The 2016 Adelaide Cabaret Festival is mere weeks away and with this year’s tagline a lingering ‘What Comes Next…’, the program curated by incoming Artistic Directors Ali McGregor and Eddie Perfect is indeed diverse and does well in breaking traditions. Taking the concept of ‘cabaret’ and the different forms of artistic expression that can be pulled under its banner,…
In February 2008 Prime Minister Kevin Rudd publicly apologised to the Stolen Generations of Indigenous Australian’s. Eight years later on National Sorry Day, May 27th, Hart, a new play from She Said Theatre, celebrated it’s second night of a new season at Perth’s Blue Room Theatre. Hart, written by Ian Michael and Seanna van Helten,…
Melbourne based multi-disciplinary artist and Creative Director of the Melbourne Indigenous Arts Festival, Jacob Boehme has 20 years experience as a dancer and choreographer, but his latest performance piece at Melbourne’s Art House can possibly be argued as his strongest creative statement yet. Blood on the Dancefloor is a politically charged piece that looks at…
At the Australian Booksellers Association Conference in Canberra, the 2016 shortlist for the prestigious Miles Literary Award was announced. With a focus on uniquely Australian identities and struggles, this year’s nominees, including three authors shortlisted for the first time, are in the running for a $60,000 prize. Making the 2016 shortlist are: Hope Farm by Peggy Frew…
Following overwhelming demand, the world’s premier Queen tribute, Queen – It’s A Kinda Magic, will return to Australia, taking fans back to the glory days of Freddie Mercury and his iconic band, Queen. Capturing the imagination of Queen fans both locally and internationally, Director Johnny Van Grinsven attributes the show’s continued success to the attention-to- detail;…
As part of the Seymour Centre’s Great Ideas Performance Series and Vivid Ideas, Carnival of the Bold will bring together six incredible artists who are leading the way in creating social change via their work. For one night, the artists will come together for a discussion on the power of arts to facilitate change in…
The Imperial Bells of China is all at once a vivid display of colour and sound and a glimpse into a revived culture right before your eyes, and I’m not sure which part I enjoyed more! Narrated in Chinese, the staging offers English subtitles so we can follow the tale. We are introduced to State…
In a very brief yet consuming experience, much like the turn of many events in our lives, Judith Wright Centre became the space for Andrew Bovell’s When The Rain Stops Falling for the weekend only. THAT Production Company based in Ipswich presented the show and made it through the challenge of capturing the fluidity of…
Now in its fifth year, Oz Comic-Con’s dedicated focus to the very best across the local and international pop culture sphere places it in a league of its own. 2016 will see the return of the show-stopping Australian Championships of Cosplay, as well as a huge range of new and exclusive event features such as:…
A desire to connect communities and celebrate the diverse cultures that exist within Australia is the driving force behind the New Beginnings festival, to be held on 18 June at Tumbalong Park, Darling Harbour. Showcasing the talents, cultural expressions and stories of people with refugee backgrounds and those who are seeking asylum, New Beginnings features…
As part of a massive growth for the eighth annual Vivid Sydney, the now world famous festival of lights, music, and ideas has been expanded to 23 nights throughout May and June, and it all kicked off last night. Beginning with the traditional lighting of the sails, which this year features Songlines by six renowned…
Sydney’s Ensemble Theatre, lead by director Susanna Dowling, will present a season of Nina Raine‘s awarding winning play Tribes, previewing later this week. In Raine’s acclaimed show, Billy, a deaf man from a intellectual, though comically dysfunctional, Jewish family, meets Sylvia, who teaches him sign language. Exploring the idea of families and communities as ‘tribes’, governed…
In his first tour of Australia since 2007, tickets for Billy Crystal’s upcoming appearances around the country have been unsurprisingly flying out the door. So promoters have added two extra shows to his itinerary – one in Sydney on the 13th of July, and the other in Melbourne on the 4th of August. “The show…
Melbourne’s Malthouse Theatre is set to host the world première of Come Away With Me To The End Of The World, a visual, voyeuristic piece of theatre from award winning theatre company Ranters Theatre. Eavesdropping on conversations between three characters, audiences will be taken on a journey through their actual lives and their dreamed realities –…
The Taming of the Shrew, Shakespeare’s tale of a woman “tamed” by a man, has seen many adaptations over the years, but perhaps none so clever as the latest offering from Sport for Jove. Set in Hollywood during the silent film era of the 1920s, a time of strong women – both on the silver…
