It's no secret that Adelaide's live music scene is one of the most thriving in the country — though this is probably not a surprise when you consider the city has given the world artists like Jimmy Barnes, Sia, Hilltop Hoods and Paul Kelly. When it comes to live music festivals though, the cities in the east tend to get the biggest acts. Until this November, that is, when brand-new festival Harvest Rock will take over Rymill Park / Murlawirrapurka and King Rodney Park / Ityamai-itpina for two massive days. Headlining the bill is Jack White (pictured below), with The White Stripes frontman playing his only Australian show at Harvest Rock. And he'll be joined by plenty more international talent — The Black Crowes, Khruangbin and Groove Armada are all on the roster, as are The Lumineers, Hot Chip and Sam Fender. We reckon that's a lineup worth planning a weekend in Adelaide for. From the local contingent, Crowded House will bring a hefty dose of nostalgia, while The Avalanches, Courtney Barnett, You Am I and Tones And I will also take to the stage. Hailing from Secret Sounds, the crew behind Splendour in the Grass and Falls Festival, Harvest Rock's two-day run will also place a big focus on the other part of its moniker: food. That'll include a dedicated stage for chef and bar stars to showcase their skills, a marquee serving up curated bites by chef Jake Kellie (arkhé, Burnt Ends) and a food-truck park. Plus, the bar lineup is being curated by Australian wine critic Nick Stock, and features Archie Rose Distilling Co pouring spirits, wine tastings at a cellar door pop-up, a beer hall and a champagne bar. One watering hole will be a LGBTQI+ space, too, and there'll also be a booze-free bar for anyone keen on avoiding a post-fest hangover. Harvest Rock will take over Rymill Park / Murlawirrapurka and King Rodney Park / Ityamai-itpina, Adelaide, on Saturday, November 19–Sunday, November 20. Tickets are on sale now. For more details and to purchase tickets, head to the Harvest Rock website.
Star Wars fans, prepare to punch it on down to Sydney's Powerhouse Museum in November — and prepare to come face to face with 200 original objects from the popular sci-fi franchise at Star Wars Identities: The Exhibition. You might have to wait more than 12 months until Star Wars: Episode IX reaches cinemas late next year, but you can spend your days from November 16, 2018 until June 10, 2019 perusing the items that helped make space opera movie magic happen. Coming to Australia for the first time, that includes costumes, props, models and artworks from the Lucasfilm archives, complete with a galaxy's worth of favourites — think BB-8, R2-D2 and the Millennium Falcon just for starters. Get a glimpse of Yoda, you will, circa Star Wars: Episode V — The Empire Strikes Back. You'll also feel the power-hungry menace radiate from Darth Vader's suit from Star Wars: Episode VII — Return of the Jedi. Star Wars Identities is also an interactive exhibition, with creating your own unique character also part of the experience. If you've ever felt as though you should be hanging out in a cantina somewhere on a remote planet, here's your chance to answer a heap of questions, work through a series of stations and find your inner Star Wars hero. You won't need to use the force — rather, you'll receive a smart technology bracelet and a headset to use while you're in the exhibition (but if you want to say that you're using the force or even want to give midi-chlorians some credit, no one will stop you). The Powerhouse Museum is no stranger to Star Wars shenanigans, having hosted a weekend's worth of May the Fourth fun earlier this year. For those already planning their costumes for this 90-minute experience, you're welcome to attend as Han Solo, Leia Organa, Luke Skywalker or whichever other character you'd like — but helmets and masks will need to be left in the cloak room, and you'll also need to leave your lightsabers at home.
With drought blighting the country, Australia just sweltering through its hottest summer on record, and severe storms popping up with frequency in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, there's little doubt that the earth's climate is changing. And while the subject has fuelled many a documentary in recent years, a new Australian film is taking a different approach. Rather than chronicling the bleak status quo, it ponders how we could improve things for the future. The second film from actor-turned-director Damon Gameau, 2040 sees the Aussie exploring areas such as climate, economics, technology, civil society, agriculture and sustainability — chatting with experts, assessing the best technology currently available and prognosticating on what life might be like if we were to embrace solutions that are being worked on today. Specifically, he muses on the state of the planet in 21 years time, using his young daughter as inspiration, with the doco framed as a letter to the now four-year-old. In his previous feature back in 2014, Gameau took on unhealthy diets by consuming a whole heap of sugary food — and given That Sugar Film's local success, it's hardly surprising that he's taking a personal approach to an important topic once again. 2040 premiered last month at the Berlin Film Festival, where it struck a chord with audiences, and will have its Aussie debut at the Gold Coast Film Festival in April before releasing around the country in May. Check out the trailer below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-rTQ443akE&feature=youtu.be 2040 opens in Australian cinemas on May 23.
Whether you're a sports fanatic or not, it's hard to escape chat about the cricket at this time year. But among the in-depth analyses of certain plays and team strategy, comparison of players past and present and reliving of legendary moments in the sport's history, there is one tale that has long been ignored. In 1868, a group of Aboriginal Australian cricket players became the first Australian sports team to travel and play overseas. Beyond all expectations, the team did extremely well — they won as many games as they lost — and one particular player, Johnny Mullagh (born Unaarrimin), was lauded for his performance, which included scoring 1698 runs across the tour. The tour was a pretty remarkable feat, particularly given the climate of Indigenous affairs in Australia at the time, but the history books have, for the most part, failed to recognise it as such. That's exactly what this new play by screenwriter Geoffery Atherden (Mother and Son, BabaKiueria) and director Wesley Enoch (Black Diggers, Sydney Festival 2014 and Sydney Festival artistic director) aims to rectify. Black Cockatoo begins with a group of activists sneaking into a museum to hunt down (and expose) the story of Mullagh and his team. The play then shifts its focus onto that very story — it tracks the team's journey from regional Victoria to Lord's Cricket Ground and reveals the travesties that were unfolding at home while the team were away. This poignant play is premiering at Kirribilli's Ensemble Theatre as part of Sydney Festival 2020, before a five-night run at Parramatta's Riverside Theatres in February. It's part of Riverside Theatre's jam-packed 2020 schedule, which also includes Aboriginal musical comedy Bran Nue Dae (January 16–February 1), Les Misérables (February 14–29), Monty Python's Spamalot (March 19–22), Sydney Theatre Company's No Pay? No Way! (April 1–4) and the Sydney Comedy Festival Gala (April 22). To see the full 2020 lineup, visit the Riverside Theatres website. To see the full 2020 lineup, visit the Riverside Theatres website. Image: Christian Trinder.
It's a scenario that every Australian can relate to: it's summer, the temperature has reached scorching levels and you can hear the sounds of someone splashing around in a cool, refreshing pool. Alas, those noises aren't emanating from your own pool, because you don't have one — and you don't know your neighbours well enough to just pop by for a dip. And, maybe your local swimming spot is too far away, you don't live near the beach or the nearest public pool is closed for the day. Add all of the above together, and you're stuck trying to cool down in the bath or under the fan. Enter Swimply, a service that's operational in nearly 20 American states, just launched in Toronto in Canada, and is set to head to Australia by summer, according to Lonely Planet. Like every other service that's popped up in today's sharing economy, it's all about renting out something that one person has and doesn't use all of the time, to another person that has a short-term need. In this case, it lets folks with pools lease out their backyard swimming spots when they're not in use, and lets folks without pools find a place for a splash. If you fall into the latter category, you can look for a spot by the day or for a weekend. If you're after a pool with specific facilities and inclusions — such as a changing area, lounge chairs, wifi, a shady spot to sit under and heated waters — you can do that too. Prices aren't particularly cheap, hovering around the US$40 mark for a day, but if you're planning a dip with your pals and can split the cost, it's much more affordable. Add Swimply to the list of Airbnb-like ventures popping up — services that let you stay in architecturally significant houses, the homes of friends of friends, camping grounds, and caravans and campervans; rent out your spare room to refugees; find a music studio; and take care of your luggage needs overseas. This one sounds particularly enticing, however, especially as the warmer weather starts to hit. For further details, visit Swimply's website and Facebook page.
You know that winter is coming to a close when the parties start spilling into the streets again. Case in point: Eat Your Heart Out Liverpool. On Saturday, August 25, the south west Sydney fiesta will return for the second year running. This time it's coming to Railway Street and it's bringing with it live music and performance, food, market stalls, carnival games and art. On the music side of things, a host of artists with ties to the area are set to perform. The main stage will have performances by Thandi Phoenix, six-piece reggae band Manutabu, Gang of Brothers, The Strides and Turquoise Prince as well as dance troupe Shaun Parker and Co. Meanwhile, the Serviceway stage will be showing some of Sydney's up-and-comers in the music scene including Red Roy and Bankstown Poetry Slam. Playing to the name of the festival, Sydney-based artist Melissa Carey will create a huge heart sculpture that will arch over Railway Street as the festival centrepiece. Other commissioned pieces to be revealed include a mural by painter Julia Townsend, plus new work by Studio52's artists-in-residence Thomas Thorby-Lister and Stephanie Peters. There will also be a community mural produced by Muralisto with Settlement Services International, celebrating multiculturalism and diversity through the festival. If consuming all that music and art has left you with a raging hunger, you'll be pleased to know that there'll be food options galore. Dirty Bird, Berlin Bangers, Feast of the East and Dutch Poffertjes House are just a few of the food stalls that will roll into Liverpool, and local pub Macquarie Bistro will also be running a pop-up restaurant in a shipping container for the day. Or, opt for a ticketed Taste Tour for a guided tour of Liverpool's best spots. The tours cost $60 per person and run from 1–3pm, so you'll still have plenty of time to check out the rest of the market stalls and play with some giant lego from Garden Games afterwards.
