Author: Naomi Gall

Yoga Play

Yoga Play at Riverside Theatres Parramatta takes a satirical look at the wellness industry

Written by Dipika Guha, Yoga Play at Riverside Theatres Parramatta invites you into the workplace of yoga apparel store Jojomon and into the lives of it’s staff. There’s Fred (Jemwel Danao) a queer man from the Philippines who is desperate to obtain a green card and stay in America, CFO Raj (Nat Jobe) a man…

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AUTO-TUNE at the Sydney Opera House is like a fever dream you don’t want to wake up from

If you had the ability to travel back in time and correct your past mistakes, would you? Forming part of the September season of UnWrapped at the Sydney Opera House, AUTO-TUNE examines how life-altering our choices can be. Set in Wagga Wagga in the early 2000s, the performance follows Michael (Mark Rogers), a young Silverchair…

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Review: MĀUI at the Sydney Opera House is storytelling at its best

Seen as a hero and a trickster, Māui was a demi-god whose adventures have been told and retold for hundreds of years. Steeped in the culture of the Pacific, his acts of bravery and remarkable life form the inspiration behind MĀUI at the Sydney Opera House. Brought to life by the New Zealand dance collective…

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Class Act at the Sydney Opera House attempts to expose the pitfalls of the class system

Part of the September season of UnWrapped at the Sydney Opera House, Class Act is an exploration of class and social standing through the deconstruction of the classic 1964 film My Fair Lady, combined with personal anecdotes. Created by Melbourne-based, experimental art organisation, APHIDS, and staring Mish Grigor in the lead role, the performance opens…

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The 2024 Festival of Dangerous Ideas was both enlightening and sombre

Launching in 2009, the Festival of Dangerous Ideas (FODI) brings together thought leaders, culture creators and radical creatives from across Australia and around the world. Presented by The Ethics Centre, FODI creates a space for exchanging ideas and discussing topics often considered outside the everyday. It aims to cultivate critical thinking and a growth mindset…

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Pride and Prejudice at the Sydney Opera House is a fitting tribute to the brilliance of Jane Austen

Pride and Prejudice, arguably Jane Austen’s most famous novel, has been the subject of countless adaptations. There is the 2005 film with Keira Knightley, the modern-day retelling in Bridget Jones’ Diary, the cultural reinterpretation with Bride and Prejudice, and who could forget the incredible masterpiece that was Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. However, there is…

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Little Murmur at the Sydney Opera House provides a stunning insight into living with dyslexia

Choreographed by Aakash Odedra and Lewis Major, Little Murmur at the Sydney Opera House is a sensory feast of projections, dance and sound. Aimed at younger audiences, the performance reflects on Odedra’s life growing up with dyslexia. Having been diagnosed at a young age, he struggled in school and misspelled his own name until he…

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No More: Thousands rally in Sydney and around Australia to combat men’s violence

TW: the following article discusses violence against women, including rape and assault. We are 30 weeks into 2024 and 54 women have lost their lives largely at the hands of men. By the time you read this, that statistic will have increased. On average a woman is being murdered by a man every 3 days…

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In the Heights at the Sydney Opera House will have you dancing in your seat

As the sun rises on what is set to be another blistering summers day in Washington Heights, bodega owner Usnavi (Ryan Gonzalez -they/them) is getting ready to start work. Chasing away petty vandal Graffiti Pete (Jervis Livelo – he/him), he begins to talk about his life, his world and this little corner of Manhattan he…

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Romeo and Juliet Suite

The Australian premiere of L.A. Dance Project’s Romeo and Juliet Suite at the Sydney Opera House is flawless

Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, an ill-fated tale of star-crossed lovers, has been re-imagined time and time again. I honestly thought there was no ground left to cover when it came to adaptations of the beloved classic. I have never been more delighted to be wrong. Set to Prokofiev’s iconic score, Romeo and Juliet Suite at…

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SILENCE at the Sydney Opera House empowers people to speak up against the White noise

Part of UnWrapped, a series dedicated to uncovering the best independent creators, SILENCE, at the Sydney Opera House, is a visually stunning and deeply moving performance. Created by Karul Projects and produced by BlakDance, this contemporary dance work successfully examines and disrupts the deliberate and ongoing silence surrounding more than 250 years’ worth of struggle….

