From July 31 to August 4, Impro Australia and Theatresports present five days of improvisation, comedy and drama with the Impro Festival at New Theatre. The festival will open with The Whole Story, an evening of long-form improvisation directed by Marko Mustac. Wednesday will be double-feature night with Ewan Campbell's epic World War II comic drama, Churchill's Unmentionables, and Bard to the Bone, Shakespeare’s plays improvised under the guidance of Oli Burton. Thursday will see the return of one of Sydney's most revered improvised comedy shows, Cale Bain's The Director's Mind. Another double feature night will take place on the Friday, with Puppets vs People, returning from its national tour, and Impro Lab-Rinth, David Bowie's classic movie improvised. The festival will close on Saturday, August 4, with the Theatresports Cup Winners Cup, a battle between the winners of various theatresports cups, from the Cranston to the High School.
What do you get if you combine some of the world's most influential and controversial speakers, philosophers, journalists, authors and more, sparking debate and raising critical issues from Australia and around the world? Well, more than just polite chatter that's for sure. And the Festival of Dangerous Ideas, held at the Sydney Opera House in late September, delivers on that promise. This year marks the fourth anniversary of the festival, and with a host of over 40 modern-day thinkers and intellectual icons, 2012 is set to be more thought-provoking and inspiring than ever. One of the highlights of the festival is the fiery feminist icon Germaine Greer. She will be tackling the topic of genital cutting with medical researcher Brian Morris and in collaboration with author and model Tara Moss and feminist activist Eva Cox discussing whether 'All Women Hate Each Other'. Other highlights include neuroscientist and philosopher Sam Harris opening the festival with his postulation on 'The Delusion of Free Will', a suite of authors and experts panelling a debate on China-US relations, and American journalist Tim Harford enlightening us on why we need to 'Make More Mistakes'. A huge array of other contentious issues will be raised and delved into, ranging from Africa to playing God to sexual behaviour. So if you want to have your say or see what the experts have to say, book soon to avoid missing out. Tickets go on sale on Monday, July 30.
It’s been four years since Will Smith last appeared on our screens, and a whole 10 years since Men in Black II came out. Generally it's at this point where a whole bunch of people begin furrowing their brows and saying: "Wait … there was a Men in Black II?” before jumping onto IMDb, reading over the synopsis, looking up the cast, checking out the poster, rewatching the trailer and then saying, "oh yeah … yeah … I think I saw that." Why, then, Smith decided that a third instalment of the MiB franchise was the perfect vehicle with which to mark his return is anybody's guess, but if we had to put our money on it, we'd guess someone put loads and loads of money on it (with 'it', of course, being 'him'). That said, Men in Black 3 is not a terrible film. It's not a great one either, mind you, and while it's definitely an improvement on the sequel, it remains a far cry from the wildly creative vision of the original. From the outset, too, it's clear Men in Black 3 is operating at a different pace from the others, most noticeably through the subdued performance of Smith. All the bravado, wisecracking and face-pulling of his previous outings have been significantly dialled back, though it’s unclear whether this was a creative choice or simply the star’s lukewarm enthusiasm for the entire project. After all, it’s not as though the world had been clamouring for another foray into the franchise, and the film was famously plagued by so many problems that at one point production was even suspended for three months while director Barry Sonnenfeld reworked the script. Jemaine Clement (Flight of the Conchords) plays the villain in this instalment as the violent and time-travelling alien assassin 'Boris the Animal'. For such a talented comedian, it's a surprisingly unfunny role, and the lion's share of zingers actually go to Josh Brolin in his turn as the younger Tommy Lee Jones. Brolin's impression is at times so eerily accurate you'd swear some CGI wizardry was at play. Emma Thompson comes in to replace Rip Torn as head of the bespoke alien administrators, and Michael Stuhlbarg (Hugo) appears as the most amicable and delightfully original character Griffin — an alien capable of viewing an infinite number of dimensions at any given moment. The bulk of Men in Black 3 takes place in the past, with Smith performing a "temporal leap" back to 1969 in order to save his partner's life. It's an updated (if also less impressive) version of Back to the Future that helps breathe new life into the franchise and provide some diverting insight into the origins of Lee Jones's character's surly demeanour. There's even a twist that, while not terrifically surprising, is somehow surprisingly tender and offers a cute spin on the two previous films. Fun, fast-paced and shorter than the average blockbuster, it’s the perfect film to simply drop into and enjoy.
The plastic flaps make this play. They're hanging in the theatre doorway, thick, long, translucent and evocative. They're exactly the sort you see separating the sparkling-tiled butcher's shopfront from its bloody back room, and now you're already thinking about big knives and intestines. Flipping through the flaps, you'll find two guys in crisp cricket whites, hair slicked back and carefully parted, frozen on stage and blinking around. One moos occasionally, and the other bleats. Rain patters in the background. It's bleak and weird, and a great start. This is Hartley (Heath Ivey-Law) and Hugo (Liam Nunan), A Butcher of Distinction's twin protagonists, and in the opening scene they're plucking through their father's belongings, snatching up bits to sell. They're out of their element, far away from their isolated country estate and trembling in the dank basement of a London pub. They whimper about their inheritance, and start to plan, poorly, for dealing without it. Their father, we learn, has killed their mother and shot himself dead. They're delicate brats wetting themselves at the prospect of job-hunting. Their parents' death seems more like a financial loss than an emotional one, and so it's not easy to care about their problems. The director, James Dalton, says in the program that they do become likeable, but it didn't happen. Teddy (Paul Hooper) crashes in with a lot of thumping, shouting, drinking and chest hair. He owns the pub and knows a lot more than the twins about their father's sleazy dealings down here. He also knows that he is owed money. Apparently the old man used this dump to indulge in some gross stuff, and now, says Teddy, the twins will have to pay off the debt at a pretty devastating personal cost. And the twins are all "oh dear, okay", which seems implausible, and the writing doesn't redeem itself from there. A Butcher of Distinction is a fresh piece from 25-year-old British playwright Rob Hayes, and it's so exciting to have young work on in cool Sydney spaces. But this script is undercooked. Main characters don't have to be likeable or their situations relatable, but cutting plot corners in the same script is asking too much of the audience. These characters aren't nuanced but just plain inconsistent; the twins supposedly work as a goat herder and butcher, but they're portrayed as privileged wimps until suddenly flipping at the end. The script aims for dark humour, but I just saw some pretty weak punchlines and a gory twist. Stylistically there is strong stuff going on. You know how I feel about the plastic flaps; set designer Dylan Tonkin deftly conjures all kinds of unsettling ideas using just one set piece. Dalton's nailed the macabre atmosphere here, and that opening sequence is ace. The tiny theatre's size works for this play, too, as you feel uncomfortably close to some uncomfortable ideas. But comfortably close to the flaps.