Asked why he broke into Oslo's Gallery Nobel in 2015 and stole two large oil paintings in broad daylight, Karl-Bertil Nordland gives perhaps the most honest answer anyone could: "because they were beautiful". He isn't responding to the police or providing an excuse during his court appearance, but speaking to Czech artist Barbora Kysilkova, who wanted answers about the theft of her work. Captured on camera, the pilfering of Kysilkova's Swan Song and Chloe & Emma initially appeared to be a professional job. As the two pieces were removed from their frames in such an exacting manner, it was presumed that experts were behind the crime. But Nordland and his accomplice didn't plan their brazen heist, or have a background in purloining art. Thanks to the effect of illicit substances, Nordland can't even remember much about it, let alone recall what happened to the stolen works that Kysilkova desperately wants back. That said, as the thief tells the painter when she first talks with him, he does know that he walked past Gallery Nobel often. He's aware that he saw her photorealistic pieces — the first of a dead swan lying in reeds, the second of two girls sat side by side on a couch — many times, too. And, he's candid about the fact that he marvelled at and was moved by the two canvases long before he absconded with them. As a result, he doesn't seem surprised that his life led him to that juncture, and to snatching Kysilkova's creations. A victim confronts a perpetrator: that's The Painter and the Thief's five-word summary, and it's 100-percent accurate. But such a brief description can't convey how fascinating, thoughtful, moving and astonishing this documentary is as it unfurls a tale so layered and wild that it can only be true — a story that stretches far beyond what anyone could feasibly anticipate of such an altercation and its aftermath, in fact. Nordland was arrested and charged for his crime, with Kysilkova initially making contact with him at his trial. From there, the skilled carpenter and heavily tattooed addict unexpectedly gained a friend in the woman whose works he took. Kysilkova first asked to paint Nordland as part of her attempts to understand him, and he then became her muse. As all relationships do, especially ones forged under such unusual circumstances, their connection evolved, adapted and changed from there. As Norwegian filmmaker Benjamin Ree (Magnus) pointed a camera in their direction for three years, the duo weathered their own ups, downs, twists and turns, as did their friendship. If Nordland's reply to Kysilkova feels disarmingly frank and unguarded, that's because it is. The same tone remains throughout The Painter and the Thief's entire duration. Absent the usual tropes and stylistic markers that true-crime documentaries are known for, the film eschews the standard mix of talking heads, re-enactments and explanatory narration in favour of truly observing and stepping inside its subjects' unique bond. Demonstrating an abundance of empathy that's as haunting as Kysilkova's striking pieces, Ree also gravitates to moments as equally sincere and direct as Nordland's initial admission. To see the latter's response to Kysilkova's first painting of him — physically cycling through shock, amazement, wonder and gratitude, and starting with his eyes wide in bewilderment before being overwhelmed with emotion to the point of sobbing — is to witness the most intimate and complicated of reactions. It's to no one's surprise that Ree lets his movie linger here, and lets his viewers soak in the full breadth and depth of Nordland's reckoning with who he is, how he has long felt about himself, what it means to him to be immortalised in an object of beauty and how it feels to be truly be seen by someone else. When it comes to its titular figures, The Painter and the Thief's focus doesn't just flow in one direction. Kysilkova helps piece together Nordland's story, including voicing a montage of photos and clips that takes a snapshot of his life from his childhood onwards; however, she's just as much of a subject of Ree's film as he is. Indeed, when it's time to expand upon her own tale, Nordland returns the favour by recounting what he knows about his friend in the same fashion. Both have experienced tumultuous histories. Neither's path from their first meeting is straightforward, either. Nordland is involved in an accident that leaves him hospitalised. Kysilkova struggles with her finances, and with her partner Øystein's worries about her new connection. Flitting back and forth between the two — but always leaving an extra impression whenever they're together — The Painter and the Thief offers a level of detail that also matches Kysilkova's paintings, all while charting the intersection of two unlikely kindred spirits. When this affecting and sensitive documentary premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in early 2020, it won a special jury award for creative storytelling — and the intuitive way in which Ree weaves together Kysilkova and Nordland's stories is worthy of the recognition. The gentle tone, the willingness to let things unravel as they will, the care and attention shown in all directions, the utter lack of sensationalism: they're all instrumental in shaping an extraordinary film. So too is the blend of raw yet gorgeously observed imagery by Ree and fellow cinematographer Kristoffer Kumar (Arctic Superstar), the delicate and patient editing by Robert Stengård (Rebels), and the engaging score from Uno Helmersson (Bobbi Jene). An intricate and unflinching insight into kindness and compassion in even the strangest of circumstances needs all of the above, as does a considerate and ruminative exploration of trauma, redemption, addiction, art, power and friendship. The Painter and the Thief is exactly that film. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yJ4r7ON974
Call it fate, call it destiny, call it feeling so deeply that you were always meant to cross paths with another person that no other outcome could ever be conceivable: in Korean, that sensation is in-yeon. Call it having a connection that sprawls yet binds like an endless piece of string, always linking you to someone no matter how far apart you each wander: stretch that out over many, many lifetimes and, yes, that is in-yeon as well. Watching Past Lives, which references the kismet-esque concept both in its three-part story and its title, gives viewers a brush with in-yeon, too. Writer/director Celine Song's feature debut is that affecting; that vivid, evocative and haunting; that alive with been-there-lived-that energy. Wading through layers of love, identity, roads taken and not, and the versions of ourselves that we are at each fork, Past Lives is that acutely able to make a very specific experience mirror everyone's experiences. Partway through the film, aspiring playwright and writer Nora (Greta Lee, Russian Doll) talks through in-yeon with fellow scribe Arthur (John Magaro, The Many Saints of Newark). She shares that in-yeon lingers with everyone that you meet, the very act of making one's acquaintance signifying that you've done so before — and if two people become lovers, it's because they've kept falling into step in life after life. As Nora speaks, Past Lives' audience are well-aware of an unshakeable truth, as is the movie's central figure: that she knows in-yeon in her bones. Indeed, this is what Song's sublime feature is about from its first frames to its last in every way that it can be. With Arthur, Nora jokes that in-yeon is something that Koreans talk about when they're trying to seduce someone. There's zero lies in her words, because she's working that move right there and then, and she'll end up married to him. But with her childhood crush Hae Sung (Teo Yoo, Decision to Leave), who she last saw at the age of 12 because her family then moved from Seoul to Toronto, in-yeon explains everything. That one perfect term sums up Nora and Hae Sung's firm friendship as kids, as chronicled in Past Lives' first third. As pre-teens, the duo (Voice of Silence's Moon Seung-ah and Good Deal's Leem Seung-min) are virtually inseparable — walking home from school together daily, competing over grades, bantering with effortless rapport — until half a globe separates them. Then, when they reunite in their 20s via emails and Skype calls after 12 years without each other, Past Lives' crucial word also describes their instant spark and pull. The latter is so magnetic that they're basically dating without saying it, and while he's still in South Korea but she's now in New York. Next, it captures the complicated emotions that swell when Nora and Hae Sung are finally in the same place together again after decades. Arthur is in the picture by then and, ever-adaptable, in-yeon even encapsulates that development. If Past Lives didn't leave its viewers certain to their core about its emotional authenticity, that'd be a greater surprise than how strongly and tenderly it resounds. The Korean-born Song also emigrated to Canada with her parents at the same point in her life as Nora. While she hasn't made a strictly autobiographical work, there's fact dwelling behind this fiction. Her picture would pair astoundingly well with Minari and Aftersun, in fact. In its way, leaping in souls and minds rather than through realms, it's a multiverse tale and companion to Everything Everywhere All At Once also. Feeling so intimately applicable to the characters loving, living, immigrating, yearning and growing within its frames, and yet echoing so universally, is that always-sought-after holy grail of storytelling feats. Although her film hones in on the heart — on-and off-screen alike — as it gets poetic and philosophical (and delivers a Big Apple-set Before Sunrise/Before Sunset/Before Midnight sequence), that Song studied psychology and once planned to become a therapist isn't astonishing to learn. Each time that Nora and Hae Sung slide back into each other's existences, a dozen years have passed, but it feels no time at all for both. Still, that sentiment can't and doesn't smooth their way onwards. Fittingly, Past Lives is crafted to resemble slipping into a memory, complete with patient looks and visuals (Skate Kitchen and Small Axe cinematographer Shabier Kirchner lenses) and a transportingly evocative score (by Christopher Bear and Daniel Rossen of Grizzly Bear, which gives the picture a bond with the also-heartwrenching Blue Valentine and its own knotty romance). This feature knows every emotion that springs when you need someone and vice versa, but life has other plans. It feels the weight of the trails left untrodden, even when you're happy with the route you're on. It understands what it's like to be see your past, plus the present and future it could've influenced, shimmering in front of your eyes. Past Lives is a film about details — spying them everywhere, in Nora and Hae Sung's lives and in their faces, while recognising how the best people in anyone's orbits spot them as well. Of course every second appears meticulous, then, but also equally dreamy and ripped from reality. Of course Lee, Yoo and Magaro are each magnificent, as is this entire sensitive, blisteringly honest and complex masterpiece. Lee charms Nora's two love interests and Past Lives' viewers in tandem, in a sincere and sharp performance as a woman who is as witty as she is wistful while grappling with who she is. Yoo hops from the best movie of 2022 to what'll be difficult to beat as the best of 2023 with quiet dedication and potency. And Magaro plays adoring, accepting but never elementary; Arthur knows how intricate the situation is, so his way through is just that, through, gleaning his part in helping Nora and Hae Sung be who they need to. Contemplating what's written in the stars also involves contemplating beginnings and endings, even when in-yeon has cycles and reincarnations all a-fluttering. Again, Song fashions Past Lives to embody all that it muses on, including via an opening that's utterly immaculate and a closing scene that's breathtakingly divine. Both are also unforgettable. To start, jumping forward before going backwards, Nora, Arthur and Hae Sung sit at a bar. Her body language is all about her lifelong friend, as fellow drinkers peering on comment on; regardless of how things appear, though, only Nora, Arthur and Hae Sung can ever truly grasp their own full story. To wrap up, simply walking and waiting is so impeccably considered and staged, down to the direction that events flow in across the screen, that they say everything about advancing, retreating and wishing you were doing one while going through the other. Past Lives is a movie to lose yourself in, and gloriously; a film to fall head over feels for, and fast; like it feels fated to be, it's also just extraordinary.
Most music festivals have been lucky to host even one event over the past couple of years, thanks to the pandemic. Many are gearing up for their big returns — and first fests since 2019 — this winter, spring and summer, in fact. But when This That hits Newcastle and Brisbane in October and November, it'll mark its second festivals in both locations this year. That's huge as it is, and so is the just-dropped lineup. Already spent a day dancing at This That in 2022? Get ready to do so once more. This That will make its return to the Sandstone Point Hotel in Queensland on Saturday, October 29, then head to Newcastle in New South Wales on Saturday, November 5 — and it'll do so with Earl Sweatshirt and Flight Facilities leading the bill. The fest will also play host to What So Not in Brissie only, and to The Presets in NSW. And yes, the list goes on. Also set to grace the fest's three stages: Vera Blue, Winston Surfshirt, DMA's, Chillinit, Skeggs, Hockey Dad, Jesswar and more. Some of the acts on This That's 2022 2.0 bill already hit its stages earlier this year — The Presets played Sandstone Point then, but will do Newcastle now, for instance — not that anyone is complaining. If you did already attend this year, you'll get a discount for backing it up, too, thanks to a 48-hour period for autumn This That attendees to buy tickets at the fest's first-release price. THIS THAT OCTOBER–NOVEMBER 2022 LINEUP: Alice Ivy Chillinit Dear Seattle DMA's (NSW only) Earl Sweatshirt Flight Facilities Godlands Hockey Dad Hooligan Hefs Jesswar Kinder Lola Scott Ruby Fields Set Mo Skegss Slumberjack The Presets (NSW only) Trophy Eyes Upsahl Vera Blue What So Not (QLD only) Winston Surfshirt THIS THAT OCTOBER–NOVEMBER 2022 DATES: Saturday, October 29: Sandstone Point Hotel, Sandstone Point, Queensland Saturday, November 5: Newcastle, New South Wales This That returns to Sandstone Point and Newcastle in October and November. For more information, or to buy tickets — with pre-sales from 9am on Wednesday, June 29 and general sales from 9am on Friday, July 1 — head to the festival's website. Images: Mitch Lowe / Jordan Munns.