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A Midsummer Night's Dream

Theatre Review: Mortals really do be fools at the Australian Shakespeare Company’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Centennial Park Sydney

Heralded as one of his most beloved plays, Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream is no stranger to adaptation. The delightful tale of love, fairy’s and mischief, despite its troublesome undertones around consent, continues to mesmerise audiences. Performed at Sydney’s Centennial Park, the Australian Shakespeare Company have created a beautiful and incredibly humorous depiction of the…

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I had a front row seat to the feminist event turned prank Love Unboxed, and yes, it was a shit-show

There have been a lot of articles written in the last two days about an event which occurred on Wednesday night. An event that was advertised as ‘a conversation exploring sex, love, relationships and marriage’ with three very prominent feminists and a surprise guest. An event which went awry when it was exposed to be…

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The 24th Biennale of Sydney Arrives: 3 artists not to miss

It’s been a big week for the arts in Sydney with the 24th Biennale of Sydney, titled Ten Thousand Suns, opening at various venues across the city. Until the 10 June art from around the world will make its home across 6 iconic venues; the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Artspace, Chau Chak Wing…

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A close up shot of women's faces in a crowded auditorium. They appear to be listening intently.

Review: All About Women at the Sydney Opera House continues to give a voice to women’s stories

With All About Women at the Sydney Opera House running for over ten years now, you’d think there would be nothing left to say. How I wish that was the case. Held each year to mark International Women’s Day (March 8), the festival brings together some of the change-makers, the activists and the courageous women…

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Theatre Review: Belvoir’s Tiny Beautiful Things reminds us of the power of human connection

To know Tiny Beautiful Things, at Sydney’s Belvoir, is to know the heart and mind of Cheryl Strayed, the woman upon whose New York Times bestselling book the play is based. For two years Strayed wrote an anonymous advice column for the website The Rumpus under the name ‘Sugar’. It is the letters received during…

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3 events you don’t want to miss at Sydney Opera House’s All About Women

All About Women Festival line-up is out and talking about equality never gets old. Returning to the Sydney Opera House on March 10 with an incredible line up of talks and workshops in honour of International Women’s Day (March 8th), All About Women showcases both established and up-and-coming voices in the equality space. With topics…

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Malevo at the Sydney Opera House showcases Argentinian culture and sets the stage on fire

Argentinian dance troupe Malevo bring their unique contemporary interpretation of the traditional folk dance Malambo to the Sydney Opera House. Meaning renegade or outlaw, Malevo combines facets of other dance styles like flamenco with Malambo, all set to the intoxicating rhythm of drums, guitar, violin and bandoneon (concertina). The Malambo is traditionally performed by Gauchos…

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Cabaret Review: GATSBY at The Green Light will enthral and delight

Most people would be familiar with F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel The Great Gatsby (or at least Baz Luhrmann’s 2013 film of the same name) and the story of mysterious and wealthy Jay Gatsby, his love for Daisy Buchanan and his unfortunate end. GATSBY at The Green Light, playing at the Sydney Opera House, transforms…

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Theatre Review: Complex or confused? Oil at the Sydney Theatre Company may leave you scratching your head

Set across five distinct time periods, Oil at the Sydney Theatre Company depicts different moments in the modern history of petroleum (crude oil) and its far-reaching impacts. Written by UK playwright Ella Hickson and directed by Paige Rattray, the play follows the journey of May (Brooke Satchwell), a strong-willed woman who longs for a better…

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Theatre Review: Sydney Theatre Company’s The Dictionary of Lost Words at the Sydney Opera House proves that the pen is mightier than the sword

Adapted by Verity Laughton from the novel by Pip Williams, The Dictionary of Lost Words centres around the Scriptorium, where the very first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary is being compiled. It is 1886, and researcher Harry Nicoll (Brett Archer) is working while his four-year-old daughter Esme (Tilda Cobham-Hervey) plays under the table. The…

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A man and a woman in period costume embrace on a lounge. His arm is around her waist as she tries to pull away.

