on the road; Amar, about the groom-less wedding of a Muslim woman with Down syndrome; and Bananas and Flavour Swap, each exploring the bonds of food and culture. On the documentary front, Limited Surrender focuses on an artist's plight after being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, while Lost Daylight examines the stolen generation from a personal perspective, through the tale of a woman who was placed in the Sisters of Mercy convent at Brisbane's All Hallows' school in 1950s and 60s. Other titles include The Loop, hailing from Lorcan Hopper, a first-time television director with Down syndrome; Deafinition, which crafts its sights and sounds through the perspective of someone who is profoundly deaf; and the three-part Monsters of Many Worlds, a combination of live-action and animation on the topic of mythical creatures. The SBS Short Film Festival stems from the Short-Form Content Initiative, which is committed to increasing opportunities for Australian creatives from diverse communities. The 14 films were shot across Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and Tasmania, with funding assistance from Film Victoria, Screen Queensland, Screenwest, South Australian Film Corporation and Screen Tasmania. Check out the festival trailer below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ex32L9dC9k The SBS Short Film Festival hits SBS On Demand between Friday, September 13 and Sunday, September 15. Images: The Small Town Drifter, Michael O'Neill, Blur Films / Out of Range, Ryan Alexander Lloyd / Amar, Zahra Habibullah / Deafinition / Flavour Swap, Amy Brown / Lives In Action, Jurban Botany.
The 90s were great. That shouldn't be a controversial opinion. Whether you lived through them or have spent the last couple of decades wishing you did — aka bingeing on 90s pop culture — this Oxford Art Factory shindig will indulge your retro urges. Drinks, tunes, fashion: expect all three at the Oxford Street bar's Espresso Martini Festival from 5pm on Friday, February 7. As you can probably tell from the event name, the drinks portion of the night is dedicated to one very popular beverage: espresso martinis. They'll be available in three flavours — classic, Golden Gaytime and double choc chip — and they'll all be $10. All night. While you sip on these caffeinated drinks, you'll be unleashing your inner Spice Girl and Backstreet Boy — thanks to tunes by the No Scrub DJs (who are behind the throwback No Scrubs: 90s Early 00s parties). You'll also be getting down to TLC, Destiny's Child, Savage Garden, Usher, Blink-182, No Doubt — we'd keep listing artists, but you all know what you're getting yourselves into. Of course, it's up to you to make sure the clothing side of thing is covered, and to get into the spirit of the party. If you want to use Mariah Carey as a style icon, it'd be fitting. Oxford Art Factory Espresso Martini Festival runs from 5–10pm. Top image: Destination NSW
After a royally stacked first month in action, The Landsdowne is back with a massive live music push. Following an opening night supergroup appearance by The Jezabels lead singer Hayley Mary, the whole band is taking over the stage for a week-long party. They'll be playing seven shows over seven consecutive nights, from Monday, August 21 to Sunday, August 27. Hit every show and you'll probably hear most of the ARIA Award winners' back catalogue, plus a bunch of new tunes. The Jezabels launched their third album, Synthia, last year to positive reviews, including a five-star write-up from The Guardian. Each night, there'll be a different support act, including Didirri (solo), Sunscreen and Soma. "We had a few reasons for doing seven nights at the Lansdowne," said Mary. "We wanted to play a bunch of small, intimate shows to our Sydney fans where we could change up the set and play some songs we wouldn't normally have time for and the reopened Lansdowne represents such an awesome new era for Sydney that it seemed right it should be there. But mainly, we felt a sadistic kind of pleasure in making the staff listen to us over and over to the point of sheer disdain." The Jezabels will play every night at The Lansdowne from August 21–27. Tickets are $30+BF and you can get them via Oztix. Images: Chris Frape, Cybele Malinowski.
We've already given you the lowdown on Moët & Chandon's chic new pop-up drinking destination. And now the champagne experts have upped the ante by adding three exclusive after dark parties to elevate your harbourside experience and help you kick start your summer in style. From Thursday, December 2 till Saturday, December 4, you and your friends can enjoy a luxe evening at Moët & Chandon's Effervescence on Bennelong Lawn. Each evening will feature a different cuvée meaning you could be sipping the delicious Imperial, Rosé Imperial or Grand Vintage champagnes inside a bubbling 500-square-metre sculpture while a custom-built chandelier takes centre stage above. Tickets to these exclusive evenings range from $100–150 per person and include a Moët Mini on arrival, Moët & Chandon champagne throughout the evening, live DJ sets, roving canapés and more. Tickets are strictly limited so be quick to snap up your spot at this snazzy summer soiree. Ready to immerse yourself in the effervescent world of Moët & Chandon on a balmy summer evening? For more information and to book your tickets, visit the website.
With gigs and shows popping back onto calendars again over the last six months, bands and concert promoters have been forced to get creative to abide by COVID-19 restrictions. Local favourites have thrown seated gigs in small regional towns, performed to a sea of cars at drive-in concerts and are even set to take to revolving stages as part of NSW's first major music festival of 2021. Although gathering restrictions have begun to roll back and normalcy is beginning to return to the live music scene across the country, these unique opportunities to catch bands in unexpected locations don't seem to be going anywhere. Take Live At Last, for instance. It's the new live music series that will see fan-favourite Australian musicians perform at intimate venues across the country. In Sydney, it'll feature Hockey Dad, the band behind the aforementioned drive-in gigs, who'll perform in beloved bar Frankie's Pizza on Thursday, April 29. The show will be a unique chance enjoy Frankie's new Dan Pepperell-crafted pizza menu while catching the Wollongong surf-rock duo up close, with the CBD bar having a much smaller capacity than the 3000-person Big Top Luna Park the band recently sold out. A venue the size of Frankie's playing host a band of Hockey Dad's popularity could result in chaos, so you'll have to win tickets in order to get access to the gig. To go into the ballot to head along, you just need to hit up the Secret Sounds website and enter your details. Announced after the Hockey Dad show — but happening the day before — is Live At Last's Brisbane stopover. Last Dinosaurs and Dear Seattle will hit the stage at The Triffid on Wednesday, April 28. To head along, you'll also need to try to win tickets via the Secret Sounds website. Then, the series of gigs is set to move to other parts of the country. If you're wondering where else Live At Last will head, that's yet to be revealed. [caption id="attachment_772790" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Hockey Dad by Ian Laidlaw[/caption] Live At Last is set to kick off on Wednesday, April 28 with Last Dinosaurs and Dear Seattle at The Triffid in Brisbane — and then head to Frankie's Pizza on Thursday, April 29 with Hockey Dad. To win tickets and to keep an eye out for future events, head to the event's website. Top image: Frankie's Pizza by Katje Ford Updated April 16.