Portuguese filmmaker Miguel Gomes' latest outing, Tabu, is a beguiling slow burn of love, melancholia and crocodiles. Shot in nostalgic black and white and bisected, Tabu tells the tale of a woman's life filled with romance, longing and a great deal of hand-wringing. Part one: Paradise Lost is preceded by an introduction — a film within a film that sets up the motifs that will reappear throughout. The kind-hearted Pilar (Teresa Madruga) is watching in modern-day Lisbon and despite keeping busy with her human rights work and unwanted advances from a friend, she is becoming increasingly worried about her neighbour, Aurora (Laura Soveral). Frail but bolshy, Aurora has gambled away her life at the casino, suffering from the same curse as her father. Convinced that her maid Santa (Isabel Cardoso) is not just working for her but for the devil, too, she turns to Pilar for help. The disconsolate Aurora asks to be put in touch with a man named Gian-Luca. Part two: Paradise is the story of Aurora and the enigmatic Gian-Luca in their African youth. Aurora’s father has done well for himself in this new landscape, exporting exotic ostrich feather cushions, while the young Aurora (Ana Moreira) has made a name for herself as a rifle-slinging big game hunter, both thriving from colonialism. Described by her tea plantation husband as having a slight "bipolarity", Aurora enters a new state of entitled listlessness when she becomes pregnant. Her langour is soon soothed by noted heartbreaker Gian-Luca, summoned to catch her as-yet-unnamed pet crocodile. Their illicit affair is set against a backdrop of both the fateful Mount Tabu and the burgeoning Portuguese Colonial War. As the white interlopers relax into their own distractions, their African workers tend to their every whim. Paradise is told only through narration, a conceit that unfolds beautifully. Memories, myths and truths all melding together. For a film set in two parts, Tabu sits as a cohesive object, as if a semicolon is dangling between the two, despite the switch from dialogue to monologue. It's funny, melancholic, dark and romantic and its beauty is only ever a stone's throw from the realities of invasion, ownership and war. There are deft anachronistic touches throughout — Gian-Luca's band play a cover of 'Baby I Love You' at a party but it’s the Ramones version — which nicely sets the film apart from being a mere biopic of the time. A rare, dreamy, cinematic excursion, Tabu is a must while it's still on the big screen.
It is a staple of the horror genre. Old books always give people the information they need to conquer the monster hellbent on murdering them, so they go to the library, where they are conveniently murdered by the villain just after reading how to overcome them. How apt, then, that Freak Me Out, the gory staple of the Sydney Film Festival, returning in 2013, will be presenting a sneak peek of their upcoming horrors at the ever-popular Late Night Library in Surry Hills on Thursday, May 23. The preview will be hosted by Richard Kuipers, the programmer of this years Freak Me Out section of SFF. He will be showing snippets of 2013's films, which include the SXSW Midnight Movie Audience Award-winning Cheap Thrills; the crazed-Nazi-scientist-themed Frankenstein's Army; and The Rambler, which features a mysterious turn from romcom leading man Dermot Mulroney, who you may know from My Best Friend's Wedding. Kuipers will also be discussing the intricacies of selecting films for the festival, which promises to be almost as entertaining as the moments on screen. Best of all it is free. So head on down, take a friend if you're scared and make sure you don't enter any clearly suspicious dark spaces.
Jello Biafra, the voice that defied the Reagan era as frontman of Dead Kennedys, is bringing his chaotic punk back to Australia. Inspired by The Stooges' performance at Iggy's 60th birthday bash, Jello set about immediately recording the first album with his new accompaniment. Audacity of Hype was well-received by new and old fans alike, enabling the production of two follow-up EPs and sophomore album White People and the Damage Done, the content of which dominates their setlist. Whilst his new musical troupe is not as confronting as DK were, fans can still expect to experience layers of guitar accompanied by the obligatory crashing of drums and impassioned vocals in Jello Biafra and the Guantanamo School of Medicine. Like true punks they do not hold back, tackling corruption, foreign policy and scandals through blunt lyrics punctuated by explosive rock. The rage of their lyrical content personifies itself in Biafra's onstage flailing and intensity. Catch them in Sydney for one stick-it-to-the-man night only on Saturday, May 18.
British songstress Beth Orton is in Australia, performing a national tour singing in churches across the country. The BRIT Award winner is arresting audiences across the nation with her angelic voice that perfectly suits the ambience offered by her chosen venues. Beth has been involved in music for more than two decades, and her experience is evident in her lyrics and voice, which she controls with carefully crafted technique and aplomb to convey the powerful emotions that simmer beneath the surface of her songs. Her tour is made possible by Heavenly Sounds, who utilise the acoustics offered by the architectural splendours of Australia's churches to present intimate concerts that will not be forgotten. Beth's is happening at St Stephen's Uniting Church in Sydney for one night only on Tuesday, May 14.
Watercolours aren’t usually that sexy. Often the domain of octogenarians with a penchant for bridge-peppered landscapes, they don't come to mind when you first think of cutting edge Contemporary art. But still, Paper Works , at Newsagency gallery, is one of the best exhibits I’ve seen in a long while. The show features works on paper by five early career artists: Callum Docherty, Daniel Smith, Jo Ann Cahill, Elisa Malo and Zoe Tubbenhauer. I loved nearly everything on display, but clear standouts were the pieces by Cahill, Tubbenhauer and Docherty. Each artist works with watercolour paints (among other things) and each brings something new and exciting to the medium. Cahill’s use of paint is nothing short of virtuosic. Her works are exquisite, engaging and just plain fun. Adding a fabulously nonsensical, hilarious element to the pieces are their titles. ‘The dog, Max, endowed with intelligence and other special abilities, is at first loveable, but also proves to be a ferocious, unstoppable killer’ was a particular favourite of mine. She trawls the internet for images then appropriates them in her watercolours, turning inconsequential happy snaps –dogs in silly costumes, infant bears trying to break into a car – into jewel-coloured, fairytale-like images. Illustrator and graphic designer Zoe Tubbenhauer creates beautifully delicate, slightly esoteric paintings that sit ‘in limbo between childhood and adulthood’. They reminded me of the lovely pictures that accompanied the Beatrix Potter books many of us read as kids, except Tubbenhauer’s works are a little less optimistic, a little more sinister. I noticed that most of her pieces had sold, and I’m not surprised. Perhaps my favourite pieces in Paper Works were those by Callum Docherty. The artist explains that his images "portray a violently childlike distant world of confusion". I didn’t really see any violence in them, though. They’re childlike, absolutely, but I just saw awesomely surrealist, interesting, beautifully controlled pieces. Each work is made up of these great biomorphic shapes – sometimes executed in monochrome, sometimes in brilliant colours. Newsagency Gallery is a great artist run space in Stanmore. Its sparse furnishings give it a cool, pop-up feel. But it’s based there permanently, so keep tabs on their exhibitions. I definitely will be. Newsagency Gallery is open Saturday and Sunday. You can call for a private viewing on other days 0401 797 746. Image: Bears by Jo Ann Cahill.
Many a great album has been penned during an extensive period of self-imposed isolation. Joni Mitchell famously composed Blue while travelling alone in Europe, on the heels of a tough break-up. More recently, Justin Vernon emerged from three months spent "hibernating" in the Wisconsin woods with For Emma, Forever Ago under his arm. In a move at odds with their name, Adelaide-based band City Riots spent the summer before last in a remote shack in the South Australian countryside. The seclusion inspired no fewer than 40 new songs, the best of which made their way onto the group's debut LP, Sea of Bright Lights. "It was really important ... that we set time aside to work on honing our craft," vocalist/guitarist Ricky Kradolfer told the Brag. Continuing the group's indie-pop, nostalgia-sprinkled feel, the album introduces a more sophisticated aesthetic, with thoughtfully layered guitar textures and rich dashes of reverb.
Bangarra is a dance theatre company that uses music and movement from the contemporary urban world to explore the stories of Australia's Indigenous people. Since 1989 they have been creating extraordinarily muscular and beautifully choreographed performances; 40,000-year-old songlines and bloodlines transported to a modern context. In their latest production, Blak, the relationship between old and new — tension and possibility for change — comes under intense and uncompromising scrutiny. Composed in three movements, Blak begins as a gang of seven boys test the constantly shifting boundaries of inner-city life as they prepare for traditional rites of passage and initiation ceremonies. Wearing hooded jumpers and skinny jeans, they appear profoundly disenfranchised within a gritty city of gridlocked boundaries that plays host to their sometimes unpredictable behaviour. In the second movement it’s the women's turn to deal with the recurring conflict between city dwelling and Indigenous connection to country. The female sense of disempowerment is different in that it specifically relates to the difficulty of speaking out on fundamental issues like birth, loss, language and powerlessness. How these 'blak' women can make their voices resonate clearly for future generations is a question that lingers beyond the physical performance. In the final movement all 14 dancers take to the stage to celebrate and pay homage to their heritage to powerful, sensual and utterly compelling effect. The soundscape, composed by internationally renowned choreographer Stephen Page and electro-pop king Paul Mac, links each individual movement of the dancers into a vital whole, visibly transporting the audience. Bangarra is a Wiradjuri word meaning “to make fire” — in Blak, the burning desire for spiritual connection is rekindled. This review is based on the Melbourne run of Blak in May 2013. Image via Bangarra Dance Theatre.
