A six-week music and art festival with an absolutely stacked lineup is taking over an abandoned Chinatown cinema across September and October. Running between Thursday, September 22 and Monday, October 31, Pleasures Playhouse has been pulled together by influential Sydney party-starter Kat Dopper of Heaps Gay and Summer Camp. Dopper has curated a vibrant, varied and inclusive program of gigs, parties, film screenings and yum cha that will reactivate the Harbour City Cinema. Originally a space for showcasing Chinese films, the longstanding cinema will be given a new life throughout the festival after laying empty for the last 15 years. "This is one of the most exciting projects I've been able to work on, literally a dream. Collaborating with all my favs to take over an unused space in Sydney to bring together some of the best of our arts scene to create a new cultural destination that promotes artistic excellence," said Dopper. So, what can you catch across this 35-day lineup? If you're in search of live music, the program has plenty on offer. New Sydney hip-hop supergroup BBGB Worldwide consisting of B Wise, Kwame, Manu Crooks, BLESSED and Lil Spacely will be performing, and Haiku Hands and Chela will be taking to the stage at the Ur-Asian Haven program alongside Marcus Whale and Anso. Hiatus Kaiyote's Nai Palm will be also be popping up with Billy David for an intimate show, and Donny Benet will be hosting a night of sultry synth-pop with a bunch of special guests. [caption id="attachment_836378" align="alignnone" width="1920"] B Wise[/caption] If you're looking to hit the dancefloor, there's a range of parties popping up on the program. Ranging from underground electronic music to big pop sing-a-longs, dance music collectives and record labels including Heaps Gay, Nina Las Vegas' NLV, BYPASS, Athletica, AM//PM Emo Night, Monster Children, Leak Your Own Noods and Show Us Ya Tips will all be running parties boasting some of Sydney and Australia's best DJs. Other exciting additions to the festival include the Send Noods Cinema's weekly arthouse movies accompanied by P&V's natty wines and noodles from Biang Biang; yum cha pop-ups, record nights and yet-to-be-announced events curated by Maurice Terzini (Icebergs, Ciccia Bella, RE-) and The Preset's Julian Hamilton. Dopper and co are collaborating with local Haymarket restaurants for the space's food offerings, while P&V's Mike Bennie and Rosebery's Archie Rose Distilling Co are leading the charge behind the bar. You can explore the full program at the festival's website. A range of events are free, and no event is charging more than $30 for entry. [caption id="attachment_867881" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Anna Hay[/caption] Pleasures Playhouse is taking over the Harbour City Cinema, Haymarket from Thursday, September 22–Monday, October 31. Top image: Anna Hay
Start the year strong and strap yourself in for a night of powerhouse vocals. On Monday, January 18, the ARIA Award-winning Casey Donovan will take to the stage at City Recital Hall for a one-off show in association with Sydney Festival. She'll be treating punters to a lineup of absolute hits, backed by her five-piece band and directed by composer Daniel Edmonds. In her trademark style, Donovan is set to steer audiences on a musical journey woven with stories, taking on the tunes of everyone from Billy Joel and Eva Cassidy to Beyoncé, Ed Sheeran and Adele. The acclaimed artist was the winner of Australian Idol at the age of just 16 and has been cementing her status in the Australian music scene ever since, most recently flexing her theatrical chops in the role of Chicago's Matron Mama Morton. As Donovan knows her way around a power ballad, you can bank on this being one super-charged performance. If life feels like it's been lacking on the live music front of late, here's your chance to tap your toes along to some tunes. [caption id="attachment_764363" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Keith Saunders[/caption] For tickets, head here.
Boasting 1000 square-kilometres of diverse terrain — including secluded beaches, verdant forests and giant sand dunes — Port Stephens is the ideal place to shake off a chaotic workweek. On top of its incredible natural beauty, there's an abundance of human-made indulgences. From luxurious day spas and restaurants peddling premium produce to horse rides along rolling waves, this waterside area certainly knows how to take things up a notch. We've compiled a list of ways you can make your oceanic escape extra indulgent, because we all need a weekend of unfettered opulence sometimes. The best part is, Port Stephens is only a 2.5-hour drive north of Sydney which means it's an easy getaway even when your schedule is hectic. So, go on, treat yourself. Please stay up to date with the latest NSW Government health advice regarding COVID-19. SIP CHAMPAGNE BY THE WATER When it comes to complete and utter relaxation, it's hard to go past an uncrowded, picture-perfect beach; the smell of salt in the air and the sound of the crashing waves is enough to put even the busiest of minds at ease. And Port Stephens has oodles of them — 26 to be precise. If you're looking for a sheltered spot, head to Bagnalls, where shallow and tranquil waters are backdropped by bushland. Continue east to reach Dutchmans, which gives you 400 metres of white sand for sunbathing, and, of course, building sandcastles. Meanwhile, around Soldiers Point are countless little bays, parklands and picnic spots, many of which escape the notice of crowds — if you're hoping to catch some of Port Stephens' famous sunrises or sunsets, this is the place. Arm yourself with a bottle of bubbly to make things extra fancy and raise a glass to the good life. [caption id="attachment_679429" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Bannisters by David Griffen[/caption] TREAT YOUR TASTEBUDS Port Stephens' tranquil waters aren't just beautiful to look at, they're also a source of super-fresh seafood. Plenty of local restaurants, eateries and cafes take advantage of this and serve up scrumptious sea-to-plate fare. And by far the most indulgent eatery in the area has to be Rick Stein at Bannisters. Rick Stein, alongside head chef Mitchell Turner, has put together a decadent menu filled with local seafood. For the ultimate comfort food, start with the steamed Stockton pipis, or let the freshness speak for itself with a selection of sashimi featuring yellowfin tuna, kingfish and salmon. The steamed whole fish with soy, ginger and Shaoxing wine is a stand-out main. And, if you can fit it in, dessert includes decadent chocolate olive oil cake or sago pudding. After dinner, pop across to the Terrace Bar. It's a design feat, all millennial pink, splashes of mint, white, grey and blond wood, and overlooks the hotel's infinity pool, out toward the tops of the surrounding gum trees and onto the water. [caption id="attachment_774378" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Destination NSW[/caption] SEE THE SITES ON FOUR (TALL) LEGS Port Stephens' Stockton Beach is the longest in New South Wales at 32 kilometres, stretching from Birubi Point in the north to the mouth of Newcastle's Hunter River in the south. There's bucketloads of room for surfing, swimming and, most importantly, horses and camels. For horses, get in touch with Sahara Trails, which will take you riding by the sea on a steed suited to your ability — whether you're a nervous newbie keen to stick to walking or an experienced rider ready to canter. For camels, contact Oakfield Ranch to book a romantic sunset stroll. Taking the time to enjoy a sunset is something special, doing so from atop a camel hump is truly indulgent. As Stockton Dunes, the largest sand dunes in the Southern Hemisphere, rise up behind you, expect to feel like you're on an exotic escapade in some far-flung desert. [caption id="attachment_693874" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Wellness Centre Port Stephens[/caption] GET PAMPERED IN A RAINFOREST No indulgent weekend is complete without an hour or two in a day spa. Wellness Centre Port Stephens — a five-acre haven of rainforest and landscaped gardens — opened with the goal of filling that pampering void. Nearly every treatment you can think of is available, from massages and reiki to aromatherapy and reflexology. It also has an infrared sauna and an oxygen bar, where you can receive concentrated oxygen infused with essential oils. Alternatively, you can unwind with a yoga or pilates class. Another spot to practice your shavasana is Yogasphere, where local Nikki Shilling teaches in her private beachside studio. [caption id="attachment_774380" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Destination NSW[/caption] SPEND THE DAY WILDLIFE SPOTTING While you could easily spend the whole weekend wining and dining, it's also possible to indulge your inner David Attenborough with some wildlife spotting. Begin with dolphins, the local community of bottlenoses numbers between 90 and 120, and animal lovers from all over the world travel to Port Stephens to meet them. Chances are you'll spy at least a few from the beach, but, for better views, jump aboard a boat. Moonshadow - TQC cruises offers two types of dolphin-watching cruises. No matter which option you select, you'll enjoy rides in the boom net, informative commentary about the local sea life and complimentary coffee and tea. Oh, and hopefully lots of up-close sightings of the sea mammals, too. [caption id="attachment_774386" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Destination NSW[/caption] BOOK A STAY AT BANNISTERS Of course, a weekend away in Port Stephens wouldn't be completely indulgent without a stay at Bannisters. 'Barefoot luxury' is the name of the game here. From the front, the hotel is reminiscent of those seaside hotels of yore with every room entry facing the hotel's entrance. Upon entering the rooms, you're hit with glittering views of the water or lively bushland where you'll be greeted with a few kookaburra giggles. With 78 rooms, four suites and a luxe penthouse, the hotel has encapsulated a little piece of The Hamptons in each room. All white, blond timber and large windows — there's no mistaking you're seaside here, even in a bush-facing room. When you're not taking in the sun on your room's balcony, a visit down to the infinity pool is a necessity. The poolside views are hard to beat, where you get the sea, the sky, the bush and the fresh design of the pretty hotel lobby. You can also grab a lawn chair in the garden below and feel as if you've found yourself a peaceful oasis in the bush, complete with birdsong. Top image: Bannisters, Destination NSW
New Shanghai's genre-busting soupy and crispy pan fried pork buns have achieved a certain level of fame. No one else in these parts does their dumplings quite like it. The crystal prawn dumplings and crab xiao long bao are also not to sniffed at. The striking interiors of their restaurants aim to take you back to the 1930s Shanghai streets, with a live dumpling making theatre where diners can watch the chefs in action. New Shanghai is also at Chatswood Lemon Grove, Bondi Junction and Ashfield.
Hatted restaurant Kuro Bar and Dining unites familiar Japanese flavours and techniques with high-quality Australian produce and native ingredients to create an exciting array of dishes. Led by co-owners Alan Wong and executive chef Taka Teramoto, Kuro is located in a heritage-listed building on Kent Street in Sydney's CBD — its sister venue Kahii is mere steps away. The venue is split into three parts: the 40-seater dining room, the eight-seater bar and an intimate chef's table experience. Chef Teramoto previously worked at Michelin-starred Restaurant Pages, Paris and Florilège, Tokyo — he draws on this culinary experience and his Japanese heritage to create the venue's signature dishes. Patrons can complement their dishes with a drop from the venue's 200-plus-strong wine list courtesy of sommelier Wanaka Teramoto (116 Pages, Paris). The focus is on boutique, minimal-intervention Australian producers. There are also Japanese beers and an extensive range of premium Japanese spirits, sake and umeshu (Japanese plum wine) on offer. Designed by Potts Point's Henderson & Co, the space is impressive — particularly the lighting. Fifty-six American oak light 'portals' spread across the walls create an ever-changing ambience throughout the day and into the night. Other design elements include a copper-tiled bar, sandstone and brick walls, polished stone and marble tables and a massive, blossom-shaped capiz chandelier. Cracks in the existing concrete floors have been filled with gold — a nod to the Japanese pottery-fixing technique of kintsugi — and soft fabric screens create semi-private dining spaces throughout. Kuro's eight-person omakase experience, Teramoto by Kuro, curated by chef Teramoto, is currently on hiatus but you can sign up on the website to ensure you're first in and best dressed. Images: Supplied, Kitti Gould
You've set the date and finalised the guest list. Now all you need is somewhere to go. Whether you're celebrating a big birthday bash, an intimate anniversary or an elaborately themed engagement party, nailing the venue will be the key to its success. Yes, it's a lot of pressure but don't freak out just yet. To help you find the perfect party palace, we've teamed up with Merivale to bring you seven venues that might just be exactly what you're looking for. Read on, revellers. IVY PENTHOUSE For life's grander occasions — think engagement parties or big birthday blowouts — look to the ivy Penthouse. Accommodating up to 120, the private luxury suite reveals a glamorous mid-century cocktail space, complete with circular sofa, one-off design pieces and a lush leather bar. You can even sashay your way out onto an oversized balcony filled with lush tropical greenery and a boss outdoor spa. Plus, for those who want to kick on afterwards, you're only an elevator ride away from party spots within the ivy precinct, and Establishment and Palmer & Co are just a stone's throw away. TANK STREAM BAR Down a cobblestone laneway, this historic venue offers a moody setting for friends and family to gather over cheese and wine. A little history lesson for you, this watering hole was once the site of a fresh water supply commonly used by indigenous Australians and early settlers. These days, however, you're more likely to find fresh craft ales flowing on tap, a cascade of fine whiskies and top drops from the wine list. Food is casual and great for sharing, with the menu focused on easy to pass around plates, from cheese platters to antipasto boards and upscale finger food. As for the space, there are comfy leather lounges for shmoozing, high-topped tables to gather the group around, plus you can even book out the whole venue. UCCELLO The next best thing to whisking your friends away to the Amalfi Coast is a poolside dinner party at Italian rooftop trattoria, uccello. This warm and welcoming venue works well for romantic dinners and big, fat family affairs — pretty much any occasion when you want the food to be front and centre. If you need to feed a crowd pronto, hatted chef Ben Sitton has created a special banquet menu for passing around, filled with light, fresh and generous Italian classics including antipasti, pastas and woodfired protein. The 450 strong wine list also includes plenty of special occasion bottles for the toasts ahead. THE APARTMENT Perched on the top level of Hotel Centennial, The Apartment is a New York-style flat that's probably a bit more impressive than your actual place of residence. We're talking high ceilings, a private terrace and grand arched windows with views across leafy Centennial Park below. This is an actual apartment mind you, so it includes its own private kitchen and bathroom, as well as a dining area with seating for 32. There'll be no need to sweat over the stove, though, you also have access to chef Ben Greeno who'll create a Mediterranean-style sharing menu for you and your guests. HOUSE OF MERIVALE Who needs the daily upkeep of a Victorian mansion when you can simply rent one out for the night? Upstairs from late-night party spot Slip Inn hides the dapper, House of Merivale. The 19th-century manor has been filled with fine furnishings, from arched doorways and grand fireplaces to crystal chandeliers and a collection of ornate brass mirrors. Like any good mansion, inside you'll find a labyrinth of different sized rooms, which can be used for a DJ booth or string quartet if that's more your style. As for party food, you can put in an order with El Loco downstairs, with taco platters and cinnamon churros a good way to get the fiesta started. IVY SUNROOM For summery garden-party vibes without having to set-up tables and chairs in the park, the ivy Sunroom makes for a charming and convenient option. Boasting floor-to-ceiling windows, the light-filled conservatory works best for daytime soirees — what's more, your guests won't have to worry about sunburn or their heels sinking into the grass. Located on level three of the ivy precinct, there are multiple areas that can be booked out, including one featuring white wicker lounge seating with plush blue accents, as well as a formal dining space for a sit-down affair. Accommodating an impressive 108 seated and 400 cocktail, there's plenty of room for plus ones, too. CLUB BAR Successful events are almost always held in easy to get to places, and there are few venues more central than Club Bar in the Hotel CBD. While it can be difficult to find a city venue that isn't packed with rowdy happy hour drinkers, this five-storey hotel contains both public and private bars, for the more intimate of occasions. If you haven't already been invited to a shindig at Club Bar, the heritage space is home to polished timber floors and eclectic furnishings, including an antique billiards table and blush pink loungers. The big, open space suits the larger gatherings, however, there are also styled vignettes for intimate conversations too. Planning a big celebratory affair? Discover all the venues Merivale has to offer for your do here.