The second law of thermodynamics, entropy, states that all energy is eventually equalised. Molecules disintegrate as matter is neutralised; like ice cubes melting in a glass of water which in time will be room temperature. It sounds like a pretty self-evident law, but for centuries western culture has aspired to ideals of monumental permanence and art that survives untarnished and unchanged. Rejecting orthodox sculptural materials that are valued for their strength and durability, like stone and bronze, Tim Silver's art is one of transience and eternal incompletion. His cast and carved forms - made of malleable media like crayon, watercolour pigment, chocolate, dirt or sand are forever in a state of transformation, either evolving from of devolving back to nothingness. Marking new experiments with dried herbs and spices, his Coming around again series comprises photographs of small sculptures made from ground nutmeg, ginger, turmeric or cinnamon. They are recognisable forms like light bulbs, cassettes, sunglasses and other cheap, mass-produced goods, and as they sit on a shoreline the tide comes in and gently but relentlessly wears them away. In the main gallery room we meet Rory, a small boy made of powder blue watercolour pigment who is looking up at the ceiling, frozen in a candid moment. But as small drops of water are dispersed from above at random, his matter is disintegrating, his features are wearing away, and a powder blue puddle is slowly forming at his feet. The processes of decay and degeneration are not something to be overcome here, they are foregrounded as the very essence of Silver's art, and of all things.
It's been nearly four years since Mumford & Sons topped the ARIA charts with its third album, Wilder Mind — and last visited the Antipodes. But, angst-ridden fans, you can now breathe a sigh of relief. The British quartet will release its fourth offering, Delta, on Friday, November 16 and, soon afterwards, will embark on a 60-date worldwide tour. It includes six stops right here in Australia, presented by Secret Sounds. To catch the boys in Sydney, make sure you're around in January. They'll play the Qudos Bank Arena at Sydney Olympic Park on Friday, January 18 with the support of English soul singer-songwriter Michael Kiwanuka, whose sophomore album Love & Hate, produced by Danger Mouse, topped the UK charts in 2016. According to Mumford & Sons' lead singer Marcus Mumford, Delta represents a place where "order meets chaos and shelter meets wilderness". Described as the band at its "impassioned and muscular best", the album was two years in the making and recorded at Church Studios in North London with Paul Epworth, whose production credits include Adele, U2 and London Grammar. To get a taste of what to expect, check out the lead single, 'Guiding Light', over here. The Secret Sounds presale, for email subscribers only, will begin at 2pm on Wednesday, October 10 and finish up at 8am on Friday, October 12. General sales are slated to drop an hour later, at 9am on Friday, October 12. For further event details, visit the Secret Sounds website.
Don your best and most vibrant frocks — a powerhouse duo is coming to the Powerhouse Museum with a huge display of Australian fashion. Spanning four decades of fabulous outfits, the immersive exhibition will offer an in-depth showcase of the works of creative partnership Jenny Kee and Linda Jackson. Encapsulating their dynamic energy, Jenny Kee and Linda Jackson: Step Into Paradise will examine the influences and inspirations, as well as the compelling stories behind their creations. The pair's work is famous for transforming the Australian fashion world, all thanks to their bold designs that blend Australian nature and culture with global influence. For their efforts, they were honoured as Officers in the Order of Australia. Opening on Thursday, October 17, the exhibition will particularly highlight the pair's formative years. That's when Jenny worked in London with Vern Lambert at the Chelsea Antique Market in 1960, while Linda globe trotted through the Pacific, Asia and Europe, studying fashion in cultures from the streets of Papua New Guinea to the runways of Paris. The opening of the Flamingo Park Frock Salon at Sydney's Strand Arcade in the 1970s marked the beginning of their creative partnership, with Powerhouse's showcases named after the sign on their shop door — which welcomed customers to "step into paradise". "It was an invitation to visitors, to step into a fantastical and romantic world, full of beautiful things celebrating our environment. It was something Sydney had never seen before and we want to replicate this feeling with the exhibition," explains Kee. More than 150 garments, textiles, photographs and artworks from the Museum's own extensive collection, many of which haven't been seen before, will be on display — alongside pieces from the designers' personal archives. Iconic pieces in the exhibition include Linda Jackson's Waratah dress and Jenny Kee's black opal Chanel suit from Karl Lagerfeld's initial collection in 1983. Exhibition images: Zan Wimberley. Profile image: Hugh Stewart.