Sitting on my couch is a soft toy called Little Friend, made by the much-missed, very brilliant late artist Mike Kelley. He's a blue, furry abject creature the size of a pillow with big googly eyes and pale pink appendages. When you smack his bottom, he says things like "don't play with your genitals, play with me" and "when you do naughty things, I see you." My favourite phrase, however, is emitted in a low, needy whisper, "hug me... foreverevereverever...". A similarly creepy breathiness is intoned all throughout the latest film from Harmony Korine (Gummo, Trash Humpers), Spring Breakers. "Spring Break foreevvvveerrr" over the top of gratuitous bare breasts jiggling, "spring break foreevvvveerrr" in the dorm room, on the beach, on a murderous rampage. Whereas Little Friend is confined to the living room, the sirens of Spring Breakers are not terribly interested in staying put. There's nothing subtle about this film. Three bored, blonde college girls who may as well be nameless (Vanessa Hudgens, Rachel Korine, Ashley Benson as Candy, Cotty and Brit respectively) put the pressure on their tamer brunette Christian pal named Faith (Selena Gomez) to ditch deadsville and head to the beach for a change of hedonistic pace. When Faith can't cough up enough money, the remaining trio hastily rob a chicken restaurant and they're all on their way. PARTAY! Once there, it's everything they ever hoped it could be and perhaps nothing they really wanted. A drug bust at a party gets them all landed in jail — in their bikinis — until they're bailed out by a limply horrifying bruiser named Alien (James Franco nailing it in cornrows and grills). Hilarity actually does ensue, surprisingly, but so does that sickening feeling that will make you want to stop off for a quick washbasin shower in the cinema bathroom when it ends. So that's the plot, but who really cares. Spring Breakers is about (as much as any of Korine's films can be about anything) the delusion of the American dream, excess (Alien will tell you all about that one) and objectification with a hazy outlook on racial divisions (cue: Gucci Mane). Yes, the women in the film hardly ever wear clothes, but they do possess a kind of unrealistic power we don't see very often on film. There are scenes of compromising sexual situations, but Korine doesn't err on that most vile of cliches, rape fetishisation — in fact it's flipped. The body shots are gratuitous — as they should be, given the vile Girls Gone Wild subject matter — but they're also tempered by Korine's idiosyncratic beauty-out-of-garbarge long shots. It's of note that the cinematographer is Benoît Debie, most famous for his work on Gaspar Noé's extreme Irreversible. After repeated viewings, my mind's still not made up on its complexity. That world is so ripe for a truly subversive, artistic reading and I would have liked Spring Breakers to be a bit more radical than it is. With an R rating already in place though, it's a morally obscure fever dream that is worth seeing on a big screen. Especially if you like Britney Spears. https://youtube.com/watch?v=rVvn9T6bqls
For anyone who's had the distinct displeasure of having to sit through the tedium of a state-sponsored barista course, one of Concrete Playground's favourite haunts is offering budding baristas and coffee aficionados a welcome alternative. The shabby chic Grounds of Alexandria have launched their own coffee classes, focusing not only on how to get the perfect balance and taste to your coffee but also how to make your coffee look beautiful and irresistible, just like the pros do. Head barista and trainer Jack Hanna is certainly the man to listen to on the topic, having won the 2010 Golden Bean Award as well being the World Latte Art Champion. If these sort of barista skills sound like your bag, then check out the Latte Art & Basic Barista Skills Workshop. However, if you fancy yourself as a real coffee connoisseur, then the Roasting & Cupping Workshop provides a more in-depth and holistic tour of what goes into making the perfect cuppa. With tours of the Grounds' remarkable Research Facility, where the roasting machines work their magic, Hanna takes classes through the roasting process and the ins and outs of the coffee selection process. On top of this, the course teaches the art of cupping such that you have a complete understanding of the process your cappuccino goes through to reach its fullest potential in your cup. So if you want an insider look into how to make the ultimate cup of coffee then ditch the dour alternatives and check out the Grounds of Alexandria courses. To register or find out more, email info@groundsroasters.com.
Only two months ago I saw Tame Impala at a packed out Enmore, a sweaty and heavily marijuana scented verification of their legendary status here in the band's homeland. But already they've announced another Australian tour, confirming an exponential increase in popularity that would seem a bit nuts if you hadn't been reading all the end-of-year roundups on all the biggest music sites in the world. The tour is comprised of five shows to coincide with the band's headline appearance at Groovin' The Moo 2013, kicking off late April, and each comes with a big-time venue upgrade. Instead of The Enmore it'll be the Hordern Pavilion, with the Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth shows taking place in the Festival Hall, Convention Centre, Thebarton Theatre and Belvoir Ampitheatre respectively. By then Tame Impala's critically eulogised second album, Lonerism, will have been getting airtime for around six months, so don't put off buying tickets until the last minute. Lyrical introversion and mind-warping psychedelia can be just as enjoyable in big group situations. Tickets go on sale 9am on Thursday, 21 February through Ticketek. https://youtube.com/watch?v=BgK_Er7WZVg
Oblivion is like a 'Best of' album for sci-fi movies. It's got the isolation and planetary caretaking of Moon or WALL-E, the post-alien-invasion devastation of Independence Day, the memory wipes and insurgency of Total Recall, the sentient and menacingly red-eyed robots of 2001: A Space Odyssey and the 'You maniacs!...You BLEW IT UP-edness' of Planet of the Apes. In fact, with so many classic hits, it's like the I Am Sam soundtrack, but where one of the tracks is I Am Legend. So if it's not terrifically original — if what we're talking about here is essentially a 'covers' film — is it worth seeing? Well, yes, thankfully, because like any good covers album, the tributes are done lovingly, respectfully and with a just enough reinterpretation to keep you interested. Oblivion is directed by Tron: Legacy's Joseph Kosinski, whose touch is immediately obvious both cinematically and aurally (although this time the pulsing soundtrack is provided by M83 rather than Daft Punk). Set in a fantastically bleak 2077, humanity has abandoned Earth save for two individuals, Jack (Tom Cruise) and Victoria (Andrea Riseborough), whose job is to monitor and repair a small fleet of aggressive security drones that hunt down any remaining alien invaders. Like every old cop in an action movie, Jack and Victoria are just two weeks away from retirement when the unexpected crash landing of another human, Julia (Olga Kurylenko), throws a spanner into the works. Jack wants to know who she is, whilst Victoria doesn't want anything to threaten their plans to rejoin the rest of Earth's survivors on an off-planet sanctuary. Performance wise, Cruise is dependably solid, though its Riseborough who steals every one of their scenes. Her Stepford Wife-esque emotional repression more than makes up for their lacklustre sexual chemistry and becomes especially compelling once Kurylenko is introduced into the mix. Morgan Freeman also makes a cameo in a Morpheus-type role; however, his performance is both fleeting and unremarkable. The true star of Oblivion is in fact the production design, brought to life in astounding detail via Claudio Miranda's (Life of Pi) engaging cinematography. Jack and Victoria's exquisite airborne apartment sits atop Earth's expansive wastelands, and the scenes in both are equally sumptuous. Coupled with Oblivion's many sci-fi tributes, Kosinski and Miranda's vision offers an enjoyable and fast-paced film that should appeal to a broad audience.