When Christmas and New Year are over, the temptation to hibernate grows pretty strong — so, you're probably going to need a little something extra to tempt you off the couch come January. Handily, online reservation platform The Fork has a winning idea up its sleeve: it's offering a huge five weeks of dining specials nationwide. Kicking off on Monday, January 6, the second ever The Fork Festival will see top restaurants across the country offering sit-down meals for half the usual price. Yep, 50 percent off your total food bill, folks — think of it as the proverbial carrot luring you out of the house. So far, 300 restaurants have signed up, but The Fork is expecting this number to grow to over 500 by January. To snag a half-price meal, you just need to make a reservation through The Fork website or app at one of the participating eateries for any service (breakfast, lunch or dinner) during the five weeks. [caption id="attachment_653288" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The Boathouse at Blackwattle Bay by Kitti Gould.[/caption] There are some great venues coming to the party, too. In Sydney, you'll find discounted eats at the likes of Eliza Food and Wine, Uccello, The Boathouse on Blackwattle Bay, Berowra Waters Inn, Butcher and the Farmer and Little Jean. Melbourne spots include Tulum Restaurant, Pascale Bar & Grill and Meat and Wine Co in South Yarra and Hawthorn. Brisbane folk can score discounts at the likes of Corbett & Claude and Malt Dining, and Perth diners should put Hunter and Barrel and Meat and Wine Co. You might want to revisit an old favourite or you could get a little adventurous and road-test somewhere new. Either way, there's ample time to squeeze in a fair few discount feasts before the festival wraps up on February 9. The Fork Festival runs from January 6–February 9. The full list of participating restaurants will be released on the website on January 6. Top image: Eliza Food and Wine, Sydney.
FBi Radio's boots are getting bigger, better and shinier by the day —for the first time ever, Sydney's independent radio legends are launching an Australia-wide competition. Extending their Northern Lights competition nationwide — in which FBi flies two above-and-beyond newbies to Iceland Airwaves Festival in Reykjavik — FBi are looking for talent across Australia this time. A hotly-anticipated date on the music festival calendar, Iceland Airwaves has seen everyone from Bjork to Omar Souleyman, Savages to Harpa Silfurberg playing to packed halls of Icelandic and international fans. FBi competition's now in its third year, offer two winning spots to join the Airwaves lineup — one solo producer/artist, one band. With the help of philanthropist Mitchel Martin-Weber, this marks one of FBi's biggest-scale competitions to date, kicking another goal after yesterday's FBi Click launch. Winners of the first Northern Lights, Oliver Tank and Rainbow Chan, have seen super success following their Icelandic escapade (with Tank supporting Lorde on her recent national tour and Chan joining the lineup for Vivid LIVE's recent Avalanches tribute Since I Left You, no biggie). "It really changed my life that whole trip. It was so incredible," says Tank. "I got to play music overseas before I’d even done that many gigs in Australia. And there were people over there that were interested in my music and that just blew my mind. It was like a dream come true. It was such an experience." A national callout means a national road trip for FBi, taking their Music Open Day (a monthly staple event for FBi where new bands/artists can meet FBi music director Stephen Goodhew and learn how to get their music on radio) to community stations around the country. "Over 300 artists have been to Music Open Day in the last 12 months," says Goodhew. "Oliver Tank, Cloud Control, Gang of Youths, Movement are all examples of the kind of talent that have responded to and engaged with our Music Open Day in the past and gone on to establish themselves as prominent figures in the Australian music scene. It’s a great way to discover new talent and give emerging musicians some valuable advice about the industry." To apply for a spot at Iceland Airwaves and enter FBi Radio's Northern Lights competition, you simply have to be an emerging solo artist/producer or band (and an Australian resident). Head to FBi's website to throw your name in the ring from June 26 - July 21. Music Open Day is on the road from July 11-18. 11 July - Brisbane's 4ZZZ 15 July - Adelaide's Fresh FM 16 July - Perth's RTR FM
Mindfulness practice — achieving the mental state of focusing on the present moment — is gaining popularity as people attempt to regulate their stressful lives. People have turned to everything from meditation to colouring books to achieve mindfulness, but perhaps few people would think of doing a triathlon to achieve inner peace. Take three activities that promote mindfulness — specifically running, yoga and meditation — and you've got yourself a 'mindful triathlon'. Wanderlust 108 has been running these triathlon festivals since 2014, and the standard day has a few main components. First, there's the five kilometre run, although the site reassures you that you can walk instead of running — or even "prance, skip, stroll or strut" — as long as you reach the finish line. After that, theres 75 minutes of yoga accompanied by a DJ set, and finally 30 minutes of meditation to round out the whole-group activities. Once the structured section of the day has wrapped up, participants can also head to activities such as aerial yoga, acroyoga and hooping, or to lunch. It's part exercise, part dance party, part fest — and 100% focused on helping attendees feel great inside and out. Also on the agenda: walking meditation, essential oil classes and the Mindful Marketplace, which will help you take your new blissed-out state home with you.
Artbank’s annual Social Club is on again. Kind of like an art open day, it’s a chance to be all nosey and have a wander through their new premises. Like snooping, only you’re invited, so there’s no need to tiptoe around. There's the just launched Loose Canon exhibition to check out, plus some 3,500 artworks in their collection. Yup, that’s a whole lot of art. Artbank's art leasing program supports Australian artists by buying the works of living artists and putting the money back into the art scene. It’s been doing this for 30 years now, and that means artists actually get to see their works hung on walls in some impressive institutions and homes. And the social part of the day? Think live DJs, performance artists and hot dogs (Woofys Gourmet Hotdogs). Naturally, while you discuss the finer points of contemporary photography or painting, there will also be a few beverages to sip on. The Artbank Social Club runs from 11am - 3pm.
For Melburnians, this long weekend is a little different to most. Lockdown might be over, but a number of restrictions still remain. Heading to a big music festival isn't on the cards, for instance — but, because we now live in a time where virtual fests are becoming the norm, The Long Weekender is bringing six hours of Victorian music highlights straight to your couch. The latest event in the Victoria Together initiative — aka the online program that delivered plenty of things to watch during 2020's lengthy stay-at-home periods — The Long Weekender will stream a heap of past festival sets from plenty of the state's big events. Falls Festival, Meredith Music Festival, Queenscliff Music Festival, Golden Plains and Yirramboi Festival are all covered, as are Summersalt, Share The Spirit, Brunswick Music Festival, Roots Picnic and A Day On The Green. You'll just need to head to ACMI's streaming service, Cinema 3, between 12pm–12am on Monday, June 14, and turn your volume up loud. Myf Warhurst is on hosting duties and, if you're wondering who'll be belting out tunes, it's a hefty lineup. Everyone from Courtney Barnett and Archie Roach to You Am I and Frente! is on the bill — with no clashes, no queues and no worries about rushing between stages. THE LONG WEEKENDER LINEUP: Adalita Alex Lahey Alice Skye Allara feat. Culture Evolves Archie Roach Cable Ties Courtney Barnett Djirri Djirri Dancers The Black Sorrows The Cat Empire The Dirty Three Frente! Hachiku James Henry King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard Loose Tooth Magic Dirt The Meanies Mo'Ju Sampa The Great Spiderbait Simona Castricum Sleep D The Teskey Brothers Total Giovanni You Am I Top image: Falls Festival.
When the Bondi Short Film Festival started in 2001, creator Francis Coady thought it was pretty insane that his young filmmaker friends had missed out on entering other film festivals in Sydney because the films had already screened in other Australian states. He was right! Indie film watchers don’t care if what they’re seeing has already screened in Perth or Melbourne, they just want to experience something thought provoking, poignant, hilarious and beautiful, or that has Ryan Gosling in it. Eleven years on the Bondi Short Film Festival continues to screen cinematic Australian gems that fulfill almost all of these criteria and, while the power of the collective continues to endorse babeliciously quirky actors as the marker of a feature-length film’s watchability, the quality of a BSFF one is determined only by captivating storylines and cinematography, brilliant music and set design and some of the best young acting talent in this country. The only restrictions the festival places on filmmakers is that entries must be less than 15 minutes long, making it a 2-hour melting pot of powerful drama, quirky comedy, thought-provoking documentaries and stunning animation. All of these things will take place under the waterfront Bondi Pavilion, making the festival one of the finest ways to see in the summer.