In How To Be Single, paralegal Alice (Dakota Johnson) complains about all the things she said she'd do but hasn't. Everyone in the audience can surely relate; actually, as they're watching her dating exploits, they're witnessing that very idea in action. At the outset, the screen adaptation of Liz Tuccillo's novel declares that it won't tell the usual relationship-focused story. That statement proves more aspirational than accurate, with the author's background — co-writing self-help book He's Just Not That into You, as well as penning episodes of Sex and the City — giving you a hint of what to expect. While this Christian Ditter-directed effort might not focus on a typical boy-meets-girl narrative, that doesn't keep the feature out of predictable territory. Following in the footsteps of every other film and TV show about being uncoupled, How To Be Single delves into the moments in-between the love, lust and living happily ever after. More than one woman attempts to accept their amorous lot in life, and learns a few lessons in the process. The idea of forging an identity without a partner is championed, all while the movie's characters keep talking about the guys — or lack thereof — that they're chasing. Cue a New York tale about Alice, her doctor sister Meg (Leslie Mann) and new best friend Robin (Rebel Wilson) — as well as the marriage-obsessed Lucy (Alison Brie), who frequents the same bar. Alice is on a break from her long-term boyfriend, though the heavy-partying Robin encourages her to make the most of her unattached time, particularly when that hiatus becomes permanent. After spending years delivering other people’s babies, Meg finally realises that she wants one of her own. Lucy, meanwhile, has dedicated the last six months to devising an algorithm to help her get the most out of online dating, with little success so far. The journey each character goes on — espousing the joys of going solo while traversing casual flings and potential serious connections — is far from surprising. Nor is the long list of men — a commitment-phobic bartender (Anders Holm) and protective single dad (Damon Wayans Jr.) among them — that pop up along the way. Indeed, when it comes to chronicling the trials and tribulations of modern dating, How To Be Single thinks that saying it is different is enough. And yet while it fails to follow through on that promise, it approaches the typical clichés of its genre with the energy needed to make them entertaining. In fact, packaging up been-there, seen-that stories and passing them off as a twist on standard chick flick fare proves less trying than it sounds, largely thanks to the film's cast. As he did with the less successful Love, Rosie, director Ditter not only shows an affinity for romantic comedy conventions, but for getting the most out of his actors. If the film's biggest downfall is its false assertion that it doesn't fit the expected formula, then its biggest asset is how its talent weathers the routine material they're saddled with. Yes, you've seen all this before, and no, none of it is particularly memorable. But at least Johnson, Wilson, Mann, Brie and company use their charms to keep things lively.
More than a few hearts were broken when legendary Oxford Street gay bar The Midnight Shift announced its closure last September. But the long-standing icon could soon be getting a new lease on life, having sold to a Sydney hotel group last week. Universal Hotels released a statement saying it had acquired the sprawling venue for an 'undisclosed amount', with Commercial Real Estate reporting it had been snapped up for a cool $12 million. This latest acquisition marks the group's fourth purchase in the area in the past 12 months. The Universal Hotels' stable also includes the recently acquired fellow Darlinghurst haunts The Brighton Hotel, Kinselas and The Oxford Hotel, suggesting that the whole precinct — one of the hardest hit by NSW's lockout laws — could soon enjoy a resurgence. While the future of The Midnight Shift is still uncertain, Universal Hotels managing director Jim Kospetas released a statement saying the group plans to inject new lift into the area. "Darlinghurst, while hit hard by the introduction of lock-out laws in 2014, is showing signs of recovery," Kospetas said. "We plan to work closely with the community and with our fellow hoteliers to revitalise the area as a whole." Clocking in at 1000 square metres and with capacity for 528 people, The Midnight Shift last sold for $8.25 million back in 2008. The Midnight Shift is located at 85-91 Oxford Street, Darlinghurst. We'll keep you posted when we know more about its future.
There are few pleasures more simple or satisfying in this life than a great meal with great company. It's with that fact in mind that we again find comedians Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan bouncing from one tantalising meal to the next in the third installment of Michael Winterbottom's gastro-comedy series The Trip. Beginning in 2010, the original Trip was a 'best of' that drew from Winterbottom's six-part series for the BBC in which Brydon and Coogan travelled the UK's Lake District 'reviewing' restaurants for their respective publishers. It featured a threadbare fictional storyline that served only to place these two astoundingly witty and sardonic impressionists opposite one another – verbal sparring partners forever determined to fell the other with a devastating barb. The result was a delightful laugh-out-loud comedy that never once threatened to veer towards the gross-out or foul-mouthed gags so common in contemporary Hollywood comedies. The first film's success spawned a sequel, The Trip to Italy, four years later. Now we're greeted with the third course in The Trip to Spain. It's all very much business as usual, with close-ups of mouth-watering food porn breaking up the otherwise largely static shots of Coogan and Brydon facing off against one another, backed by breathtaking scenery and captivating architecture. There's a little history thrown in throughout the film, as well as the occasional food review, but at its heart The Trip to Spain knows where the gold lies and it rarely strays far from the path. Some of you may already be familiar with the common personality quiz question that asks what two people you'd most like to have over for a dinner party. If nothing else, you'd be hard pressed to find a better return on investment than Brydon and Coogan, given how effortlessly the two become 20. Many of the same impersonations from the first two movies return here, including Al Pacino, Michael Caine and Roger Moore. But it's the new entries – David Bowie, Mick Jagger and Sir Anthony Hopkins – that earn the biggest laughs. That these impressions are so often inspired by real life encounters or precious personal moments with their subjects gives what might otherwise feel like a tired parlour trick a critical grounding in tenderness – especially in the case of the Bowie exchange. If there's a complaint to be made this time round, it's that the fictional storyline brings the film to a close on a note that's both abrupt and rather bizarre. The likelihood of another follow-up seems assured given the left-field cliffhanger, but it's so at odds with the class and character of the series that one almost wishes the fictional narrative could be dispensed with entirely. Either that, or shift away from the episodic format of television and become an out-and-out film series. We'll just have to wait and see. For now, at least, we've got some more sumptuous comedy to enjoy, along with course after course of delicious food to match. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTvy8ab1NSo
The team at Chauvel Cinemas are opening up their vault of classic and cult film favourites. Every Friday night between July and late October, the Paddington theatre will screen double bills of iconic titles from throughout film history, including several on rare 35mm film prints. The season begins on July 8 with a 15th anniversary screening of cult hit Donnie Darko followed by Ben Wheatley's psychedelic head trip A Field in England. Other standouts include Psycho and The Birds on August 8, Alien and Aliens on September 9, Lost Highway and Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me on September 16, and Spirited Away and My Neighbour Totoro on September 30. True film nerds should also jump at the chance to catch the cinema's 35mm offerings, with Solaris on July 22, Goodfellas on August 19 and Blow Up and Zabriskie Point on September 2. For the complete Cine-Vault program, go here.
