Front Page Archive

A choking man spits out a hunk of chicken that lands near our feet. A wheelchair is suddenly illuminated by our seats. A crying woman shakes beside us, her tears visible on her face. Participatory theatre? Not intentionally. Try instead intimate theatre …

From the outset this gig had some mystery about it. The Perth International Arts Festival (PIAF) Chevron Gardens had a new home at the brand spanking Elizabeth Quay and The Dub Pistols had never been to Australia before. Seeing the main stage …

There is nothing quite like going to the Old Fitz Theatre on opening night: it’s an excuse to get dressed up, have a nice glass of wine or a beer and ogle at the variety of Sydney characters in one of the …

Another year, another beautiful fortnight at Melbourne Park. The trip to Melbourne for the tennis is always a special one. The city’s love for sport is palpable as soon as you arrive at Southern Cross station, from the grand Ethiad Stadium, pride of place; to the big screen at Federation …

Vaudevillian entertainer Godfrey Uke and his ensemble of award-winning jazz musicians will be very busy in February. The fun begins in the Blue Mountains with Tin Pan Alley, a debut theatrical homage to the great composers of American popular song, performed as …

A program of Beethoven symphonies too often gives modern orchestras an excuse to really blast and shake the concert hall rafters. After all, Beethoven’s symphonies are full of pile-driving riffs and slammin’ power-chords. It’s all very exciting – as any heavy metal is …

Winter on Italy’s Amalfi Coast brings a vague melancholy: a hangover from too many proseccos the summer past. The tourists have dissipated back into their real lives and most businesses have closed up for Christmas. From the outside looking in, the coast …

Sydney Festival’s poster girl is Meow Meow whose orange mermaid fish lips adorn bus stops across the city. But while the cabaret performer is dominating publicity, the Magic Mirrors Spiegeltent in which she performs is also hosting lower profile yet equally dynamic …

A British nanny glides into a regimented family, upending its members’ structured lives and rigid routines. This may sound like a Mary Poppins scenario, but it isn’t. This is Dawn French’s new novel According to Yes: an often-gritty and poignant account of …

Vortex Temporum, at Carriageworks until January 18 as part of the Sydney Festival, is brilliant in the same way as an ingenuous mathematical formula. Everything about the work, which sets out to explore sound and time, is circular – from the concentric …