As far as winter comfort food goes, a big serve of rustic-style gnocchi has to be up there with the best. But, even better? A bottomless, never-ending serve of gnocchi, like the kind being served up for two Wednesdays at The Stables Restaurant. The Paddington eatery is getting right into the spirit of the chilly season, with its new Winter Wednesdays gnocchi deal, on offer from 4pm on Wednesday, July 10 and Wednesday, July 17. On these two nights, the kitchen is whipping up three styles of gnocchi and you can devour as much as your belly can handle for just $20 a head. And we think that's a pretty standout bargain. Choose from a classic pesto version, an 'nduja number and a creamy gorgonzola gnocchi, all of which probably work a treat alongside a couple of glasses of red from The Stables' impressive cellar selection. We think these two nights will fill up (like your stomach) pretty quickly, so if you're keen to head along we suggest you get there early. Images: Kimberley Low
In the opening seconds of Ema, on a seemingly ordinary night in the Chilean port city of Valparaíso, a traffic light flickers with flames. The inky evening streets are silent and still otherwise, save for the film's eponymous protagonist (Mariana Di Girólamo, Much Ado About Nothing) — but Pablo Larraín (Jackie) well and truly starts his eighth feature as he intends to continue. Ema peers on from just a few paces away, her platinum blonde hair slicked behind a protective visor, a flamethrower strapped to her back and a nozzle in her hand. She's ready and eager to set her world alight. She's positively bursting to torch everything that's holding her back, in fact. Figuratively more than literally, she won't stop until she's watched the status quo burn. Anchoring a movie about trauma, power, family, restriction and freedom, she'll swiftly prove a blazing force, as well as an unforgettable central figure in one of Larraín's very best movies so far. Before 2021 comes to an end, the Chilean filmmaker will have given the world Spencer, a new biopic about Princess Diana featuring Kristen Stewart as the royal figure. Also on his hit list this year: Lisey's Story, a Julianne Moore-starring TV adaptation of a Stephen King book that has been scripted for the screen by the author himself. But with the release of the phenomenal piece of cinema that is Ema, he's already gifting viewers something exceptional — and something that'll be hard to top. A new project by Larraín is always cause for excitement, and this drama about a reggaeton dancer's crumbling marriage, personal and professional curiosities, and determined crusade to become a mother rewards that enthusiasm spectacularly. That it stands out amongst the director's already impressive resume is no small feat given he's the filmmaker behind stirring political drama No, exacting religious investigation The Club and poetic biopic Neruda, too. For the first time in his career, Larraín peers at life in his homeland today, rather than in the past — and, in the smouldering interrogation that results, he may as well be holding the flamethrower himself. Ema is filled with gleaming, dazzling and glowing sights like the image it first splashes onto the screen, with Larraín's now six-time cinematographer Sergio Armstrong (Tony Manero, Post Mortem) lensing an exquisite-looking picture. When its lead is first seen dancing for the company overseen by her choreographer partner Gastón (Gael García Bernal, Mozart in the Jungle), she stands before a giant blue fireball. It's a projection on a screen, but even just five minutes into the movie, it comes as no surprise when the eye-catching backdrop soon turns vibrant hues of red, orange and pink. Little else about Ema is that predictable, though, including its persistent penchant for glaring at its namesake as intently as it can. Faces and bodies fill the feature's frames, a comment that's true of most movies; however, in the probing patience it directs its protagonist's way, the intensity of its lingering shots that continually place her at the centre of the image and the kinetic fluidity of its dance sequences, this feature brilliantly, blisteringly and evocatively surveys and stares. There's much to take in, all sparked by Ema's struggles after an attempt at motherhood goes awry. With Gastón, she adopted a child — an older boy, rather than a baby — but something other than domestic bliss eventuated. Following a devastating incident and the just-as-stressful decision to relinquish the child back to the state's custody, Ema is scrambling to cope. But, in a script by Larraín, Guillermo Calderón (The Club, Neruda) and Alejandro Moreno, this isn't a situation she's simply willing to accept. Social services won't give her another chance, or even let her see the boy she still calls her son. Things with Gastón have changed irrevocably, too. To combat both, to rally against the oppressive rules and expectations thrust her way, and to reclaim her sense of self emotionally and in her career, Ema makes a series of bold decisions that reshape and reignite her existence. Unspooling its narrative like a mystery to be pieced together one enigmatic and melodramatic moment at a time, Ema is many things. Most potently, it's a portrait of a woman who is willing to make whatever move she needs to, both on the dance floor and in life in general, to rally against an unforgiving world, grasp her idea of true liberty and seize exactly what she wants. Impeccably cast as the unflinching dancer, and acting with internalised cool, control and command, the magnetic Di Girólamo exudes perseverance from her pores, as well as allure — two traits that couldn't be more crucial to Ema's plans. Whether she's showing off her best reggaeton moves against a vivid backdrop, staring pensively straight at the camera or being soaked in neon light, the film's star is hypnotic. Like the brightest of flames, she's impossible to look away from. One of Larraín's regular players, Bernal also leaves an imprint, perfecting a thorny role that ties into the film's interrogation of Chile's class and cultural divides. That said, so much of his performance involves responding to Di Girólamo that everything about Gastón would be completely different without her presence. Larraín has always had a knack for casting (see: each and every one of his movies listed above). His skill as both a visual- and emotion-driven filmmaker shines here as well, and that too isn't new. The experience of watching Ema almost feels like dancing through it alongside its titular figure, because that's how mesmerising each stunning image proves, especially when paired with an intoxicating soundtrack that sets the beat and tone all at once. Nothing about this movie fades quickly; not its ideas, inimitable protagonist, or rousing exploration of trauma, shock and their impact. Little feels like anything else in Larraín's filmography, and yet it's always still evident that he's behind the camera. Add it alongside Gaspar Noé's Climax in the list of dynamic dance movies that romp, swirl and gyrate to their own electrifying rhythm. That comparison can't paint the full picture, though, because a cinematic light this strong and scalding sparks in nobody's ashes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COrqRKMZ2KM
If you're looking for a chance to step back and unwind, beloved Sydney gallery the Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA) is hosting free weekly wellbeing sessions. Art Flow offers you the opportunity to take an extended lunch break on a Thursday to soak in some creative R&R, or begin your weekend with a dose of art and relaxation. Art Flow consists of 45-minute sessions running between 10.15am and 12.15pm Thursdays and Saturdays. The program is open to everyone over the age of 18 and invites participants to take 45 minutes to contemplate art and mindfulness. Each week there are four sessions, two on the Thursday and two on the Saturday, with a different artwork at the centre of the experience each week. The first four artworks will be Angela Tiatia's Lick, Elizabeth Mipilanggurr's Bamagora (conical pandanus palm mat), Nicholas Mangan's A World undone, and Khadim Ali's The Haunted Lotus. "The Museum of Contemporary Art Australia is excited to launch this new program, created in response to these post- Covid times, where connection and wellbeing are more important than ever," MCA Director of Audience Engagement Gill Nicol says. "Being with art can help reduce stress and be a powerful source of wellbeing." Entry is free but if you want to ensure you've got a spot, head to the MCA website. [caption id="attachment_750113" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Liam Cameron[/caption] Top image: Art Flow: a wellbeing experience, MCA, 2022. Photograph: Anna Hay
Once you’ve had your whisky served up with an ice ball, it’s really hard to go back to cubes. Not only because that big, beautiful, frozen chunk looks better but also because it melts ultra slowly, so your whisky isn’t diluted within seconds. What’s more, the gradual addition of water means that every sip of your beverage tastes different to the one that came before. Whether you’re into straight whisky or short cocktails — Old Fashioneds and the like — knowing how to make your own ice balls is one handy, handy skill. And who better to learn it to you than a man who hand-chips 100 of them every single week, Mr Yoshi Onishi. He’s the bar manager at Tokyo Bird. To learn from the master craftsman direct, get along to Tokyo Bird on Monday, May 25, at 6pm. As part of World Class Cocktail Week, he’ll be running a workshop on 'The Art of Hand-Chipped Ice Balls'. Once you’re done, you’ll be able to test out your work on a Johnnie Walker Gold Label Reserve Scotch Whisky.
It's almost time to take 2021 to the trash pile where it belongs but first thing's first: festive fun with the ones you love. Or, more specifically, the art of spoiling friends and family with presents. Whether you're a gifting goof or believe that gifts are truly your love language, we've found a few ways you can nail the gift-giving game this holiday season and, while you're at it, support your favourite local hospitality heroes. Thanks to our partners at new fintech business Slyp, you can even show some extra support simply by paying your bill — how good. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF SLYP TIPS To celebrate the festive season, Slyp is providing extra holiday cheer to our beloved hospitality industry by slinging $20 tips to participating hospo venues at no extra cost to the customer till December 31. There are over 80 venues that have signed up for Slyp Tips including Watson's Bay Boutique Hotel, Hotel Ravisis and Tequila Mockingbird. In order to unlock a few extra bucks for your favourite hospo heroes, you'll need to be a NAB customer. Simply activate Smart Receipts in your NAB app, use your NAB card to pay at a participating venue, view the receipt in the app and voila, the $20 tip will be unlocked and shared among the venue's staff. The best part? There's no minimum spend to unlock the tip and take advantage of this festive offer. MAKE MERCH YOUR SUMMER LOOK Nothing says 'I'm a fan' like repping a piece of band merch. It's also a top-tier way to support a hospitality business you rate. Reckon Betty's Burgers have the best buns in the biz? Deck out your pooch in its limited edition dog merch. Consider yourself the number one fan of hot chook and chippies? Time to let everyone know via a Chargrill Charlie's tote. Or, if you to love your local cafe so much it hurts, score its custom t-shirt so you can say it with your chest. Like this one, from Ruby Lonesome in Sydney. [caption id="attachment_706983" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Industry Beans' famed cold brew coffee[/caption] SIGN UP TO A COFFEE SUBSCRIPTION Waking up to an empty coffee bean canister is truly devastating. And, after a year of letdowns, we're pretty keen to minimise disappointments like that in the new year. To avoid such situations and support your local bean roaster, you can sign up to a coffee subscription so you have the beans delivered to your door exactly when you need them. Industry Beans has a self-managed, pay-as-you-go subscription available which is ideal for first-timers wanting to try the service out. There's no fixed term to sign up and you get an automatic 10% off your orders once you subscribe. Cool beans. BUY YOUR MATE (OR DATE) A GIFT VOUCHER If you're a regular CP reader there's a good chance you love to dine out as much as we do. And we think there's no better dining experience than taking your favourite person to their favourite venue. Got a mate who is obsessed with Capitano's blistered pizzas? Purchase them a voucher to give the gift of delicious this year. Does your partner have their finger on the pulse of what's new in the hospitality scene? Impress them with a voucher to the newly opened MuMu in Sydney's CBD. SHOW A NEWBIE SOME LOVE It can be tempting to plan your summer celebrations at your go-to restaurants and bars but spare a thought for the new venues trying to make their mark when locking in your dining destinations this festive season. Instead of booking all your catch ups at the same small bar near your work, say hello to a fresh face on the hospitality scene this summer. Head to Cabana Bar in the Sydney CBD to activate your holiday mode and sip on spicy margaritas or try moorish Mauritian flavours at Manze in North Melbourne. Slyp Tips is applicable at participating venues until 11.59pm AEST on Friday, December 31. For the tip to be unlocked, you'll need to view the Smart Receipt prior to 11.59pm AEST on Wednesday, January 5. For more information and to find your nearest participating venue, visit the website.
For the fifth consecutive year, the Royal Botanic Garden will be hosting its annual Tomato Festival. As well as eating tomatoes — obviously — it'll feature an abundance of cooking demonstrations, talks, tips and tricks that are guaranteed to inspire your creations in the kitchen. If cooking doesn't suit your weekend relaxing plans, take part in the Longest Tomato Lunch, a dining table that stretches 70 metres long on the Garden's foreshore lawn. No surprising for guessing the main ingredient on the menu — yes, you'll indulge in an Italian and tomato-inspired meal, with dishes such as fresh tomato pasta salad and mixed tomato carpaccio. Other highlights include a tomato degustation brunch, a pop-up bar and cafe by Relish, a produce market filled with some of Sydney's highest quality produce, and taste testing a-plenty. Tomatoes will be judged on their colour and smell, and you'll be able to witness some of the best in show, from the best local and homegrown farmers. Just don't wear white.
If you were a child of the 90s, there's a good chance you will remember the page-turning thrill of the Goosebumps choose-your-own-adventure books or the semi-terror of The Simpsons halloween specials. Well, now there's a chance to live out your own bespoke adventure (or Treehouse of Horror episode) in real life. A Midnight Visit is a captivating theatre experience in which participants will traverse an abandoned Sydney warehouse on a hair-raising journey through a surreal dream world. And we've managed to get our hands on some double passes. Audiences will find themselves transported to an intriguing and wistful world — with a David Lynch meets Stanley Kubrick aesthetic — which takes its cues from the notoriously macabre works of Edgar Allan Poe. It's certainly not for the faint-hearted, with suffocatingly small spaces and many 'troubled characters' — but you can calm your nerves with a cocktail or two at The Ravens Rest pop-up bar — though, unfortunately, there'll be no Bart-turned-raven taunting Homer. This immersive choose-your-own-adventure experience is unlike any theatre offering the city has seen before and, the best part is, tickets are on us. Enter with your details below. [competition]691327[/competition] Images: Anna Kucera and Tim Da-Rin.
Bendigo is a city that loves its craft. You can see that in its busy pottery centre or its tram completely covered in yarn. But most of all, you can see it in the profusion of craft breweries here, collectively making some of the best cold ones in the country. To celebrate this thriving indie beer scene, Bendigo on the Hop returns to the city on Saturday, August 25. The annual winter festival transforms Bendigo's historic town centre into the site of one epic craft beer crawl. The event organisers, local non-profit Bendigo Beer, describe it as a "festival for beer drinkers with an open mind". It works like this: you buy your ticket and select your starting venue. This is where you pick up your tasting tokens and souvenir glass on the day. After that, it's a choose-your-own-adventure as you make your way to whichever pub, bar, beer garden or pop-up kiosk calls you most. This year's event has grown from last year, now featuring 44 beers from 22 truly independent breweries across 10 venues — including sophisticated restaurant Rocks on Rosalind, leafy Handle Bar and heritage boozer The Rifle Brigade Hotel. Turn over your tasting tokens as you go, and be adventurous — that tzatziki beer might turn out to be your tastebuds' true love. Trains travel every hour from Melbourne to Bendigo, making this an easy day trip. If you've got the time to spare, though, take the opportunity to stay the night, enjoy a lazy Sunday and spend some time at Bendigo's four breweries. To plan your time in Bendigo and the surrounding countryside, visit the Wander Victoria website.