We've seen a damn lot of cuteness lately. First, Sydney went ahead and landed us our very first cat cafe. Then, Uber decided to deliver kittens to our very offices. But dumpling monarchs Din Tai Fung have gone ahead and created cuteness we can put in our mouths — take that Uberkitty OUT of your gob. To celebrate the 2015 Lunar New Year, Din Tai Fung have created the sweetest buns we've ever been able to sink our teeth into. Offering up Lunar Lamb Sweet Buns every day from February 11 to March 5, DTF have fashioned little lambs out of their bao buns. Just LOOK AT THEM. They're called 'Baa Buns' because sometimes life just gets it right. Good news, you don't have to connect the dots between the lamb inside and out of the bun — they're desserty little blighters. Baa buns come steamed-to-order with a formidable filling of molten dark chocolate and taro, $3.20 each or $6 a pair. The little edible lambies will be available World Square, Central Park, Westfield Chatswood and their new Westfield Miranda outpost. There'll be limited quantities at each venue, available daily. But if you visit on the same day as us, we take no prisoners.
Every Wednesday, Palace Cinemas is giving movie-loving students in Sydney an extra present. It's not just the gift of great flicks — that is, the cinema chain's daily bread and butter — but the gift of cheap great flicks. Head to one of the company's four Sydney locations — Paddington's Palace Verona or Chauvel Cinema, Chippendale's Palace Central and Leichhardt's Palace Norton St — each Wednesday, and any film at any time will only cost you $9. Want to see new blockbusters? Arthouse fare? Everything in-between? It'll cost you $9. Booking in advance is highly recommended, given how much everyone loves going to the flicks for little more than the price of a cup of coffee. If you do nab your tickets online, you will have to add a transaction fee to the cost. You will need to show your student ID to nab the bargain tickets — and in New South Wales, the deal isn't valid at Palace Byron Bay. Also, you can't score the discount on Platinum sessions, or for film festival screenings or special events. Top image: Palace Central.
So long MissChu, hello Saigon Lane. Restaurateur Aki Kotzamichalis has taken over the licenses of the popular Vietnamese eateries in Bondi, Glebe, Darlinghurst and the CBD — which, from December, will be trading with new menus and a new moniker to match. Kotzamichalis is best known as the man behind Bali restaurants Ku De Ta and Saigon Street, with the latter establishment inspiring the Sydney rebrand. "It's a massive undertaking" Kotzamichalis told Concrete Playground. "Rebranding, painting, renovating, new menu, staff training, you name it." The Saigon Lane menu will be inspired by chef Phil Davenport, who previously served as head chef for seven years at Ku De Ta. Think green rice fried tiger prawns, Vietnamese chicken coleslaw with peanuts, and pork belly banh mi. They'll also retain a number of favourites from the old MissChu menu, including the popular Atlantic salmon dish and a selection of dumplings. "We didn't want to alienate anyone," said Kotzamichalis. "Anything that is really popular we'll keep or tweak." The menu will be the same at all four sites, although there'll be a bigger focus on takeaway at the "rush in, rush out" tuck shops in Darlinghurst and the CBD. The restaurants in Glebe and Bondi, on the other hand, will feature a selection of signature cocktails, at least two of which will be available on tap. The new interiors, meanwhile, will come courtesy of Alex Zabotto-Bentley, who'll make use of the same bright colour palette seen over in Seminyak. "Saigon Lane will have a similar look and feel to its big brother, but with a few unique twists that will be revealed when we open our doors in December," promised Kotzamichalis. For more information about Saigon Lane visit www.saigonlane.com.
Heading to the cinema is usually an act of escapism, but the Antenna Documentary Film Festival isn't avoiding life's woes. The Sydney-based event dedicates its 11-day, 50-movie program to true tales from around the world. Running from Thursday, October 17 to Sunday, October 27 at the Chauvel Cinema, Palace Verona and Parramatta's Riverside Theatre, the fest casts its eyes far and wide to relay stunning stories that couldn't be more real. You won't find CGI fantasies and simple accounts of good versus evil here, but what you will discover is a plethora of thought-provoking efforts. Antenna's 2019 program surveys everything from politics, history, war and fashion to artificial intelligence, citizen journalism, the textile industry and immigration. After kicking off with the latest documentary from inimitable German filmmaker Werner Herzog — Nomad: In The Footsteps of Bruce Chatwin, which is partly set in Australia — the fest's lineup also spends time with two dogs hanging out in a skate park in Santiago in the adorable Los Reyes, and heads to an empowering Aussie rock camp in No Time for Quiet. Also look out for Hi, AI, about the growing use of artificial intelligence in daily life (in both functional and creepy ways); The Rest, Ai Weiwei's latest powerful documentary about the global immigration crisis; and Jawline, about a Tennessee teen who just wants to be an Instagram influencer. Elsewhere, The Hottest August explores the timely topic of climate change; Recorder: The Marion Stokes Project tells the tale of a woman who recorded American TV channels, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, for more than 30 years; and the fest also pays tribute to pioneering filmmaker Shirley Clark via a retrospective of three of her films.