What does it mean to see our world from a female perspective? This question is answered in myriad ways by the short films of both upcoming and established women filmmakers from all over the world, gathered together for the 19th WOW Film Festival. Taking place over 10 days, the event's line-up promises an array of narrative moods, from the confessional to the humorous, as well as discussions (one with Margaret Pomeranz and Gillian Armstrong has already sold out). It's presented by nonprofit Women in Film and Television NSW, which supports women working in the screen industries. The Festival opens with the Australian debut of Moeder, a documentary film by emerging director Roma Hope D'Arrietta. Splicing up original Super 8 scenes with contemporary footage, Moeder (Mother) recounts the vicissitudes of life as experienced by D'Arrietta's mother, Sacha de Vries, whose story spans post-war Europe to contemporary Australia. Sacha's own mother suicided, leaving Sacha at 14 to seek out a new life as an international model and stylist with a secret burden of grief. D'Arrietta's exploration of how this family history impacts on her own understanding of life makes for a poignant filmic experience. The festival's many other interesting films interpreting the world through a woman's eyes can be scoped out here.
2012 was a big year for theatrical representations of the process of ageing. Austrian film Amour has garnered all sorts of buzz for its painfully honest portrayal of what it's like to face your own mortality, and Colin Friels was utterly unforgettable as the fading father figure Willy Loman in Belvoir's raw retelling of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman. Carriageworks' new stage production Life As We Know It offers a startlingly modern and quintessentially Australian perspective on growing old. The production features seven senior citizens from the Campbelltown suburb of Minto sharing with audiences the trials and tribulations of ageing in a world that is rapidly and endlessly modernising itself. Everything from love and companionship to gardening and suburban life are brought to the stage, showing how the simple and even mundane details of everyday life can in fact be quite extraordinary. With acclaimed director Rosie Dennis — renowned for her capacity to tear down the fourth wall in favour of intimate and realistic performer-audience relationships — at the helm, Life As We Know It is a deeply personal exploration of what it's like to grow old in Australia.
Songs for the Fallen is one of those excellent finds that gives you faith in human ingenuity. It is one of many artistic imaginings of the life of Marie Duplessis, the 19th-century Parisian courtesan best known as the protagonist of Moulin Rouge. Sheridan Harbridge has devised the original piece with fellow actors Ben Gerrard and Garth Holcombe, director Shane Anthony, and composer/musican Basil Hogios. The team is obviously dynamite together as the result is a hilarious, self-aware piece of sophisticated debauchery. We enter the dinky Old Fitz Theatre to find designer Michael Hankin has decked it out with a luscious, satin-covered bed of sin in front of a gorgeous red velvet backdrop and theatrical 19th-century music hall facade. There is of course also a fourth wall, but this is taken down pretty quickly, as Harbridge declares to delighted audience member Linda that she's "taken it down and it's not going up again!" Self-reference in theatre can sometimes be painful and indulgent, but here any references to the show itself are pointed and funny. For example, as Harbridge switches from a French accent to posh Australian, she tells us she simply can't be bothered keeping the French up. Fair enough, she has a lot else keeping her busy. Men, in particular — many men. Gerrard takes the lion's share of playing the gentleman customers, while Holcombe narrates nobly from upstage, translating the words pomme and frites ad infinitum. This farrago of a show has pop tunes galore, most of which have been composed by Hogios with Harbridge's lyrical input. Using a microphone bound in pink velvet and white satin ribbon, Harbridge bursts into song in many awkward positions and is supported royally by Hogios at his little musical station in the corner. His opening sequence is particularly clever, as he morphs his way seamlessly between baroque interpretations of Nirvana and Blondie on what sounds like an electronic harpsichord. Like the burlesque master Meow Meow, Harbridge has a gift for being at once vulgar, intelligent, and elegant. It's a rare thing. She and her gang of bohemians have produced a triumph of indie theatre. This is a review of the first run of Songs for the Fallen, which ran at the Old Fitz from December 5-16, 2012. The show returns for an encore at the Seymour Centre's Reginald Theatre.
On June 24, 1978, a few hundred people gathered on Oxford Street to voice their opinions against anti-homosexual discrimination. Late in the evening, when the numbers rose to 2000, the police put an end to the march and arrested 53 of the protestors, many of whom lost their jobs as a result. Thirty-five years on, the Mardi Gras is the largest gay celebration on the planet, with about 10,000 participants and hundreds of thousands of spectators. It's a glamorous, glitzy, outrageous, fun expression of every individual's right to love freely. Get there early if you want a view. Read the rest of our ten best things to do at Sydney Mardi Gras.
As well as leading you around the inner city's art highlights, Art Month takes you on two easy jaunts outside the city centre. Go West hits most of the major Western Sydney cultural institutions on a single free bus trip led by artist Tom Polo. From Create to Space — A Parramatta Tour is a guided look at Pop Up Parramatta, Parramatta's answer to the Renew Newcastle model. The tour is led by Sydney cultural nexus Jess Scully, a recent SMAC of the Year, the curatorial powerhouse behind Vivid Ideas and probably the single person with the broadest overview of Sydney's creative second life. Tours West is part of Art Month 2013. Check out our guide to the festival's ten best events here.
Taking weight from the claim that there’s now so much music out there it’s impossible to unearth the good stuff is UK producer Fantastic Mr Fox, who has managed to carve out a relatively successful career despite his name being decidedly Soundcloud-unfriendly thanks to the soundtrack from a 2009 stop-motion animation by one Wes Anderson. Fantastic Mr Fox the beat maker has been producing since the age of 14, long before Boggis, Bunce and Bean made it to the movies, but if eight-year-olds were into genre-bending electronica his stuff could be perfectly congruous with anthropomorphic farm animals and their late night shenanigans. The sinister intro to ‘Pascal’s Chorus’? Mr. Fox creeping around in the moonlight. That same track’s escalation to frenzied grime-tinged house? The post-thievery dash back to his hole. The warbling ‘Yesterday’s Fall’? Probably the part where he gets his tail shot off. Anyway, with props being received from the likes of The XX, James Blake, Jamie XX and Bjork, he’s not called Fantastic for nothing. Support on the night comes from Low Motion on Sunset's Preacha and Max Gosfod, plus the FBi Sunset DJ's Kato and Bad Ezzy.
If you're a Triple J aficionado, you've no doubt heard Clubfeet's 'Heartbreak' by now. Released in January this year and featuring the sultry vocals of "oriental disco heathen goddess" Chela, it's been topping many a request list for weeks. Groove driven yet melancholy tinged, ‘Heartbreak’ is the single from Clubfeet's sophomore LP, Heirs and Graces. Keys player Montgomery Cooper has described the album as "the kind of record where you come home from a big night out and you put it on". Heirs and Graces maintains the sweet, highly spirited pop feel of Gold on Gold, which earned Pitchfork's praise, but the tunes are more tightly structured and the electro explorations delve into darker, more compelling realms. From all accounts, Clubfeet's live shows are designed to get you up and dancing. This month’s appearance at the OAF, featuring Collarbones, Chela, and Ego, is sure to be no exception.
You don't have to be up all night to get lucky. This month is the debut of LUCKY, part of the 2013 HERE AND NOW series hosted by Carriageworks and curated by Liane Rossler, co-founder of Dinosaur Designs. It follows the previous exhibitions USEFUL and TOTES. The collections featured pieces surrounding their namesake concept, and LUCKY follows right along. LUCKY showcases individual creations by 18 artists from Australia and New Zealand that explore the various social and cultural implications of the term. All of the artists' works will be for sale, which include various talismans, keepsakes and charms that the artists themselves find meaningful. Participating artists include Priscilla Bourne, Rachel Buckeridge, David Capra, Eddy Carroll, Julie Green, Leah Jackson, Kate Mitchell, Kevin Murray, Lyn & Tony, Tanja Binggeli, Sarah Read, Marilyn Schneider, David Sequeria, Rena Shein, Andrew Simpson, Tiffany Singh and Paul Yore. The gallery is open from 10am-6pm daily.