Australian Museum recently launched an exhibition that explores the ancient predators of the ocean: sharks. Highlighting the diversity of the aquatic species, the exhibition features an array of activities for all ages. Guests are greeted with eleven life-size shark models – Hammerhead, Reef, Great White, Sand Tiger, Bull and Whale sharks – and specimens from the Australian Museum collection. Interactive experiences, workshops and activities are also available during your visit, along with monthly talks about the future of sharks featuring a panel of renowned shark scientists and cultural experts. With industrial fishing and water pollution at their peak, ocean life is in danger more than ever. Thankfully, you'll be able to uncover how to protect these friendly giants through the knowledge of the First Nations and Pasifika Peoples. Plan ahead and book your ticket now via the Australian Museum website. The Sharks exhibition will run until Tuesday, April 25. Top Images: Tim Levy
Art is a matter of life and death in the star-studded Velvet Buzzsaw, which might just earn the title of 2019's most out-there film so far. The movie marks the reunion of Nightcrawler writer/director Dan Gilroy and actors Jake Gyllenhaal and Rene Russo — and if you've seen that 2014 standout, you'll know that you're in for a wild ride. Both an unhinged horror effort and a satire of the art world, the film is set to premiere at this year's Sundance Film Festival, but general audiences won't have to wait long at all to see the flick for themselves. It'll hit Netflix worldwide on Friday, February 1, while Sundance is still running. While Nightcrawler took aim at tabloid news media and charted its deadly consequences, Velvet Buzzsaw has another realm in its sights. With Gyllenhaal playing an art critic, Russo an agent, and everyone from Toni Collette to John Malkovich to Stranger Things' Natalia Dyer among the cast, the film charts a spate of sinister happenings that are linked to a batch eye-catching paintings. The art collection in question is only found after an unknown elderly artist passes away, and comes with strict instructions to destroy the work; however, when that warning is ignored, everyone who profits from the pieces starts to suffer. Check out the trailer below, and add the movie to your streaming queue for your next fright-filled date with your couch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XdAR-lK43YU Velvet Buzzsaw will be available on Netflix from Friday, February 1.
Let’s take a moment to talk about destruction. Scales of destruction, to be precise. For earthquakes, we use the ‘Moment Magnitude Scale’, for tornados it’s the ‘Fujita Scale’ and hurricanes are classified according to ‘Saffir-Simpson’. There’s no official system for classifying destruction in movies per se (the ratings system is too broad), but if we were to put a name to it, the ‘Marvel Scale’ might be a good place to start. -A ‘5' would be the most severe: your full-blown, blown-up world situation, where entire planets are either destroyed or critically imperilled (see: Guardians of the Galaxy, Thor: The Dark World, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer). -A ‘4’ would cover city-wide destruction, where entire skyscrapers tumble like box office records, generally with little or no regard for their hapless occupants (see: The Avengers, The Avengers 2: Age of Ultron). -A ‘3’ is a shocking amount of destruction localised to a single area, such as a small town or neighbourhood, otherwise known as ‘a standard fight’ in just about every Marvel movie (see: Thor, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Iron Man 2, X-Men Origins: Wolverine and anything with a Hulk). -A ‘2’ would cover destruction on the human scale, where countless pawns (ideally ‘baddies’, then soldiers/cops and, when permissible, innocent bystanders) are mowed down by alien weapons, unwieldly superpowers or falling debris (see: Blade: Trinity, X-Men: The Last Stand). What, then, is a ‘1’? The answer is Ant-Man, where the violence is kept to such a minimum that the most meaningful casualty is an actual ant. An ant named ‘Antony’. What we get instead is a family-friendly Marvel movie where humour and dialogue offer a refreshing respite from all the usual, unimaginable carnage. Marvel actually frames Ant-Man as a heist movie, and that’s a good way to look at it. When an unscrupulous scientist (played by House of Cards’ Corey Stoll) perfects the science of atomic manipulation – allowing humans to be shrunk to the size of an ant whilst capable of enormous feats of strength – his former mentor and the original inventor of the technology (Michael Douglas) recruits a cat burglar named Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) to steal the prototype military suit and destroy all related records, believing it to be a threat to global security. Lang is given his own special suit, one that allows him to shrink back and forth as he pleases, then trained both in martial arts and the ability to communicate with insects. Think 'Honey I Shrunk The Doctor Dolittle', combined with a little Matrix and a lot of Oceans 11. The implications of a ‘Marvel-1’ movie cut both ways. The downside is that the stakes feel significantly lower, with ‘end of the world’ being replaced by ‘might get caught’ as the biggest threat for most of the film. Generally, though, it’s all upside, with the smaller-scale storyline (and unavoidably concomitant puns) allowing for a funnier and more intimate superhero tale. The size-related jokes are predictably frequent, but thankfully also creative enough to surprise, and apportioned evenly to allow for more general comedy as well. As the title character Rudd is perfectly cast, allowing his boy-next-door charm to deliver Tony Stark level wise-cracks without the ego or arrogance to sour them. It’s the Peter Parker model, where self-deprecation reigns supreme and heroism is steeped in humility. Coupled with the comedic offerings of his ex-con buddies (led by a scene-stealing Michael Peña), and bouncing off the dry wit of his instructor/love interest Hope (Evangeline Lilly), Rudd simultaneously leads Ant-Man as confidently as any of his comic book compadres whilst downplaying it to a point that almost parodies the Marvel world in which it exists. Funny, charming and very family friendly, Ant-Man is unquestionably light fare, but also a solid debut for what will almost certainly develop into a meatier and more assured trilogy.
Darlinghurst's much esteemed corner of cafe culture, Bootsdarling, is graduating from babes-in-arms status and celebrating its very first birthday with all the style of Clint Eastwood in a well-fitting tuxedo. Bootsdarling has emerged from its first year on the scene with a dedicated pack of coffee and fritters crazed Sydneysiders crowding around the door, so fair enough they want to celebrate. This Friday afternoon the cafe will mark its anniversary with a relaxed end-of-week session of complimentary whiskey cocktails (that's right, complimentary) from Bulleit Whiskey and guest musical sets — all presented by Sydney crew Run The BLVD. Very much fitting with the intimate and exclusive atmosphere the cafe fosters through its diminutive (truly tiny) size and loyal clientele the celebrations will include a guest acoustic performance by Aussie legend Phil Jamieson from Grinspoon as well as DJ sets and the charming promise of endless hot wing supplies. Entry is free with RSVP — email Rich at Run The BLVD (rich@runtheblvd.com) with your full name. But numbers are limited, so get on it. Image: Bootsdarling.
Heading down to the local pub — whether you're sinking beers with mates or catching up over a schnitty — is a pretty solid way to unwind. Even better when you can bring along your loyal, fluffy, good-boy pooch. Redfern's local haunt, Tudor Hotel Redfern, is one of the few pubs in town that are dog-friendly. And, to celebrate man's best friend, the Tudor Hotel Redfern is teaming up with Moon Dog Craft Brewery to host a massive dog day out. Dubbed 'Splendour in the Dog House', this party is one that's going to the dogs — in the best possible way. Plus, it's free to get in. Festivities kick off from 11am on Saturday, October 19, with Moon Dog donating a keg. Schooners of it will be available for a donation (minimum $5), with 100 percent of the proceeds going to a local animal charity, Paws and Recover. So, you can drink knowing that you're doing it for a good cause. You can also expect dog-themed stalls, goodie bags and a DJ spinning classic dog songs — think Elvis's 'Hound Dog', Led Zeppelin's 'Black Dog' and early naughties hit 'Who Let the Dogs Out'. Plus, you can show off your good lookin' pooch in the 'best looking dog' competition, with the lucky four-legged winner getting their photo on a beer decal. But the festivities don't end there. Starting on Sunday, October 20, the Tudor will have a weekly Puppy Hour, from 2–6pm every Sunday, with $6 pints of Moon Dog lager for you and doggy treats for your furry companion. Tudor Hotel Redfern x Moon Dog Craft Brewery's Splendour in the Dog House will take place on Saturday, October 19, from 11am–4pm. And, from Sunday, October 20, the Tudor will be throwing its Puppy Hour every Sunday afternoon.
Friday lunchtimes just got a whole lot tasiter thanks to the noodle whisperers at Cho Cho San in Potts Point. Until the end of November, you can slurp-down a bowl of delicious pork gyoza and prawn katsu ramen for just $30, between midday and 3pm. Each serve comes with four pork gyoza, fried into a crispy net atop a bowl of clear chicken shoyu ramen broth, garnished with spring onion oil and shiitake tare. Resting on top of this dumpling lid are two panko-covered fried prawn katsu pieces, bean sprouts tossed in ponzu and thinly sliced nori sheets. The result is a delectable mix of textures, as the crisp bellies of the fried gyoza and the crunch of the prawn katsu counterpoint the silken strands of noodles beneath. Lunches don't get much better than this.
It's been a busy couple of months of stargazing, with both the Lyrid and Eta Aquarids Meteor Showers lighting up our skies, as well as a supermoon. This weekend, there are another two reasons to look up, too: a strawberry moon and an eclipse. Well, it's penumbral lunar eclipse. And you'll have to shake yourself out of your warm bed at a super-early hour on the morning of Saturday, June 6 to catch this one. While the penumbral lunar eclipse — which occurs when the Earth moves between the Sun and the Moon, but they don't form a perfectly straight line — will start around 3.45am, the maximum eclipse will occur at 5.24am. From here, you'll only have a very short amount of time to catch the main event, with the moon setting at 6.59am. For the full details, timeanddate.com has put together a handy to-the-minute schedule of when the eclipse will be happening in each city. During a total lunar eclipse, the moon turns a shade of red, but during a penumbral eclipse, which is much subtler, it'll appear to look dark grey or silver. For a lunar eclipse to occur, there must be a full moon. This June full moon is called a strawberry moon after the wild strawberries that ripen at this time of year. If you can't get a clear view, The Virtual Telescope Project will be live-streaming the partial lunar eclipse from the skyline above Rome from Saturday, June 6 at 5am AEST.