The office lunch break is a magical time. You've put in a solid half day's work, and it's finally time to eat again. With the morning sorted, you can treat yourself to a well-deserved break. These days, city workers have a host of options to choose from, but not all lunches are created equal. If you work right in the heart of the city, this list of quick and healthy — or fried and filling — spots to hit up is right nearby. From poké bowls to nasi goreng, standout pizza to schnitzel and gravy (sometimes it's all that'll do), the towering 50-storey Australia Square has it all. So leave your sad ham and cheese sandwich in the office fridge and treat your tastebuds instead. [caption id="attachment_673446" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Chelsey Rader[/caption] BELLUCCI Australia Square has a new jewel in its crown, the recently opened Bellucci. This Italian beauty sits on the podium level above Ryan's Bar and makes the most of architect Harry Seidler's original design. It comes with a strong pedigree, too, Head Chef Teofilo Nobrega made the leap from Potts Point's much-lauded Fratelli Paradiso to join the team. Nobrega combines contemporary Italian with a New York sensibility to create a tidy menu — covering breakfast through to dinner. Things aren't done by halves here, either — the pasta is handmade and hearty and there's a woodfired pizza deck. Enjoy lunch in, or if the office is calling you back grab a pastry or a sourdough sandwich on the run. CHINA SPICE SYDNEY We've all been there — the day's only halfway over and we're hitting refresh on Instagram and staring at the computer screen pretending to be productive. In these cases, what's needed is a lunchtime hit of BBQ to get your head back in the game. Enter China Spice Sydney, which bills itself as a Chinese-Malaysian eatery. BBQ duck and pork are displayed in all their lacquered glory at the front of the shop. All you need to do is choose your beast and what noodles and sides you'd prefer. In terms of Chinese fare, it also does a decent Hainanese chicken rice, while over the Strait of Malacca you can grab a good nasi goreng. ZEUS Haloumi-spiked mac and cheese balls? Yes, please. Zeus brings Greek street food with a twist to your lunchbox. Choose from pitas stuffed with meat, salad and a zingy sauce — or vego options, if you're that way inclined. If you're feeling Herculean, grab some meat from the spit — chicken, pork or lamb — and jazz it up with a side of slaw or pilaf. For those needing a fix after the night before, Yia Yia's loaded chips will set you right — chips covered in slow-cooked beef brisket, harissa aioli and smoky yoghurt, feta and sliced fresh chilli. ROLL'D Roll'd delivers a delicious slice of Vietnam to your working day. Keep things fresh with its signature rice papers rolls — with more traditional fillings such as beef and lemongrass through to inventive options like barramundi and avocado. Bahn mi has become a lunchtime favourite for Sydneysiders in recent years, and it's easy to see why. At Roll'd the crunchy baguette comes filled with pork, pickled vegetables, a hit of chilli a dash of coriander. For something more comforting — perfect for those chilly days — it also serves a mean pho. The recipe's been handed down through the family for generations so the broth is deep and complex. FIRE & FOOD If lunchtime comes around and you've got a hankering for something heartier (and covered in gravy) make your way over to Fire & Food. As the name suggests, lots of the food here is cooked over fire — roast meats, rotisserie chickens, souvlaki and a long lineup of burgers. It's the kind of place to head when you've had one (or three) too many drinks the night before and you're feeling a li'l dusty. If we're not far off the mark here, we suggest going all out and getting the King Burger with all the Aussie fillings — beetroot, bacon, egg and cheese — or a schnitzel and chips covered in salty gravy. You deserve it. You've been working hard. POKED It's hard to imagine a time when poké was not with us, such is the exploding popularity of this Hawaiian import. And it's not a mystery why — with its clean flavours and seasonal ingredients, the vitamin-filled poké bowl makes a great alternative to stodgier lunchtime options. At Poked there are quite a few variations to choose from. In homage to its motherland, the Hawaiian comes with both tuna and salmon, pineapple salsa, pickled cabbage and edamame, with wonton crisps for crunch. Outside of the sea, there are chicken and beef bowls available and, unlike at many foodcourt outlets, vegans get a look in, too, with the veggie and bean packed bowls. RYAN'S BAR Ryan's Bar has long been the meeting place for city suits to enjoy an after work drink — and it's no slouch at lunchtime either. The outdoor space is one of the few north-facing public spaces in the city, so if there's sunshine to be had you can catch it here on your break while enjoying being free from prison. We mean, work. The menu is heavy on carbs with pizzas, burgers, schnittys and parmas keep you fueled throughout the afternoon. And if you're too overwhelmed (and under-motivated) to go back to the office, maybe a sneaky beverage will give you the encouragement you need. Just don't tell the boss. Australia Square is also giving you the chance to win free lunch for a whole month. Make a purchase at any of the complex's casual dining spots between Monday, June 18 and Friday, July 6, receive your promo card and enter online and you'll go in the running to win $350 to spend on lunch.
Lovers of ramen, listen up — two of Sydney's best ramen shops are joining forces for one night only. Chaco and Gogyo are teaming up for a limited-time ramen collab at Gogyo's Surry Hills outpost on Monday, June 21. Details are currently limited but we know these two top Sydney ramen forces coming together is bound to deliver something special. Chaco is no stranger to collaborations with fellow Sydney favourites, running a pop-up with Surry Hills shawarma standouts Shwarmama early last year. Tickets for the collaboration will be available from 6pm Thursday, June 17 from Chaco and Gogyo's websites. Keep your eyes on their respective Instagram feeds for more details. [caption id="attachment_772483" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Chaco ramen, Alana Dimou[/caption]
Bodysnatchers is a young theatre company formed by playwright Mark Rogers and director Sanja Simic. Their latest show, Blood Pressure at the Old Fitz is an excellent domestic drama that incorporates some fascinating bioethical questions, from euthanasia to the legal status of dismembered body parts (it's finders keepers, in case you were wondering). Two adult brothers, Michael (Alexander Millwood) and Adam (Wade Briggs) meet up after a time apart on the evening of Michael's piano recital. Preparing to leave for the big night, younger brother Adam holds things up with his chronic illness. Susan Sontag's famous quote from Illness as Metaphor about our dual citizenship to the kingdom of the sick and the kingdom of the well is included in the program notes, and under Simic's detailed direction, this production articulates beautifully what those two kingdoms look like. Rogers has created a believable relationship between the brothers, who have the ability unique to siblings to adore and despise each other simultaneously. Millwood and Briggs bounce off each other well, particularly in the comic scenes, although Millwood seems to have some trouble executing the choppier parts of the text. The wider arguments that arise about organ donation and whether foreign tissue in a body can really influence personal tastes are interesting. But the debate about the nature of consciousness in which Adam reveals himself to be a materialist and Michael a more metaphysical type is unnecessary and thankfully brief. Their return to the business of being brothers is welcome. Theoretical arguments on stage are always inadequate because an essay could do it better. But where theatre triumphs is its capacity to move us. The emotional insight imparted by this play is that pathos is not a weak thing. Rogers has written a sick man who is good-humoured and practical, and Briggs embodies him with humility and grace. The only drawback of the piece is the ending. Because it is not well rooted in the preceding play, it doesn't resonate with the story thus far and impact as it should. Nevertheless, the spirit of this production is courageous and tender. Go and see this and then go home and write your living will, dictating the treatment you want when you enter the kingdom of the sick.