Trigger warning: This post includes information about domestic violence and may be distressing for some readers. Vanessa de Largie’s book will leave you torn. It’s a diarised account of the domestic violence she suffered from 2001–03. On the one hand you wish this book didn’t exist (and that de Largie didn’t have to live through…
Melbourne was alive with The Sound of Music on Thursday night as the who’s who of the social elite came out for the opening night. With the thought of Julie Andrews prancing through hills conjuring up beautiful memories in my mind, I sat down delighted to see this long running show. It was a packed…
Ships in the Night is Perth’s bi-monthly celebration of words and music, bringing together and showcasing new writers and bands. Last week’s event was the first since a successful outing at the Perth Fringe World. Instalment #13 was a certainly a mixed affair. Ultimately I found it to be disappointing and a little disorganised – though…
Sugarland is currently heading around many regional venues of Australia after doing a short run in Melbourne and other Australian cities to some already-stellar reviews. The story follows the lives of five teenagers, documenting the unlikely friendships, but also of the difficult situations, that come with living as a teenager in the Northern Territory. We…
Theatre lovers prepare yourselves for a truly exquisite piece work from the mastermind that is Tennessee Williams. This autobiographical play is an awakening to the internal struggles that both men and women faced in the early 1940s; a time when women longed to find a man and as well homosexuality being taboo. From the opening monologue…
Guam’s Pacific Festival of Arts is back for its 12th year, bringing with it a huge delegate line-up of 60 artists who will be representing Aboriginal and Torres Strait culture. To celebrate the annual event, a pre-departure celebration was held on the 19th of May at Sydney’s International Airport, which marked the first time all…
Ahead of the its premiere in Sydney on August 19, the first images of the Fawlty Towers – Live On Stage production have been released. A cast that has been hand-picked by Fawlty Towers’ creator John Cleese sees Blazey Best playing the role of Sybil, Syd Brisbane playing Manuel, Aimee Horne playing Holly, and finally,…
Arts sector funding cuts promised during the 2015 Federal Government budget have begun to claim victims, making the future of organisations across Australia ever more uncertain. The small to medium arts sector is set to be the worst hit, a disastrous move that could see many new and emerging talents halted in their tracks. In…
How can one produce social good through art? Steve Lambert is one artist who feels activism should be a primary focus for any work and something that artists should strive for. As a co-founder of the Center for Artistic Activism and and Associate Professor at SUNY Purchase, he provides workshops and continues to make artworks which focuses…
To shamelessly borrow from a popular nineties sitcom It’s like you’re always stuck in second gear, When it hasn’t been your day, your week, your month, or even your year, (handclaps) So to it is with some of the characters in Maiden Voyage Theatre Company’s Belated. There are breakups, bust ups, bickering, and a tiny…
Comedy Bang! Bang! the hit comedy podcast and US television show is making it’s way to Australia in August for the very first time. So far there confirmed dates in Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney and Perth between the 25th and 19th August. Formed in 2009 Comedy Bang! Bang! started off life as weekly podcast of conversation…
At the wrap party for the 12th Sydney Comedy Festival, the winners of this year’s awards were announced, including international acts Daniel Sloss and Ivan Aristeguieta, and festival favourite Frank Woodley. The largest festival yet, the 2016 event boasted some 220 shows, and entertained an estimated 140,000 comedy fans. At the Factory Theatre event, festival…
Ships in the Night, Perth’s bi-monthly celebration of words and music, returns this week. After two successful showings at Perth’s Fringe World, where the evening inhabited a ger or yurt, the team are back in a more conventional venue this month – Paper Mountain. We caught up with the two headliners Laurie Steed and Tristan…
Tasmania’s Festival of Voices is returning for 2016, and will be bringing with it a huge program of singers and choirs. Taking place from July 30 – June 17, cities around Tasmania will be taken over by song, engaging visitors and locals to engage in thematic and performances that will be presented. The festival has…
What a time to be alive and witness the magnitude of talent we have here in Australia. If you have yet to experience the incredible gifts of our young Aussie guys and girls, then Heathers: The Musical is the best way to ease you in. Amidst a sea of scrunchies, yes that’s right scrunchies, the Arts…