Sure, going back to the office has its perks — you get to catch up with your work pals and help yourself to the free coffee. But, for some, it can also be a bit of a drag. After all, we've just spent months gussying up our WFH offices, spending more time with our pets and, let's face it, not having to commute was pretty dreamy. And sometimes you just want to be living your best working life in track pants, we get it. To help get you excited about being back in the physical rat race, we've teamed up with Australian Cocktail Month to bring you seven after-work activities that'll get you through the nine to five. From knock-off drinks to cheese-making workshops and letting lose in a dance class, these are sure to beat any back-to-office blues. SIP A-CLASS TIPPLES Enjoy a well-earned drink after work? Then head to the inaugural Australian Cocktail Month to support local bartenders and bars who've had it pretty rough over the past year. Running throughout May, the event is taking over 72 bars across Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Adelaide — you can find out your locals over here. Australian Cocktail Month is partnering with liquor brands to serve up speciality cocktails for $14 a pop, plus non-alcoholic drinks for a tenner. But first you must get yourself a $20 ticket, which unlocks the entire month of offers. Then, head on down to a participating bar and show your ticket. After that? Well, bottoms up and cheers to Australia's hospitality industry. [caption id="attachment_791359" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Omnom[/caption] LIVE OUT YOUR WILDEST CHEESE DREAMS WITH A CHEESE-MAKING CLASS If you're a hardcore cheese lover, no doubt you've tucked in to a wheel of brie or stinky gorgonzola after a hard day's work. Instead of simply buying — and eating — your one true cheesy love, why not book yourself in to a cheese-making workshop? With help from experts, you'll get your hands into the dairy and learn the basics, such as how to prepare and curdle the milk, cut the curd and salt the cheese. In Sydney, Rosebery's Omnom hosts regular classes on making ricotta, haloumi and a standout burrata and bocconcini one. The aptly named Cheesemaking offers intensive workshops around the country and will show you how to make various gourmet dairy delights. And, in Melbourne, CERES runs a heap of workshops throughout the year, including classes where you'll make vegan, cheddar and blue cheese. [caption id="attachment_723106" align="alignnone" width="1920"] MYST Escape[/caption] BOND WITH YOUR COWORKERS IN AN ESCAPE ROOM What could bring coworkers closer together than solving puzzles to escape to your freedom? These interactive experiences will transport you through films, history, space and time — and it's up to your team to make it back to reality. So, we'd say it's a pretty good bonding experience. If you're a Sydneysider, you can check out our top nine picks here or make a beeline to Glebe's MYST Escape, which claims to be 'Australia's largest escape room complex'. In Brisbane, the CBD's Fox in a Box is home to themed rooms like prison cells, war bunkers and zombie labs. Or, you can become a spy, pirate or detective at Escape Hunt Brisbane. For Melburnians, head to TRAPT Bar & Escape Rooms to find your way back to Kansas in a Wizard of Oz game, or enter the school of magic at the Harry Potter-inspired Mystery Rooms, with locations in Fitzroy and Collingwood. [caption id="attachment_689129" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Cork & Chroma[/caption] CHANNEL YOUR INNER ARTIST AT A PAINT AND SIP SESSION Yes, we've seen the trend of painting while sipping wine grow in the past few years — and it looks like it's here to stay. After all, who doesn't want to channel their inner Picasso? Plus, it's a great way to unwind and forget about the day that's been. Cork & Chroma has locations across Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne and is one of the more popular studios around. Or, attempt your own rendition of Gogh's 'The Starry Night' at Life with Paint, which also has studio spaces across Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne. [caption id="attachment_785738" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Crossover Dance[/caption] SHAKE OFF THE WORK WOES BY DANCING Make like Taylor Swift and shake off any work stresses by heading to an after-work dance class. Not only will you cut some serious shapes, but you'll also get some sweet endorphins from all that moving and shaking. If you'd rather bust moves in your own home, we recommend 80s-themed online dance workouts from Retrosweat — just be sure to put on your leotard and leg warmers. Sydneysiders are lucky enough to be able to attend Retrosweat's IRL classes, too. Or, you can head over to inner city K-pop studio Crossover Dance. In Brisbane, get your hips moving in a 50-minute class at Rio Rhythmics or give ballet a go at Mad Dance House. Melburnians can get down with a casual jazz or hip hop class at the Dance Factory or try some burlesque at Bottoms Up studio. HAVE A SUNSET PICNIC For those who like the great outdoors, picnics are no doubt a favourite pastime. And, in our opinion, there's no better time to have one than at twilight. So pack the snacks and a few cold ones, grab your mates and head to a picturesque spot to watch the sun go down — just be sure to bring some cosy clothes. There are plenty of good picnic spots no matter what city you live in. In fact, we've rounded up our go-to spots in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, should you need any inspiration. CATCH A LOCAL COMEDY SHOW They say laughter is the best medicine, so why not catch a local comedy show? Whether you're a fan of watching live comedy or dabble in stand-up yourself, it's likely to cure those back-to-office woes. In Sydney, you can check out Underground Comedy Club at queer-friendly pub The Imperial Hotel, or hit up comedy-centric theatre Giant Dwarf at its new Surry Hills digs. In Brisbane, catch regular improv and sketch comedy nights at Big Fork Theatre or head to Sit Down Comedy Club to see some big names in the stand-up game. And Melburnians can catch some late-night laughs at Spleen Bar, stand-up at Lido Comedy or comedic quizzes at Comedy Republic. Australian Cocktail Month is taking over top bars across the Australia from May 1–31. To buy your ticket, and for the full list of participating bars, head here. Top image: Double Deuce Lounge, Kimberley Low
Instantly recognisable in their freeform design and luminescent colours, Dinosaur Designs have become somewhat of a household name when it comes to homewares and jewellery. So when it's time for Christmas gift shopping, they're always the kind of place you can rely upon. Each of their items – necklaces, bangles, bowls, jars, vases – are meticulously handcrafted from coloured resin so not one object is ever the same as another.
What features a bruised and bloody Man of Steel (David Corenswet, Lady in the Lake), plus his dog Krypto dragging him home? The first teaser trailer for Superman did when it dropped in December 2024. What builds upon that scene, showing how the superhero canine first wants to play, then takes his human companion back to the Fortress of Solitude? The new almost five-minute sneak peek at the film that initially premiered at CinemaCon 2025, and has now been released online by writer/director James Gunn. Gunn hasn't just penned, helmed and produced Superman. He's also overseeing the new DC Universe in his role as co-CEO and co-Chairman of DC Studios. His take on Krypton's most-famous figure is the debut film in the new franchise, and it has a date with cinemas in July 2025 — but you can now see a bit more of it in advance, before much of what was in the first teaser follows. Alongside Corenswet as the flick's eponymous character, Superman boasts Rachel Brosnahan (The Marvelous Mrs Maisel) as Lois Lane and Nicholas Hoult (Nosferatu) as Lex Luthor, plus Gunn regular Nathan Fillion (Deadpool & Wolverine) as Green Lantern and Anthony Carrigan (Barry) as Metamorpho. Milly Alcock (House of the Dragon) also co-stars Supergirl, as part of a cast that spans Isabela Merced (Alien: Romulus), Frank Grillo (Tulsa King), Skyler Gisondo (The Righteous Gemstones) and Wendell Pierce (Elsbeth), too. As always in the Super, The Suicide Squad, and three-time Guardians of the Galaxy filmmaker's work, Gunn's brother Sean (Creature Commandos) is among the ensemble as well. If it feels like Superman has been missing for cinemas for a while — well, in these superhero movie-heavy days, that is — that's because it's been eight years, since Justice League. That's when Zack Snyder's film initially arrived in its theatrical version (Zack Snyder's Justice League, aka the Snyder Cut, debuted on streaming in 2021). In the DC Universe, Superman will be followed by Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow in 2026, as directed by Dumb Money's Craig Gillespie. Clayface will also release in the same year, working with a script from Doctor Sleep and The Fall of the House of Usher's Mike Flanagan. As for Superman's story, the trailers aren't big on narrative detail, but Gunn's take on the character is set to be a superhero who believes in humanity's goodness — even if presumably Lex Luthor tests that idea. Check out the latest sneak peek at Superman below: Superman releases in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, July 10, 2025.
Menswear, womenswear, homewares, designer labels, jewellery, antiques, objets d'art — Arida is the boutique that has it all. Curating collections from across the globe, the MacLeay Street store can boast such names as Karl Lagerfeld, Alexander McQueen and Givenchy sitting alongside the finest in high-end, high-street fashion, such as Mahsa, Eton Shirts and Samantha Sung. The shop interior is an aesthetic dream, too, creating an immersive environment that's equal parts chic and aspirational. Simply put, time spent at Arida is an absolute treat and, given you're as likely to emerge with the perfect item for your new season wardrobe as you are the missing piece from your living room set-up, it's time that's never wasted.
There are many delightful tidbits and details about Sparks, aka "your favourite band's favourite band" as they're often described, including in Shaun of the Dead and Baby Driver filmmaker Edgar Wright's exceptional documentary The Sparks Brothers. One of the latest: that siblings Russell and Ron Mael currently begin their live sets with 'So May We Start'. The song kicked off Annette first, the second of the two films that had everyone talking about the duo in 2021. In the Adam Driver (65)- and Marion Cotillard (Extrapolations)-starring movie, it ushers in as distinctive a big-screen musical as you'll ever see, marionette children and all, as helmed by Holy Motors' Leos Carax and penned by Sparks with the director. At the band's gigs since, it commences an onstage dance through more than 50 years of bouncily, giddily, deeply influential tunes, each one of them gloriously infectious classics. "All pop music is rearranged Sparks," offers Jack Antonoff in Wright's doco. He isn't wrong. Australian concertgoers can experience the truth behind that statement live this spring, when 'So May We Start' no doubt begins Sparks' first visit to Australia in more than two decades. As part of their biggest world tour ever — a feat aided by The Sparks Brothers and Annette introducing them to new fans — they're playing four Aussie dates: solo shows at the Sydney Opera House, Melbourne's Palais Theatre and Fortitude Music Hall in Brisbane; and as part of the packed roster at Adelaide's Harvest Rock II festival alongside Beck, Jamiroquai, Nile Rodgers and Chic, and more. Beck was another of Wright's gushing interviewees, because the list of people singing Sparks' praises is as huge as their back catalogue. The Maels didn't write 'So May We Start' with that prestigious spot on their setlist in mind. "It just seemed like a really cool touch for the story to have something that was outside of the actual story that was about to happen, but with all the cast and characters, but not yet in their roles that they're going to assume," Russell tells Concrete Playground ahead of Sparks' arrival in Australia. "They were just mere actors assembling before the production starts. So we really like that as a conceit." "We like starting a set — I mean, it just seems perfect, obviously, lyrically — but also starting with a song that isn't even from a Sparks album, in a certain way, that it is from an outside source," adds Ron. "Even though it's a film that we wrote — and so it's really fun for us to do it." [caption id="attachment_818979" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Focus Features[/caption] Fun has always been an apt term for Sparks' genre-hopping songs and vibe from their late-60s beginnings through to their latest release, with 2023's The Girl Is Crying in Her Latte their 26th studio album. This is the art-pop duo with an album named Gratuitous Sax & Senseless Violins, an earworm of a song called 'Dick Around' and another track that largely repeats the words "my baby's taking me home", after all — and a band that once staged a 21-night spectacular to play their then 21-album discography in full as well. It's also the group that has worked with everyone from Giorgio Moroder to Faith No More and Franz Ferdinand. And, Sparks now have Cate Blanchett starring in the video for their newest record's eponymous single, fresh from earning her eighth Oscar nomination for Tár. How did that latest collaboration come about? After half a century of ace tunes, what has the renewed attention of the last few years, including their tunes soundtracking everything from Yellowjackets to Justified: City Primeval, been like? Where do they keep finding inspiration for such smart, witty tracks that are both ace as songs and cleverly amusing? Are more movies in their future? Who would they most like to collaborate with? Russell and Ron chatted with us about all of the above and more. [caption id="attachment_923022" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Shot for Dive In Magazine.[/caption] ON GAINING NEW FANS THANKS TO THE SPARKS BROTHERS AND ANNETTE — AND PLAYING BIGGER SHOWS AS A RESULT Russell: "In a certain way, it's just really pretty unique that a band with 26-album-long history is now finding this kind of new and diverse kind of audience after this long of a career. It's not the typical career path for someone to take, where a band that's had a long history now finds itself in the position where things are more on the upswing, and we're playing the bigger audiences. Australia will be the last stop on world tour that we've done through Europe and North America and Japan, and now Australia. And the shows have been bigger and bigger. We've played the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. We did a couple of nights at the Royal Albert Hall in in London, and Glastonbury. And now to be able to come to Australia and play places like the Sydney Opera House, for us it's really special, but it's also really kind of mind-boggling that, at this late stage in a career, to have this kind of acceptance and re-examination of what Sparks is." Ron: "Even the movie thing is strange because we've tried for decades to get a film musical made. Then to have two films, and they both, just by happenstance, came out around the same time — the Edgar Wright documentary, but also Annette, the musical. So it became a concentrated thing even with the films that we were involved in." ON AGREEING TO A SPARKS DOCUMENTARY Ron: "We were really thrilled because he isn't the first director that's approached us, it's happened from time to time earlier, but we were always really hesitant to do a documentary. We always felt that what we were doing as a band really spoke for how we wanted ourselves to be represented in a biographical way, and we felt that it was needless to have a documentary. But then Edgar came along, and part of it was just his enthusiasm, but also our respect for him as a director — and then the fact that within the documentary, he said that he felt personally that all of our different eras were equal in a creative sense, if not necessarily, obviously, in a commercial way. But it wasn't like there was a golden age. So we immediately said yes. We were hoping that the documentary wouldn't just be a dry 'and then this happened' kind of documentary. We wanted it to be like an Edgar Wright film, even though he had never really done a documentary before — and we were thrilled at how it turned out." [caption id="attachment_923021" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Gavin Ross[/caption] ON SPARKS SONGS POPPING UP EVERYWHERE ON-SCREEN SINCE THE SPARKS BROTHERS AND ANNETTE Russell: "I think it has opened up the perception of the band, especially for people in television and in the film world — maybe they've been there all along, but now they've been given more permission to speak out and actually take a stance by putting a Sparks song in their TV series or films. It is really something that's opened up a lot more avenues for us, and even to the point that we're working on another movie musical now because we had such a great experience with Annette. For us, that's something that's really special, showing that Sparks songs aren't just for a certain niche audience — that they can be utilised in ways that are accessible if you want them to be accessible. Just by exposing them to more people, they become accessible. I think that's what Edgar helped to do with the documentary. He just said, 'well, what Sparks is doing needs to be heard by a bigger audience'. And he said, 'if no one else is going to do it, I'm going to be the one that's going to do that for the band'." ON MAKING ANNETTE WITH HOLY MOTORS DIRECTOR LEOS CARAX Ron: "We originally had thought of it as being our next album, and we were going to present it live on stage with just Russell and myself, and then a soprano — just the three of us on stage, and that would be the next Sparks project, and it would be an album. Then just by circumstance, we were at the Cannes Film Festival a little over ten years ago for other reasons, and we were introduced to Leos Carax. We were just chatting with him, and we got along with him really, really well, just in a general sort of way. So we got back to LA and Russell thought, 'why don't we just send Leos the Annette project?' — never having thought that this was a film. And so he read it and listened to all the music and all that was done. He said, 'let me think about this, I really think I might want to direct this'. We were stunned, because we have really great respect for him as a director, but we had never considered this to be a film project. Then couple weeks later, he said 'I would like to direct this'. So it did take eight years from that point to have the film made, but we were more than willing to go through that process because we felt so strongly about it. And to Leos' credit, he was totally committed to making that film. Hollywood directors always have ten, 20 other projects going along at the same time, but he doesn't work that way. It's only one thing, and so for him to focus on, and put just everything that he had, just taking a chance on that one project, it meant so much to us." ON MAKING ANOTHER MOVIE MUSICAL Russell: "Well, we can't really talk too much about the content of it. But the distribution company Focus Features, that released the documentary, approached us and asked if we had anything new that we were working on because they liked Annette a lot. So we told them we did have a new project, and they told to go away and do the screenplay, do all the music for it, and they'd be excited. It's not giving you too much of a clue, but they said that it's an epic musical. Whatever that elicits in in your mind, that's what they're saying it is. We're just really excited to have another project, because we think that the perception of the band, like we just talked about, is seen differently when Sparks music, for whatever reasons, we've had periods that have been commercially successful and less commercially successful. But then we found out that having these other ways of exposing what Sparks does, that it's really helped then to reflect back on Sparks music itself. Doing a movie musical, people that saw it that didn't know the band, then they were curious to examine what Sparks is. And the same with the documentary, the people that weren't aware of the band to that degree, then they went back and rediscovered our back catalogue of music. So it's a way for us to channel what we're doing musically, but in other ways — and then in turn, it helps to also put Sparks in a bigger picture." ON FINDING SONGWRITING INSPIRATION ACROSS HALF A CENTURY OF MAKING MUSIC Ron: "At the beginning, you get some inspiration from outside sources — not so much in a general way, but from musical outside sources. We were influenced by British bands that were the more flashy ones, like The Who and The Kinks, and The Move and all. That was really the source of the inspiration for us, even when we were in Los Angeles before moving to London in the middle 70s. But since that time, the inspiration is just hard to pinpoint where that comes from. I think we're just inspired knowing that we're doing things that we want to hear, and so we haven't kind of reached the point where we run out of those ideas. Things don't just come to us. You have to pursue them. So there has to be just that motivation to do things where there might not be a payoff that particular day, but that you have the faith that at some point it will." ON MAKING MUSIC THAT YOU CAN DANCE TO, AND ALSO LAUGH WITH Russell: "Obviously it's always a challenge, and the more the more albums you have, it becomes more of a challenge to come up with stuff that both excites you and that you think isn't kind of rehashing what you've done in the past. To have humour in a song, but where it's not the sole element of the lyrical slant, that it's just funny — we like to think that things can have humour, but also have a balance to them where there's another side to it that might be deeper or more emotional, too. Things don't have to be black or white, or 'ohh it's funny' or 'it's serious'. There could be some other shade to it. That for us is really exciting — to be able to come up with stuff that that is in that grey area." ON GETTING CATE BLANCHETT TO STAR IN VIDEO FOR 'THE GIRL IS CRYING IN HER LATTE' Russell: "We met her at the César Awards in Paris two years ago. We were there performing and nominated for a bunch of awards for Annette, and we performed 'So May We Start' at the César Awards as well. We were the only act doing a live song performance at the Césars, which was really exciting on its own. And then it turned out we also won for best music, and the film won a whole bunch of awards as well. Cate had come to our dressing room and introduced herself, and were floored that Cate Blanchett would even know who Sparks was, let alone say that she was a fan of the band since she was growing up in Australia. And we remained in touch, and we've become friends. So it came time to do the first video for this album, and so we thought 'let's call Cate' and 'surely Cate will have an idea' where we didn't know exactly where we wanted the video to be heading. Then she heard the song. She really responded to the song — really, really loved it, and said 'yes, I would like to be in the video'. We didn't even discuss what she would be doing. We just said just 'do what you want to do and we're sure it'll be great.' That's open-ended, but she came up with that dance that she does, and the thing of it, her just being immobile for a lot of it, and then all of a sudden kicking into her dance during the chorus parts of the song — that was all 100-percent Cate." [caption id="attachment_923020" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Gavin Ross[/caption] ON THE DREAM COLLABORATION THAT SPARKS WOULD LOVE TO DO NEXT Ron: "We played a festival in Spain probably about eight years ago, and Public Enemy were playing there. We were bold enough to go up to Chuck D and then shyly drop the idea, 'you know, if you ever wanted to collaborate on anything, we're definitely open to it'. I'm not sure whether he was just being polite, but he seemed to show some interest and gave me the telephone sign. So we're hoping at some point that could happen. It might not be obvious from our music, but we're both huge fans of Public Enemy, and just their live show is in incredible, just the sound of their music and the intensity of it. So we're hoping at some point — I mean, that would be a dream collaboration for us." Sparks tour Australia in October and November 2023, playing solo shows at Melbourne's Palais Theatre (on Thursday, October 26), the Sydney Opera House (Tuesday, October 31), and Fortitude Music Hall in Brisbane (Thursday, November 2) — and as part of the packed lineup at Adelaide's Harvest Rock II festival (on Sunday, October 29). For more information and tickets, visit the Harvest Rock website and the Secret Sounds website. Top image: Munachi Osegbu.