If your ideal Sunday is resembles something out of a Fitzgerald novel, then you might want to ‘roll on’ over to Vaucluse House. On November 3, the historic estate in the harbourside suburb of Vaucluse is open for (over-18s only) play. So dress in your Sunday best and ride a vintage double-decker bus from the city to this gothic revival mansion and enjoy a leisurely day of lawn games, live music and picnicking with Pimms. If that’s not enough to entertain you for five hours, guests can take bookbinding workshops or enjoy cooking classes and tastings from colonial gastronomer Jacqui Newling. ‘Roll on’ is part of a program of Sydney Living Museums events surrounding the Eat Your History exhibition that offer gastronomic experiences inspired by Sydney’s historic homes, gardens, and kitchens. They’ve partnered with Wildwon Projects to host Roll On and later on in February, Stories from the Cellar at Elizabeth Bay House. History buffs and leisure lovers alike are welcome. Not sure what to wear? Check out their vintage-inspired pin board for inspiration.
Already scheduled to headline Listen Out 2013, dance music's brothers-of-the-moment have just announced that they'll be gracing us with sideshows in both Sydney and Melbourne. Over the past 12 months, the UK-born and raised siblings have emerged from their bedrooms to dominate the dance charts and sell out international tours. That's especially impressive given that the youngest of the two, Howard (18), is only just out of school uniform and his brother, Guy, recently celebrated his 21st. Not only have party-goers been keeping the boys on high rotation, they've also won a few critics' (often hardened) hearts. The ever-revered Pitchfork awarded Disclosure's debut album, Settle, with a whopping 9.1/10, while UK radio host Zane Lowe described it as his "favourite album of the year so far". Featuring a selection of guest vocalists (including Ed McFarlane of Friendly Fires, Jamie Woon, Jessie Ware and AlunaGeorge's Aluna Francis), Settle represents a move towards balancing the duo's two major stylistic influences: dance and pop. "The main thing we tried to do with it is get a mixture of the more clubbier sides of the music we do with the more sample based stuff that's made for the dance floor and then kinda the other side of it, which is the more pop structured songs with vocals," Howard told the Listen Out team in a recent interview. "We wanted to take a balance between those things." https://youtube.com/watch?v=4nsKDJlpUbA
The Korean Film Festival In Australia (KOFFIA) is back for its fourth year in 2013, promising unmissable films and the brightest stars in their latest offerings for the screen. This is your opportunity to experience an alternative movie-going experience. You have the choice of 17 feature and various short films, with 50 screenings in total gracing Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne cinemas. It has been dubbed "a must for fans of Korean culture" although just about anyone is sure to enjoy the films, all of which are subtitled in English. On the bill are 9 Muses of Star Empire, which documents the K-Pop phenomenon from the inside, and Architecture 101, a romance-themed session, ideal for couples. There are also a host of other cultural activities — be sure to check them out when planning your KOFFIA experience. https://youtube.com/watch?v=s3dZhCnV7ik
'Battle' is normally a dirty word, but in the art world, it can be a mark of originality, technical skill and style. Or at least, that's how the Basel Royale Art Prize's 24 finalists will be judged in the upcoming 12 heats. Official submissions to the prize will be made by the artists live at Lo-Fi on Taylor Square, where the jams will be provided by electronic taste-makers Astral People. Every Thursday for 12 weeks, beginning on August 15, two artists will go head-to-head in a three-hour long blitz of creative energy to see whose work makes it to the final showcase on November 7. But don't just stand and watch — the public can have a say by voting in person using tokens or online via Instagram. Aside from Instacred and a sense of self-satisfaction, the winner will also be sent to Art Basel in Miami, one of the most significant international art events, which displays a selection of modern and contemporary works from around the world.
Snakadaktal are one of those bands that pop their head out occasionally to remind us of how incredibly talented they are. They won Triple J Unearthed High in 2011 and debuted on the Hottest 100 for that year at number 22 with 'Air', no easy feat for a band fresh out of high school. They then went into the studio bunker for most of 2012, only releasing the dance-friendly wonder 'Dance Bear', which also snuck onto the Hottest 100 despite the band hibernating most of the year on the production front. This time, though, they are set to keep their pleasurable pop where everybody can see it, with their solo nationwide tour. It comes on the back of releasing their debut LP Sleep in the Water, which if lead teaser track 'Ghost' is anything to go by, will certainly feature many claims for entry into a third consecutive Hottest 100. The dream-inducing wizards will be playing at the Metro theatre on August 30 and they will be supported by Fishing and Moon Holiday. This should not be missed. https://youtube.com/watch?v=MNN1JWnXzyQ
Marrickville Council presents year two of Open Marrickville, a community celebration of the many cultural pieces that make up this vibrant corner of Sydney. Over ten days and multiples venues, it's sure to tick more than a few boxes with Indigenous dance, Greek pagan water celebrations and many more snapshots of the 'ville on offer. Beeline to Marrickville Park this Thursday for the kick off with Patrick O’Rourke's Collected Visions. Treat yourself to this series of drawings inspired by images from the local library and using found objects to trace a history of the suburb. Proving that the key to multicultural harmony really is our taste buds, Cuisines of the World in Marrickville promises to reveal the secrets of perfecting tabouleh and many other ethnic favourites over six days. Or head over to the Red Rattler and heat things up a bit with the adults-only event Cabaret in the 'Ville by Blackcat productions, a fun-filled ponder on questions of Marrickville — with the promise of some nudity. Get the full details from the Marrickville Council website. Image of Collected Visions (in progress) by Patrick O'Rourke.
It's been an interesting year for zombies. Not that they'd know — I mean they're zombies, but still. On television, they've been stabbed, shot, crushed, burned, shredded, stomped on and driven over by the characters of The Walking Dead. In film, though, they've been loved by a cute girl (Warm Bodies) and will soon have their own police force (RIPD). So for director Marc Forster (Quantum of Solace), World War Z represented an opportunity to make zombies scary again... and help people forget about Quantum of Solace. Based on the novel by Max Brooks (Mel's son), World War Z follows the traditional zombification of earth via an unknown contagion. The rapidity of the contagion's spread is matched only by humanity's descent into anarchy, and both are disturbing in their separate ways. Caught in the middle is former UN investigator Gerry (Brad Pitt) and his family. After an initial and harrowing escape to an aircraft carrier, Gerry agrees to seek out the contagion's 'patient zero' in exchange for his family being kept safe. It's the perfect device for introducing the personal element into the story without having to lug the family around in every scene and slow things down. Touché, writers. Touché. Early on in the piece, Gerry advises a terrified family that "movement is life", and it proves helpful advice both for the characters and the film. World War Z is a fast-paced, globetrotting adventure from start to finish; one in which even the zombies are fleet of foot. Only two countries - North Korea and Israel - seem to be managing the crisis (albeit by radically different methods), and the jet-setting between those and other locations allows for some spectacular set pieces. Sitting on just an M-rating, World War Z does well to maintain the scare factor despite the lack of gore, and the 3D is cleverly (and sparingly) used to add greater dimension to the large-scale action sequences. Pitt's performance is largely understated and, if anything, could have used a touch more fear given the enormity and horror of the crisis around him. Still, he looks the part and brings some quality star power to this impressive genre-piece. https://youtube.com/watch?v=4EC7P5WdUko
Boy & Bear are kicking off the 'Old Town Blues' on their upcoming tour to perform after the 'Southern Sun' sets. Travelling by 'Arrow Flight' and 'Bridges', the Sydney boys will not be stopping at 'Percy Warner Park' but they will be enjoying 'Milk and Sticks' at the Enmore Theatre, a piece of 'Real Estate' they are no 'Stranger' to, on October 27 to provide all their fans with 'A Moment's Grace'. This is far from the 'End of the Line', with the band enjoying a 'Harlequin Dream' of a year. 'Lordy May' has it been big; they have played across the globe, allowing them to stay off the 'Feeding Line', and transformed any 'Part Time Believers' into full-time fans with the release of their critically acclaimed sophomore album. At only $44.80, you won't need to trade your 'Blood to Gold', so get out of 'The Village', leave the 'House and Farm' and step off the 'Beach' to join the 'Big Man', 'Mexican Mavis' and the 'Three Headed Woman' in singing 'Rabbit Song' and experiencing a night of glorious indie music more exciting than a 'Golden Jubilee'. (Writing a Boy & Bear preview primarily using only their song titles is much harder than it looks, okay.)
