Sophie Foster, a WAAPA graduate and contemporary vocalist, was the main headliner for the first night of the Perth International Jazz Festival. Instead of attempting to conjure sonic textures via paragraphs of high falutin’ words, I’ll just say that her r’n’b/neo-soul stylings reminded me a lot of Alicia Keys and a little bit of Prince, two…
If you’re looking for a drug-free night where you’ll still be tripping, I recommend booking VIP tickets to Matt Hollywood’s Illusions Magic Show; although it’s been rumoured that Matt Hollywood doesn’t really exist. Rumour has it that he’s a figure of the imagination, an illusion that can disappear in the blink of an eye. He…
Tonight, Vivid officially kicks off in Sydney with the lighting of the Opera House sails and performances under them – with indie rock stars Fleet Foxes one of the big opening night attractions. Around the city, projections, lights and artworks will give locals and tourists alike the chance to explore Sydney in a new way….
Mumu Mike Williams has become the first ever winner of the Footscray Art Prize, taking out the title from more than 800 worthy admissions. The Pitjantjatjara artist’s entry, Postbag Painting, used re purposed Australia Post canvas mailbags to create the winning piece. The Prize, currently in its first year, is a unique collaboration between Victoria…
ASOS Supports Talent is a global initiative which helps young creatives turn their ambitions into real-life projects. One of the talent selected for 2017 is dance activist and choreographer, Amrita Hepi. With a practice that focuses on intersectionality, Hepi choreographed four routines with four dancers who she considers to embody incredibly political practices. The separate pieces…
The Patrick White Playwrights’ Awards will be taking place tomorrow night at The Wharf. The winner will receive $7,500 and the opportunity to work with a director and actors, as well as have a rehearsed reading of their play at the event. This year 106 entries were received, and from those 106 the following five…
Since 1992, Primavera has helped kick-start the careers of young Australian artists aged 35 and under. Now in its 26th edition, the class of Primavera 2017 have been selected and will showcase their work at the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia from the 23rd of August. Curator Sophia Koyoumdjjan will work with eight artists handpicked…
Mark Vincent is an insanely busy opera singer. In a show of how much of a workhorse he is, Vincent has released seven albums since winning the third season of Australia’s Got Talent. More recently he’s been performing as part of the current Australian production of My Fair Lady, which somehow has been interspersed with recording his…
Aladdin has been drawing massive crowds since it hit the stage at Her Majesty’s in Melbourne. We have given you our opinions here at the Arts on the AU about the performances in Sydney and Melbourne and many interviews with cast and crew of the productions showing in Australia. Just after the Melbourne production, book writer of…
The Northern Territory Government has this week announced the appointment of Rhonda Roberts AO (Order of Australia) as curator of the second annual Parrtjima – A Festival in Light event in Alice Springs, which will run from Friday 22nd September to Sunday 1st October 2017. A Festival in Light is the first authentic indigenous festival of…
Liz Newell and Emily McLean have returned to The Blue Room Theatre with Toast, a charming exploration of grief, loss, and family. Following the sudden death of their mother, three sisters come together to clear out their childhood home. The headstrong Candice (Alison Van Reeken), recovering alcoholic Alex (Amy Mathews), and adoptive sister Sydney (Anna…
Yirramboi First Nations Festival kicked off in Melbourne on the 5th of May for 10 days bringing with it a city wide ‘blakout’ of more than 60 events, including dance, music, visual art, film and discussions in laneways, art spaces and public places. As part of the program the “The National Indigenous Dance Forum” was…
International best selling recording artist and concert performer Richard Clayderman is in Sydney performing two concerts at Palais Theatre, Melbourne on Friday 2 and Saturday 3 June. Richard Clayderman’s distinctive piano style has earned him superstar status all over the world. Today he has recorded over 1,200 melodies and, in the words of a German…
The full Australian cast for the global musical sensation MAMMA MIA! has been announced, with Natalie O’Donnell leading the pack. Starring as mother-of-the-bride Donna Sheridan (the role brought to life by Meryl Streep in the 2008 film) the production will see O’Donnell coming full circle, having played the role of Donna’s daughter Sophie in the…
Australian cruisers will be amongst the first to see the newest show by Oscar®, Grammy® & Tony Award®-winning composer Stephen Schwartz. His first musical production (which showed on Emerald Princess during its six month season cruising out of Sydney last summer) Magic to Do– combined his lifelong fascination with magic with some of his most famous…
Melbourne’s Regent Theatre was filled up to the brim with people for My Fair Lady on Tuesday night, in anticipation for yet another classic tale of, well… not-quite-love, but respectability and a blossoming companionship. My Fair Lady needs no introduction. Its a story that has been cherished since the film of the 1940s, and as George…
Only Heaven Knows is a beloved musical set in the 1940s and 1950s, telling the story of one young man’s discovery of love and life in Sydney. Having just finished his critically acclaimed Puck in STC’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Sydney Opera House, Matthew Backer will now make his Hayes Theatre Co. debut as Alan in Only Heaven Knows….