Drop everything, it's time to book a holiday for next year. At this time of year, every dollar counts, and when else can you book a return flight (domestic and international) and only pay for half the fee? Jetstar — ever the patron saint of affordable getaways — has just announced its latest special offer: three days of deals that offer essentially two flights for the price of one. From midnight tonight (or midday today if you're a Club Jetstar member), customers who purchase an outbound starter fare on select flights will get their return flight completely free, until 11.59pm on Sunday, November 30, or until the 90,000 available fares sell out. As mentioned, the offer is available across both domestic and international trips. Sydneysiders could skip the eight-hour drive to Byron and instead book a flight to Ballina from $42, or to Cairns from $102. Brisbane travellers can book a Whitsundays flight from $63, and Perth locals looking to go cross-country can fly to Melbourne from $199. If you're going out of the country, you're spoilt for choice. Sydneysiders looking for a quick and easy trip to Bali can do so from $249, Melbournians can immersive themselves in the cultural melting pot that is Singapore from $209, and if you're part of the Aussies that have yet to visit the 'it' destination of 2025: you can fly from Brisbane to Tokyo from $373 and Sydney to Osaka for the same price. Just next door is South Korea, which has gone underappreciated for too long — but Brisbanites can fly to Seoul from $309 in 2026. In terms of dates, the availability varies per route, but the offer is open for domestic flights between early February and late October 2026, and for international flights between early February and mid-September 2026. The Jetstar Return for FREE Black Friday sale runs from 12pm AEDT on Thursday, November 27 for Club Jetstar members, and from 12am AEDT for the general public. The sale will run until 11.59pm AEDT on Sunday, November 30, or until fares sell out. Visit the Jetstar website for more information.
I know what you're probably thinking. At Concrete Playground, we're very transparent about the awesome work we do with brands. So it might be reasonable to conclude that I'm going to fill the next 600 words or so with unadulterated praise about Milklab's new oat milk. But you'd be wrong. The first time I, a stubbornly exclusive drinker of full-fat dairy milk, tried oat milk, I made a face that made my walking buddy think I'd stepped in a big pile of dog shit. My next thought: immediate regret. You see, I'd challenged myself to make the switch to oat milk. I discovered while reading up about it, of the various plant-based milks that are now widely available in cafes, oat is supposed to be the closest in taste and creaminess to dairy. So, I thought, why not give it a go? I decided to commit to the oat for a whole week and document my experiences. But, after my first sip, I was immediately overcome with regret. A whole week on this was all of a sudden starting to look like it could be a long one. Was I going to make it? Was I going to cave? Or was I — perhaps unthinkably — actually going to enjoy it? Here's what happened. THE TASTE My first sip of an oat milk coffee was definitely a bit of a shock. For the uninitiated (as I was just a couple of weeks ago), there's a sweet, nutty, almost malty taste — as well as an undeniably oat-y one — that I knew was going to take a bit of getting used to. I don't take any sugar in my coffee, either, so I realised from that first sip that some adjustment (mainly of my own expectations) was going to be required. One almost immediate effect the sweetness did have was that it forced me to slow down, and to savour every sip. There was also a surprising richness to the milk that meant each sip just went that little bit further. I also tried different types of oat milk coffee: hot and cold, frothy and flat. I was surprised by the full flavour and roundness in the latte — especially an oat cap (more on that below). Meanwhile, the iced oat lattes I had were also very, very drinkable. Not only did these not leave me feeling bloated like a dairy version would, but it seems that not heating the milk neutralised some of the immediate nuttiness and sweetness. And while I could tell it wasn't dairy, it tasted pretty close to it. THE MOUTHFEEL This was, to be honest, the part that I was probably the most nervous about. One of the main reasons that I have stubbornly insisted on full-fat dairy milk is because I've found the alternatives either too watery for my liking, or far too overpowering in taste. The warm internal hug that a perfectly made latte with full-fat dairy milk provides is hard to replicate with the alternatives. One drink, though, changed my mind from the first sip: the oat cappuccino. While I am firmly of the belief that cappuccinos should remain in the 90s alongside sundried tomatoes and focaccia, the full velvety goodness of an oat cap was, to quote Jessica Simpson, irresistible. This is likely because oat milk stretches similarly to dairy, effectively resulting in a smaller margin of error on the part of the espresso puller and also creating that fuller mouthfeel. Another thing it took drinking oat to realise — especially on days I drank both oat and dairy to compare a little more directly — is the film that dairy can leave around the mouth, which is honestly... not okay. There was no such residue with oat, hot or cold. THE EFFECT Remember that warm internal hug I mentioned earlier? As pretty much any drinker of dairy milk can vouch for, it's not uncommon for your stomach to start to play dubstep after, or even during, that milk-induced inside-out embrace. Mercifully, no such beats were created after an oat beverage. Another thing I found interesting was that the post-caffeine crash I would usually experience — especially following my afternoon brew — did not come when I'd had my oat drink. This is surprising given that oat has less protein and more sugar than full-fat dairy, but what is undeniable is that an oatey boy seemed to keep me going for longer. The same can be said for the fullness factor. While its bloat factor means that dairy usually fills me more quickly, the fullness seems to be both more subtle and more sustained with oat. [caption id="attachment_824628" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Rachel McDermott (Unsplash)[/caption] THE VERDICT Full disclosure: I'm writing this while drinking a full-fat dairy latte. But I'm not enjoying it as much as what I might have done a couple of weeks ago. I actually came to not only enjoy the taste of oat milk, but also crave it. Am I converted? Truth be told, I'll still be ordering dairy when the mood hits. But what I have discovered is that there is another option that does the job just as well — and, in some cases, even better. For more information on Milklab's new oat range, head to the website.
Make some room in your budget for a new streaming service: soon, HBO's lengthy list of must-see TV shows will have their own platform in Australia. The network's dedicated streamer Max debuted in America in 2020, and has been rolling out through Latin America, the Caribbean and parts of Europe since — and newly in Japan as well. Now, Aussie viewers will be able to subscribe sometime in the first half of 2025. Earlier in 2024, it was rumoured that Australia was on Max's list in the next 18 months. At the APOS media and entertainment conference in Bali between Tuesday, September 24–Thursday, September 26, Warner Bros Discovery's President for the Asia-Pacific James Gibbons confirmed the Aussie launch, as well as the 2025 timing. Exactly how the rollout will work across the Asia-Pacific region is yet to be revealed, and it won't be the same Max model everywhere. But Australia will have a direct-to-consumer setup, which means signing up directly for Max. "We will be flexible and diverse as to how we go about it. There will be a mixture of direct service and partnership models. Our goal is to reach the fan base," said Gibbons, Variety reports. The great streaming service rush, when new platforms seemed to appear every few weeks or so, might be a few years in the past; however, HBO bringing Max to Australia is huge news. Depending on exactly when in the first six months of 2025 that it hits, that's where you might be watching The Last of Us, The White Lotus and Euphoria when they return for their next seasons. At present, the US network's shows largely screen and stream to Aussie viewers via Binge and Foxtel. When the former launched, boasting HBO's catalogue was one of its big selling points. The deal between Binge, Foxtel and Warner Bros Discovery — which owns HBO — was extended in 2023, but it was reported at the time that Max might debut in Australia from 2025. Moving HBO's catalogue away from Binge and Foxtel would impact a hefty number of shows, with the network also behind House of the Dragon, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms and any other Game of Thrones spinoffs that make it to fruition — and True Detective, And Just Like That..., The Rehearsal, The Penguin, on-the-way IT prequel series Welcome to Derry, soon-to-arrive Dune spinoff Prophecy and much, much more. HBO's past original programming spans everything from The Sopranos, Six Feet Under, The Wire, Oz, Deadwood, Big Love, True Blood, Big Little Lies, Westworld and Succession to The Larry Sanders Show, Sex and the City, Flight of the Conchords, Bored to Death, Girls, Veep, Barry and Enlightened. Max is launching in Australia sometime in the first half of 2025 — we'll update you when more details are announced. Via Variety / The Hollywood Reporter. Top image: Macall Polay/Max.
Kiko Design is the lush floral and styling studio sitting prettily in Rosebery's La Porte Space. Here, you can expect grand architectural bouquets, statement arrangements and an abundance of flower-filled vases — and a bespoke approach to your next event's styling needs. It's a family affair too, with the winning blooms biz helmed by the husband-and-wife duo of Kowsh and Josh Rawson. Kowsh (pictured above) has always had a natural affinity with petalled creativity. With a CV chockers with experience in the Harbour City's leading floral studios — like Hermetica Flowers and Poho Flowers — it was a venture she was called to. Since launching in 2017, Kiko Designs has seen Kowsh creating arrangements for both homes and editorial features, taking on the styling for both weddings and the most fashionable of events, all with her partner alongside. Those after the standout blooms can choose from bunches full of pastels or the brilliance of a sunset, or the classic all white with a backdrop of green foliage. You can opt for the simple elegance of exclusively red roses, the romantic's go-t0, or leave it to your florist with a seasonal selection. A bouquet of classic roses, with each petal artfully curled back, will eternally be a winning gift. Or, choose to go all out and opt for the biggest and boldest: The Statement. For any and every floral need you might have, dear reader, Kiko Design is a stellar choice. You'll find Kiko Design at La Porte Space in Rosebery. It is open from Monday to Friday, from 8am–4pm. Drop in or order online and have your blooms delivered. For more information, head to the website.
In the historic fishing town of Patonga, located along the Hawkesbury River and Broken Bay, you'll find the recently renovated Boathouse Hotel. The Boathouse Group's eighth venue, it now offers all-day dining, seaside views and a large outdoor deck overlooking the water It's the first Central Coast venue for the Boathouse Group, which originated in Palm Beach back in 2008. The stunning new interior is similar to the group's other beachside venues and resembles the inside of a luxury yacht, while the large outdoor deck offers prime seating for the warmer months. The menu spans breakfast through dinner with a focus on quality produce and fresh fare. For brekkie, there are healthy options like the granola ($17), bircher muesli ($17) and green bowl (avocado, kale, broccoli, seed loaf and cashews, topped with a poached egg — $21), along with more decadent eats like the croissant french toast ($21) and sausage sangas with manchego, caramelised onions and chilli ($16). For lunch and dinner, classic pub grub, including parmas ($24), pork ribs ($39) and burgers ($26), sit alongside more refined fare — think snapper ceviche with cucumber and sesame ($23) or yellowfin tuna pasta with capers and herbs ($31). A takeaway shop turns out finger food like fish and chips, too. The classic cocktail list continues the beachside vibes, with a frozen watermelon margarita, cucumber cooler and pomegranate mojito all making the list at $18 a piece. Other drink specialties include a rare magnum offering and 17-strong beer list. Non-alcoholic options range from cold press juices and smoothies to tonics and kombucha. As of January, the hotel's accommodation will also reopen and include one-to-three bedroom guest rooms, each with waterfront balcony views. Located a 90-minute drive from Sydney, or 30-minute ferry trip from Palm Beach, it's the perfect spot to build a weekend getaway around. If you do, here are a few more Central Coast spots to check out while you're there.
In celebration of its grand opening, Taiwanese eatery SooZee23 has sorted out your lunch. On Friday, February 23, head to Westfield Sydney from 11am–2pm and you'll score yourself a piping hot bowl of the restaurant's signature braised beef noodle soup — for free. The shop is brought to you by the team behind Chatime and is inspired by the popular Duan Chun Zhen beef noodle restaurant in Taiwan. It's claiming to have the 'most authentic' Taiwanese noodle soup in town, using a recipe passed down through three generations and originating on the streets of Taiwan in 1948. As the name suggests, the recipe uses 23 herbs and spices in its stock, which takes eight hours to make. The broth is spooned over thin handmade noodles, then topped with succulent braised beef, bok choy and spring onions. Diners can select the classic version or spice it up with copious amounts of chilli. Other menu items include chicken karaage, gyoza and spicy beef fried rice, but these aren't included in the freebie. The self-proclaimed authenticity is certainly a bold move, but then again the recipe does sound legit. Lucky for you, there's no limit to the number of bowls they're give away during that time frame, so head on in and judge for yourself. SooZee23 is now open at Level 5, Westfield Sydney. Head along to the grand opening event on Friday, February 23 between 11am and 2pm for a free bowl of its signature braised beef noodle soup.
If you're still sans long weekend plans, put this one on your list to check out: a giant new community market is launching in Sydney's Inner West, offering locally made goods and live entertainment. Marrickville's new Metro Market is a collaboration between the creators of design and arts store Hypmotive and the folks behind fresh food retailer Panetta. The result is set to be the suburb's largest maker's market, with an array of artists, designers and suppliers from the area and beyond set to be slinging their wares. This month's iteration will run on the ground level of the Smidmore Street Precinct, on Saturday, June 11 from 10am-4pm. If you're headed away for the long weekend, don't worry — it's set to be held every month, so you've got plenty of time to peruse the edible treats, homewares, fashion and art. The lineup is set to change and grow, but this week you'll be able to glaze your own ceramic pots and buy bespoke dry bouquets and arrangements. The little ones can get their faces painted, while older shoppers can enjoy the live entertainment on offer. If you're looking for a winter wardrobe update there will be stalls of vintage fashion, while creative home cooks can peruse the 15 stalls of fresh local deli products and speciality grocery goods. And yes, there will be tasters. Marrickville's metro market kicks off on Smidmore St on Saturday, June,11 from 10am-4pm. Head to the website for more info and a list of vendors.
Theatre lovers rejoice, because Sydney is about to bear witness to a Broadway debut: Waitress is coming to town. The long-awaited Australian debut of the production is confirmed for a premiere at Sydney Lyric Theatre in July 2026. Sara Bareilles, the creative force behind the musical's original score, expressed her excitement about the Australian premiere. "It's been a dream of mine to see Waitress (finally) find its way to Australia," she stated. "This story is about dreams, friendship and the courage needed to learn to love oneself, which feels so universal, and so timely." The musical, inspired by Adrienne Shelly's beloved film, tells the story of Jenna, a small-town waitress and expert pie maker trapped in a difficult marriage who dreams of escape. When a baking contest and unexpected romance present new opportunities, Jenna discovers that change might be closer than she imagined, supported by her fellow waitresses in a tale of resilience and self-discovery. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2N_svvx-uA[/embed] Producer John Frost from Crossroads Live highlighted the production's impressive credentials, noting its four Tony nominations and six Drama Desk nominations during its original Broadway run. Waitress became a huge hit on Broadway where it played for almost four years," Frost explained. The musical has since enjoyed successful runs in the West End, multiple US tours and international productions, establishing itself as a global phenomenon. The production holds particular significance in theatre history, having made Broadway history with women filling all four top creative positions. Alongside Bareilles' music and lyrics, the creative team features Jessie Nelson's book, Lorin Latarro's choreography and Tony winner Diane Paulus's direction. This groundbreaking achievement occurred when the musical opened at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on April 24, 2016, running until January 5, 2020. Original producer Barry Weissler acknowledged the lengthy journey to bring Waitress to Australian audiences, stating: "Collaborating with our longtime partner John Frost and his team at Crossroads Live, we are thrilled to finally have the chance to share this story 'baked from the heart' with audiences in Oz." Critics have consistently praised the musical's blend of humour, heart, and memorable music. The Times called it "5 Star musical pie," while New York Magazine described it as "sweet, sassy, passionate & delightful!" The Washington Post praised it as "simply delightful! A glorious reminder that life is messy and wondrous!" Tickets go on sale later this month. Join the waitlist to get yours as soon as they're available.
Buckets of lilac hydrangeas, peach colombian roses and tubs of aromatic rosemary stand proud outside this Glebe Point Road store, which grabs your attention from across the street. This local florist has 25 years of experience serving passersby with freshly cut flowers to take back to their homes, or a potted plant to brighten up an office desk. The store is brimming with such reasonably priced blooms that if you're there to pick up a gift, it's likely you'll add a cluster of lavender or a single protea to your order especially for you. [caption id="attachment_776151" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Cassandra Hannagan[/caption] Head right into the back of the store for a shelf of nonliving gifts, such as soaps and candles from the French brand Sea Salt or hand creams from Panier Des Sens. There's a wall of greeting cards with Aussie themed fauna, which make for a quick add-on purchase when you're shopping for colleagues or last-minute thank yous. And if you can't make it to the store, they're more than happy to arrange for local deliveries.