Fragmented storytelling might be all the rage, but it takes a work like Spur of the Moment to remind you of the rewards of a tautly written play that charges on forwards. British playwright Anya Reiss wrote Spur of the Moment at age 17 and it was first performed at London's Royal Court Theatre in 2010. This ATYP production is evidence that well-made plays allow actors to really flex their performance muscles. Reiss is on point in her characterisation of a tired middle-class marriage that has been pushed to its limits by money troubles and infidelity. Nick and Vicki Evans (played brilliantly by Felix Williamson and Zoe Carides) have managed to ensconce themselves in a pattern of amusing but nasty banter. Their 12-year-old daughter, Delilah (Holly Fraser), seems to take the whole palaver in her stride. To make ends meet, the Evanses have had to rent out a room to university student Daniel (Joshua Brennan), who is, in the parlance of Del and her friends, "so hot". The drama that follows is hilarious and excruciating. What’s immediately satisfying upon entering the large, draughty space at ATYP is the bourgeois cosiness that designer Adrienn Lord has created. The split-level set gives a view into Del’s room on the right and Daniel’s room on the left, with the kitchen and living room below. It’s a jam-packed design that fulfils the play’s need for private spaces as well as claustrophobic intimacy between everyone in the house. Director Fraser Corfield, assisted by Sophie Kelly, has thankfully muted the slight whiff of plaintiff moralising in the writing and chosen instead to revel in the absurd behaviour of a 'fucked up family'. And the cast is more than happy to abide by this interpretation; they look like they’re having fun. The acting champion of the evening is Williamson. Dressed in high-waisted slacks and knitted vests, he has nailed the bumbling, hopelessly out-of-touch dad. I recommend sitting as close to the front as possible so you can see his facial gymnastics, in particular his excellent TV watching face. Del’s group of bratty girlfriends, played by Simone Cheuanghane, Madeleine Clunies-Ross and Antonia Lewin are a fantastic support to the drama, as is Lucy Coleman playing Daniel’s irritating girlfriend, Leonie. Corfield mentions in his notes that young people’s theatre is for everyone, not just the young 'uns. He’s absolutely correct. This is up there with the best indie theatre you’ll see all year.
At Golden Plains this year, Dick Diver played a slightly sheepish but totally heartfelt cover of Dragon's 'Are You Old Enough'. Sprawled on a North Sydney Bears blanket in the hot sun, with a cider hangover and a cider in hand and barely enough energy to roll over, I scrambled to wrench off one battered boot and earnestly thrust it to the sky (which, if you've never been to GP, is the festival's sacred shorthand for THIS IS OBVIOUSLY THE BEST THING THAT WILL HAPPEN ALL WEEKEND YOU GUYS). You don't need to expose your holey socks to show your appreciation for Dick Diver this weekend — just shell out a measly $15 (including those pesky booking fees!) for the Sydney launch of their sprawling, laconic-as-hell second album, Calendar Days. Recorded on Phillip Island with key co-conspirator Mikey Young (ECSR, Total Control, producer of just about every recent Australian record with a couple of guitars and no fucks to give), it's more sophisticated than their debut, while also sometimes being about toast. So scoot down to the newly saved Red Rattler on Saturday to enjoy laidback, comfortable music in a laidback, comfortable room. https://youtube.com/watch?v=q4ZXaj8P-UA
Here at Concrete Playground, we love playgrounds. Even the non-concrete ones. Which is why we whooped with delight upon discovering The Digital Playground, the photography jungle gym at VIVID Sydney's festival of ideas. A space for camera-wielders to learn, share and be inspired, The Digital Playground will feature pop-up photography events and exhibitions at the Overseas Passenger Terminal, Circular Quay. With presentations by award-winning talents such as Chris Bray (Australian Geographic), Peter Eastway (Lonely Planet) and Rachel Devine (Sesame Ellis), the harbourside venue will be transformed into a giant darkroom designed to develop your creative potential. All the exhibitions will be free to the public, and they'll even be some free presentations and workshops thrown into the mix. If you're serious about your camera clickery, they'll be a handful of advanced talks which require a nominal fee and pre-registration. The Digital Playground is for everyone who loves a good snap, whether you're an aspiring acolyte or a seasoned professional. Don't forget to remove your lens cap.
Online music merchandise moguls LabelState are opening their very own pop-up shop on Oxford Street, allowing Sydney residents the chance to surf their store as well as their site for tees that showcase to everyone reading their chest that they love Australian music. LabelState is a godsend to up-and-coming bands and music organisations as they facilitate a no-cost, no-hassle solution to selling merchandise before delivering a $5 royalty to artists for every shirt of theirs sold. The shop will be stocking shirts from more than 400 Australian bands, artists, labels and venues already on the site, including radio heroes FBi and bands such as Velociraptor and DZ Deathrays. So now you can enjoy everything from their website with the added benefit of trying before you buy. The store is only in town for two months from June 4 to August 4, so be quick before you're back to guessing your size online. The shop will also host a series of free events such as live performances from musicians, kicking off with Jeremy Neale (of Velociraptor fame) broadcasting live instore on FBi Radio Saturday, June 6, at 2pm. So even if you have nothing to buy, you can still just browse, with your ears.
The super-adorable Finders Keepers Markets have been home to Sydney's most creative (and quirky) designers for almost five years. Now the independent hip-fest is all grown up and bursting forth from the confines of Carriageworks to invade their new home at Eveleigh's Australian Technology Park in 2013. The biannual, designer-centric, come-one-come-all mini-festival has managed to bridge the gap between local market and exclusive exhibition, creating a space for independent designers to engage with the wider community. You'll be able to nab some marvellous treats difficult to find anywhere else. From bespoke leather goods to bespoke stationary, upcycled journals to upcycled bicycle reflectors, every stall will be a unique shopping experience that combines innovative design with grassroots feel-goodery. As usual, there will be live music, a cafe, a bar and thousands of other Sydneysiders celebrating independent art and design. However, because of the move to the bigger venue (three times bigger, to be exact), look out for the $2 entry fee this time around. Finder Keepers is open 6-10pm on Friday, 10-5pm on Saturday.
Close out your Anzac Day in style with a musical feast from the guys that did the Malcolm in the Middle theme. They're doing an intimate gig at the Upstairs Beresford, playing their classic album Flood all the way through, just for you and 399 others. See the rest of our ten best things to do this Anzac Day.