Only Heaven Knows is a beloved musical set in the 1940s and 1950s, telling the story of one young man’s discovery of love and life in Sydney. Playing the dual role of Lea/Lana is Hayden Tee. This will mark Hayden’s return to Australia after his multi award-winning performance of Javert in Les Misérables, which he reprised on Broadway and will soon be…
Simon Griffin‘s pocket book dedicated to punctuation, Fucking Apostrophes, should be a permanent fixture on everyone’s desk. The 62 page resource is crammed full of just about every possible use of the apostrophe in the English language, delivered with a great deal of humour and ultimately leaving you with the thought: “Why the fuck are…
The experience of the hit comedy The Play That Goes Wrong, currently touring Australia, starts before you enter the room, as cast members walk around the foyer, greeting guests, engaging in arguments and letting you know that they’ve lost a dog from the second act – a sign that indeed, things are about to go…
The Depot Theatre’s staging of Educating Rita is particularly timely for students studying HSC English; the opportunity to see a required text performed live should never be overlooked. For this reason, I encourage all parents and their teens to get out and see this play. This production has great heart, and it’s wonderful to see…
“Uniforms conceal and uniforms reveal. They wrap the bodies of millions of Australians every day, deflecting sun and rain, insulating against heat and cold, making feet more mobile, camouflaging thighs and chests that would be distracting to display openly and correcting our all-too-human anatomy by lengthening legs, broadening shoulders and masking disappointing hairlines!” Craig Wilcox, with…
Broadway and West End music theatre star Sierra Boggess is making her debut Australian tour from Saturday 3 June 2017, performing in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Regarded by Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber as “the best” Christine in Phantom of the Opera, this international award winning music theatre superstar will wow audiences with her magnificent voice,…
Stating that “no risk was too great for him to take”, William ‘Billy’ Sing, the real life protagonist of Ouyang Yu’s new book Billy Sing, arrived in Gallipoli in 1914 and became one of our greatest snipers. Whilst now regarded as a war hero, his start in life wasn’t always so auspicious. Born in 1886, Billy grew up,…
Dirk Kurbjuweit is deputy editor-in-chief at Der Spiegel, receiving numerous awards for his writing over the years. Fear is the first of his works to be translated into English, as well as being adapted for film, television and radio. Fear is set in Berlin and East Germany, around the time the Berlin Wall went up. Randolph Tiefenthaler,…
While Aled Jones was recently in Sydney we decided that, in the theme of his new album One Voice, we would ask him to do a couple of surprising duets. Of course, nothing could be as surprising as singing with your 15 year old self… but we think we found him some good ones! So, may we…
Melbourne’s QV Square and the surrounding laneways will later this month be transformed into a vibrant outdoor garden gallery of interactive neon art installations. Running from 17th May until 17th June, Melbourne-based international artist Carla O’Brien will fill the space with her new exhibition Neon Night Garden. Neon Night Garden will be O’Brien’s most extensive…
David Bowie may have been Messer Jones, Ziggy Stardust and the Thin White Duke. But there was no question that this chameleon artist was also one handsome and photogenic man. Blender Gallery are celebrating this with a new exhibition titled Bowie Unseen, which is also part of the Head On Photo Festival. Bowie Unseen includes…
Todrick Hall has one of the most impressive CVs going around. You may know him from his YouTube channel, Season 9 of American Idol, perhaps you saw him on Broadway as Lola in Kinky Boots or you’ve heard the hype surrounding his international touring show Straight Outta Oz. I could honestly talk to him for hours but I jam packed…
POPSART is a new series here at Arts on the AU, which comes care of Brisbane arts journalist Bec Mac. She’ll give us, in her own words: “a weekly video interview with an artist or curator (across any kind of art form) at their opening night, a sneak preview or event and hopefully will give a quick capture…
