Splash into a world of colour and energy with our guide to Sydney Festival’s must-see events
Sydney Festival returns in 2019 to transform Sydney from January 9–27. Check out our guide to the must-see events.
Sydney Festival returns in 2019 to transform the city from January 9–27 with 18 world premieres and five Australian premieres. Check out our guide to some of the must-see events:
1. PIGALLE
The Magic Mirrors Spiegeltent will return to Hyde Park with a new festival commission, Pigalle. From the makers of disco musical Velvet this carousel of music and muscles, set in a Parisian nightclub, stars Marcia Hines, iOTA and Bangarra’s Waangenga Blanco. Festival director Wesley Enoch said Spiegeltent was an invitation to push our own boundaries; “ to feel a little bit tingly challenged, not in a 50 Shades of Grey kind of a way but by experiencing something we normally wouldn’t”. Hines described Pigalle as the Underbelly version of Velvet; “It’s going to be racy”.
Magic Mirrors Spielgeltent, Festival Gardens, January 8–27, $70–$86 + booking fee
2. A GHOST IN MY SUITCASE
This world premiere is a magical adventure about ghosts, grief and a secret family gift, adapted from Gabrielle Wang’s award-winning children’s novel. Twelve-year-old Celeste visits China to scatter her mother’s ashes, where she reunites with her gutsy grandma and is thrust into the thrilling world of ghost-hunting, in this spectacular stage adaptation for ages 8+.
Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House, January 9–19, $56–$71 + booking fee
3. FLY ME TO THE MOON
You can Fly To The Moon as part of one of three free interactive Sydney Festival precincts at
World Square, Barangaroo and Darling Harbour marking 50 years since mankind landed on the moon. We will be challenged to collectively cycle the 384,400km from here to the moon.
Participants can contribute on the Lunar Velocipede (stationary rickshaw bike with wings) or 16 other stationary bikes at Fly Me To The Moon at World Square, or donate kilometres from their own bike rides or spin classes.
World Square, January 9–27, free
4. MOON DROPS
Moon Drops offers the opportunity for Sydneysiders to experience weightlessness on super-sized, water-filled droplets that can be stepped, rolled or jumped on. International designers Jasmax collaborated with Alt Group and the Auckland Council Public Arts team to create these super-sized water-filled droplets that you can step on, roll on or play with – like a rubber-encased drop of water or mercury scaled up by 1000 per cent.
Darling Harbour, January 9–28, free
5. SHÀNGHAI MIMI
Paramatta will host a cross-cultural cabaret experience Shànghăi MiMi, which captures the melting pot of live jazz, daring acrobats and burlesque of 1930s Shanghai. Dress to the nines and immerse yourself in the intoxicating world of Shànghǎi MiMi,
a sumptuous cabaret of delights. Inspired by 1930s Shanghai, a city famous for its flamboyant
clubs and heady nights, Shànghǎi MiMi is directed by Australia’s ground-breaking
and multi-award-winning performer and director Moira Finucane.
Riverside Theatre, January 10–20 , $36–$66 + booking fee
6. LE GATEAU CHOCOLAT: ICONS
Cabaret sensation Le Gateau Chocolat’s international smash-hit is a joyous and moving tribute to the musical heroes that shaped his life: Kate Bush, Whitney Houston, David Bowie,
Pavarotti, Madonna and Meat Loaf. Live from a pop-star-postered bedroom, the beautiful bearded baritone walks the tightrope between his public and
private personas, and opens his heart to sing up a storm about love and life.
Magic Mirrors Spielgeltent, Festival Gardens, January 23–27 , $60–$70 + booking fee
7. HELIOSPHERE
A giant, moon-like, glowing helium sphere suspends a talented aerialist 20 metres above
the crowd, creating the illusion of weightless levitation. See the website for appearance times.
Heliosphere also appears in Circus Comes To Town in Parramatta (January 11-13).
Barangaroo South, January 16–27, free
8. IN THE HEIGHTS
This quadruple Tony Award-winning work is a modern musical infused with salsa rhythms by an 10-piece Latino band. Written by Hamilton creator and Moana composer Lin-Manuel Miranda, In The Heights is set in Manhattan’s vibrant, close-knit Hispanic-American neighbourhood Washington Heights. This joyous summer tale is about family,
community and chasing your dreams while staying true to your roots.
Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House, January 16–20, $49–$139 + booking fee
9. HOME
Award-winning absurdist Geoff Sobelle’s (The Object Lesson, Sydney Festival 2016)
visual spectacle is a magical meditation on the meaning of home. On an empty stage, a house
rises before your eyes. People move in, move out, eat, sleep, love, argue, throw a party – as though everyone who had ever lived in the house were there together, fighting for the fridge.