Theatre Review: Legend Nancye Hayes AM steals the show in A Little Night Music at Hayes Theatre Co. in Sydney

With music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, the Tony Award winner, A Little Night Music at Hayes Theatre Co. encompasses love, desire and regret. Indeed, regret is the most poignant emotion of the production, touching everyone in different ways. Directed by Dean Bryant, we follow the story of two couples, each with their own secrets and…

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Theatre Review: The Importance of Being Earnest is a feast for the eyes and a delight for the ears

The first thing you will notice about The Importance of Being Earnest at the Sydney Theatre Company is the stage. Impressive seems an inadequate description for such an elaborate set design. Created by Charles Davis, the audience is transported to another world, a world of excess, decadence and extremely high ceilings. With incredible attention to…

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A man and a woman sit on the end of a pier. They are looking into each others eyes as they lean in for a kiss.

Theatre Review: Sydney Theatre Company’s stunning adaptation of On the Beach hits close to home

If the end of the world was upon you, how would you respond? Hopeful optimism? Or perhaps defiant acceptance? It’s a question that has found its way into social consciousness a lot over the last few years, and it forms an integral part of Sydney Theatre Company’s On the Beach. Directed by Kip Williams and…

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Poison of Polygamy

Review: Sydney Theatre Company’s The Poison of Polygamy is a journey you’ll want to go on

The Poison of Polygamy at the Sydney Theatre Company will take you on a journey. From China’s Qing dynasty to Victoria’s nineteenth-century goldfields, and the colourful landscape of Melbourne’s Chinatown, the play seamlessly shifts focus. Based on the novel by Wong Shee Ping and adapted for the stage by Anchuli Felicia King, The Poison of…

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Six singers perform on a stage with a band behind them.

Review: ARETHA: A Love Letter to the Queen of Soul is a fitting tribute to an unforgettable icon

Known around the world as the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin is one of the most iconic singers of all time. During her impressive career, she won 18 Grammy awards and sold over 75 million records. Her incredible life and the songs defining her career form the heart of the stage production, ARETHA: A Love…

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A stage is set up like a backyard with a large slide projected on a screen. The slide shows an old man with a young child. On the stage comedians act out a skit.

Review: Slide Night! with Rove McManus at the Sydney Opera House will have you reaching for your projector

Cultivating an atmosphere of neighbourly fun, Slide Night! at the Sydney Opera House brings together some of Sydney’s most prolific comedic talent for a night of laughs and nostalgia. Hosted by Rove McManus, the audience is invited to an old-school backyard BBQ complete with music (from the skilful Benny Davis), games and a slide show….

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Scenes From A Climate Era

Theatre Review: Scenes from the Climate Era at Belvoir is a lesson we should have learnt a long time ago

Climate change, global warming, greenhouse effect, carbon emissions – there are many words to describe it and even more emotions associated with its impacts. Scenes from the Climate Era at Belvoir explores our complicated and tumultuous relationship with climate change. Presenting over fifty stories which delve into climate science, activism, and denial, it doesn’t pull…

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Sydney Writers’ Festival: A sneak peek at Clementine Ford’s I Don’t: The Case Against Marriage left us questioning the need for marriage – it’s about time!

Why do people get married? Why would a person willing choose to legally and financially bind themselves to another person, particularly in 2023? For love? Security? A great big party? It’s this myth of marital happiness that author Clementine Ford will explore in I Don’t: The Case Against Marriage, due for release on the 31…

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Review: The Other Art Fair brings colour and creativity to Barangaroo in Sydney

Forget everything you think you know about art. The Other Art Fair is a global gathering which brings together some of the most creative thinkers emerging from the Sydney art scene. Priding itself on reframing the way in which people consider art, The Other Art Fair actively attempts to remove the elitist stigma so prevalent…

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