Most art shows don’t screen you for metal and weapons before letting you in. The Parliament of NSW Aboriginal Art Prize 2012 does. To enter you have to pass the (intimidating, but painless) Parliamentary security before you can explore the art along the walls of the buildings's ample, light-filled foyer. As you pace around the artworks, political apparatchiks stride across the atrium discussing US politics and the upcoming November result given how “Ohio is trending”. Paper maker Leonie Binge’s etching Tracks scratches wire-like lines across a tall, narrow page, suggesting an urban cage of wire fence. Nicole Foreshew’s Belong to you all yet to none 2 throws a wrapped figure into the sky. Two words flap behind in silhouette. The figure is falling or floating. It’s not clear which. Mgangah Pirate’s the Gods Had No Mouths has animal parts over a pair of dummy torsos, one female, one male. Half of each is furred by echidna spikes, the man’s above, the woman’s below. Their sternums and private parts are outlined in small bones. Not threatening, the echidna spikes are appealing like fur or feathers. You don’t want to run from their little spikes — you want to run your hands along them. Juxtaposition is one of the key sidelines of this show. On the back wall, Dabby Eastwood’s Intervention shows a group of Aborigines receiving blue and white government blankets from two chubby European men. The men are churlish and impatient. Next to them, part of the Parliament’s permanent exhibition, Captain Cook fights in Hawaii. This culminates at Jason Wing’s Australia was Stolen by Armed Robbery, which sticks a balaclava on a formal, fibreglass bust of Captain Cook. Cook’s threatening eyebrows rise out of the mask. Beside it, a resin cast of a wheelie bin looks like part of the scenery. It’s Really Bin #1 by Douglas Black (Adam Hill). A carved label on the front says “Sorry”. The exhibition is open 9.30-4 weekdays. Image: Ngiyampaa Sands by Mark Willer.
It's the horror franchise that's become a massive hit, and also sports a clear formula. We're talking about The Conjuring movies, which have become their own cinematic universe over the past eight years, and generally focus on eerie happenings in both ordinary and creepy abodes. If you saw the original 2013 film, its 2016 sequel, the three Annabelle flicks to-date, The Nun or The Curse of the Weeping Woman, then you'll know what we're talking about. Indeed, based on how much cash the combined saga has earned at the box office so far, we're betting you've watched at least one of them. If people keep turning out to see the series' movies en masse, then they'll keep being made, even if some hit the mark and some are terrible. That's how Hollywood works, after all. So, a third Conjuring film is now a thing — becoming the third movie specifically with The Conjuring in its title, and the broader franchise's eighth entry. In The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, however, the saga seems to be trying something a little different. Bumps and jumps still abound, at least based on the just-dropped first trailer, but so does a crime-thriller setup. Here, paranormal investigators Ed (Patrick Wilson, The Commuter) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga, Godzilla: King of the Monsters) are called to assist in a murder trial, with the suspect claiming demonic possession as a defense. By now, you should know that the Warrens were real people, and that some of the franchise's movies draw upon cases and incidences they looked into — including this one. When it hits cinemas Down Under on June 3, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It will also feature Ruairi O'Connor (The Spanish Princess), Sarah Catherine Hook (Monsterland) and Julian Hilliard (WandaVision), while The Curse of the Weeping Woman's Michael Chaves is on directing duties. The latter takes over from Australian filmmaker James Wan (Aquaman, Fast & Furious 7), who helmed the first two Conjuring movies, but produces and gets a story credit here. Check out the trailer below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMZPMMWIWn4 The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It releases in cinemas Down Under on June 3.
Pull out your loose change stash and check under the couch, because one of the best food deals we've seen in a while is coming back The Rocks next week. For one day only, The Argyle is slinging dumplings for just ten cents a piece. Head on in from 11am on Tuesday, July 23 and bring your appetite — and all the silver coins you can find. Expect a dim sum feast of gyoza, har gow and shumai on offer, with prawn, vegetable and pork varieties up for grabs. There is one catch — punters must purchase a full-price drink to access the ten-cent dumpling extravaganza. The deal is available from 11am until sold out and bookings are essential — so head here before all the tables for next week are snatched up. If you miss out this round, you can still nab $1 dumplings (and $5 Asahi) at the venue every Tuesday — though the deal isn't nearly as appealing once you've considered the ten-cent version.
Loosen your grasp on the truth and prepare to embrace a bit of deception, because this year's Sydney's Writers' Festival is all about lies. Returning for its 22nd edition from Monday, April 29, to Sunday, May 5, the internationally renowned literary event will take over venues across the city, bringing with it a dazzling program of local and international writers. This year, they'll examine the ways in which writing can be used as a tool of deceit in today's world — for good and evil — with the theme of 'Lie to Me'. An exciting lineup of literary talent is coming to play, kicking off with opening night's acclaimed trio: bestselling US author of The Interestings, The Wife and The Female Persuasion, Meg Wolitzer; Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, who's the mind behind dystopian short story collection Friday Black; and award-winning writer of Grief is the Thing with Feathers and Lanny, Max Porter. A star-studded cast of literary talent appears throughout the rest of this year's program, too. Flying the flag for the Aussie writing scene are the likes of Leigh Sales (Any Ordinary Day), Trent Dalton (Boy Swallows Universe), Mark Brandi (The Rip), Clare Wright (You Daughters of Freedom) and Candice Fox (Gone By Midnight). They're joined by a stack of international names, like lauded Pakistani author Fatima Bhutto (The Runaways, Songs of Blood and Sword), who'll be exploring current shifts surrounding politics, gender and race, along with writers like Susan Orlean (The Library Book) and Andrew Sean Greer (Less). Man Booker Prize winner George Saunders (whose novel Lincoln in the Bardo, which has a staggering 166 narrators, was one of our favourite books of 2017) will also be taking to the stage in the City Recital Hall. The festival's also dishing up a range of special events — the Curiosity Lecture Series covers quirky topics from witches to the subculture of 'chilli-heads', Eddie Sharp's Erotic Fan Fiction makes its hotly anticipated and cheeky return, and an assortment of festival guests share stories of their own queer literary heroes in a segment called Gay For Page. While the Sydney Writers' Festival hub will remain at Carriageworks, events will be held across the city — stretching from Sydney Town Hall across to Penrith and down to Wollongong. Images: Prudence Upton.
The lower end of Crown Street has been doing it tough this year — the block between Cleveland and Devonshire streets currently has a large number of empty shopfronts, with long-time residents Mr Fox and Cafe Mint closing down, and Bishop Sessa forced to change from fine dining to a more casual affair. But, in good news, at least one of those shops is set to open again soon, with 4 Pines Brewing Company taking over the Mr Fox space imminently. It will be the brewery's fourth venue, and first off the north shore, and it'll be dedicated not only to brews, but also to loaded burgers. The new bar will have a similar fit-out to the brewery's other instalments, which include the Manly Brewpub, Brookvale Truck Bar and the Newport barrel-aged outpost — plus the Manly ferry bars and the SCG craft beer stall which opened in April. Spanning two levels and seating around 60 people, the bar will offer the full 4 Pines core range and limited releases, alongside some seriously stacked burgers. While the menu is still being finalised, expect dishes like deep-fried prawn burgers overflowing with tartare sauce, habanero chicken topped with heaps of blue cheese, a deep-fried cheese patty and a Hawaiian pizza in burger form. Apart from beer, there will also be a modest supply of wines, cocktails and spirits on offer. If all goes well, the Surry Hills joint will open just in time for Christmas — so if a new Crown Street local is on your wishlist, you might be in luck. 4 Pines Surry Hills will open in late December at 557 Crown Street, Surry Hills. We'll let you know when an opening date is set.
While many Sydneysiders are still working from home, some of us have recommenced our daily commute over the Harbour Bridge to the city. If you're one of them, your journey today may take a little longer than usual today. As of 7.40am on Thursday, August 27, the Sydney Harbour Bridge is closed in both directions and a helicopter is on site, in response to a serious two-car crash. Transport for NSW says there is no forecast for when all northbound and southbound lanes will reopen and is telling Sydneysiders to avoid the area, reconsider non-essential travel and consider working from home (if they're not already). https://twitter.com/LiveTrafficSyd/status/1298745028295249922 The Sydney Harbour Tunnel is still open, but, because of the crash, traffic is currently backed up to Artarmon in the north and across to Kings Cross in the east. Buses are terminating at North Sydney Station, Milsons Point and McMahons Point and while trains are still running, Transport for NSW has warned that there may be increased patronage on trains and to continue to social distance as much as possible. For more information about the status of the Harbour Bridge and current traffic, head over to the Live Traffic website. To stay up-to-date with trains and buses, check the Transport for NSW website and real-time apps. Image: Jorge Lascar
Erskineville's Imperial Hotel is a favourite among many, with props sure to go to its thrilling dining events (which bring dazzling queens to the stage for super-charged performances alongside a fantastic feed). So, you'll be excited to learn American Express delicious. Month Out is bringing a special one-night only Drag 'N' Dine extravaganza to the inner west local. The dress code? Fabulous. On Thursday, May 5, you and your friends can enjoy a stand-out plant-powered dinner — hosted by Khanh Ong — while you're serenaded and titillated by stellar drag performers. And, if you're an American Express Card Member, you can nab 15 percent off your ticket right up until the day before (just use your Australian-issued American Express Card when securing your tickets through Resy). Tickets are $89 and include a cocktail on arrival, a delicious set menu and a drag production with all the razzle dazzle. With two seatings on offer — 6pm and 8.30pm — it's the perfect opportunity to get raunchy at the dinner table. Ready for a night of spectacular performances and irresistible food? Book yourself a table at The Imperial Hotel's Drag 'N' Dine presented by American Express delicious. Month Out. For more information and to book, visit the website.
Back when the world population totalled 2.52 billion and houses cost less than the price of a hatchback today, Elvis was a rookie and polyester was the fabric of the future. Yes dear reader, this was the Golden Age nestled between the austere Forties and free-loving Sixties. This was an age where the new Miss World beauty pageant saw ‘world peace’ increase in popularity, Polio was defeated and dogs were rocketed into outer space. Ah, the Fifties. Where would we be without them?In celebration of this glorious age, the Rose Seidler House will again play host to the annual Fifties Fair. Now in its 15th year, attendees are encouraged to dress on theme and swing, jive and twist with the best of them. Specialty markets selling Fifties collectibles will lure and seduce even the most resistant buyer, while the ‘garage shed cinema’ will entertain and delight with genuine Government travel documentaries and home videos. And for total submersion into the period, tours of the iconic post-war residence built by Harry Seidler for his parents will be running throughout the day. So Guys and Dolls, dig out your Brylcreem and brush off your dancing shoes – this is a sashay back in time you won’t want to miss.
If your natural response to winter is to stay indoors, rug up, make friends with your couch and activate hibernation mode, you might be feeling rather happy about your usual frosty routine over the weekend of Saturday, July 13 and Sunday, July 14. Thanks to a cold front that's currently moving through New South Wales from the alpine region, the Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting blustering winds across Sydney for the next two days, with gusts potentially reaching 90 kilometres per hour. BOM has issued a severe weather warning for the possibly damaging winds, noting that they'll blow west to southwesterly, especially on Saturday. While the present cold front is anticipated to ease on Saturday afternoon, another is due to make its presence known on Sunday, which means the breeziness will pick up once again. The Bureau is specifically cautioning about winds of around 70–80 kilometres per hour in Sydney, and advises that gusts up to 90 kilometres per hour are possible. Folks in Illawarra, the eastern parts of the Central Tablelands — including the Blue Mountains — and Southern Tablelands, as well as the high country around the Upper Hunter and Barrington Tops, can all expect winds of 60–70 kilometres per hour in Illawarra, with gusts exceeding 90 kilometres per hour. https://twitter.com/BOM_NSW/status/1149784201874616320 Sydneysiders are only being warned about Saturday so far, while those in the other aforementioned regions should factor more than a stiff breeze into their entire weekend. Temperatures in the city will only reach 15 degrees on Saturday and 16 on Sunday, which will help to keep things chilly regardless of the wind. On Facebook, NSW SES recommends that residents secure loose items, and move vehicles undercover or away from trees. If you're not only venturing out of the house today, but to the airport, the windiness could interfere with flights into and out of the city — travellers in some parts of the country, such as the Gold Coast, have already been advised of possible delays due to Sydney's blustery conditions. The winds are forecast to drop off on Monday, when the second cold front will move away from NSW. Image: Jason Tong via Flickr.