With so many beauty products floating around, it's hard to know if your current ten- (or one-) step skincare routine is making any kind of difference. It might seem obvious, but Carla Oates, founder of The Beauty Chef, recommends starting with what's on the inside — with products that work on improving your gut and skin microbiome. The Beauty Chef first saw success with its GLOW®️ Inner Beauty Essential: a probiotic supernutrient powder that features powerhouse ingredients such as vitamin C, biotin, niacinamide, prebiotics and zinc to give your skin a serious glow-up, while supporting healthy hair, nails, digestion and energy. The entrepreneur has since spent the past 15 years creating a line of innovative inner beauty products for skin, gut and whole-body wellness that are now sold at David Jones, MECCA and Sephora — as well as beloved by people across the globe. In partnership with Klaviyo, we caught up with Oates to uncover her path into the industry, her advice for fellow entrepreneurs and the importance of listening to your gut. How did The Beauty Chef come about? As a child, I suffered from eczema and allergies. My mum took me to see a naturopath who dramatically changed what I ate, removing processed foods and allergens like gluten and dairy. My allergies and eczema subsided, so I experienced firsthand that what we eat can affect our skin and health. My daughter also experiences eczema and allergies. With the assistance of health professionals, we removed specific trigger foods from her diet, and I began researching the link between gut and skin health. As I explored this link more closely, I decided to put my family on a gut-healing protocol, which included eliminating certain foods and introducing lots of lacto-fermented whole foods with beneficial bacteria into our diet. Friends and family took notice and I realised I was onto something. Why focus specifically on inner beauty? Inner beauty is so important. When people start to delve deeper into understanding what makes skin healthy, it's not so much about what they're putting on their skin but how they're nourishing it from within. I focus on inner beauty because so many benefit from it. I've spoken to people who have tried all sorts of concoctions to remedy their skin on the outside, but it's only once they look to support their skin and health from the inside that results become abundantly clear. Can you break down the gut-skin connection for us in simple terms? The simplest way is to use the analogy of our gut as a garden. If the soil in the garden isn't healthy, balanced and thriving with a good array of nutrients and bacteria, then the plants that grow within its soil will struggle to blossom. The gut is where 70 percent of our immune system lies. It's where we make nutrients, regulate hormones, detoxify enzymes, neutralise pathogens and make neurotransmitters, so it's super important to get your digestive health in check. For someone just discovering The Beauty Chef, where should they start? GLOW®️ Inner Beauty Essential or GLOW AGELESS™ Inner Beauty Essential are five-star probiotic supernutrient formulas that promote healthy glowing skin, hair and nails, energy and gut health. From there, you can target any other specific skin, gut health or wellbeing concerns with products from the rest of our range — all our products are designed to work together for enhanced results. What challenges did you have to overcome as a woman establishing her own business? When I launched in 2009, ingestible beauty was a foreign concept. Pioneering the category wasn't easy because retailers didn't have a category for it. One of the hardest things was convincing manufacturers to support our low volumes. I had to find my CEO voice and seriously hustle to help them see my vision and understand the product. In the beginning, I was wearing every single hat, from product development to marketing and even HR. Now, we have 30 full-time staff at our head office. A key learning for me has been understanding and accepting that I can't be and do everything all the time. And, as the business expands, it's imperative to support that growth with leaders who are specialists in what they do. Networking with other female founders is also very important for me, both professionally and personally. No matter how different our businesses may be, we face similar challenges. When you connect, you can relate to each other and share learnings. How has Klaviyo helped your business? Klaviyo email and SMS have helped The Beauty Chef streamline our communications with our customers. We now have one central platform for key communications to our customers and can effectively personalise and segment to ensure long-term retention. Do you have any advice for other budding entrepreneurs? Do what you love because success requires hard work, so you might as well spend the hard work doing something you wholeheartedly enjoy. Plus, you are bound to be more successful doing something you have fire, passion and drive for. Try not to get caught up in trends and make sure you're creating products that serve a purpose and provide a solution that is unique. And be gutsy and follow your gut instinct. Discover The Beauty Chef's full range of products at the website, and find out more at the Klaviyo website.
In 2022, The Kid LAROI embarked upon his debut headline Australian tour, selling out arenas across the nation and adding more dates to meet demand. Two years later, the Aussie star otherwise known as Charlton Kenneth Jeffrey Howard is returning to local stages again in November 2024. Initially announced in 2023 and due to happen in February 2024, then postponed to October due to trying to confirm a "really big surprise and special guest" and "a bunch of other logistical stuff", The Kid LAROI's The First Time Australian tour is back on. When he hits Sydney on Saturday, November 16, he'll have Migos frontman Quavo and the Harbour City's own ONEFOUR in support. The Kid LAROI has made some changes to the tour itinerary, which is in support of his debut studio album The First Time. This was meant to be his first-ever Aussie stadium tour — and while that isn't the case in all cities, he's still headed to Commbank Stadium in Sydney. The First Time might've been a new 2023 arrival, but The Kid LAROI has been releasing music since 2018 — solo, and also teaming up with everyone from Juice WRLD and ONEFOUR to Justin Bieber. Accordingly, fans can look forward to hearing 'Stay', 'Without You', 'Thousand Miles', 'Love Again', 'Girls' and more come spring.
Creative space Hypmotive Hub is Marrickville's go-to for gifts, art and fashion that you won't find anywhere else. The shop is all about connecting the local community with unique designers, makers and brands. So, if you want nab one-of-a-kind pieces and simultaneously support local creatives, head here. You can pick up jewellery, custom-made art, handmade stationary, candles, ceramics, plant pots, skincare and essential oils — and that's just to name a few items for sale. If you can't make it into the shop, head to the online art gallery, where some of the hub's top artists sell one-off pieces. This store also serves as a community hub, with workshops and events regularly on the docket. Upcoming workshops include pottery, ceramic painting, watercolour and illustration and Kintsugi (the Japanese ceramic restoration technique through golden joinery).
As if your boyfriend needed another reason to stay glued to sport. The Allphones Arena and Lingerie Football League, LLC (LFL) have announced a partnership that will bring the 'explosively popular' lingerie football sports league to Australia. Dubbed the “fastest-growing sports league in the US” by BusinessWeek, the sport is played just like it reads. All-female teams don their scanty bra-and-panties sets and get rough out on the football field. It’s no wonder the LFL touts itself as “True Fantasy Football”. The game is played as a modified version of American NFL football, and began as an alternative half-time show for the NFL Superbowl. In 2009, the LFL was created and drew sell-out (surprisingly male-dominated) audiences and millions of primetime TV viewers. The 2012 LFL All-Star Game will be held in Brisbane at the Entertainment Centre on June 2 and at Allphones Arena in Sydney on June 9, and will feature 32 of the best women across the league as the Western and Eastern Conference teams clash. The two cities have been pointed to as potential homes for franchises in 2013. Is the world's single most sexist sport doomed for failure in Australia?
Fans of all things vintage will probably want to start saving up their pennies for March 29, when Paddington markets will be transformed into a vintage playground for a day. Over 150 vendors will be tempting market browsers with vintage accessories, clothing, bric-a-brac and more. Local favourites Reuze Vintage will be selling their carefully selected goods and Red Threads boutique will be returning with their recycled clothing and collectibles sourced from all over Australia. You’ll find everything from vintage Chanel shoes to telescopes to diver’s helmets (you never know when they'll come in handy) to Aztec rugs. It’s the kind of market you could spend hours perusing. We recommend taking regular breaks for refreshment (especially if you’re dragging around an unwilling friend who doesn’t quite share your passion for vintage). You’ll be able to take respite at the usual food stalls and there’ll be live music too. Tip: Serious vintage shoppers know the best stuff goes first, so get there at 10am sharp.
Around 9000 cattle are still run at the historic Goonoo Goonoo Station, just 25 minutes south of Tamworth. But in recent years, this gem has become best known for its boutique accommodation and award-winning on-site dining offering, Glasshouse Restaurant. The buildings that once made up the station village (many dating back as far as the 1840s) have been expertly restored in a massive project, which has delivered a spectacular event destination and unique holiday spot. Of the nine transformed heritage buildings, The Homestead is the largest. It sleeps up to ten guests and includes a private pool, billiard room and epic views of the undulating landscape from every sitting room and sunchair. What to do when you're not reclining or dining at the station? Visit local landmarks like the Big Guitar, the Australian Country Music Hall of Fame or the Tamworth Regional Gallery. And if boot-scootin' is your group's jam, line up your trip with the next Tamworth Country Music Festival (January 13–22, 2023). Top images: Destination NSW
Fulfill your daily meat, cheese and carb quota by swinging by Bar Luca and ordering one of their burger specials to go. We recommend taking your eating experience to the next level by adding burger 'hacks', which include everything from crunchy peanut butter to liquid cheese to a deep fried mozzarella patty. From Bar Luca it's a short, 10-minute stroll down the hill to Bennelong Lawn: the ideal place to spend the rest of the evening tucking into your glorious burgery creation and watching the sun go down over the harbour.
Life has been a cabaret for one of the world's inimitable designers since 2018, when Jean Paul Gaultier's Fashion Freak Show first premiered in Paris. Couture, colour, flair, excess, passion, a larger-than-life attitude: they're all channelled into this fashion show-meets-musical revue that steps through its namesake's career and promises a time at the theatre like nothing else. More than 200 original Gaultier pieces feature. His 50 years making threads are in the spotlight. Unsurprisingly, the whole thing also plays out like a party. So far, London, Tokyo, Munich, Porto, Lisbon, Milan, Barcelona and Osaka have also revelled in the Jean Paul Gaultier's Fashion Freak Show experience. Next, it's Brisbane's turn. The River City will welcome the Australian debut of the show — and the Aussie-exclusive season, too — during Brisbane Festival 2024. Donning attire that Gaultier would approve of isn't a prerequisite of attending the production, but you know that you want to dress the part if you're heading along. Jean Paul Gaultier's Fashion Freak Show will kick off with Brisbane Festival itself, starting on Friday, August 30. The Australian season runs until Sunday, September 15, taking over the South Bank Piazza — which forms part of the Festival Garden for the duration of Brisbane Festival. "I am pleased and honoured that my Fashion Freak Show will be presented in Australia, as part of the Brisbane Festival," said Gaultier about the production's trip Down Under. "I could never imagine that it would travel this far and I hope that the Australian audiences will enjoy the show as much as I enjoyed making it with the fantastic team that you will see in Brisbane. It's the story of my life told through music and dance and fashion. The story of a boy from the suburbs who dreamed of being a couturier — who lived his dream with all the highs and lows of his destiny." Of course Jean Paul Gaultier's Fashion Freak Show emphasises its titular figure's boundary-pushing work, his focus on individual expression, and his championing of queer aesthetics and LGBTQIA+ causes. Alongside the hefty range of outfits, it also features a suitable genre-defying soundtrack of disco, funk, pop, rock, new wave and punk tunes as actors and dancers — plus circus artists as well — take to the stage. The diverse cast of faces bringing the show to life spans even further, too, with celebrities and other special guests filming cameos that play during the production. [caption id="attachment_960525" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Jean-Paul Gaultier: Freak & Chic[/caption] In another highlight of Jean Paul Gaultier's Fashion Freak Show's Brisbane visit, a couture piece by Queensland Indigenous designer Grace Lillian Lee has been chosen by Gaultier to feature for the season. "The coming together of Grace Lillian Lee and Jean Paul Gaultier will forever be one of my proudest moments and the epitome of Brisbane Festival as local and global," said Brisbane Festival Artistic Director Louise Bezzina. "And in an Olympic year when eyes will turn from Paris to Brisbane, the festival is perfectly placed to host this shining blockbuster event that brings together superstar talents from Europe and First Nations Australia." [caption id="attachment_960526" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Grace Lillian Lee[/caption] Lee is no stranger to Brisbane Festival thanks to 2021's First Nations Fashion: Walking In Two Worlds, and will debut her first solo exhibition The Dream Weaver: Guardians of Grace from Friday, August 30–Saturday, September 21 during this year's fest. For more of Brisbane Festival's ode to Jean Paul Gaultier, the event has also included a screening of documentary Jean-Paul Gaultier: Freak & Chic on its 2024 lineup. Jean Paul Gaultier's Fashion Freak Show will play the South Bank Piazza, Festival Garden, South Bank, Brisbane from Friday, August 30–Sunday, September 15 as part of Brisbane Festival 2024. Head to the festival website for tickets and more details.
Jessi Singh, the mind behind some of the country's best Indian restaurants is back with a brand new opening in the heart of Sydney's CBD. With restaurants in Melbourne, Byron Bay andAdelaide the acclaimed chef has built a cult following throughout Australia through his rule-breaking eateries Don't Tell Aunty and Daughter in Law. Now, he's recruited the help of former Chin Chin chef Johann Jay to open his latest outpost, Pinky-Ji. "Pinky-Ji is the younger, sassier, and more independent version of our much-loved Daughter In Law," says Singh. "The menu in our new venue will bring all of the fun and unauthentic food that Daughter in Law is synonymous with to Sydney with a slightly more elevated twist." Design-wise, Pinky-Ji is Singh's most flashy venue yet. The restaurant is decked out in neon lighting and red velvet furniture, while the walls are adorned with images of Bollywood stars and light projections. The menu is divided into seven sections — snacks, raw, street, grill, wok, tandoor and curry — plus bread, sides and drinks. Kick things off with a snack like a curry crab croqueta. From there, you'll find plenty of crowd-pleasers across each section, many of which can be shared around the table. The Mumbai Corn comes with chilli lime yoghurt, paneer and curry popcorn, and there's a half lobster on the menu covered in Sri Lankan coconut curry. From Pinky-Ji's wok you can order crab fried rice with chilli oil, while the curry selection spans from inauthentic butter chicken and fragrance yellow vegan dahl to coconut prawns and lamb organ josh, all of which can be paired with aged basmati rice, garlic or sesame naan, and roti. Indecisive groups can opt for the Chef's Selection which includes Balls of Happiness for entre, kingfish ceviche, cauliflower, shakarkandi chaat, tandoor chicken, an array of curries with rice and naan, plus a pistachio dessert for just $65 per person. When it comes time to select a drink to pair with your curry, you can opt for a cocktail or peruse the help-yourself craft beer fridges for a hoppy treat. And, topping off all of the unorthodox fun of Pinky-Ji is the private dining room featuring a karaoke machine loaded up with songs from the 70s, 80s and 90s. Pinky Ji is located at 89 York Street, Sydney. It's open 11am–late seven days a week.