"There was me, that is Alex, and my three droogs, that is Pete, Georgie, and Dim, and we sat in the Korova Milkbar trying to make up our rassoodocks what to do with the evening," reads the opening line of Anthony Burgess's scandalous novel, A Clockwork Orange. How ringleader Alex and his band of teenage delinquents do eventually spend their night — on a rampage of brutal assault and rape which ends in the murder of an elderly lady — propels the audience of Action to the Word theatre's contemporary reimagining of Burgess's seminal text, directed by Alexandra Spencer-Jones, into an exploration of testosterone-fuelled boredom gone awry. Those who may have attempted the novel but baulked at its unfamiliar, somewhat jarring 'Nadsat' dialect (an English and Russian hybrid language invented entirely by Burgess and later, in a case of life imitating art, employed by real-life gangs following the success of the text) will be grateful for the physicality of the dynamic, all-male cast. Where it may be easy to verbally miss what it means to "tolchock a chelloveck in the kishkas", the actualisation of Alex (Martin McCreadie) senselessly brutalising those unfortunate enough to fall under his malicious gaze when he's looking to break up the monotony of it all cannot be lost in translation. Although a fascination with violence is inherent to the performance, a stylistic emphasis on dynamic dance sequences, accompanied by a modern, high-energy soundtrack, allows some of the more shocking portrayals to remain implied, rather than descend into self-serving vulgarity. This is no coincidence — unlike Stanley Kubrick's highly graphic film adaptation, UK company Action to the Word's stage performance has authorial integrity, having been developed in association with Burgess, who sought to rectify misconceptions of the text as being designed as an invitation to the disillusioned youth of the world to mirror the rage of his fictional droogs. Unlike the originally published and widely circulated American version of the novel, Spencer-Jones’s stage adaptation remains true to Burgess’s original ending. By privileging the author’s intended sequence of closure, a protagonist whose behavior is undeniably animalistic and barbaric throughout the performance is ultimately humanised — it turns out it was all a case of ‘boys will be boys’ and what Alex really wants is the wife, kid and white picket fence, just like the rest of us. Where Burgess may have intended this to suggest an innate potential for goodness in even the most seemingly depraved members of society, it simultaneously highlights the audience's ability to feel empathy for, and identify with, a violent murderer. When played by the achingly charismatic McCreadie, despite his propensity for kicking heads in and pillaging innocent women, Alex is strangely mesmerising and even appealing — what might be most interesting is what that implies about our own attitude towards aggression, manhood and "that old ultra violence". Just what that wider societal attitude might be remains unclear, although just shy of two years on from the London riots, audiences of A Clockwork Orange will feel that its depictions of the human propensity for violence, aggression and brutality remain as scandalously relevant today they were when first published as a text 50 years ago. While it may leave you unsure of whether to take up adult dance classes, attempt (probably feebly) to kick down a street sign or run for cover from the mad, bad world outside, A Clockwork Orange is an immersive triumph of modern theatre that will confront then refuse to neatly provide answers to all of the terror it raises — real horror show, in all senses of the term. This review was written about the Melbourne run of this production, in April 2013.
The Sun is pretty impressive. Just all by itself. But Penelope Umbrico’s 12,149,179 Suns from Sunsets from Flickr (partial) 4/9/2013 draws down hundreds of them to make a back-wall-spanning collage of crepuscular moments. Her suns are bright, luminous, full. And usually the molten yellow of a movie sunset. They’re very much solar art as found objects, but their radiance still grabs you. Without wanting to belittle her skill, there’s something in common with kitten photos, in that no matter how many, and no matter how small, sun photos make you feel good. This same joy in the everyday, similar pleasure in the essence of things and a bit of collation of found objects are more or less the theme of Stills Gallery’s the Big Picture. Gemma Messih’s I’ve only just realised how important you are (to me) lays an image of a mountain against a very real tiny mountain of grey rock. It’s a juxtaposition of two symbols: an image symbolises a mountain, a little rock pile sympbolises a mountain. She also offers two freestanding landscapes canvases which have been pierced by a thrown rock. Though there’s a thematic unity to that, there’s more of a sense that the images’ subjects have wandered off to have a look at other images on display. Like Hogwarts portraits on a slow day. Patrick Pound’s found photos are a low-key highlight of the show. In Same place different people old, found photos of men and women sit at a cafe. They’re arrayed like a film strip, and playing with the photographer. The images seem tidied and curated, but once again it’s ordinary things that draw you into their little, animate worlds. Here, it’s the smiles. So many, so long past, so happy. Women pause and laugh on their lunch break, men smile and kid about with a luxurious allowance of afternoon joy. Portrait of the wind takes this further, filling a much larger frame with a bit less than 200 black and white, found snaps of people at leisure. And buffeted by the wind. The arrangement is skilled, but it’s the (literal) realness of people themselves that is most compelling. Their leisure is decades old. But there’s a life, a seriousness, a smuggled joy in each face by the bridge, on the beach, in the parade. Along another wall, Tim Webster’s Flow holds a waterfall, flowing mist, flowing video noise. In the print room, Drew Flaherty’s Loading Cycle 1 is a clever loop of video art which joins the everyday cycles of the computer and the moon. Upstairs, Daniel Connell’s Lightless arrays a menagerie of ordinary lights, flickering in a menagerie of places. Stills Gallery is open Wednesday to Saturday from 11-5. Press the buzzer to get in. Image: Loading Cycle by Drew Flaherty.
MEMEBRAIN Art Hackfest will bring together artists, designers, techies and other digital explorers in a 3-day hot house of wild, geeky dreams and schemes. Hackfest participants have signed up online and will converge at The Concourse in Chatswood to collaborate, design, play and build prototype projects that explore new ways of using technologies with augmented reality, video, sound, game design, interactive digital media, locative media, robotics, networked environments; whatever. Mentors and fellow artists will provide feedback throughout the Hackfest, and you can interact with the projects and follow their progress online. Then on the final day, head over to see them for yourself at the closing exhibition and live performances. Memebrain's closing night is open to the general public from 6pm Sunday. Hacking something together all weekend at Memebrain is also open to the general public, but you'll need to register first. Read our interview with MEMEBRAIN host Bravo Child here.
The latest edition of Firstdraft Gallery's Night Depot series focuses on the idea of advanced technology, inspired by an article written by Sydney writer and thinker, Nick Keys, in which he explores the links between humanity and technology. The event will feature artists who have created sound-making devices using everyday objects — 'advancing' both their own creative goals, and technology in general. Curated by Tom Smith as a sideline to ISEA, the event will consist of performances by artists Benjamin Kolaitis, Peter Blame, Alex Cuffe, Pia van Gelder and Firstdraft's current resident artist collective, Golden Solution, all on Saturday night. Then artist talks on Sunday afternoon. The artists will be in conversation with Keys, discussing their practices, processes and strategies. As well as their thoughts on the technology they use to create their art.
If your idea of a good Thursday night involves tasting some of the best wines NSW has to offer in the company of the makers themselves, then keep reading. As part of the revamped Citi NSW Wine Awards, Outstanding on the Pier is a new event taking place on Pier 2, with the sparkling waters of Walsh Bay as a backdrop. It showcases the 120 wines that were selected as 'top wines' for 2013, with over 60 NSW wineries from varying regions being represented. You'll be able to meet some of the makers and sample a smattering of seasonal state produce (think Brasserie Bread, Alto Olives, Pepe Saya butter, a bit of Southern Highlands Lamb). Make sure to vote for the People's Choice Award to be in the running to win a special prize, including a selection of this year's top wines.
There's a real focus on ethical food consumption this year, and this event by community-minded winemakers Cake Wines (they give 25 cents from each bottle sold to community radio) is a prime example. Their previous pop-up wine bars have been excellent, and this three-course feast promises to take their commitment to ethical production to the next level, focusing on ethically sourced food which is locally produced and minimises waste. Their dining hall in Redfern will be transformed for the event, which includes a cocktail on arrival, a range of craft beers and wines as well as art and music. Check out the rest of our top ten picks of Good Food Month here.