The realisation that eventually comes to everyone underscores Once My Mother, one that dawned slowly upon filmmaker Sophia Turkiewicz. She grew up listening to stories her mother, Helen, would tell of her life, but could only see as far as the intersection with her involvement. More immediate family history weighed upon Sophia, driving a desire for distance as she grew from a girl into a woman. Unforgiving about time spent in an orphanage, she also demonstrated an unwillingness to look past the emotional scars of her upbringing. It follows that Once My Mother takes a universal process — that of discovering the real personality of our parents, of understanding the true impact of their past not just upon their lives but our own, and of showing compassion for any missteps along the way — and relates it to the audience in the only way possible: as a personal journey. Turkiewicz's documentary is dedicated to dissecting Helen's resilience through decades marked by difficulties of destruction, discrimination and displacement; however, it is also shaped by a daughter's burgeoning awakening to things only age and experience could help her appreciate. Many laudatory words are directed towards Helen in the film's narration, written by and told from Sophia's perspective as a letter from the latter to the former but actually voiced by another. The extolling of virtues is justified by the accounts of Helen's epic ordeals in Poland and Siberia during the Second World War, then in Africa in the aftermath, and finally in Australia in an attempt to establish a new life as a single mother. The language remains lyrical and love-fuelled, sensitive and sentimental, even if the revelation that it is uttered by someone else (Jen Vuletic) somewhat skews the sense of intimacy. Of course, the spoken component is just one part of the documentary, with the visual complement impressive in its detailed assemblage. Starting with Helen in an aged care centre, then going back to the beginning, Sophia combines archival footage and photographs with contemporary-shot interviews and visits. The most fulfilling and fortunate element comes from work filmed many years ago, in the fledgling days of her career and with the flame of inquiry into her maternal genesis just beginning to spark, of earlier chats with Helen. Turkiewicz's career has spanned a significant slice of Australian film and television since the early 1980s, most notably the AFI-winning feature Silver City. It is fitting that it similarly took stock of familiar circumstances, albeit in fictionalised form. Here, she confronts the true tale with obvious emotion, but also insight and information. Once My Mother is a time capsule of a unique bond, and a testament to the impact of tenacity, both resonant and relatable. https://youtube.com/watch?v=-fos7dm2inE
Cockatoo Island's mysterious and spooky past will be explored this Halloween, when the venue's Ghostyard Tours return to bring a little fright to your weekend. This special version of the island's regular haunted history night tours will investigate Cockatoo's eerie past and paranormal residents, then invite you to spend the night camping out with said ghosts. The overnight experience starts with a two-hour tour of the island, delving into its (creepy) history as a prison, dockyard, reformatory, school and wartime port. The tour will finish at the world heritage-listed Convict Precinct, where a horror film marathon will take your nerves from bad to worse. To distract you, only ever so slightly, you'll be given hot chocolates, biscuits and marshmallows to roast over an open fire pit. Once the films are finished — and you're well and truly terrified — you'll head over to your deluxe tent, where we doubt you'll get a wink of sleep. The full overnight fright experience will cost you $185 all up, or $230 for two — if scare tactics is your idea of a date. If your nerves can't stand the idea of sleeping in a (potentially) haunted place, you can also opt for just the Ghostyard Tour at $45 a pop. Nab your tickets here — but they're in limited quantity, so don't wait. If you miss out on the Halloween version, however, the overnight experience will continue on most Friday nights until the end of February 2020. Updated: January 9, 2020.
Following three sell-out events in Sydney, which featured MasterChef Australia champ Adam Liaw, Adelaide's Africola chef Duncan Welgemoed and dumpling master from Lotus Dining Group Chris Yan, Red Rock Deli is putting together its first Melbourne secret supper. This time it's bringing one of Melbourne's most renowned chefs to host an exclusive dinner for some very lucky Melburnians. Paul Turner (from Melbourne bar Lover) is behind the next mouth-watering feast, which will is inspired by Red Rock Deli's new Parmesan & Truffle Deluxe Crisp flavour. All the details are very much under-wraps, including what he'll be cooking up. But, despite everything being very hush-hush, here's what we can reveal: Turner will be cooking up a storm on Thursday, September 19 and his dinner will be inspired by foraged foods — so expect a healthy dose of truffle and a menu packed full of flavour. Even better? You'll be treated to matching wines throughout the feast, too. We can also tell you that this experience will involve more than just the dishes — after arriving at the collection point in Melbourne's CBD, you'll be whisked away to a mystery location where you can expect everything from the decor to the food to have a foraged theme — although the menu will remain a secret until you arrive. There are two sessions of this lavish dinner, with room for just 20 guests at each. Tickets to Paul Turner's secret supper cost $110 per person. Enter the ballot below to be given the chance to purchase tickets. The lucky winners will receive a secret link to buy tickets to the evening on Thursday, September 19. Please note, the Secret Supper menu will not cater to ANY dietary requirements or allergies. There are strictly no changes to the menu. [competition]737439[/competition] Image: Parker Blain
Newly opened Kensington cafe Bar Lucio is celebrating World Coffee Day on Friday, October 1 by giving away free cups of authentic Italian coffee. Bar Lucio is a sister venue to longstanding Darlinghurst and Zetland restaurant Lucio Pizzeria, with owner Lucio De Falco opening the new coffee bar in mid-September. The coffee bar specialises in Italian coffee made with beans from Caffé DM, Australia's experts in authentic Italian-blend coffee, as well as Caffe del Nonno, a creamy chilled coffee that looks closer to a mouse than your daily flat white. There will be free cups of coffee on offer from 7–11am at Bar Lucio. Each patron can head to Lenthall Street and claim one regular coffee to kick-start their Friday. While you're there, Bar Lucio has a range of fresh-baked bread, made on-site in the cafe's woodfire oven, plus an assortment of Italian treats including Nutella or custard-filled bomboloni, sfogliatella napoletana, and coda d'aragosta.