Next time you have a great idea while making a cup of coffee, it could spark a hit comedy flick. That's what happened to Jackie van Beek, New Zealand comedian and one half of the writing/directing/acting duo behind The Breaker Upperers. "I was literally just wandering aimlessly around my kitchen, and I was just thinking about all those conversations that we've all had with friends about that horrible moment when you realise that you have to break up with your partner, and that feeling of dread," she explains. "And I just thought, "gosh, how much money would somebody pay to not have to do that themselves?". And I thought it'd be quite a lot of money, and I know a lot of people that would pay to get out of that responsibility." To answer the obvious question, van Beek never considered setting up a business to end other people's relationships for cash. Instead, she called fellow NZ comedian and actress Madeline Sami, and they started working on what would become 2018's best comedy. That was back in 2013. The script took years to perfect between other jobs, and the film shot across 22 days in 2017, with a cast that included Boy's James Rolleston and Rosehaven's Celia Pacquola. This year, The Breaker Upperers premiered its tale of best friends Jen (van Beek) and Mel (Sami), their love-busting business, their various life woes and their Celine Dion karaoke singalong at SXSW, and then opened the Sydney Film Festival. "It has been a whirlwind few months," Sami observes. "I didn't really have any expectations on how it would do. You spend so long editing the film, making it, and then you're just kind of relieved to have finished it. Then it comes out, and then all of these other people see it and take it into their hearts, and it's just overwhelmingly lovely." Indeed, while The Breaker Upperers is all about helping others when love has faded, there's plenty of love blossoming for this smart, funny film, with audiences both overseas, in New Zealand and in Australia reacting warmly. With the movie now releasing around Australia, we sat down with van Beek and Sami to chat about real-life break-ups, smashing rom-com conventions and working collaboratively in a Kiwi comedy scene that also includes the film's executive producer, Taika Waititi. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-phMlkRiWIg ON CREATING ROLES FOR THEMSELVES THAT DIDN'T EXIST OTHERWISE Sami: "We wanted to write characters that were fucked up women in their thirties, and that didn't have to settle down. That was the big, big point for us. Otherwise it's so unrealistic and so much pressure for women, and I hate that." van Beek: "And so exclusive. We've of course got so many friends that are single, in their early forties and are not going to have a baby now. What about happy endings for those guys? So it was very important that — we love rom-coms, but it was very important for us that we buck the convention and that we didn't end with a double church wedding with two women and two men tying the knot and talking about children." Sami: "We definitely thought about it in drafts and played with the idea, and it just never sat right. And we were just like, this is really a story about being okay with who they are, and accepting that and not having to bow to society's expectations — and the movies' expectations — of what your life should be like. It's really the movies. The movies tell us that we need to have all this shit together, especially for women. I think the pressure on women in movies — just the damsel in distress thing, it goes right back to Snow White. Or in all the Disney stuff. There's a princess who's stuck in a tower or she's in a coma, which is fucking dark, and she needs to be saved. And that same thing is in rom-coms today — a woman who's…" van Beek: "All befuddled." Sami: "And needs to be saved. And it's like, no we don't. We're cool. Just chill." van Beek: "We can figure out our own mess. It doesn't have to involve a man." Sami: "And also, a happy ending doesn't have to be what we've always been told what a happy ending is. It doesn't always have to be that conventional, settle down thing. It can just be 'well you're just not as dark and fucked up as you were at the beginning of the movie'." ON DECIDING TO NOT ONLY WRITE AND STAR IN THE BREAKER UPPERERS, BUT TO DIRECT IT, TOO van Beek: "It was always on the table." Sami: "We were scared." van Beek: "Were we scared? I wasn't scared." Sami: "There was a fear that it would take the fun away from the acting, which is what the whole reason we wanted to do it. It wasn't like scared to do it — it was just whether we were going to give ourselves too much of a workload." van Beek: "Yeah that's right. We knew that if we got too stressed, and we're on screen doing improvised comedy, it's just not going to be fun for us or the audience — so the stakes were quite high in making that decision." Sami: "And then we just like, we can't think of anyone who could fulfil this vision for us that we are planning in our own heads, so why don't we just do it? Take the gamble, and make sure we surround ourselves with really talented, experienced people so that we're supported. And that's what we did." van Beek: "People who are confident at improvisation, so we could all get there. And Taika was helpful." Sami: "Taika, we've worked with a lot — and he would've been a wonderful director for this film. But we knew that we were never going to get Taika because he was on Thor and was committed to that for years. But he shares our sensibility, we've worked with him — he directed the first series of a TV show that I'd made in New Zealand called Super City, and we had a lovely time when we worked together in that way. And he'd definitely get it. But he wasn't available, so we were the ones." van Beek: "But we got Jemaine Clement, who is an old friend of ours as well, he came up for three or four days of pre-production when we wanted to stand up and start exploring the characters ourselves. He'd come into the rehearsal room, and we'd do rewrites with him, and so it was all really..." Sami: "Collaborative." van Beek: "Supportive." Sami: "We've got so much amazing talent around us in New Zealand. There's so many amazing comedians coming up, and writers, that it was just really important for us to be energised by them. So we'd just keep them around us all the time, just everyone 'come in, add a joke in here if you want, yeah that's a good idea.' Just keep it fresh for ourselves, especially because we'd been writing for four-five years, so at a lot of points in that time, when you're right in it — especially towards the end, towards pre-production — you can't see. You're really close to it." ON SEEING NEW ZEALAND COMEDY FINALLY GET RECOGNITION OVERSEAS van Beek: "With Taika's films, and Flight of the Conchords and Rhys Darby having done so well internationally — we were over at SXSW with our film, and people were saying after the screening 'that's New Zealand' humour. They were identifying it. 'We love New Zealand humour! We love you guys.' It was quite exciting that people identify it, and many thanks to Taika who brought that New Zealand comedy voice into the mainstream with Thor." Sami: "When there's a bunch of people, and when there's support — the New Zealand Film Commission have really made an effort to get in behind New Zealand comedy over the last ten years probably. And because we've had success internationally, then there's more support back home. And it's kind of like with the Danish thrillers. All of a sudden the world loves Danish thrillers, and it's just the people making them are making them really well. I guess coming out of New Zealand right now, we've got a lot of great comedy, and it's just a time where it's just being recognised for what it is." van Beek: "Long may it last." Sami: "It's exciting. It's really just, I think, the world getting to know that New Zealand comedy a bit — and it started with Flight of the Conchords. There's an awkwardness to the comedy we make. So yeah, who knows how long that will last. But it's exciting that we don't have to explain our accent any more. People can start to tell the difference a little bit [between Australian and New Zealand accents]. We'll see Americanss try to do a Kiwi accent rather than just going 'oh, I can do a Kiwi accent — g'day mate'." van Beek: "Now they do Flight of the Conchords." Sami: "Yeah, 'Brett'. Or they do, 'oh hi, I'm Korg,' [from Thor: Ragnarok] or stuff like that. They're showing that they know the difference." van Beek: "By mocking us in a different way." Sami: "I loved being mocked." ON FINDING INSPIRATION FOR THE FILM'S MANY BREAK-UP SCENES Sami: "I've never been two-timed by someone, and then found out that... aah, I think I have." van Beek: "You have?" Sami: "Maybe I have." van Beek: "There's always going to be a bit of crossover." Sami: "There's just a bit of subconscious stuff — for me, the break up scenarios, everything you see in the film, nothing is specific to anything but everything is influenced by stories we've heard or things we've experienced. But there's no one like, 'yeah, I had this terrible breakup and this is exactly how the story went'." van Beek: "Or 'yeah, my boyfriend pretended to be in a coma and then died.' That all came from our imagination, but it was more like — definitely I've been through phases in my life when I've been a bit more like Jen, and just been in denial. I've been heartbroken and not wanting to grow up." Sami: "We did have a lot more scenarios and they got a lot more extreme. Obviously some were cut for time, and we didn't shoot all of them — a lot of them we just weren't going to be able to. To shoot someone falling off a speedboat in the middle of Auckland of harbour and taking an underwater scuba to an island and then sailing off, that would've been the whole budget of our film probably, just for that one day." van Beek: "We spent a bit of time writing it though." Sami: "It was a lot of fun writing and thinking out the ways people might choose to break up with each other." The Breaker Upperers is now screening in Australian cinemas.
Parramatta has long been considered Sydney's second city for quite some time now. Of course, the abundance of outdoor activities, cultural hotspots and restaurants and bars are pretty good excuses to spend a day in Parramatta. And in recent years more and more events and festivals have chosen to launch in western Sydney rather than position themselves in the east. It's a sign of good things to come for the 2150 postcode. Yep, this city knows how to put on a party. We're talking free music concerts under the stars, cultural festivals taking over the streets and world premiering plays — and that's all just within the first two months of 2020. To help you map out your next couple of visits to the area, we've rounded up some of the most exciting things happening over the next few months. Get planning — many cultural adventures await.
Artists Gunter Christmann, Hossein Ghaemi, Clare Milledge and Oscar Perry star in Crusted Heat, the new group exhibition opening at The Commercial on July 1. The show's title is a nod to the featured rare 'sprankle' painting by Christmann from 1970 — a piece in which acrylic paint was "dropped like rain from nearly six feet out in space" onto an unstretched canvas on the floor, the colourful result seriously startling in its ability to convey the sensation of heat. In contrast to this gravity-dependent technique, in her hinterglasmalerei paintings Clare Milledge presses oil paint with a brush onto a surface of luscious clear glass that will be turned away from the viewer, in a way, working backwards. The smeared, dense greys of Oscar Perry's An impresario and a small turtle gamble in the moonlight/ does sitting count as waiting? will intrigue, and Hossein Ghaemi has two drawing/paintings on board. Crusted Heat actually marks the first time in a while that Ghaemi has worked outside the medium of performance — curiosity is piqued. Image: Clare Milledge, 'Rice Ambient Liquid Lens Soap' (2016).
The latest pop up venture from chef Jared Ingersoll and self-professed "wine pimp" Jason Hoy sounds like an excellent addition to the summer culinary scene. Bottle and Beast opened in late January and will be filling the bellies of Pyrmont until March 31, serving up a different beast each night along with a selection of Rieslings from around the world. Presenting food that is ethically sourced (think fresh, foraged, seasonal and sustainable), Ingersoll is roasting everything from chicken to goat to pig over coals and thinking up delicious sides to accompany them. Recently, he served up pork seasoned with fennel seeds, salt and lemon accompanied by onions in buttermilk jam. Jason Hoy serves as a kind of one-grape sommelier, with his aim being to "bring Riesling back to the masses". Prices are pretty reasonable. The prix fixe lunch menu is $35 and in the evenings $55 will get you the 'Feast of the Beast' menu of starters, the daily meat, sides and dessert. Check out the menus from the past couple of weeks at the pop up's Facebook page to get an idea of what you're in for. You can make a reservation by calling 0449 107 036. Opening Hours: Mon & Thurs 5.30pm – 11.30pm, Fri – Sat 11.30am – 3pm & 5.30pm – 11.30pm, Sun 10am – 5pm
Few Australian actors just starting out — not even half a decade into their resumes, in fact — have enjoyed the jump into the spotlight that Eliza Scanlen did between 2018–2020. After a 15-episode run on Home and Away in 2016, Scanlen made her international debut on HBO's Sharp Objects, so in a miniseries based on a novel by Gone Girl author Gillian Flynn, and starring Amy Adams (Nightbitch) and Patricia Clarkson (She Said). Her initial role in a US film came next as one of the March sisters, Beth, in Greta Gerwig's (Barbie) adaptation of Little Women, with Scanlen starring alongside Saoirse Ronan (Blitz), Florence Pugh (We Live in Time), Emma Watson (The Circle), Timothée Chalamet (A Complete Unknown), Laura Dern (Lonely Planet) and Meryl Streep (Only Murders in the Building). Then, for her first Aussie movie, she earned a well-deserved AACTA Best Actress Award for Babyteeth, where she played a 16-year-old navigating a cancer diagnosis; Essie Davis (Apple Cider Vinegar) and Ben Mendelsohn (The New Look) portrayed her parents. Amid those impressive television and film parts, Scanlen also hit the stage at home, featuring in Sydney Theatre Company's 2019 production of Lord of the Flies with Mia Wasikowska (Blueback), Yerin Ha (Dune: Prophecy, and soon to be seen in Bridgerton's fourth season) and Daniel Monks (Kaos). On Broadway that very year, she did the same, but in To Kill a Mockingbird with Ed Harris (Love Lies Bleeding) and Nick Robinson (Damsel). 2025 sees the screen and stage sides of Scanlen's career collide. After past movies The Devil All the Time, Old, The Starling Girl and Caddo Lake, plus TV's Fires, The First Lady and Dope Girls, Scanlen is back in Australian cinemas thanks to her theatre work. From late November 2024–late January this year, the Aussie actor trod the boards in London in National Theatre's glorious new staging of The Importance of Being Earnest. Down Under, viewers can now watch Scanlen as Cecily Cardew in the Oscar Wilde-penned farce via NT Live. The British theatre company's love of recording its productions and beaming them around the world has long been an initiative to celebrate, and the reason that stunning works such as Danny Boyle's (Yesterday) version of Frankenstein with Benedict Cumberbatch (Eric) and Jonny Lee Miller (Guy Ritchie's The Covenant) alternating between Victor Frankenstein and his monster, the Carey Mulligan (Spaceman)- and Bill Nighy (That Christmas)-starring Skylight, and Jodie Comer (The Bikeriders) in Prima Facie have been accessible to audiences who couldn't attend the live shows in the UK. Add The Importance of Being Earnest to NT Live's must-sees and sparkling gems, with Scanlen joined by Ncuti Gatwa (Doctor Who) as Algernon Moncrieff, Hugh Skinner (Wicked Little Letters) as Jack Worthing, Sharon D Clarke (Wicked) as Lady Bracknell and Ronkẹ Adékọluẹ́jọ́ (Alex Rider) as Gwendolen Fairfax. Director Max Webster — who also helmed National Theatre's Macbeth, Life of Pi and Henry V, all of which enjoyed the NT Live treatment — couldn't be having more fun with Wilde's now 130-year-old work. Neither could Scanlen and her co-stars, visibly so from the moment that this iteration opens with Gatwa in a hot pink dress. The last play by its author, premiering mere months before his imprisonment for homosexual acts and clearly drawing upon Wilde's own experiences as it tells of living double lives, The Importance of Being Earnest has always possessed queer subtext. Webster pushes that further forward, alongside the search for identity, plus what it means to be your own person and break free of expectations. This is still "a trivial comedy", as its originator himself dubbed it. It remains a story about impersonation and romance, too. No one has brought it to the stage like this before, however. Of course, the narrative still charts Jack's attempts to be an upstanding custodian to his ward Cecily in his country existence, only to live it up in town under a different name with his friend Algernon — and the latter's own similar scheme, aka "Bunburying", aka making up a fictitious ailing friend that often needs his attention as an excuse to ditch the city. And, this The Importance of Being Earnest remains the tale of two young women, Cecily and Gwendolen, with their sights set on married futures, but the reality of their hopes and dreams impacted by Jack and Algernon's duplicity. What's Scanlen's take on Cecily's journey? When the character falls in love with Jack's made-up brother Ernest, "I think she knows that deep down that he might not exist, but she's so invested in this imaginary world that she's built for herself to escape the boredom of her life in the country that she's willing to do anything to will this person into existence," she tells Concrete Playground. "And so when Algernon shows up at her home, she assumes him to be Ernest, her fiancé. I guess he represents to her freedom, an escape from the boredom of her life, and a promise of wealth and fun. I think she's a kindred spirit with Algernon in the play." Asked if her path to here, to acting on the London stage in a famous farce that's now screening in cinemas afterwards, was something that she could've imagined when she booked her stint in Summer Bay almost a decade ago now, and Scanlen notes that "never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I'd be onstage playing Cecily at the National Theatre. I think that is pretty special". She continues: "I don't think I was looking that far ahead. I knew that my heart was in films and television, and I knew that I wanted to make films, too. But I did find acting through theatre originally, so theatre has always had a special place in my heart — and I returned to theatre when I was 19, I think, at Sydney Theatre Company." "I guess with this career, it's not really something that you can plan. You just have to give yourself up to whatever happens, and I'm really lucky to find myself here," Scanlen also advises. "I can't see myself doing anything else. I've been doing it for so long now that the idea of pivoting careers seems crazy to me. I can't really see my life without acting and film and TV and theatre. I've just followed my curiosity along the way, and I don't really know exactly where I'm going, but I think that's how it works. You just have to stay inspired and stay curious. And I've been lucky enough that it's taken me to some just some wonderful places and I've met some wonderful people along the way." One of those people: Gerwig. Taking inspiration from her Little Women director is part of the reason that Scanlen is in The Importance of Being Earnest at all — and Gerwig came to see her in the production during its London stage season. The actor-turned-filmmaker's influence on Scanlen's career; the excitement of playing Cecily; Webster's vision for the play; being part of such a phenomenal cast; what she looks for in roles; the experience of that whirlwind Sharp Objects, Little Women and Babyteeth run: we also dug into them all with Scanlen, among other topics. On What Excited Scanlen About Being Part of The Importance of Being Earnest Onstage "It didn't take much — it didn't take anything for me to audition for this. When I heard that the National Theatre was putting on The Importance of Being Earnest, I was so excited to take a crack at it. And I auditioned and it was quite daunting, because it's such a well-known play and the language is quite challenging. And physically, too — the physical comedy is quite specific. So going into the audition, there was a lot I was thinking about. And I think also this play can be interpreted in a number of different ways, depending on what lens you're looking at it through, so I didn't really know what Max, the director, wanted to do with it at that point. So I was just taking a shot and I just gave it my best, and it worked out." On Getting Into Cecily's Mindset in Webster's Version of the Play "I guess Oscar Wilde wrote Cecily as this farcical character. Cecily is based on this farcical character of the time, which was this bloomer-wearing, cigarette-smoking, bicycle-riding, independent woman. And I guess in this play, all the characters in the play are based on tropes and stereotypes of characters at the time, and he sets them up to subvert them. So Cecily is illustrated as this young, innocent woman, but she's actually very much in charge of her own destiny and makes all the decisions. To get into character, it felt like to get into the head of Cecily, I had to do a lot of mental gymnastics — because Cecily, she doesn't feel real sometimes. And her way of seeing the world is quite convoluted because of her diary. I think Cecily is usually seen as a fantasist, but I don't think that's the most-helpful way for an actor to access the character. So I did a lot of mental gymnastics trying to understand what Cecily wanted, and why she is so attached to her diary. And she spent so much time with her diary that now her diary is the compass for truth and reality, so anything that diverges from what she's written in her diary is false. She's got a very specific worldview, I suppose. I think a lot of getting into character for this play, though, was just having fun and enjoying the surface-level nature of the play. And also interacting with the audience. The audience is really important for this play and we had very direct contact with them whilst we were performing. So just getting comfortable acknowledging the audience and getting the audience onside. It was a huge learning experience for me." On Working with the Rest of The Importance of Being Earnest's Cast "It was such a joy to come in every day and be onstage with this group of people. It's a very special time that I know I won't get back. And I think that the beauty of theatre is that it's all so temporary, but what we created together was beautiful. Honestly, I don't really know any other way to describe it other than pure joy. It was just a joy to be onstage with the company every day. Obviously, there's days where you're tired and maybe you didn't sleep well or someone's sick, but you can't really do this play without having fun. So even if you rocked up in a bad mood, you're bound to come out of it in a good mood." On NT Live Bringing the Production Beyond London and Broadening the Show's Audience "I think it's incredible. I think it's the closest thing to being there and the technology has improved so much that what NT Live is bringing out to the world is incredible and hugely impactful, too. I think theatre can feel inaccessible at times, and what NT Live does is make it really accessible, and people from all around the world can watch this play. I also think that this play has a really important message to share about being yourself and expressing yourself. And queer pride, queer joy, all of those things, I think are really important for younger audiences, and it makes me really excited to know that this play can be seen by so many school kids around the world, too. This play, it's been done many, many times before, but it's for a reason, and I'm really happy that it's been immortalised. It's really cool." On Digging Into the Play's Interrogation of Identity and Breaking Free of Expectations "I think that was a really important theme to our interpretation of the play. In the past, other versions of this play feel quite stuffy, and it is more about the snobbery of high society than it is about identity and expression and queerness. And we wanted to make it feel fresh and use the queer lens more than anything. This play is about young people inventing themselves in virtuosic expression.The opening of the play, too, the dance sequence that we put in the opening of the play, I think really represents that. It's the dream. We wanted it to be feel like an empowering play rather than weighed down by the satire of it." On the Experience of Starring in Sharp Objects, Little Women and Babyteeth in Such Short Succession at the Start of Scanlen's Career "It was pretty overwhelming. I'm aware that most people, it doesn't happen in such quick succession, usually. And I did find it quite overwhelming and felt the urge to withdraw from it all, but knew that I couldn't — and was very aware that the opportunities I was getting were really special and it would be silly not to ride the wave. But I was very young, and I think I handled it as well as I could've. But now that I'm older and I have a bit more experience and am probably a bit more mature, I can look back on that time and think to myself 'how did I do that?'. I would say that now I feel a bit more robust and in control. I think I'd be more prepared if something like that happened again. But I wouldn't change it for the world, though." On Scanlen's Trend of Starring in Adaptations, Screen and Stage, of Classic Works "It's not something that's intentional, but I feel really honoured that I'm a part of these incredible classic texts. I did To Kill a Mockingbird onstage as well, and I studied To Kill a Mockingbird in high school, so it's really cool to be able to return to these texts as an actor — and there's still so much to be learnt from these texts. I guess I'm really lucky." On What Being Cast in Little Women Meant to Scanlen — and the Influence It Still Has "It was pretty life-changing being a part of that film. Looking back now, I realise that getting roles like that are few and far between, and to be that excited about a role is pretty rare. And to get no-brainer roles as well, it's very rare. Again, I was so young, and spent a lot of time watching other people and learning. And obviously that's a text that most young women have read and have a relationship with. I think Greta, in particular, was a huge inspiration for me, because I really am inspired by the way she's moved into writing and directing, and that's something I want to keep exploring. I remember being on set on that film and thinking about going into theatre, and she was super encouraging. And so I went on to do that. I think she had a huge part to play in how I made decisions on my career and made decisions on what I wanted to do. And she actually came and saw The Importance of Being Earnest, and it felt like a really special full-circle moment." [caption id="attachment_997124" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Max[/caption] On What Else Inspires Scanlen's Choice of Roles — Other Than Gerwig "My choices on roles are informed by a few different things, but usually the question I ask myself 'is have I done this before?'. I think that's a question that most actors ask themselves. And I know I'm in a privileged position to be able to ask myself that question and not have to take every job, but I think that I'm at a stage in my career where I feel like I'm having to resist, a bit, falling into stereotypes or falling into typecasting. And I'm constantly looking for things that push myself as an actor. I felt like, for example, The Importance of Being Earnest was a huge challenge for me. I'd never done a comedy before. And I had never been entrusted with a character as substantial as Cecily and as iconic as Cecily onstage. So I felt like I was really stretched as an actor in the rehearsal room, and I guess that's the kind of thing that I'm looking for. But it's hard. It's really hard, especially in film and TV. There's so many things that need to fall into place for a film or a show to happen, and it's really hard for all of those things to be right. But I guess that's how I see things." On the Joy of Making Babyteeth in Scanlen's Home Town, and What She Looks for in Australian Projects "I love making things at home. It's an incredibly special experience. And what I loved about Babyteeth was that we shot it in my home town, so it was an incredible experience seeing a city I know so well become a set for a film. And there's parts of Sydney that I now look at in a completely different way because of it — and I just think that's really amazing. But I'm not looking for anything in particular. I think the script is obviously incredibly important, and I would love to make a film here next. But I guess I'm just waiting for the right thing to come along — but I'm desperate to work in Australia again." NT Live's The Importance of Being Earnest opened in Australian cinemas on Thursday, March 27, 2025. The Importance of Being Earnest images: Marc Brenner.