Roslyn Packer Theatre, Walsh Bay, January 9–18
10. BRETT & WENDY A LOVE STORY BOUND BY ART
Take a deep dive into the extraordinary, turbulent artistic partnership of Brett and Wendy Whiteley at this world premiere. This visually ravishing production conjures the joys, passions and struggles of Brett and Wendy’s relationship, with actors, dancers and live music.
Lennox Theatre, Riverside Theatre, January 18–27, $60 + booking fee
11. APOLLO 11
As part of a city-wide commemoration of Apollo 11, the 1969 space flight that first landed people on the moon, Sydney Festival has commissioned 11 artworks and participatory experiences, free for the public to explore around Barangaroo South. Cycle down to Barangaroo (and add your kilometres to the Fly Me To The Moon project) to see artworks including larger than life Sydmonauts, celebrating the work of 11 diverse heroes of space exploration
Barangaroo South, January 9–27, free
12. NENEH CHERRY
From torch anthems to trip hop, house, jazz, rap and riot grrrl punk, Sweden’s Neneh Cherry’s
career has spanned 35 years of hits both critical and commercial. After a near two-decade
break between solo album releases, the rebel icon of feminist pop brings her new
Four Tet produced albums Broken Politics and Blank Project to Sydney.
Carriageworks, January 15- 16, $59–$69 + booking fee. Family tickets available
13. LA PASSION DE SIMONE
Sydney Chamber Opera presents the story of philosopher, political activist and mystic Simone Weil. Albert Camus wrote that Weil was “the only great spirit of our times”; a Marxist and pacifist whose political and moral philosophy achieved fame after her death at age 34. Acclaimed Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho, director Imara Savage and soprano Jane Sheldon tell Weil’s tragic story through music in this deeply spiritual contemporary opera, never before seen in Australia.In French with English subtitles
Carriageworks, January 9–11, $46–$60 + booking fee
14. NICK CAVE: UNTIL
A wonderland of shimmering crystals, thousands of wind spinners and ceramic birds, millions of plastic beads, 17 black-face ‘lawn jockeys’, 13 gilded pigs and a crocodile. That’s just a fraction of what you’ll encounter journeying through Until.
Carriageworks, until March 3, free
15. THE CHAT
A deeply human, heartfelt and comic collaboration devised with ex-offenders that explores the realities of our criminal justice system. Theatre maker and former parole officer JR Brennan worked with actors, former prisoners, criminologists and academics to create this compelling performance experiment that asks the audience to decide who deserves freedom.
Carriageworks, January 16–20, $36 + booking fee
16. SYMPHONY UNDER THE STARS
One of the most well-loved Sydney Festival events returns to Parramatta. It’s the perfect evening for families and friends to pack a hamper, grab a blanket, and settle back in a Sydney summer dusk to enjoy beautiful music. Conducted by Benjamin Northey, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra performs a selection of iconic film music and well-known classical favourites by Rossini, Strauss, Tchaikovsky and more.
The Crescent, Parramatta Park, January 19, free
17. THE BEEHIVE
On 4 July 1975, the crusading journalist, heiress and anti-development campaigner Juanita Nielsen went to a meeting at a Kings Cross underworld club. She was never seen again. In this innovative fiction and documentary video installation, artist Zanny Begg and creative producer Philippa Bateman weave the tropes of true crime and cold case stories with themes of gentrification, corruption and non-conformity.
UNSW Galleries, January 5– February 23, free
18. SPINIFEX GUM
Musical snapshots of life in the Pilbara, north Western Australia, performed by the lush voices of Marliya from Gondwana Choirs, young Indigenous women singing in English and Yindjibarndi. Joining the choir are Felix Riebl and Ollie McGill of The Cat Empire, who wrote and produced the music, and special guests Briggs, Emma Donovan and Peter Garrett. With lyrics about injustice along with contemporary musical production, Spinifex Gumis political, powerful and beautiful.
Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House, January 25, $50–$80 + booking fee
19. SPLASH TEST DUMMIES
Dive into a swimming pool of slapstick stunts and comedy with this award-winning family circus trio that brings together synchronised swimming on unicycles, ‘Muscle Beach’ human balancing acts and water skiing through the theatre.
Riverside Theatres, January 11–13, $26 + booking fee
TICKETS AND MORE INFO
See more details at sydneyfestival.org.au
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