Heading to the cinema is usually an act of escapism, but the Antenna Documentary Film Festival isn't avoiding life's woes. The Sydney-based event dedicates its six-day, 48-movie program to true tales from around the world. Running from Tuesday, October 9 to Sunday, October 14 at the Chauvel Cinema, Palace Verona, Dendy Newtown and the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, the fest casts its eyes far and wide to relay stunning stories that couldn't be more real. You won't find CGI fantasies and simple accounts of good versus evil here, but what you will discover is a plethora of thought-provoking efforts — surveying everything from politics, depression, democracy and cannibalism to soccer, consumerism, art scandals and roller-skating. Many of the festival's highlights are also homegrown, from the emotionally and visually striking Island of Hungry Ghosts, about immigration detention on Christmas Island, to The Eviction, about two friends' battle to save Sydney's Sirius building. Also look out for opening night's Putin's Witnesses, which chronicles the current Russian president's rise to power; Yours in Sisterhood, a powerful reading of unpublished letters sent to America's first mainstream feminist publication in the 1970s; and Aquarela, an aesthetically impressive ode to water in all of its guises. Cinephiles will want to stare into The Eyes of Orson Welles, a cinematic essay about the Citizen Kane filmmaker by The Story of Film's Mark Cousins, while everyone can enjoy closing night's The Gospel of Eureka, the SXSW hit that initiates viewers into the world of gospel drag shows.
The bomb has dropped: Gorillaz are packing their virtual suitcases for a first-ever tour of Australia. Mysterious bass player Murdoc Niccals, demonic drummer Russel Hobbs, girly guitarist Noodle (who was rumored to be dead) and lead vocalist 2D (real name Stu-Pot) will be boarding an ex-military chopper to cross the Atlantic for their Escape to Plastic Beach tour in December. The brainchild of cartoonist Jamie Hewlett (best known for the cult comic book series Tank Girl) and king of Brit-Pop Daman Albarn, Gorillaz are the "first virtual hip-hop group" of our time, brought to life by stunning anime style animation and fascinating fictional narratives. Having recently played Glastonbury and Coachella with special guests Lou Reed, Mick Jones & Paul Simonon, Mos Def, and Bobby Womack, it's anyone's guess who the Gorillaz might end up people-smuggling into Oz — Snoop Dogg, perhaps? Performing tracks from all three of their critically acclaimed albums (Gorillaz, Demon Days and Plastic Beach) this tour will include a dynamic production featuring multi-media video animation, artwork and film. As Murdoc says: "A phantasmagoria of sounds, colours and assaults on the senses." Gorillaz play Sydney Entertainment Centre on December 16th,. Tickets go on sale August 6th. https://youtube.com/watch?v=ijHySaJQUEs
It took 45 years as an actress and 122 credits on her resume for Isabelle Huppert to receive an Oscar nomination, earning the long-overdue nod for her work in the rape-revenge thriller Elle. But the French star is just as deserving of awards and acclaim for her turn in the intimate drama Things to Come. The same matter-of-fact determination shines through in both performances, and yet you'd never mistake one for the other. Part of Huppert's genius is the way every character she plays feels united by a shared humanity, but still utterly distinctive in their traits, and in the way she brings them to life. That's Things to Come's Nathalie Chazeaux in a nutshell. Huppert's protagonist may well make you think of your mother — in fact, writer-director Mia Hansen-Løve wrote the role for Huppert with her own mum loosely in mind. Still, for every aspect that's recognisable, just as many remain unique. A philosophy professor, she's wading through a spate of familiar situations as the years pass by. Her husband decides to leave after a quarter of a century together; her mother requires more of her attention while her kids need less; a cat she doesn't want scampers around; and her professional dealings don't always go as planned. Even if you've never been a just-past-middle-age woman dealing with all of the above, Huppert will ensure you forget that for 102 minutes. Hers is such a fine-tuned and thoughtful performance, one that so effortlessly brings the film's universal themes to the fore, that you'll soon be doing just what her character is doing. No, you won't be quoting renowned thinkers and imparting wisdom to students. Rather, you'll be facing a stark truth about the future: it keeps coming, whether things are changing drastically, or seem to be staying the same. Hansen-Løve isn't one for big revelations and realisations, however. She gets to the heart of what it means to be happy and successful, or to try to be, without filling Things to Come with the kinds of huge moments, altercations and declarations that often find a place on screen. It's the same feat that she achieved with her last film, the Paris-set, electronic music-infused Eden. Daft Punk doesn't show up this time, but both movies convey more than you might expect about navigating the ups and downs of everyday existence by focusing on the minutiae that we all wade through. Indeed, the writer-director's sensitive observational style lends itself to lingering on the details — to building a picture from the smallest elements, rather than the broadest strokes. It's what makes Huppert such a perfect fit, and it's also what makes the filmmaker's patient approach so rewarding. Every close-up of Huppert's face tells a story. Every handheld camera movement does as well. They're small, unobtrusive and delicate ways of painting an involving portrait of life going on, and of all the things that will come.
