Arts and Entertainment Archive

  Cinema audiences were transported from Dendy Quays to the austerity of the American Civil War earlier this month with a re-screening of Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln.  This much-anticipated major release, timed to bring revenue from the theatres and accolades in the awards season, promises …

After attending Rachel Collis’s debut of her album Ever After, going for a Brazilian wax will not be as frightening as it used to be. Collis’s uninhibited stage presence, powerful voice and great keyboard talent convinced me that the painful process of …

After a 45-minute ride into the suburban heart of Melbourne city, we finally arrived at the Footscray Community Art Centre. As we walked out of the station with the crowds, the atmosphere and energy was absolutely brilliant. The sun was out and …

A couple of decades ago the murder of three 8-year-old boys in Memphis, Tennessee sparked an ongoing debate on the incident, the court trial and the intricate development of the case. After serving 18 years in gaol, 17 of those years on …

The first Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander playwriting festival to be held in Sydney in two decades is now underway with six playwrights chosen to showcase their work this week. The last Indigenous playwriting festival was held in Adelaide in 2000; the …

“Cali es Cali, y lo demas es loma!” – Cali is Cali, and the rest is mountains. This is what anyone from the dangerous and vibrant city of Cali, Colombia, will tell you about their hometown. A small piece of this gritty, …

Get ready for a fundraiser with a real twist. Talented sopranos, tenors, altos and baritones will sing for marriage equality rights in Australia on February 16, performing favourite arias as they’ve never been sung before. The concept is simple: swap the gender …

Vampire Weekend is a band in demand.  On the afternoon of the gig I ended up with a spare ticket at late notice due to illness. After offering it for sale on Gumtree the phone didn’t stop beeping all night. While it’s a …

I meet blues musician Ash Grunwald on Australia Day, a few hours before his gig in The Rocks. Ash lounges on a couch, with aviator sunglasses nestled in his dreadlocks and a guitar at his side. As I approach him, I tiptoe …

Band of Horses were back at The Enmore last Tuesday touring their new album Mirage Rock. They are a punctual bunch and were already into the first song when we arrived just after the 9.30pm start time. The band brings a great …