This article is sponsored by our partners, Vino Paradiso. Every day, it seems, Sydneysiders discover another beverage-inspired escapade. Pop-ups, boutique tastings, underground bars and regionally inspired gatherings have become part of the city’s ever-changing landscape. And now, a brand new festival is set to bring them all under one roof for three delicious days of drinking, eating and general frivolity. Meet Vino Paradiso. From Friday, October 31, to Sunday, November 2, Australian Technology Park will transmogrify into a kind of immersive adventure-park for food and drink aficionados. There’ll be stalls serving up gustatory sensations from all over the world — and giving you the chance to meet the passionate producers behind them. But the affair is far from your average expo. You can also expect secret alleyways, surprise happenings, live music, art-in-motion and loads of opportunities for interaction. You might well find yourself crushing grapes the traditional way (i.e. via bare-footed, toe-tingling stomping power); relaxing in the bespoke, AstroTurfed, aptly named Paradise Park; testing out your olfactory potential; taking part in a humungous treasure hunt; and/or carrying home part of an artist designed wine wall, complete with over 100 bottles of wine. To help you sharpen up your DIY culinary skills, there’ll be a bunch of special guests leading masterclasses and hosting demonstrations. These include legendary chef Darren Robertson from Three Blue Ducks, rock star tastemaker Oscar McMahon from Young Henrys, biodynamic winemaker Peter Windrim from Krinklewood Vineyard, international winemaker Tom Egan from Porteno and obsessive mixologist Grant Collins. Tickets, which start at $25, are available online. Thanks to Vino Paradiso, we have ten double passes to give away to Vino Paradiso's masterclasses. To be in the running, subscribe to the Concrete Playground newsletter (if you haven't already), then email win.sydney@concreteplayground.com.au with your name, address and masterclass preference out of 'Demystifying Sake' on November 1 at 11am or 'I Love the Smell of Nebbiolo in the Morning' on November 2 at 12.30pm.
Exercise is important, but exercise classes are expensive. Lucky for Sydneysiders, there are plenty of free and by-donation classes floating around if you know where to look. Potts Point's Reg Murphy Community Centre offers one of them — a free pilates class held every Wednesday from 10–11am. And they're running from February 14 all the way through December 19 this year. That gives you plenty of chances to join in or to make a weekly thing of it. Pilates is known to strengthen muscles, improve flexibility and posture and increase mental awareness. Apart from the free bit, the one-hour classes — organised by the City of Sydney — are also open to all levels and ages. Mats are provided as well, though you'll have to BYO towel and water. Since it won't cost you a dime, there's really no draw-back to this one.
As the federal government continues to drag its feet resettling refugees fleeing the Syrian conflict (Australia had managed about 6000 by last November. Canada by comparison, was at well over 30,000), it falls once more to the non-political professions to show the government where the hands go on the humanitarian clock. This time, it's hospitality's turn. On February 27, UNICEF Australia will partner with ten of the country's best chefs for a charity dinner celebrating Syria's strong culinary tradition. Three Blue Ducks in Roseberry will host the posse of gastronomers as they prepare a banquet comprising their signature dishes with a few Syrian flourishes. If you've never been at the mercy of za'atar, pomegranate, Aleppo pepper or tamarind, this could well be a revelation. Tickets are a steep $320 per person (plus booking fee), which includes canapés, cocktails on arrival, a shared Syrian-inspired feast and wine. It may seem on the surface like you're paying for the food, but ten professional chefs jammed into a single kitchen also suggests a night of great theatre. Bennelong's Pete Gilmore, Long Chim's David Thompson and The Bridge Room's Ross Lusted will be in the fray, with Paul Carmichael from Momofuku Seiobo and Ester's Matt Lindsay contending for next use of the colander with equal ferocity. If you've ever wanted to see Kylie Kwong trying to slice potato with steel wool or fighting a pitched battle for the top shelf of the oven, this could well be your chance. While the top guns will have their turn on February 27, UNICEF Australia is encouraging anyone with passing knowledge of an oven to contribute. Restaurants and cafes can produce a limited edition 'Syria' version of a favourite dish, of which a portion of the proceeds will go to UNICEF. For those who deal in culinary delight on a slightly smaller scale, bakes sales are your recommended course. While you're waiting for the oven to pre-heat, there's more information here.
If behind every great man there is a great woman, then consider Charles Dickens marked by two: his wife and mistress. The speculative The Invisible Woman tells the tale of the latter, wooed by the author despite their 27-year age difference, yet the former is inescapable. History remembers their imperfections, but understanding reigns in their screen incarnations. One stayed in the shadows as his lover and muse; the other stood on the sidelines as the mother of his ten recognised children. Treading the boards as a fledgling actress with her mother (Kristin Scott Thomas) and sisters (Perdita Weeks and Amanda Hale), Ellen 'Nelly' Ternan (Felicity Jones) catches the eye of Dickens (Ralph Fiennes) as he stages The Frozen Deep. Social decorum frowned upon divorce and threatened to keep them apart, but their love lingered, the open secret of their affair gaining traction before becoming untenable. Years later, Nelly looks back on their tumultuous relationship. Dickens is the high-profile figure in the handsomely staged and sumptuously expressed period drama, yet his presence is secondary to the women at the mercy of his emotions. As a writer, he remains as prominent as his many novels; in his personal life, his flitting from his wife, Catherine (Joanna Scanlan), to Nelly makes him the least interesting character. Instead, the pains suffered by both drive a film that skirts the melodrama inherent in its content. Troubled and tenacious in their individual ways, each could earn the description of the feature’s title. The intrigue elicited by Catherine and Nelly over Dickens is by design, and not indicative of any failings in the film’s performances or construction. Adapting Claire Tomalin's book The Invisible Woman: The Story of Nelly Ternan and Charles Dickens, Fiennes does double duty as director in a deftly delicate addition to his filmmaking resume (and a stark departure from his last effort, the brutal modernising of William Shakespeare’s Coriolanus). Underplaying his lead role but always attracting attention, Fiennes is similarly subtle and deliberate on screen as he is off; however, again it is his surrounding players that rise to prominence. Tackling Nelly’s uncertainty in her younger years as well as her guarded exterior as she ages is no easy feat but one that Jones portrays admirably, building upon her stellar turns in Like Crazy and Breathe In. Scanlan is given less time to impress but makes the most of her moments, conveying the devastating mood that trickles through the entire production. As The Invisible Woman progresses towards its fated conclusion, of course the air thrums with contemplation. Abi Morgan’s screenplay and the film that results makes audiences feel but also think: about life, love, social convention and struggling with normality amidst bright minds and great expectations.
Regular yoga is one thing, but you can't beat getting bendy by the water. Especially when it's part of a complimentary, expert-led zen-filled class, like the ones you'll enjoy as part of Pier One Sydney Harbour's Yoga On The Pier series. The boutique hotel is running these free weekly sessions for all skill levels, every week through until March 27, in conjunction with its new jam-packed wellness program The Retreat. Every Wednesday evening, you'll be guided through a 50-minute yoga class, with the harbour making for a pretty stunning backdrop and Lululemon Sydney ambassadors like Brooke Elliston and Sam Belyea as your teachers. What's more, you can fuel up post-workout in style at the hotel's restaurant The Gantry — pre-order a salad ($20), passionfruit kombucha cocktail ($21), or six-course vegan or vegetarian tasting menu ($110) when you book your spot and it'll be ready to devour after the class. The Retreat program also features free meditation sessions every Tuesday morning at 7.30am. Check out the full program here. Classes are free but you need to register. Images: Caroline McCredie.
It's been a long time coming — a casual 18 months, in fact — but the Speakeasy Group's hotly-anticipated Parramatta rooftop bar has finally opened its doors. Located up on the 26th floor of the V by Crown development, Nick & Nora's marks the group's sixth venue, joining a stable that includes hospitality hits like Eau de Vie, Mjolner and Melbourne's Boilermaker House. Pulling inspiration from Dashiell Hammett's novel The Thin Man and its fictional sleuthing characters Nick and Nora Charles, the sophisticated space is an homage to the roaring 30s. Among the venue's features: an opulent fit-out, lavish art deco touches and a whole lot of Champagne. It has room for an impressive 300 people, complete with a sprawling terrace boasting views across the CBD and Sydney Harbour. Even so, you can rest assured that booze isn't taken lightly — the back bar selection runs to a hefty 900 spirits, while climate-controlled fridges are stocked with over 50 Champagnes from the world's most celebrated houses. The cocktail offering is as tight as you'd expect from these pros, with a 30-strong list featuring multiple variations of martinis, sours and Champagne-infused sips. Plus, there's also more delicious mischief in store thanks to the bar's five liquid nitrogen stations. As for the food, expect an offering that holds its own against the plush vibe and ritzy drinks lineup — fine cheese and charcuterie, top-quality oysters and some of the world's best caviar promise an all-round opulent affair. The bar is part of Parramatta's huge V by Crown complex, which features a luxury 72-suite hotel, residential apartments and restaurant Husk and Vine. It's a big opening for the area — and one that looks to really kick off a bar boom. Nick & Nora's is now open at Level 26, 45 Macquarie Street, Parramatta. The bar operates from 5pm–midnight from Mondays to Thursdays, 3pm–midnight on Fridays, and 12pm–midnight on Saturdays and Sundays. Images: Jiwon Kim.
Those with a passion for anime have something a little more than a passion. Obsession is perhaps a better word. So while I may be frustrated waiting for the next season of Mad Men, this is nothing compared to what those awaiting the sequel to Evangelion have suffered. Luckily for them, the leading purveyors of anime here in Australia (namely Madman) are importing the latest flicks straight from Tokyo to be screened in cinemas in our own backyard. The line up includes Summer Wars, blending summer holidays, teenage romance, mathematics and avatars into a whirlwind adventure. King of Thorn is a action horror-thriller drawing on the disparate genres of science fiction and fairy tales. The highlight, however, is arguably Evangelion 2.0, with 1.0 being screened also for those of us who are slightly less educated but keen to catch up. https://youtube.com/watch?v=55Uu73VSXMk Image: still from Summer Wars, courtesy of Madman films
Sync, Rone, Reka, Wonderlust, Phibs, Meggs, Prizm, Makatron, The Tooth: somebody call Marvel and call for a mass retrenchment. Part street artists, part heroes of graffito, the underground collective known as Everfresh keep the streets of Melbourne colourful and free of aesthetic crimes, saving lacklustre walls one tag at a time. With an original approach to colour, detail and iconography, the elusive crew are bringing their indefinable brand of street art to a more portable medium, with the launch of the Blackbook as a sneaky peer into the works of these 'urban decoration specialists'. With candid photography of their hush-hush Collingwood hub and an inspired attention to detail that translates from their intricate streetwork, this little anthology from beginnings in 2004 is a creative keepsake of those stickin' it to the man and colouring the cityscape. In a launch more rare, exclusive and grand than a perfect shade of Crayola magenta, the gang are bringing their goods to aMBUSH Gallery this Friday in a celebration of the six years the ‘freshers have been adding their spark to the streets, with an installation, photographic prints by Josh Robenstone and bangin' tunes from DJ buds. With Melbourne already giving their beloved urban embellishers a send-off to boot, it’s time Sydney fronted a similarly welcoming embrace for these radical wallflowers.