Mega precinct Darling Square just keeps on expanding, with another three retailers now open and two more to follow later this month. The most exciting of these is the long-awaited opening of Kuon Omakase, an 11-seat Japanese restaurant. Here Head Chef Fukada San serves up a 20-course ($180) menu of sushi and sashimi, while patrons sit at the kitchen counter and watch the chef in action. The seasonal menu changes daily and an optional wine or sake pairing can be added, too. Bookings here are a must, with only one lunch sitting (12–2pm) and two dinner sittings (6pm and 8pm) each day. Then, there's Spago, an Italian restaurant that hails from The Hill and is headed by Chef Eddie Leung. It's now open within the Maker's Dozen food court inside The Exchange building. Expect freshly made pasta dishes, with the majority under $20. Build-your-own bowls — with sauces including boscaiola, salsiccia, amatriciana and carbonara — are also on the docket. [caption id="attachment_780910" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Toastiesmith[/caption] Meanwhile, Tumbalong Boulevard now boasts Jackpot Hotpot, a casino-themed, Macau-style hotpot restaurant. It offers seven different broths — including lobster and veggie varieties — made in-house daily. Build your bowl with dozens of premium ingredients, including lobster, abalone, wagyu, lamb and kurobuta pork, plus heaps of vegetables. There's also an extensive booze list featuring wine, sake and whisky, too. And Steam Mill Lane is also now home to Hachi, a dog spa, boutique and cafe. Get your pet professionally groomed, then pick up some clothing and accessories and head to the photo studio. With your fresh snaps in tow, grab your pooch a special treat from the cafe. Opening later this month within Maker's Dozen is Toastiesmith, a sanga-themed cafe offering up 12 different varieties, including roast beef, pork katsu and grilled fish, all topped with an egg omelette. Drinks include coffees, smoothies and house-made sodas. Joining Toastiesmith in late-August is another outpost of stalwart Pancakes on The Rocks, and it'll serve up an all-day menu of diner favourites. To check the new venues' opening hours, head over to the Darling Square website. Top images: Hachi and Jackpot Hotpot.
Since 2011, DJ Tom Loud's travelling dance party Hot Dub Time Machine has ripped up stages the world over, offering a rolling crossfade of the last six decades of pop-music. And two years ago he launched Wine Machine, a series of al fresco get-togethers on some of the country's most-loved wine regions. The Wine Machine events were a success and the tour will this year head to a new winery, Roche Estate in the Hunter Valley, on Saturday, March 23. The boutique event will run from early afternoon through to after dark, and feature a hand-picked smorgasbord of Australian talent, including The Presets, Hayden James and Confidence Man. This will all lead into one of Hot Dub's signature sets, which will see audiences dancing their way from 1954 to today, as the DJ mixes best-known song from each year. Backing up the tunes, expect a tasty lineup of eats, Single Fin Summer Ale and, of course, some sensational vino from these Australian wine regions. Safe to say, it's probably the rowdiest event these wineries will host all year. And we're giving you a chance to go for free. We've got two general admission passes for you and a mate to give away. Enter your details below for a chance to win. [competition]711746[/competition]
Another day, another new Netflix show. This time, the streaming platform seems to be taking its cues from one of 2018's big-screen surprises. Two women met, became friends despite having very little in common, helped each other with their daily lives and then found themselves immersed in something murky in A Simple Favour — and now they're doing the same in TV series Dead to Me. Arriving in early May, the new ten-episode show stars Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini, with the former playing a just-widowed woman trying to cope with losing her husband in a hit-and-run incident, and the latter popping up as a positive-thinking free spirit. They cross paths at a grief counselling session, and it's a definite odd-couple situation — which isn't helped by more than a few surprises. A dark comedy with plenty of twists, as based on the just-dropped first trailer, Dead to Me also features James Marsden among its cast, with the show created by 2 Broke Girls writer Liz Feldman. The series marks Applegate's first lead TV role since 2011-12 sitcom Up All Night, while it's a return to Netflix for Cardellini, who starred on the streaming platform's drama Bloodline — and also featured in A Simple Favour. Check out the first trailer below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BwYBw1raC2o Dead to Me hits Netflix on May 3. Images: Saeed Adyani / Netflix.
Some things in this life are just meant to go together. Such is the way with Snowshoe to Fondue, the ultimate alpine holiday pairing for everyone who values the après in their skiing. Run by tour operators Alpine Nature Experience, Snowshoe to Fondue runs throughout the winter months in Victoria's Mount Hotham. The experience starts with a sunset hike through the snow-covered forest. Snowshoes enable you to 'float' rather than sink into the alpine landscape, so expect a breezy walk that just earns you the cheese extravaganza that is the real reason for this outing. The feasting takes place at Alpine Nature Experience's 'hidden eco-village', inside a tipi with a fireplace. Here, having enjoyed a warming glass of glühwein upon arrival, you'll be shown how to make a traditional Swiss fondue. A reminder if you haven't heard the word in a while: fondue involves melting cheese over a portable stove and dipping food into it. Why this gooey form of eating ever went out of fashion is a total mystery. Alpine Nature Experience's version is made with cheese imported from the French mountains — and it's bookended with soup and cake, making it a balanced three-course meal. The tour includes transport back to your starting point at Wire Plain, from where you can easily return to your accommodation at Mount Hotham and sleep the sleep of kings. Whatever adventures you've planned on the slopes for tomorrow, you'll be properly fuelled for them. Snowshoe to Fondue tours will run daily Wednesdays to Sundays until September 29. To make a booking, visit the website. Images: Fabio Olivera and Georgie James.