Nine contemporary artists come together for Contemporary Female Photo Artists, an exhibition exploring aspects of time and space taking over the main gallery at Artereal from August 2–24. From the emerging to the well-established, each artist displayed uses experimental and cutting-edge photo based practices to overthrow traditional expectations of the medium and challenge our conventional understandings of what photography's all about. You can expect dreamy, nostalgic magic from Anna Carey (her exhibition earlier in the year, In Search of Rainbows, was a total delight), poignant images of the aftermath of a kid's birthday party from Anna MacDonald, Jess MacNeil's directing painting on 16mm film, 'no-camera' burnt images by Zan Wimberley, plus multi-layered works from Rebecca Beardmore that combine printmaking with photography to interrogate the act of looking itself. You'll also see work from Shoufay Derz, Emily Sandrussi, Simone Douglas and Svetlana Bailey. Fans of contemporary photography should definitely put this one in the diary. In caps. Image: Jess MacNeil, Disruptive Continuum (video still), 2013–2017.
If you've so far not seen or heard Seen & Heard, make up for it in 2014, when the festival returns for a fifth outing. Celebrating the exciting work being done by women in film across directing, writing and producing, this festival-with-a-message believes that "films made by women are not just for women". Across three Thursday nights at Marrickville's ever-cosy Red Rattler, you can check out shorts and documentaries ranging from the serious to the downright silly, with themes including disability, race relations, sex and self-discovery. Alex Kelly's documentary Queen of the Desert looks like a must-see, following a truly unique youth worker called Starlady as she journeys to a remote Indigenous community in Central Australia. Leslie Tai's Grave Goods also looks interesting — a visual imagining of the life lived by objects left behind by her departed grandmother. There's also Jennifer Lee's documentary Feminist: Stories from Women's Liberation, winner of Best of the Fest at the Los Angeles Women's International Film Festival. Seen & Heard is now in its fifth year and should be a good night for anyone interested in women's cinema, or cinema in general for that matter. It's $15 for one evening and $35 gets you a season pass to all three nights. A festival like this is still vital in the film industry, where only one female director has ever won an Oscar for Best Direction or even a Palme d'Or. And as Cate Blanchett put it in her Oscar acceptance speech for Blue Jasmine, the industry boasts plenty of people "who are still foolishly clinging to the idea that female films with women at the centre are niche experiences. They are not. Audiences want to see them, and in fact, they earn money." Want more new shorts and features from female filmmakers? Check out the World of Women (WOW) Film Festival based at the Dendy Circular Quay. https://youtube.com/watch?v=d04_8xPiQFI
Lovers of wine, food, music and art should check out Rootstock Festival, a two-day extravaganza of wine tasting, coffee brewing, live music and culinary creation soon to arrive at Carriageworks. For a glorious 48 hours you can make your own cheese with Kristen Allan, take a beer-brewing lesson from Young Henrys or, if it appeals, listen to a special talk entitled 'The Semantics of Australian Wine and the rite of Communal Laughter'. If that gets too heavy, you can always wander off to sample some of the 200 wines on offer. Nightbirds might enjoy the two foodie festivals set up for Saturday and Sunday evening. An impressive lineup of chefs, including Kylie Kwong (Billy Kwong) and Louis Tikaram (Longrain), will be set up at stalls, cooking dishes they’ve designed to complement their favourite wines. Which will also be on offer, naturally. With DJs, live music and a sake bar thrown in for good measure, it sounds like a fine way to make merry. Ticket prices range from just $15 for a coffee-brewing class up to a $110 for a package that gets you into the wine festival and two masterclasses. Tight budget? Entry to the sustainable produce market on Sunday from 10am-4pm is free — although you may be tempted to buy an organic loaf or two.
Tell us that it's June in Sydney without telling us that it's June in Sydney: it's cold, puffer jackets line George Street as far as the eye can see and almost everyone wearing them is rushing between cinemas. Also, the lights are shining at the glorious State Theatre, lines keep snaking down Market Street and chatting about which flick you saw last night is the only mode of conversation. This hasn't been a winter reality since 2019, though. Thankfully, for the first time in three years, Sydney Film Festival is now back in-person and in its tradition midyear slot. Yes, this is what movie-going heaven feels like. Yes, that includes an utter lack of vitamin D, carefully clutched warm drinks keeping your hands toasty and getting settled into your favourite cinema seat (we all have one) for the long haul. SFF 2022 is well and truly underway until Sunday, June 19, and that means you now have two types of movies to add to your list — to two types of lists, too. Some of the standouts so far still have big-screen dates coming up at the festival, and are worth booking tickets to ASAP. Others you might need to seek out afterwards, including from home. Either way, here's ten must-sees. SISSY Thanks to everything from The Saddle Club and I Hate My Teenage Daughter to Sweet/Vicious and The Bold Type, Gold Coast-born Australian actor Aisha Dee knows what it's like to live life through screens. She's been acting since she was a teenager, and she's charted the highs of her chosen profession — all in front of a lens. In Sissy, she hops in front of a camera again, naturally, and not only once but twice. In this delightfully savvy and funny Aussie horror film, Dee turns in a wonderfully layered performance as the titular Instagram influencer, whose soaring follower count, non-stop flow of likes and adoring comments, and online fame all stems from her carefully poised and curated wellness videos. Also known as @SincerelyCecilia, the character's sense of self springs from that virtual attention too; however, when she reconnects with her childhood best friend Emma (co-director/co-writer Hannah Barlow), gets invited to her bachelorette weekend and finds old schoolyard dynamics bubbling up, that facade starts to shatter. If Mean Girls was a slasher film set in a remote cabin in rural Australia, it might look something like Sissy — and that's a compliment multiple times over. Every horror movie wants to be smart and savage on multiple levels, but Barlow and fellow co-helmer/co-scribe Kane Senes (reteaming after 2017's For Now) weaponise everything from influencer culture and pastel, rainbow and glitter colour palettes to toxic friendships, all while spinning a clever, cutting and comedic take on the impact of bullying. They also fill their feature with as gloriously diverse a cast as Australian cinema has boasted, and with one helluva lead performance. If Carrie was set in today's always-online world, amid cancel culture and plentiful praise at the press of a button, it'd look like this, too, but this instant Aussie horror classic takes its own bold stab at plenty of genres. Sissy screens at Sydney Film Festival until Wednesday, June 15, and also releases in Australian cinemas on October 27. NUDE TUESDAY Relationships are all about communication. So much about life is, too. And, so is storytelling. With absurdist comedy Nude Tuesday, expressing emotions, connections and narrative details all boils down to two things, though: gibberish and bodies. This extremely amusing New Zealand film from writer/director Armagan Ballantyne (The Strength of Water) and writer/star Jackie van Beek (The Breaker Upperers) does indeed strip its performers bare, as its name makes plain — but it saddles them with conveying almost everything about their characters via body language long before that. The reason: every piece of dialogue spoken in the movie is uttered in gibberish, with completely made-up and wholly improvised words that take a few cues from The Muppets' Swedish Chef in cadence. While they're subtitled in English by British comedian and writer Julia Davis (Camping), that text was penned after shooting, in one of the film's other gleefully silly twists. The result is patently ridiculous, and marvellously so — and hilariously, too. It's such a clever touch, making a movie about marital disharmony and the communication breakdown baked within that's so reliant upon reading tone and posture, as couples on the prowl for the tiniest of micro-aggressions hone in on. Van Beek and Australian The Tourist actor Damon Herriman play that pair, Laura and Bruno. Living on the fictional pacific island of Zǿbftąņ, they're as stuck in a rut as any married, middle-class duo can be, and they're gifted a getaway to ẄØnÐĘULÄ to help. But this mountainside commune, run by the charismatic and lustful sex guru Bjorg Rassmussen (Jemaine Clement, I Used to Go Here), wants them to bare all in multiple ways. The film doesn't live up to its moniker until its last third, but its perceptive and side-splittingly funny from the get-go. Nude Tuesday screens at Sydney Film Festival until Sunday, June 19, and also releases in Australian cinemas on June 23 — and will stream via Stan from July 7. INU-OH Frequently, watching a Japanese animated film involves getting a song stuck in your head afterwards, whether it's a J-pop-style ditty (see: Weathering with You and Ride Your Wave) or an enchanting score (see: Studio Ghibli's entire catalogue). Inu-Oh is no different, except that the movie is also a magnificent rock opera, and a glam-rock one at that. Getting its main musical refrain, which plays through the entire middle section of the feature and tells much of its story, out of your brain afterwards is impossible. You won't want to — it's that catchy, and also that pitch-perfect in the context of the tale its telling. And, the fact that that narrative takes its cues from a real-life Noh performer from 600 years ago, then spins his success in the uniquely Japanese form of dance-drama theatre into a fantastical allegory, only adds to this wondrous and entrancing film's appeal. Director Masaaki Yuasa doesn't make stock-standard animated movies, after all, not that many Japanese directors do; he has the aforementioned Ride Your Wave, as well as the also-great Lu Over the Wall and Night is Short, Walk on Girl on his resume to prove it, too. With Inu-oh, he adapts Hideo Furukawa's novel The Tale of the Heike: Chapter of Inu-Oh, and hums around its titular figure and his friend and collaborator Tomona. Inu-Oh's route to fame isn't assured, with people everywhere shying away from his physical appearance, and an ancient curse troubling his path. As for his pal, the blind musician is also a biwa priest. But when the pair team up for huge rock concerts that draw crowds in from far and wide, Inu-Oh's dancing becomes a phenomenon — one that, in a movie that's also about artistic freedom and is always as visually creative as animation gets, causes backlash from the country's powerbrokers. Inu-Oh doesn't yet have an Australian release date post-Sydney Film Festival — we'll update you if and when it does. PIGGY Hell is other people in Spanish horror film Piggy, an observation that's been made countless times on-screen. Hell is also today's always-online world, another familiar statement (and one that Sissy, see above, also serves up). Still, a movie doesn't need to trade in completely new observations to stand out — which this bullying-revenge film definitely does in a plethora of ways. Sadly, its title stems from the taunt slung in its protagonist's direction much too often. A resident of a small, sleepy Spanish village close to the Portuguese border, Sara (Laura Galán, Unknown Origins) is called other names, too, none of them kind. She's also almost drowned by her tormentors during a trip to the local pool, where they're as cruel as anyone can be about her body. That experience comes with consequences, however, when a kidnapper strikes. Sara is a witness, the three mean girls that've made her life miserable go missing, and the right next step isn't straightforward. Galán is astonishing in Piggy, reteaming with writer/director Carlota Pereda after also starring in her 2018 Goya Award-winning short of the same. This full-length expansion is a vicious marvel, too — and it isn't afraid to get brutal either thematically or physically, or to plaster gory sights across its imagery. Indeed here, seeing a murdered corpse weighted down at the bottom of a public pool isn't a pretty vision, unsurprisingly. That said, it also pales in comparison to the nastiness continually thrust Sara's way, and to everything the film sinks a knife into about being a woman today in the process. Piggy is also astonishingly stylish, using its Academy-ratio frames to ramp up the sense of claustrophobia to an immersive degree. Pereda has enjoyed stints behind the lens since 2008, spanning television, shorts and features, but this immediate must-see deserves to put her on the path to a great genre career. Piggy screens at Sydney Film Festival until Friday, June 17. It doesn't yet have an Australian release date post-SFF — we'll update you if and when it does. HUDA'S SALON Via opening spurts of text on-screen, Huda's Salon relays some of the facts and figures attached to daily existence in Palestine. Included within them is an observation that life for women has only gotten more difficult, including in the movie's setting of Bethlehem. That's where Reem (Maisa Abd Elhadi, The Angel) lives, unhappily but dutifully married to the controlling and jealous Yousef (Jalal Masarwa, Sand Storm), and busies herself doting on their baby. It's also where she usually earns a respite from her routine existence at Huda's salon, unburdening her woes while her friend Huda (Manal Awad, Gaza Mon Amour) washes, dries, cuts and styles her locks. On the visit that opens Hany Abu-Assad's gripping film, however — joining the writer/director's resume alongside Oscar-nominated features Paradise Now and Omar, plus The Idol and The Mountain Between Us — she walks out with her tresses a mess, and as a new informant for Israel's internal security service thanks to a stark blackmail plot. From there, Huda's Salon is a riveting thriller — as it is from the outset — as Reem fears for what will happen if her new duplicity is discovered. She hasn't done a single thing to be seen as a spy or a traitor, but Huda stages shocking evidence, and the Palestinian resistance is soon sniffing around. Much of the movie jumps between Reem's efforts to remain alive, and to hide her new secret, and Huda's interrogation by the calm but firm Hasan (Ali Suliman, Jack Ryan). Abu-Assad handles both aspects like the life-and-death situations they are, sending a potent, harrowing and heartwrenching message about what women in occupied Palestine face. He also draws upon real-life events, making his latest intense and excellent film an even sharper gut-punch — and the three key performances, from Elhadi, Awad and Suliman, are all immensely compelling at every single moment. Huda's Salon screens at Sydney Film Festival until Saturday, June 18. It doesn't yet have an Australian release date post-SFF — we'll update you if and when it does. ELVIS Making a biopic about the king of rock 'n' roll, trust Baz Luhrmann to take his subject's words to heart: a little less conversation, a little more action. The Australian filmmaker's Elvis isn't short on chatter — it's even narrated by Tom Hanks (Finch) as Colonel Tom Parker, who famously was never a colonel, a Tom or a Parker — but this chronology of an icon's life is at its best when it's showing rather than telling. To be even more specific, it's downright electrifying in its treasure trove of recreated live concert scenes, where Austin Butler (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood) slides into Presley's blue suede shoes and lifetime's supply of jumpsuits like he's the man himself. He genuinely is that hypnotic. Thanks to his blistering on-stage performance, shaken hips and all, as well as dazzling cinematography, editing and just all-round visual choreography, these moments in the movie — of which there's understandably many — feel like Elvis hasn't ever left the building. Around such glorious centrepieces, Luhrmann constructs exactly the kind of Elvis extravaganza he was always bound to; balancing the writer/director's own style with the legend he's surveying can't have been easy, and it doesn't always play out as slickly as Presley's slicked-back pompadour, but it's always engrossing. The requisite details are covered, from the singer's birth in Tupelo, Mississippi, through to his late-career Las Vegas residency, with plenty in the middle. His discovery, the impact upon his parents (Rake co-stars Helen Thomson and Richard Roxburgh), his relationship with Priscilla (Olivia DeJonge, The Staircase), America's puritanical reaction to his gyrating pelvis, the issues of race inescapably baked into the response to him as an artist: they're all featured, as retold with Luhrmann's circling images, love of split-screens, frenzy of colour and visible lavishness. Using Parker as a narrator and framing device doesn't work as convincingly, but those spectacular live performances are one for the money. Elvis screens at Sydney Film Festival until Friday, June 17, and also releases in Australian cinemas on June 23. INTO THE ICE From its first shot of a frosty river snaking and glistening between dark-hued rocks — a snapshot of Greenland's inland ice that's lensed from above, arrestingly so — Danish documentary's Into the Ice is nothing short of stunning. Spectacular water-and-landscape imagery was a feature of the unrelated River, too, and this film initially looks like it could be an easy companion piece, just chillier. Where that doco took a poetic approach to ruminating upon humanity's impact upon the earth, all while staring at the physical results, Into the Ice is far more pointed in its message. Making his first theatrical feature, filmmaker Lars Henrik Ostenfeld peers down at the planet's wonders, frozen and flowing alike, and uses his immersive imagery to make inarguably clear that the ice caps are melting, the bulk of the population doesn't seem to care and very little is being done about it. Into the Ice also makes time for people who do care: glaciologists Jason Box, Alun Hubbard and Dorthe Dahl-Jensen. All three explore Greenland, collecting ice, taking data and literally diving deep — and, charting their efforts all in the name of science, the film is an all-encompassing experience even just by viewing it from a cinema seat. Sometimes, the documentary showcases jaw-dropping, record-breaking, nerve-rattling daredevil acts. Sometimes, it's merely in awe of