You might recall Londoners basking under a giant artificial sun in the turbine hall of the Tate Modern, or an installation at the Hayward Gallery comprising strobe lights and fountains, arresting streams of water in mid-air like glittering beads of solid glass. The unique magnetism of Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson is in his harnessing of light, space and temporality. He is engaged with the fabrication of natural phenomena, the optical mechanics of the human eye and questions of how we occupy and experience space. Eliasson's upcoming Cubic Structural Evolution Project will incite a more 'hands on' approach. Presented with thousands of blocks of Lego, the viewer will assume the role of architect. Whether you lay the foundations of your own miniature skyscraper or elaborate on a pre-existing one, a small metropolis is expected to blossom over the exhibition period. The finished (or unfinished) product may suggest the cityscape of the modern world is just as much an organism as we are.
In a year where Kings Cross was finally freed of its legislative shackles; Sydney reopened, locked down and then reopened again; and a dystopian doll from a hit Netflix series towered over the city, it's safe to say that there were plenty of ups and downs. Despite all of this, Sydney's hospitality and arts scene offered up new and exciting ventures from Catalonian wine bars to new citywide festivals. We compiled a list of our favourite new venues and exciting events that made this year better during the good times and the bad as part of Concrete Playground's Best of 2021 Awards. Now we're presenting the cream of the crop, with both a reader-voted People's Choice award and an overall CP Pick in each of these categories: Best New Restaurant Best New Bar Best Event Best New Space Best Lockdown Pivot So, with no further ado, the winners for 2021 are... BEST EVENT CP PICK: SEVEN METHODS OF KILLING KYLIE JENNER From Sydney theatre gems Darlinghurst Theatre Company and Green Door Theatre Company, this hilarious and whip-smart stage show explored the connection between the online and IRL, as well as the role of the internet in societal inequality. Co-directed by Zindzi Okenyo and Bardi and Jabirr Jabirr woman Shari Sebbens (Top End Wedding, The Sapphires), starring Vivienne Awosoga and Moreblessing Maturure, and supported by an all-female production team, Seven Methods of Killing Kylie Jenner followed an argument between two friends over the eponymous influencer and her supposed 'self-made billionaire' status. The show unpacked the commodification of Black women while charging headfirst into the modern collision of the twitterverse, your digital history and how people behave IRL. Plus, if you missed it the first time, the production is returning for a limited run at Darlinghurst Theatre Company early in 2022. PEOPLE'S CHOICE: PARRAMATTA NIGHTS While Parramatta's usual arts festival Parramatta Lanes was forced to cancel and move online, Parramatta Nights sprung up in its place. Finding that sweet spot between restrictions and lockdowns, the three-week festival included a heap of activities and activations for Parra locals and patrons from across Sydney who ventured to our second city for cheap gigs, tasty food and family-friendly fun. The live music lineup took place on top of the Eat Street carpark, surrounded by the new fleet of high-rise buildings, and was absolutely stacked. On the lineup: Briggs, Ruby Fields, Triple One and The Chats, all performed for just $10 alongside a pop-up bar and a food stall from Parramatta favourite Butter. Plus, there was free live jazz in Parramatta Square, an openair cinema showing La La Land and 10 Things I Hate About You as well as Bollywood hits Tanhaji and Street Dancer, a roller rink and carnival rides for the kids. BEST LOCKDOWN PIVOT [caption id="attachment_824128" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Destination NSW[/caption] CP PICK: BART MART When Bart Jr and owner George Woodyard tried out a once-off lobster roll, they didn't anticipate the response it'd get. "I had about 50 people on Instagram message me asking if they could pre-order for next time, and so many people came by afterwards and said, 'please do it again'," Woodyard said. Piled high with fresh WA rock lobster, NSW Clarence River king prawns, tarragon, chive and horseradish, Bart Jr's lobster rolls eventually became a regular fixture of the Redfern bar's lockdown menu, available every Friday from the restaurant's takeaway window — lovingly named Bart Mart. While these rolls were the star of the show, there were plenty of other items to get excited about on the menu. Date-night packs, heat-at-home meals and fancy panko-crumbed market-fresh ling Fillet-O-Fishes were just some of the exciting options Bart Jr provided to bring a smile to local faces. [caption id="attachment_747368" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Nikki To[/caption] PEOPLE'S CHOICE: RAGAZZI AT HOME Many of our favourite dine-in-only restaurants came up with new ways to bring their dishes into our homes during lockdown. Delivery service Providoor helped facilitate the likes of Bistrot 916, CicciaBella and Restaurant Hubert to send restaurant-quality meals to Sydneysiders with minimal preparation required. Likewise, Sydney mainstays like Rising Sun Workshop set up their own delivery services. A real highlight of this wave of delivered meals was Ragazzi, who provided Sydneysiders with the opportunity to indulge in some next-level pasta at home. Highlights from Ragazzi At Home included ravioli of burrata, house-made mortadella and cavatelli with cime di rappa and anchovy ragu, but the menu changed each week. Topping off the whole experience was the ability to add some luxe extras, such as a huge range of wine or a selection of fancy pantry items from Fabbrica to your order. BEST NEW BAR [caption id="attachment_798918" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Cassandra Hannagan[/caption] CP PICK: CAFE FREDA'S Like much of its clientele, Freda's has grown up — but it hasn't forgotten how to have fun. After the closure of the beloved Chippendale nightclub last year, owner David Abram didn't sit on his proverbial hands for long, opening the doors to the new iteration of Freda's just months later. As is clear from the name, Cafe Freda's isn't a nightclub. That said, it isn't really a cafe, either. It's a restaurant, neighbourhood bar and creative space. Like its predecessor, it's a haven of expression, art and music. The pastel-covered bar sits below an art gallery and hosts some of Sydney's most exciting DJs on the regular. Unlike the OG Freda's, however, here there's a stronger focus on food and wine. The kitchen is helmed by chef Xinyi Lim, with a continually changing menu that's always driven by seasonal and locally sourced produce. Topping the whole thing off is a revolving list of some of the best natural wines on offer in Sydney. [caption id="attachment_836017" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Jiwon Kim[/caption] PEOPLE'S CHOICE: APOLLONIA Hidden underground in the basement level of new four-storey Sydney venue Hinchcliff House is Apollonia, a cocktail bar with an affinity for negronis and romance. The dimly lit bar is named after a character from The Godfather and embodies the love-stricken nature of Apollonia and protagonist Michael in the film. Whether you're swinging by to grab a drink or heading downstairs for a nightcap after your meal at one of the building's other venues, you're going to want to start and end with the cocktail list. From wheat vodka and Italian honey liqueur creations through to the Chinoto Manhattan made with rye, pepperberry, chinito vermouth and juniper amaro, the cocktails are flavoursome and pack a punch. If you stick around until midnight on a Friday night, you'll be treated to The Thunderbolt. This weekly tradition at Apollonia is a toast to what's important: friends, life, love and negronis. BEST NEW RESTAURANT CP PICK: MAIZ Started as a family-run food stall at the Summer Hill Flour Mill Markets by brother and sister Juan Carlos Negrete and Marissa Negrete, Maiz is an all-day Mexican brunch spot. The speciality here is the tortas, addictive fresh-baked bread rolls that come piled high with chorizo, scrambled eggs and pulled pork. Set in a beautiful openair courtyard of a historic 1830s building, Maiz sets itself apart with big, bold flavours, hefty serving sizes and a unique take on Mexican cuisine Sydney hasn't seen before. The menu is inspired by Negrete's time living in the central region of Mexico. The neat selection of brunch options purposefully steers away from tacos and highlights other mainstays of Mexico's cuisine instead. Completing your experience at Maiz is coffee from small-batch Sydney roaster Madding Crowd Coffee, plus an array of mezcal, tequila, Mexican beers and boozy agua frescas. [caption id="attachment_832341" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Nikki To[/caption] PEOPLE'S CHOICE: LA SALUT La Salut is the latest showstopping venue from the team behind Love Tilly Devine and Ragazzi. Hidden inside Redfern's overhauled Norfolk House & Hotel, the buzzy 40-seat venue boasts a sleek renovated bar space lined with imported Spanish wines. At the helm of La Salut is Love Tilly's Matt Swieboda and Nate Hatwell, alongside Executive Chef and co-owner Scott McComas-Williams, who have crafted an exceptional drinks list and delectable bar food. You can begin the night with a selection of jamon, sliced fresh to order and served up with sourdough before you make a choice. Do you get several rounds of bites for the table or opt for large plates with even larger flavours? Drinks-wise, the wine list is broad and dynamic, largely focusing on different regions of Spain and a good selection of quality Australian drops. And while the vino options are exciting, the price range is by no means oppressive. BEST NEW SPACE [caption id="attachment_837012" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Jordan Munns[/caption] CP PICK: PHOENIX CENTRAL PARK Phoenix Central Park is Sydney's stunning secret. Hidden in Chippendale, the arts and music listening space only opens to the public for select performances. Seats at these shows are almost always allocated via a ballot, so it takes a little luck to get inside. The intricate space is the vision of philanthropist Judith Neilson AM, founder of the White Rabbit Gallery. Its curved beige walls are reminiscent of New York's Guggenheim, while the central music space is an impressive multi-level amphitheatre. When artists hit the stage, the muted beige walls are often illuminated by colourful lighting displays, transforming the venue. If you haven't been lucky enough to find a way in, you can watch Phoenix's series of online performances, Halo. Featuring local favourites like A.Girl, Shady Nasty and Annie Hamilton, these stripped-back live shows illustrate the beauty of the space as well as the musicianship on offer. But, there's an upcoming chance to sneak your way in IRL, with the venue set to host three upcoming performances as part of Sydney Festival — all of which are open to the public via a ticket ballot. [caption id="attachment_810673" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Grana, Jiwon Kim[/caption] PEOPLE'S CHOICE: HINCHCLIFF HOUSE Hinchcliff House is a four-storey mega venue that's overtaken the heritage Hinchcliff Wool Stores in the ever-evolving Quay Quarter. The huge standstone structure plays host to five new venues: two Italian eateries, an underground cocktail bar, a private hospitality space and an attached bakery. While each venue brings something interesting to the table, the real marvel of Hinchcliff House is the huge wool store it sits within. At Grana, bare sandstone walls are accompanied by wooden beams, and large grain and wheat bundles are placed around the restaurant. The space links your dining experience to the history of the building, while the menu heroes pasta and bread made in the building's mill. Or, for something completely different, head downstairs to the Peopel's Choice for Best Bar of 2021, Apollonia. Here, the lights are dimmed and soft beige tones are traded for romantic hues, leather seats and an expansive cocktail menu. Congratulations to all the winners. Our city is a better place with you in them.
