The 2019 Barunga Festival wrapped up last Sunday, and it was a jam-packed 3 days of music, arts, sport and culture. Approximately 4000 people travel to the festival at Barunga, which is 80 km south-east of Katherine. Away from the music stages there was plenty going on. Sporting teams from all over the Northern Territory…
This week has seen Sunshine Coast singer-songwriter and musician Angharad Drake drop her new single “Start Again”, her first since the release of her debut album Ghost in 2017, and since becoming a mother. On “Start Again”, Drake has returned to a more stripped back style of making music, erring towards the intimate and natural….
After a huge arena tour back in 2017, composer Hans Zimmer will return to our shores for three massive shows later this year. With stunning visuals, an expansive lightshow, and, of course, iconic movie music, Hans Zimmer Live will wow audiences in Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne this coming October. “Performing a concert series likeHans Zimmer…
Next year, the king of documentaries will be back on Australian shores for the first time following his sold out 2016 tour. Louis Without Limits will see the BAFTA winning investigative reporter explore some of the stories that made his career, in a series of shows with Australia’s own Julia Zemiro. Theroux says: “It was…
For the 2019 edition of Sydney Contemporary, more than 85 galleries from across the country and around the globe will come together at Carriageworks for four days of Australasia’s largest and most diverse art fair. Five different continents will be represented, showcasing over 300 artists from more than 30 different countries, including France, Japan, New…
An impending wedding often brings out the worst in people. Familial and societal expectations collide with capitalism at the extreme of feminine expression. The wedding industrial complex magnifies every insecurity and extracts large sums from its subjects. Where women on the larger end of the body spectrum deal with constant reminders and callouts regarding their…
Anywhere Festival is in full swing in the River City and while theatre fans are hopping from one curious venue to another, Jane from H.R. is hosting her first orgy at the Metropolitan Motor Inn in Brisbane’s Spring Hill. Presented by Lady Beard & Co., Gumtree Orgy is both wickedly funny and heart-achingly timely, as…
Improv inspired by audience submitted real news stories, performed at the iconic ABC building in South Bank? Small wonder that Real Live Fake News‘ one night only performance has already sold out, and has a wait list for tickets! We caught up with performer and producer Ben Keane ahead of Friday night’s show, to talk…
After thirty seven years, Barnum: The Circus Musical – which debuted on Broadway in 1980 – has returned to Australia for a strictly limited season. This astounding blend of musical theatre and circus acts lights up Melbourne’s iconic Comedy Theatre and fills it with laughs, awe, and magic for a night of pure fun. Set…
Performance artist and teacher Dorothy May has a one night only engagement in Brisbane this weekend, as part of May’s annual Anywhere Festival. Ahead of her show at events-space-cum-circus-school The Sideshow, located in Brisbane’s West End, we caught up with her for a quick chat! First of all, what’s I Can Fly about? This show…
Global phenomenon Bingo Loco is heading back to our shores in just a few short weeks, bringing its hectic blend of conga lines, lip sync battles, and wild prizes to venues all over Australia. Buckle up kids, because this ain’t your granny’s bingo night! The wacky brainchild of three childhood friends, Bingo Loco began life…
Celebrated symphonic video game concert Distant Worlds: Music from Final Fantasy will head to Melbourne this August for a single magical performance. Featuring music from numerous Final Fantasy games by long-time series composers Nobuo Uematsu and Yoko Shimomura, with music direction by Grammy-winning artist and conductor Arnie Roth, this will be a really special night…
The Omega Ensemble are Sydney’s Chamber music all-stars. In July, the group will feature in a world premiere. Young composer, Nico Muhly has composed, American Masters, especially for this troupe. The work looks poised to draw heavily on his inspirations like Philip Glass and Steve Reich. The Ensemble held a fundraiser for this new work…
Contemporary act-plus-orchestra shows aren’t a new phenomenon in rock, with arena-size bands churning out orchestral projects since the 80’s; an attempt at legitimising corporate rock, re-selling already existing albums and making mums proud. With dance music reaching maturity, EDM acts and DJs are beginning to jump on the bandwagon as their audiences age and new…
Widely regarded as one of the greatest musicals of all time, the original 1957 production of West Side Story stunned audiences and changed the game for American musical theatre going forward. Since then there have been a multitude of productions focused on retelling this timeless story to new audiences. In 1961 it received a film…
Splendour in the Grass dominated music news this week with the unveil of their 2019 line-up, which is headlined by millennial hip hop heroes Chance the Rapper and Childish Gambino, as well as world-conquering Aussies Tame Impala and Top Dawg Entertainment crooner SZA. Not just on-trend, it’s exciting as hell. But as always, Splendour is…
Celebrities and guests walk the red carpet for the Opening Night of Saturday Night Fever playing now at the Lyric Theatre until June 2nd 2019. You can purchase your tickets HERE.