its surroundings, understandably. Sometimes, it's devoted to conveying just how difficult it is to gather information in this realm, and how committed scientists need to be given that the very fate of the planet is at stake. Whichever the documentary happens to be doing, including all three at once at times, this environmentally conscious film is on a mission. It's one thing to know that Greenland's ice is melting, and to read about it — and it's another entirely to witness what that really means. As the film's opening tells us in its overlaid narration, "you can see our future in it." Into the Ice screens at Sydney Film Festival until Saturday, June 18. It doesn't yet have an Australian release date post-SFF — we'll update you if and when it does. MILLIE LIES LOW A scene-stealer in 2018's The Breaker Upperers, Ana Scotney now leads the show in Millie Lies Low. She's just as magnetic. The New Zealand actor plays the film's eponymous Wellington university student, who has a panic attack aboard a plane bound for New York — where a prestigious architecture internship awaits — and has to disembark before her flight leaves. A new ticket costs $2000, which she doesn't have. And, trying to rustle up cash from her best friend and classmate (Jillian Nguyen, Hungry Ghosts), mother (Rachel House, Cousins) and even a quick-loan business (run by Cohen Holloway, The Power of the Dog) still leaves her empty-handed. Millie's solution: faking it till she makes it, searching for ways to stump up the funds while hiding out in her hometown, telling everyone she's actually already in the Big Apple and posting faux Instagram snaps MacGyvered out of whatever she can find (big sacks of flour standing in for snow, for instance) to sell the ruse. There's a caper vibe to Millie's efforts skulking around Wellington while endeavouring to finance her ticket to her dreams — and to the picture of her supposedly perfect existence that she's trying to push upon herself as much as her loved ones. Making her feature debut, director and co-writer Michelle Savill has imposter syndrome and the shame spiral it sparks firmly in her sights, and finds much to mine in both an insightful and darkly comedic manner. As she follows her protagonist between episodic efforts to print the legend — or post it one Insta picture at a time — her keenly observed film also treads in Frances Ha's footsteps. Both movies examine the self-destructive life choices of a twentysomething with a clear idea of what she wants everyone to think of her, but far less of a grasp on who she really is and what she genuinely needs. While some framing and music choices make that connection obvious, the astute delight that is Millie Lies Low is never a Wellington-set copy. Millie Lies Low screens at Sydney Film Festival until Thursday, June 16. It doesn't yet have an Australian release date post-SFF — we'll update you if and when it does. FIRE ISLAND Pride and Prejudice, but set on New York's Fire Island. That's it, that's the queer rom-com that shares its setting's name. Fire Island, the movie, even comes with its own Mr Darcy — here called Will and played by How to Get Away with Murder's Conrad Ricamora, who should enjoy the same career bump that Colin Firth did in the 90s when he stepped into the part in a far-more-faithful TV adaptation. Updating Jane Austen isn't new, of course. Bridget Jones' Diary, also famously starring Firth, did the same with Pride and Prejudice. Stone-cold classic Clueless, which gets a shoutout here in a perfectly co-opted line of dialogue, did it with Emma, too. One of Fire Island's best traits is how new yet comfortable it feels, though, like thumbing through a favourite but seeing it afresh — with hot tubs full of praise deserved by director Andrew Ahn (Spa Night, Driveways) and screenwriter/star Joel Kim Booster (Search Party, Sunnyside). Booster also boasts a writing credit on The Other Two, one of the best new TV comedies of the past few years — and that bitingly smart, laugh-a-minute tone shines through in Fire Island, too. He takes Austen's tale about love and class and steeps it within the queer community, its subdivisions and subcultures, and issues of race and socio-economic status that ripple through, as they do in America and the world more broadly. That's what Booster's self-confident Noah finds himself navigating on a week-long annual getaway with his best friends, and after he decides to put his pal Howie's (Bowen Yang, Saturday Night Live) romantic prospects above his own. If you know the OG story, you know what happens next, including Noah's path towards the initially stern, quiet and standoffish Will. The end product here is witty, funny, heartwarming and sincere, as well as supremely well cast, energetic from start to finish, and bursting with queer pride. Post-Sydney Film Festival, Fire Island hits streaming via Disney+ on Friday, June 17. CHA CHA REAL SMOOTH With Freshman Year, Cooper Raiff cemented himself as a talent to watch, both on- and off-screen. The writer, director, actor, editor and producer wore many hats on the likeable romance-meets-coming-of-age film, and he wore them all impressively and effortlessly. With Cha Cha Real Smooth, he hands over splicing duties, but he's just as ace in every other guise yet again. Winner of the Audience Award at this year's Sundance Film Festival, in the prestigious event's US Dramatic competition, this comedy also focuses on the fact that no one really knows how to handle life — this time centring its tale around the just-out-of-college Andrew (Raiff, Madeline & Cooper). The character returns home after graduating with the sole aim of making enough cash to follow his girlfriend to Spain, but falls into a gig hosting Bar Mitzvahs for his younger brother David's (Evan Assante, Dinosaur World) friends. Andrew falls in another way, too: in love with Domino (an exceptional Dakota Johnson, playing a mum again after The Lost Daughter), mother to Evan's classmate Lola (debutant Vanessa Burghardt). Lola has autism, is bullied by the other kids and usually finds herself ignored at parties, somewhat happily so; however, Andrew makes her feel comfortable and accepted, which doesn't go unnoticed. His growing fondness for Domino is complicated, though. So is the object of his affection herself — and, while more than half a century ago The Graduate splashed in a similar pool, Johnson brings her own shades and depths to a woman who is yearning for stability yet rallying against it. Everything also remains complex about Cha Cha Real Smooth's portrait of being a fresh college graduate with everything ahead of you and zero ideas of how what to truly do — and proves always-earnest as well, a description that applies to Raiff's work as Andrew and this low-key, insightful and charming movie alike. Post-Sydney Film Festival, Cha Cha Real Smooth hits streaming via Apple TV+ on Friday, June 17. The 2022 Sydney Film Festival runs between Wednesday, June 8–Sunday, June 19 at the State Theatre, Event Cinemas George Street, Dendy Newtown, Palace Central, Palace Norton Street, Hayden Orpheum Picture Palace Cremorne, Ritz Cinemas Randwick, Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre and Art Gallery of NSW. To check out the event's full program, or to buy tickets, head to the festival's website.
Beloved Sydney-based pastry chef Andy Bowdy is no stranger to big and bold flavours, with his imaginative cakes and desserts earning him a stellar reputation both in the culinary world and with online onlookers. With a host of standout collaborations under his belt, his latest arrives just in time for Easter, as he's teamed up with local whisky distillery Starward on a boozy holiday treat. For four days only, the boutique surrounds of Ace Hotel Sydney will play host to an adults-only experience that sees Andy's exclusive hot cross buns elevated with a citrus and whisky twist. Available only at Good Chemistry – Ace Hotel Sydney's laneway cafe – getting your hands on one is bound to make your Easter celebration even better. Bowdy has cooked up these limited-edition hot cross buns by soaking top-quality fruit in Starward Two-Fold Wheat and Single Malt Whisky. Baked to perfection, they make an outstanding pairing with another Starward tipple – the (New) Old Fashioned – a thoughtfully infused blend of whisky, orange bitters, and wattleseed and demerara syrup. "At Starward, we have always hung our hats on creating an accessible and versatile whisky for everyone, and this collaboration does exactly that. When fluffy hot cross buns meet our fruit-forward, Australian-made whisky, it's an unexpected match made in heaven. But this is what gets us out of bed every morning, pushing the boundaries of flavour to create something truly magical," says Dave Vitale, founder of Starward Whisky. The luxe location for this special event is no coincidence, with Bowdy serving as the current pastry chef at the Ace Hotel's rooftop restaurant, Kiln. While he famously never intended to become a pastry chef, it's safe to say he's made a good go of it. Available from Wednesday, April 16–Saturday, April 19, Bowdy's limited-run hot cross buns will be served at Good Chemistry from 7am until sold out. Take home a pack, eat in with a coffee, or enjoy with something stronger. If you're keen to sample Starward's wares, purchasing two or more buns comes with a voucher for a complimentary (New) Old Fashioned cocktail at Ace Hotel's Lobby Bar. Level up to six buns to redeem a complimentary 500ml bottle of the (New) Old Fashioned from Starward's website. Starward Whisky and Andy Bowdy's hot cross buns are available from Wednesday, April 16–Saturday, April 19 at Ace Hotel Sydney, 47-53 Wentworth Avenue, Sydney. Head to the website for more information. Images: Jiwon Kim.
Every year, runners from all over Victoria limber up for the Bendigo Bank Fun Run, a fundraiser for Bendigo Hospital. The event is split into a five-kilometre walk or run, or a ten-kilometre, 15-kilometre or half-marathon run. So, whether you're a pro who barely breaks a sweat or you can't stand running and would prefer to stroll at a leisurely pace, there's an event for you. There will also be dedicated colour stations positioned along the track to add a little more excitement to the festivities. All you have to do is register online — as either an individual or team — and then start training. All entrants who make it across the finish line will score a medallion and a free brekkie loaded with healthy goodness courtesy of The Spotless.
It is shocking to think that there is only one holiday a year that truly cries out for a French-themed party. Why don't we have Croissant Day? Or Baguette Day? Romance and Cheese Day could easily be a thing. Still, we do have Bastille Day, and that isn't going anywhere, despite Russell Crowe proving that he absolutely cannot sing. Bastille Day is important because it celebrates the beginning of the French Revolution — that bloodthirsty struggle for freedom, equality and fraternity. When "the people" stormed the Bastille and seized the military stores, an entire decade of idealism, savagery and carnage started. So why celebrate such a heady (and often headless) period? Because it's about seizing control and brandishing baguettes and bringing about the end of feudalism. Being independent and being proud and well, being French, basically. Along with the start of a new nation, the revolution also saw the explosion of French culture — a culture that Sydney has continually adapted and played with. Compiled here is a list of Sydney's best and most fun French. Carpe diem at one of them this weekend. 1. Claude's Claude's, Woollahra's fine dining stalwart, has ditched the whole grown up thing. When it comes to the space, that is. This Oxford Street veteran has been reborn as a chic, vibrant and airy restaurant; an almost unrecognisable transformation from the proper white table-clothed eatery it once was. Downstairs you'll find a compact bar offering a finely tuned wine list and a selection of smaller dishes such as the souffle a la suissesse, hot and sour mussels and a black fungus relish sandwich. Upstairs is where the serious degustation is at. French culture bonus: Stop in at Palace Verona for the Dans la Maison (In the House), the latest darkly comic French drama from high-profile director Francois Ozon (8 Women, Swimming Pool) 2. Felix If Felix was in a Paris arrondissement rather than the Sydney CBD, no one would blink a perfectly curled eyelash. From the (sometimes) French waiters bustling around the tiled floors to the decadent crustacean bar and elaborate murals on the ceiling, Felix is the bistro the city deserved. It’s a humming, buzzing, people-watchers delight: all beautiful wooden finishes, crisp white table cloths and intricate tiling. All the classic French cues are here: the ever-changing ‘Plat du Jour’, the rotisserie section and that incredible oyster bar. Bastille Day: Felix is celebrating La Fete Nationale by offering three courses with a glass of Ruinart champagne for $100pp for lunch or dinner. They'll also host live entertainment. Bookings call (02) 9240 3000. 3. Ananas An interesting mix of old-school French cuisine and new-world glamour, this sultry restaurant will wow even the most apprehensive amongst us. Contrary to the area's out-of-date pubs populated by tourists, Ananas is a cocktail, champagne and oyster bar extravaganza with an art deco-inspired restaurant and late-night supper club. It's time to join us in indulging what's on offer here, because it's all just brilliantly joie de vivre. Bastille Day: Ananas is celebrating the Bastille Day weekend with a party on Saturday, 13 July, from 6pm until late with free entry. Held at Bar Ananas, guests can enjoy all things French, including canapes, special champagne offers, DJs and live entertainment. Then on Sunday there's a Bastille Day lunch, where a special a la carte menu created by new head chef Paul McGrath will be served. To make a reservation for either call (02) 9259 5668 or email reservations@ananas.com.au. French culture bonus: It's just a hop and a skip over The Rocks to Sydney Theatre for The Maids, the famous French play by Jean Genet about two maids (Cate Blanchett and Isabelle Huppert) dreaming of killing their mistress (Elizabeth Debicki). 4. Absinthesalon Absinthesalon has been around for a while now, and it doesn't really get old. It's still like stepping into another world. This is not only because of the absinthe itself, as we hear that this bohemian drink-of-choice doesn't quite possess the hallucinogenic qualities that it once did. Tucked away in an unassuming corner building in Surry Hills, the interior is dressed to a T as an authentic 'Parisien' cafe. In the middle of each table sits a fountain, surrounded by the various accoutrements of the spirit — silver spoons and cubes of fine French sugar. Absinthe, clearly, is more than just an aperitif, and this salon is its Utopian home. Bastille Day: The Absinthesalon is going all-out with an Off with Their Heads Bastille Day Soiree on Saturday, July 12. Bookings advisable. 5. Le Petite Creme No revolution before breakfast. The French have a reputation for being, how do you say, outrageous? Le Petit Creme fits the genre perfectly: it has a reputation and it is most certainly outrageous. If it's service you're after, this tiny cafe might not be your first pick — the waitstaff tend to be casual at best. However, if you're searching for an absurdly luxurious breakfast feast, you've found the right place. The Eggs Benedict is the star attraction — deliciously runny eggs, rich hollandaise and your choice of ham or salmon on freshly toasted brioche. 6. Le Pelican On Bourke Street sits this quaint French restaurant. A stone's throw from Taylor Square and the flurry of hipsters hanging at Lo-Fi, Johnny Wong's, or nearby Beresford, it's hard to believe that one could experience something so removed from the familiar. Le Pelican offers a unique experience marked by authentic French cuisine in only the most delightful of settings. Ditch the Hills' common haunts for a night and try the road less trodden. The Coorong Angus onglet with potato mille-feuille (layered pastry) and sauce vierge (olive oil, lemon, tomato, and basil) was almost like the stuff of our dreams. Bastille Day: Le Pelican is offering a special Bastille Day menu for lunch or dinner, for $75pp or $105 with matching wines. 7. Le Pub Le Pub is one of those confused places that's somehow just right for Bastille Day. Le Pub still has "le pokies room" and the appearance of a traditional basement pub: no windows and darkly lit. But then there's the pleasant tiled back area, with Scrabble-like words connected to the French theme, and a gastro menu. There's not a huge indicator that the theme of the bar is anything Gallic related outside of the menu, really, which may explain the simplicity of the name, as almost to say to customers, "look, it's slightly Frenchie but you can get a pint here too." Bastille Day: Le Pub is throwing a soiree on Friday, July 12, and will have meal specials all weekend long. They also promise can-can dancers and a Parisien discotheque. 8. La Banette If you just want a slice of France rather than a whole feast, stop by La Banette. The Glebe patisserie-cafe oozes with French charm right from the baked goods to the delightful 'petit miams' in the glass cabinets. Even the provincial-like striped awning out front is indicative of a boulangerie and the wooden furnishings and baskets holding baguettes add a rustic touch. But it's not the decor that you're here for. No, no. It's the flaky pastries and intense chocolate slices of opera sitting alongside the chocolate eclairs that are filled with the creamiest of custards. It's the almond croissants and pain au chocolats that have been handcrafted with passion. 9. La Croix Given that the walk down Greenknowe Avenue into Elizabeth Bay looks faintly Parisian, it's a suprise there aren't more French establishments in the area. La Croix is a goodie, though. There is a strong adherence to classical decor, with white marble Hellenic sculptures and tables, and you can pick up a croissant, an artwork, and a large clay pot for your olive tree in one fell swoop, as they're also a gift shop. Their specialty is the 'tartine', which literally means 'a slice of bread' but it is more like an open sandwich with a sweet or savoury topping. Many kinds are available, from smoked trout to roast beef. Bastille Day: A special menu awaits, as well as a free glass of champagne upon arrival. Look out for French toast and beef bourguignon and tarte tatin. 10. La Grillade Tucked away in a quiet corner of Crows Nest is a cheap alternative to a holiday in Provence. An unassuming cottage on the outside, inside La Grillade is both Gallic hominess and sober modernity. From the same people who brought you the new Vicinity Dining in Alexandria, La Grillade is the North Shore equivalent to Ananas, if less show-offy in appearance. By the Concrete Playground team.