Rosebery’s Kitchen By Mike has been a revelation with its back-to-basics food, which uses radical simplicity and topnotch ingredients to great effect. They host this event, where the affable Mike teams with Grant (Three Blue Ducks) and Matt (Hands Lane) teach you how to make your own jams and preserves. Throw in live music and a charcuterie dinner and it sounds like a winner. Check out the rest of our top ten picks of Good Food Month here.
Costume is often key to our understanding of a character on stage or screen — what era they live in, their age, their social status, whether they're a dag. But perhaps nowhere is costume so integral, so essentially hooked into the story, as in the work of Sydney performance artist Justin Shoulder. Each of his works revolves around a 'fantastic creature', such as Hubub, the black balloon trail formed by fossil fuels wanting to become life, or Woultham, a shaggy, tissuey innocent desperate to re-create the love he knew before being discarded by a child. There's a whole mythology behind each creature. It's a perfect fusion of art and craft. Now Shoulder and his collaborators are presenting The River Eats, his most developed single work to date. It was a hit at last year's Next Wave festival in Melbourne, where theatre critic Alison Croggon called it "a beautiful exploration of the estrangements of desire". The River Eats' star is Pinky, an ADD-affected monster Skyping, performing and searching for his true, calm self, and the work is influenced by Taoist philosophy. Here, the costume is an evolving one, as Shoulder removes and adds elements that evoke the character's inner conflict. The River Eats is part of Performance Space's Show Off season of experimental works that have made a strong impression at their recent premieres. BINGO Unit is an interactive, multimedia police procedural that was a fellow Next Wave success, while I'm Your Man, set entirely in a boxing gym, was one of the unforgettable highlights of 2012 at Sydney's Belvoir. Photo by Jordan Graham. https://youtube.com/watch?v=yUWklMd05f4
You are about to hear one of the most beautiful combinations of three words in history: Australian Beer Festival. That's right ladies and gentlemen, The Australian Heritage Hotel's celebration of all things beer is back, taking over the pub's section of Cumberland Street in The Rocks to give you three glorious days of beer connoisseuring that only comes around once a year. Returning for its ninth rendition, the festival will kick off at 4pm on Friday, October 18, and serve until 8pm. It will then reopen from noon-8pm on Saturday and noon-6 on Sunday. Featuring 24 Australian brewers serving more than 100 well-established and lesser-known boutique brews, the festival comes with no shortage of choice. Brewers have been challenged to make beers unique to the festival, so expect to try something different. Whilst beer is the drink of the day, a host of ciders will also be on offer to taste, catering for those of us who prefer a fruitier tinge to our alcoholic beverages. There will also be live entertainment and education sessions throughout the festival, including Meet the Brewer, allowing you to learn how your favourite delicious drinks are made. Whilst entry to the Australian Beer Festival is free, drinks can only be purchased with vouchers. We strongly advise pre-purchasing tickets so that you do not have to spend any of your precious tasting time in the queue. Ten vouchers cost only $15 and are available through Stickytickets. PS If you are worried about food, The Australian will be serving their famous gourmet pizzas.
Filmmaking is difficult enough, without officials breathing down your neck, monitoring every scene according to the government's agenda. In Iran, no director can start work before the censors have run their eyes over the script, removed whatever they disapprove of, and given it the green light. Despite such restrictions, however, the Iranian film industry continues to grow. In fact, last year's A Separation won the nation its first ever Oscar, for Best Foreign Language film. The Australian Iranian Film Festival is now in its third year. Starting in Brisbane on October 10, it will travel to Sydney, Canberra and Adelaide, before finishing up in Melbourne. Opening night will feature Snow on Pines, the directorial debut from actor-turned-director and A Separation star Peyman Moadi. Other highlights include The Wedlock from Rouhollah Hejazi, director of the provocative The Private Life of Mr and Mrs M; the Australian Premiere of Mohsen Makhmalbaf's The Gardener; and indie film Parviz, directed by Majid Barzegar.
Casa Gusto, importers of all things delicious, culinary and Italian, have sent a call-out to all local creatives so they can test out their design skills in front of a live audience for a $750 prize, MasterChef style (or what I imagine happens on MasterChef style). If you have seen that elephant balancing on a tomato genius canned tomato packaging design, you have seen Casa Gusto — and don't fret, they want something in the same vein, so competitors should brush up on their '20s carnivale. Fourteen artists and designers, armed with their weapons of choice (sorry, no computers — please direct all digital discrimination complaints directly to the organisers), will endure two hours of bloody design battle to create competing images for the label’s new packaging. From there their fate will be handed over to the judges and audience, so bring your mates — there will be food, booze and DJs, so they can't be too begrudging about it — and the rest of you should just head down to Salt Meats Cheese for Sydney’s first live design night.
A glass of wine can have 27 different acids, 23 kinds of alcohol, 16 types of sugar, 80 esters and aldehydes and a crapload of minerals and vitamins. What does that mean? For a drink made solely by fermenting grape juice, wine is incredibly complicated. Many of us don't know a $400 bottle of jammy oaked Red from a cocktail of goony nail polish. Looking at a menu with 400 options can be quite embarrassing sometimes. The Keystone Group wants to help us out. They've launched a new 'wine school' headed by award-winning sommelier Sarah Limacher. The classes held at The Winery teach the basics of wine tasting, wine matching and how to order a wine that you'll like. Sarah says the classes are unpretentious and ultimately she just wants everyone to have a good time. The $25 classes come with ten wine tastings and food, so that’s highly likely. School's on at 6.30pm on the last Tuesday of the month.
One of the UK's most versatile and interesting directors, Michael Winterbottom, is a hard man to pigeonhole. Teaming again with Steve Coogan, whom he collaborated with on 24 Hour Party People and the wonderful The Trip, his latest is a biopic of Paul Raymond, the controversial figure who became the 'King of Soho', pulling crowds with risque theatre at his nightclub and successfully branching out into the world of magazines with his bestselling lad's mag, Men Only. The action opens with a shaken Raymond (Coogan) pondering tragic events involving his daughter and driving around the district of London he rules with a small child, pointing out the business he owns, markers not just of his great wealth but also his striving for respectability. His rise was marked by his audacity and knack for turning setbacks to his advantage — when a newspaper condemns one of his theatrical productions for including "arbitrary displays of naked flesh", he slaps the quote on the promotional poster as a selling point. After leaving his family for his mistress, Richmond finds himself on the wrong end of an expensive divorce settlement ("I think you'll find it's the most expensive divorce settlement in UK history" he corrects reporters), but remains focused on empire building. Along the way he reconnects with his daughter Debbie (an excellent Imogen Poots), whose ambitions of stardom are not accommodated by the public and whose frail confidence is boosted by lashings of champagne and cocaine. Moving from the swinging sixties to the darker onset of disco, Raymond continues to show an unerring sense for what the public want and gleefully pushes the boundaries with his magazines and live shows. He intuited what the public wanted was a taste of his hedonistic, womanising lifestyle. Yet behind the glamorous facade, there was a melancholy underside to his life, with Raymond's inability to let go of his humble beginnings and his unusual relationship with his daughter forming the wounded heart of this impressive biopic. Impeccable in its period detail and scored by the sweeping melodrama of Burt Bacharach songs, The Look of Love gives the always watchable Coogan meaty, complex material to wrestle with. Some will be disappointed at the way it brushes over the darker corners of his porn empire; Raymond had a way of deflecting difficult questions that the film also uses. Whether Raymond deserves such a sympathetic biography is debatable, but there is no questioning the aplomb with which Coogan and Winterbottom have brought this contradictory and ultimately quite sad figure to life. https://youtube.com/watch?v=t3OxrgrD0VI