The 1994 motion picture Muriel’s Wedding, written and directed by PJ Hogan, thrust stars Toni Collette and Rachel Griffiths to International stardom and instantly became an Australian cult classic. Grossing an equivalent of AU$117 million, today, even those unfamiliar with its origins know its iconic quotes. Now adapted into a humorous, smart and colourful stage…
It was Wet Side Story at Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour on Friday night. Leonard Bernstein’s Broadway classic was an emotionally-charged and important affair. It may have been over 60 years since this musical first premiered in the States, but its themes and feel remain as fresh and resonant as ever. This production is the…
Celebrities and guests walked the red carpet for the opening night of Handa Opera’s West Side Story currently playing at Mrs Macquaries Point in Sydney Harbour, until 21st April 2019. For tickets and more details, head HERE.
Set to return to Australia for dates in July, comedian Ronny Chieng has been making a name for himself in the USA as a correspondent on the Comedy Central series The Daily Show with Trevor Noah. While at SXSW last week I had the opportunity to sit down with him to talk about that role,…
One of the more obscure installations at this year’s Adelaide Fringe was the pop-up store, Self – Human Soap. Nestled away in King William Street in the CBD, it looks as inviting as any other high-end beauty store, but this store has a marked difference to the others. Schuldfabrik is a German word, where ‘schuld’…
It’s always worth paying close attention when a Las Vegas production signs on for a substantial extension, even years after it has already been playing in the same spot. It means the show has become its own sizable piece in the endless jigsaw of culture, class and crass that is a typical night on the…
The Adelaide Fringe is over for another successful year and Club Briefs was the perfect way to celebrate the final evening. The Briefs Factory is an Australian creative collective who “manufacture, cultivate and present evocative, irreverent, physical performance”. Our MC for the night is Shivannah, who is sassy, loud and irreverent. Her costume changes between…
Israeli-born, London-based choreographer, Hofesh Shechter has had an impressive CV since 2007, when he released his critically acclaimed work “In your rooms”. Grand Finale is the first of his full-length works to be presented in Australia as part of the Adelaide Festival. The Hofesh Schechter Company is a diverse group of international dancers from eight…
There are 360 degrees in a circle and this performance is full of “all-round” “Allstars” (get it?). This show is fast paced and an enjoyable demonstration of bike riding, freestyle rapping, drumming, basketball tricks, cyr wheel and more. The music and lighting give extra energy to an already energised group of performers. The added bonus…
It would be a mistake to describe Foehn as a puppet show. Not because that is wrong, but because it is much more than that. French performance artist Phia Ménard became a juggler, performance artist and director of the Compagnie Non Nova in the 1990’s. She describes the movement of air as being present at…
The Redhead Cabaret is a company of red-haired performers with a mission to share all the energy and pizzaz that this genetic disposition boasts. So reads the manifesto to this late night cabaret. As the sold out crowd fills the tent, a schoolteacher with a whip and a boy in a g-string stand on stage…
For Sama is an emotionally gripping diary filmed by journalist Waad al-Kateab and Edward Watts. Kateab recorded her life during the Battle of Aleppo (2012-16) in Syria. She had a mission: to bring light on the injustices on Syrians under President Assad’s regime and the fight for freedom. Not only did she cover what was…
Tim Ferguson is probably best known as one of the members of the comedy trio Doug Anthony All Stars that were particularly popular on Australian television screens in the late 80’s. In this Adelaide Fringe performance, Ferguson chats to us about his life and times, including his diagnosis with Multiple Sclerosis; “Why have just one…