UPDATE: APRIL 21, 2020 — Wholegreen's CBD bakery is currently closed, but the original Waverley outpost is still open for takeaway and delivery. You can place an order for its gluten free bread, croissants, muffins and sausage rolls via the website. When you're used to having only one option on a menu, it's easy to be flawed with indecision when you actually have to make a choice. So be patient if the queue sometimes stalls at Wholegreen Bakery — everything here is 100 percent gluten-free, and the options for coeliac and gluten intolerant Sydneysiders are delightfully extensive. Owner Cherie Lyden got into gluten-free when her daughter was diagnosed as coeliac and needed to eliminate gluten from her diet. She quickly found she was "disappointed with what was available on the market" and, in an effort to lift the — sometime dismal — standards of gluten-free products, she started doing what no one else was doing at the time: making actually good gluten-free bread. She's operated the wholesale side of the business for five years now, and the Waverley cafe for three. The bakery is particularly exciting for coeliacs because the kitchen is completely gluten-free, so nothing at Wholegreen has the chance to be cross contaminated. Coeliacs have a sensitive reaction to even a small trace of gluten, so much so, that baking 'gluten-free' loaves in the same oven as regular bread (or even putting them in the same toaster) essentially strips it of its gluten-free credentials. To that end, Lyden says that Wholegreen "provides a space where people can eat with confidence". It took Lyden and her team of bakers around six months of testing and tweaking to get the sourdough recipe right — that is, crusty on the outside, chewy on the inside, and without the use of preservatives and gums. At the shop, she sells straight-up loaves alongside seeded, fruit and olive ones for $8.50 each, as well as baguettes and rolls. Everything is baked in-house each morning, meaning that baguettes on the front counter (filled with ham, cheese and salad) can be eaten fresh — a rare occurrence in gluten-free sandwich eating. And, yes, there are pastries. Pastries! But only on Fridays and Saturdays. On those days, the kitchen team rolls out mounds of flaky, glossy croissants (plain and almond), pain au chocolats, pain aux raisins, fruit danishes and caramel twists. They're denser and more cakey than regular croissants — and they're usually all sold out by mid-morning. Other, week-round treats, may include muffins, lemon tarts, chocolate eclairs and fruit-filled brioche rolls. Savoury pastries abound, too, with sausage rolls, chicken and mushroom pies, and spinach and feta pasties served hot. There are a few spots in the cafe and some tables out the front to sit down with your gluten-free goods and a coffee. It's largely used as a takeaway spot, and you'll see lots of people taking a haul home. We recommend driving around the corner to Clovelly to eat by the beach. If, despite your best efforts, you can't get to Waverley on a Saturday, you can find Wholegreen (and its croissants) at Carriageworks Farmers Market and the North Sydney Produce Market each week. Plus, you can also place an order through local food delivery platform Food by Us. Images: Kitti Gould. Updated: January 15, 2020.
Australian brothers Mike and Scott Norrie are onto a winner. While traveling through Africa, they were inspired to create a way to share music sustainably, and came up with Tembo Trunks. These silicone speakers integrate with your earphones, amplifying the sound to 80 decibels. Foldable, stackable, washable and virtually indestructible, they are the ultimate in sustainable speakers as they require no power, are made up of one material and are designed to last. The speakers are meant for use in a casual setting. "Don't expect to bust an eardrum or feel the ground shake when you're playing your music," say the Norrie brothers, "that's kinda the point." They're a great addition to any traveller's suitcase, and will soon be available in a range of bright colours. As a clever way of raising seed funding, the team allow you to pre-order a set of speakers by backing Tembo Trunks on Kickstarter. For a lazy ten grand you can even become the 'Chief of Colour' and the brothers will fly you to Sydney and cook you a beach-side BBQ. https://youtube.com/watch?v=IU2NVxN6zck [Via PSFK]
It's no overstatement to describe Neil Perry — the restaurateur, chef and revered doyen of Australian cooking — as an icon. Now, however, it's official. On Thursday, June 6, Perry was announced as the winner of the Woodford Reserve Icon Award at a glitzy ceremony in Las Vegas for The World's 50 Best Restaurant Awards 2024, one of the culinary scene's most prestigious gongs. The achievement, which is voted for by an international panel of 1080 industry experts, recognises an outstanding contribution to the hospitality industry that's deemed worthy of global notice. "Throughout my career, I've been incredibly lucky to work with some of the finest hospitality professionals in the world, doing what I love and creating memorable experiences for people to enjoy," said Perry of his accomplishment. "I hope this award inspires everyone in our industry to keep going and to never give up." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Neil Perry (@chefneilperry) For more than four decades, Perry has been a guiding light of Sydney's restaurant scene. Cutting his teeth in some of the city's top kitchens, including Sails in Rose Bay, he first made his mark in 1986 when he launched the Blue Water Grill in Bondi. However, it was his next major venture — and arguably his most famous — that would catapult him to global stardom. Opened in 1989, Rockpool quickly asserted itself as not only one of Sydney's top fine-diners, but also one of the nation's — and in 2002, it was ranked the fourth best place to eat on the planet by The World's 50 Best Restaurant Awards. Today it has grown to be a cherished brand, with sister venues in Perth and Melbourne. Despite Perry stepping down as the group's Culinary Director in 2020, it continues his storied legacy, ranking as the eighth best steak restaurant in the world in May 2024. [caption id="attachment_960466" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Kitti Gould[/caption] One of Perry's defining traits is his ability to project his love and understanding of food through many cultural lenses. From Asian to Italian and even burgers and aeroplane food, Perry's menus are a fusion of top-tier produce and craftsmanship with an accessible attitude and a belief that cooking doesn't need to be gastronomically pretentious to be exceptional. Take, for example, his most recent venture Margaret, a deeply personal "neighbourhood restaurant" named for Perry's deceased mother. Despite its humble billing, the judging panel noted that at Margaret, diners experience "a veteran bringing together his love of super-fresh seafood and Asian flavours to outstanding effect". It also currently ranked as the third best steak restaurant in the world. Since opening Margaret in 2021, Perry has extended his presence on Double Bay's Guilfoyle Avenue to the Baker Bleu bakery next door, and he has two more venues preparing to open in the area in late August: Asian-inspired diner Song Bird and cocktail bar Bobby's. [caption id="attachment_961054" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Petrina Tinslay[/caption] The only other Australian to be recognised by this year's The 50 Best Restaurants Awards was Josh Niland, whose revolutionary low-to-no waste seafood diner Saint Peter placed 98th on the 100-venue longlist. Perry is one of Australia's most-decorated chefs, having earned more Good Food Chef's Hats (Australia's answer to Michelin stars) than any other individual in the country, as well as numerous other accolades. However, this latest laurel makes the point most definitively: if you're someone with even a glancing interest in eating well, you need to experience a dish crafted by Perry at least once in your life. [caption id="attachment_961135" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Petrina Tinslay[/caption] For the full rundown of The World's 50 Best Restaurants Awards 2024, head to the list's website. Top image: Petrina Tinslay.
Affordable brekkie and lunch in the CBD from an award-winning hospitality team — you don't come by that very often. But, that's exactly what you'll find at This Way Canteen. Located at the Museum of Sydney between Circular Quay and The Domain, the charming spot comes from House Made Hospitality, the crew behind the winning formula of Hinchcliff House, Promenade and Martinez. Described as a "good-times sandwich bunker", This Way Canteen presents a simple crowd-pleasing menu with fresh produce at the core — plus, it won't break the bank, with all of the sandwiches here under $16. If you're on the hunt for a quick and easy lunch, set your sights on one of these foccacia sambos, ranging in fillings like spicy falafel and a classic schnitty to ramen pork or grilled mango chicken. Maybe it's Friday and you want to give yourself a little treat? Well, just opt for the lunchtime special which includes the loaded schnitzel sandwich and a beer for $20. That's a bona fide bargain. If you're in earlier in the morning, the breakfast menu also offers plenty of options around the $12-14 mark including, granola, B&Es and next-level English muffins. Finally, there are the drinks. A robust coffee selection is on offer alongside juices and a few boozy lunchtime offerings including beers, wines and Four Pillars yuzu gin and soda. Images: Steven Woodburn
When Dexter wrapped up its blood-splattered run back in 2013, it left plenty of fans wanting more. By now, the fact that almost every beloved TV show arises from the dead at some point is hardly new news — see also: Gossip Girl, Saved By the Bell, Twin Peaks and the upcoming Sex and the City small-screen sequel series, just to name a few — but resurrecting television's mild-mannered forensics expert by day, serial killer by night feels particularly fitting. So, get ready to watch your way through Dexter: New Blood, which sees Michael C Hall (Shadowplay) return as Dexter Morgan. The series wouldn't be worth it without him, obviously. He leads a ten-episode limited series that's due to hit the US on Sunday, November 7 and then arrive Down Under via new streaming platform Paramount+, although exactly when it'll start streaming locally hasn't yet been revealed. Hall isn't the only familiar face making a comeback, either, with Jennifer Carpenter (Dragged Across Concrete) set to return as Dexter's sister Debra. If you're wondering how that works because you remember how the original series ended, the just-dropped full sneak peek for the Dexter revival gives a few more details. John Lithgow (Perry Mason) is also coming back as the Trinity Killer — presumably in flashbacks, given the character's fate the first time around. As both the show's first teaser trailer and this new glimpse demonstrate, eight years have passed when Dexter: New Blood kicks off, just as they have for audiences. Accordingly, the series finds its namesake living a quiet life in the small town of Iron Lake, New York, and trying to forgo his murderous urges. He's going by the name Jim Lindsay, which nods to author Jeff Lindsay, who penned the series of novels the show was initially based on — and he seems happy in his new life. But then Dexter's new hometown is rocked by unexpected events, and his old ways start calling again. As fans saw over and over in Dexter's original eight-season run, resisting picking up a knife isn't all that easy for the program's protagonist. Both trailers feature plenty of blades, all within its namesake's vicinity. And if you're wondering what else to expect, the cast also includes Julia Jones (The Mandalorian), Alano Miller (Sylvie's Love), Johnny Sequoyah (Believe), Jack Alcott (The Good Lord Bird) and Clancy Brown (Promising Young Woman). And, this new trailer comes with a big surprise at the end as well. Check out the latest Dexter: New Blood trailer below: Dexter: New Blood is set to stream in Australia via Paramount+. The new series will start airing in the US from Sunday, November 7; however, an exact streaming date Down Under hasn't been announced as yet — we'll update you when it is.
Whatever holiday plans you already have for 2023, you might want to change them — or add another getaway to your itinerary. As part of its efforts to kickstart its pandemic-era tourism industry, Hong Kong has announced a massive airfare giveaway to entice visitors to make the trip. You know what to do: clear your calendar, check your annual leave balance and dust off your suitcase. From March–May, the Hong Kong Tourism Board and the Airport Authority Hong Kong will team up with three local airlines — Cathay Pacific Airways, Hong Kong Express and Hong Kong Airlines — to hand out 500,000 free airline tickets. While many of the specifics are still to be revealed, the giveaway is being called 'World of Winners' and will focus on tickets from southeast Asia in March, then from mainland China in April, and finally from northeast Asia and the rest of the world in May. That's when the fares will be up for grabs. When you'll need to travel is still to be confirmed. To nab tickets, you'll need to hop over to either the World of Winners website or each airline's designated page — and each carrier might do their giveaways differently. So, some free tickets might be available via a lucky draw and others on a first-come-first-served basis, or a buy-one-get-one-free arrangement could apply. [caption id="attachment_887782" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Hong Kong Tourism Board[/caption] Free flights are just one aspect of an overall global promotional campaign named 'Hello Hong Kong'. Another: free drink, dining, shopping and transport vouchers, with at least a million up for grabs from 16,000-plus outlets. Dubbed 'Hong Kong Goodies', these freebies will be available to folks visiting Hong Kong for 90 days or less — and you'll have to pick just one offer. So, you can choose between a welcome drink valued at more than HK$100 at one of more than 100 bars, restaurants and hotels; a HK$100 cash voucher to use at 140-plus restaurants, shops or attractions; or a gift worth more than HK$100 at a heap of Hong Kong attractions and museums. With the current exchange rate, whichever of these three goodies you pick equates to around AU$18 / NZ$20 — but it's still a freebie. [caption id="attachment_887783" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Hong Kong Tourism Board[/caption] There are caveats for these vouchers, of course. First, you have have to have a non-Hong Kong mobile number to obtain them — and, at the moment, they have to be collected from a Hong Kong Tourism Board Visitor Centre once you're there. That said, more redemption methods are set to be added. Visitors to Hong Kong have until December 31, 2023 to collect their goodies — and once you have chosen your coupon, you can't swap it. "Hong Kong is back on the map for global travellers, with more excitement to offer than ever before. We are extending a biggest welcome to the world through the 'Hello Hong Kong' campaign, inviting friends from everywhere as they return to one of the world's greatest tourism destinations," said Hong Kong Tourism Board Chairman Dr Pang Yiu-ka. "I am confident that Hong Kong's vibrant east-meets-west culture, together with our iconic and brand-new attractions and immersive experiences will attract travellers back for an epic, unforgettable journey." For folks living in Hong Kong, the Tourism Board's new promo scheme will also include additional free flights to locals holidaying outside of the country, but not until July. In total, more than 700,000 airfares will be handed out to overseas visitors and Hong Kong residents. For more information about Hong Kong's World of Winners flights giveaway, head to the initiative's website. For more information about the 'Hong Kong Goodies' vouchers, head to that scheme's website. Top image: Hong Kong Tourism Board. Feeling inspired to book a getaway? You can now book your next dream holiday through Concrete Playground Trips with deals on flights, stays and experiences at destinations all around the world.
Calling all sneakerheads: you can get your kicks while looking at kicks at Australia's new Sneakers Unboxed: Studio to Street exhibition. Making its debut Down Under, this wide-ranging showcase has arrived at Gold Coast's HOTA Gallery, where it's making its only Aussie stop. It's always a good idea to wear trainers when you're walking around a gallery, but they're obviously the only footwear that'll do here. First staged by The Design Museum in London, Sneakers Unboxed: Studio to Street pays tribute to the footwear's origins and evolution — through sports to fashion, surveying iconic brands and names, and obviously touching upon basketballers Chuck Taylor and Michael Jordan's relationships with the shoes. In total, more than 200 sneakers are on display at exhibition's six-level Australian base, with HOTA giving over its walls and halls to shoes, shoes and more shoes for the summer of 2023–24. Sneakers Unboxed: Studio to Street started on on Saturday, November 25, and marks the site's first major design exhibition since opening in 2021. While a hefty amount of trainers feature, the entire showcase includes 400-plus items. The other objects at Sneakers Unboxed: Studio to Street span photos, videos, posters, artworks and process material, all helping to explore the journey that the footwear style has taken in its design and culturally. Attendees can learn more about sneakers that were initially made specifically for getting sweaty, which is where the Converse Chuck Taylor All Stars and Nike Airs come in (and, with the latter, to add to a year that's already seen the movie Air step through the story behind them). Also featuring: the shoes that've become cultural symbols (such as the Vans Half Cab and Reebok InstaPump Fury), future advancements in making kicks (as seen with Biorealize for Puma) and big-name collaborations (Jordan, of course, plus Run-DMC and more). From there, visitors can check out sneakers that've made a splash on the runway (Comme des Carçons and A-Cold-Wall*, for instance), find out more about plant-based sneakers (such as Veja and Native Shoes) and customisable kicks (as Helen Kirkum and Alexander Taylor are doing), and dive into celebrity endorsements (Travis Scott with Nike, Pharell for Adidas and the like). Laid out in chapters called 'STYLE' and 'PERFORMANCE', the exhibition's first part goes big on aesthetics and its second on the act of making the best trainers — covering Chuck Taylor's basketball clinics, sneaker culture in New York City and everything that's happened since. Also, Sneakers Unboxed: Studio to Street's Aussie run isn't forgetting its location, adding rare homegrown shoes and collaborations to the mix. Remember the Nike Air Presto that the Australian Olympic team wore at Sydney 2000? You'll see it here. The same with the New Balance 997.5 Tassie Tiger and BespokeIND's Melbourne Rules, with the latter made for the 2016 AFL grand final. Sneakers Unboxed: Studio to Street is the Gold Coast venue's second huge Australian-exclusive in 2023, following Pop Masters: Art From the Mugrabi Collection, New York and its focus on Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring from February–June. In 2024, the site will welcome Italian Renaissance Alive, the latest multi-sensory art experience from the folks behind Van Gogh Alive and Monet in Paris, giving both locals and tourists alike plenty of reasons to drop by. Sneakers Unboxed: Studio to Street opened on Saturday, November 25 at HOTA Gallery, 135 Bundall Road, Surfers Paradise Gold Coast — head to the exhibition's website for further details and tickets. Images: Milk and Honey Creative.
