David Byrne’s Musical About Imelda Marcos to Debut at Barangaroo

David Byrne was in Sydney to promote his musical Here Lies Love for the 2015 Vivid festival.Source: News Corp Australia

Former Talking Heads frontman David Byrne announced in Sydney today that his musical Here Lies Love, about the life of former first lady of the Philippines Imelda Marcos, will make its Australian debut at a purpose-built venue in the city’s Barangaroo development next May.

Byrne, who is in Australia for casting of the production, first performed the songs from the musical in Adelaide in 2006, but since then the show has developed into an interactive stage production and is currently showing in London and New York.

“I would never have started on this project if I’d known how long it was going to take,” said Byrne, who co-wrote the musical with English artist Fatboy Slim. The show is set in a disco/nightclub environment, to tell the Marcos story in song.

Byrne was inspired by the idea that the first lady frequented dance venues and had a nightclub in her New York apartment and at her palace in the Philippines. “I’m old enough to remember that she was a larger than life figure,” he said.

“I’m very excited about the show being here and I think Australians are going to enjoy it.”

The show, which will be staged inside a construction made from freight containers called the Millennium, is part of next year’s Vivid Festival in Sydney.

Adam Scott chases triple crown in summer of golf

Adam Scott will be out to avenge last year’s defeat in the Australian Open when he was pipped by a stroke by Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy.

By JASON CLOUT - 12 NOV 2014

The return of Adam Scott will be the highlight of the Australian summer of golf with the world No. 2 looking to replicate his amazing form of 2013.

Scott won two out of three tournaments last year and was only pipped on the last hole at the Australian Open by Rory McIlroy. Had he claimed the Australian championship, Scott would have joined Robert Allenby in winning the so-called triple crown of Australian golf.

The Australian Masters is the first of the three tournaments and will be played at The Metropolitan Golf Club from November 20-23. The Metropolitan is one of Melbourne’s famous sandbelt courses.

It will be Scott’s third successive Masters, should he triumph at the Metropolitan, having won in 2012 and 2013, when he edged out Matt Kuchar of the United States.

The Australian Open to be played at the Australian Golf Club November 27-30 will be Scott’s chance to even the score with McIlroy, as both the young superstars will be in the field.

When he shot 62 in the first round last year, it seemed Scott had the championship in his grasp. But a last round 66 by McIlroy, including some remarkable play on the 18th hole, saw the Northern Irishman take the Australian Open by a stroke.

GOLD COAST DESTINATION FOR CHAMPIONSHIP
The last of the triple crown is the Australian PGA Championship, which will be held at Royal Pines on the Gold Coast between December 11-14.

Golf’s reputation as a sport which attracts the executive market is one reason companies such as Emirates and HSBC are involved. Emirates will once again be the major backer of the Australian Open, alongside its long-standing association with thoroughbred racing and its newly announced sponsorship of tennis in Australia.

Manager for sponsorships at Emirates Roger Duthie says golf is one of the truly global sports.

“Sport is important to the airline and golf is a big part of that,’’ says Duthie

It is also one of the few sports where it is possible to play with the world’s best at pro-ams.

Those days have become a fixture in many tournaments around the world, offering the chance to play a top course in the same group as a pro.

Duthie says golf fans are prepared to travel, another important consideration for the airline: “There’s a tourism impact as well because golfers will travel to play golf.’’

COURSE ALTERATIONS CHALLENGING
Golf officials are delighted about the prospects for the summer. Director of championships at Golf Australia Trevor Herden says one of the aspects of the intriguing clash between Scott and McIlroy at the Australian Open will be how they and the rest of the field deal with course alterations.

Herden says the first hole and the 14th have been converted from par fives to par fours for the championship. “We’ve made it a bit harder, It will be a par 70 course for the event,” he says.

There is good prize money on offer in Australia this year, such as the $1.25 million for the Open. But Herden says it is still a great show of faith that most of the top Australian players will be playing here over the next few weeks.

The overseas golfing tours like the US and Europe. where most of the top Australian players compete, take up most of the year. But instead of resting, most of the high-profile Australian golfers continue to support the local tournaments.

“It was wonderful when Adam Scott decided to play the three events. But it’s not just Adam, we’ve got just about all our best players coming back as well as some top golfers from overseas like Rory [McIlroy] and Jordan Spieth.”

Source: http://www.afr.com/p/lifestyle/life_leisure/adam_scott_chases_triple_crown_in_jpGODL5EVo6yIQND1V7jfJ

This year’s crop of Tropfest short films cover the whole gambit from but most aim to win a laugh

2014 Tropfest finalist, Little Bondi. Picture: Supplied

RUNAWAY brides, clumsy butlers, Bondi hipsters and chocoholic dentists are among the characters Tropfest finalists have used to bring this year’s theme of “mirror” alive.

Now in it’s 23rd year, Australian film critic Mark Fennel today announced the 16 finalists which have been selected out of more than 600 entrants at a conference held at the Sydney Opera House.

Films set to hit the big screen at the world’s largest short film festival, which will be held in Centennial Park on December 7, cast a mirror onto the past, explore challenges or journeys made and how they affect the present, take look at Bondi stereotypes and shine a light on today’s society.

2014 Tropfest finalist, Shotgun Wedding. Picture: Supplied

Without a doubt, comedy is the most popular genre covered among the film makers, ten of which hail from NSW.

Among the celebrities set to make an appearance at the hotly anticipated event next month are Gold Logie award winning Australian television and radio presenter Steve Vizard, award winning actor Pia Miranda, The Little Death’s Alan Dukes, Underbelly’s Roy Billing, The Sapphires Shari Sebbens, House Husbands’ Natalie Saleeba, The Killing Field’s Taylor Ferguson and Australian actor Cassandra McGrath.

And as always, a number of questionable character’s also make an appearance in the films.

That’s no doubt the case in Jackson Mullane’s shortfilm, Red Nuts, which looks at the age old question, what would you change about your life if you found out you were dying?

“It follows a red nut and some of the worries you may have if you have red hair,” Jackson Mullane told Confidential.

2014 Tropfest finalist, Spirit Stones. Picture: Supplied

2014 Tropfest finalist, Untitled. Picture: Supplied

2014 Tropfest finalist, Twisted. Picture: Supplied

2014 Tropfest finalist, Red Nuts. Picture: Supplied

Mullane, who was formally a commercial director and professional Rugby Player, made his foray into the film making business after giving up his two previous passions in the search for “longevity in his life”.

“I have always loved watching films and I used to play professional Rugby, they were my two passions and once I stopped and realised I wanted more longevity in my life I made a decision to look at my other passion, film making,” he said.

Mullane is one of four brothers, his sibling, Tyson Mullane, a model and musician and executive director of the flick.

“We spent time being home schooled by our parents and grew up for a lot of years in a caravan together,” Tyson Mullane said.

“I feel like that had a lot to do with us being creative, it forced us to look things a little differently.

“Maybe that’s why we all chose to go into these expressive industries.”

Jackson Mullane has also enlisted the help of well know faces Saleeba and Ferguson to tell his story.

“Nat, I sent her the script and she liked it and wanted to be a part of it,” Mullane said.

“Taylor I have known for years.

“We also got the Rufus boys do all the music for us.”

2014 Tropfest finalist, Cavity. Picture: Supplied

2014 Tropfest finalist, A Lady and a Robot. Picture: Supplied

2014 Tropfest finalist, Evil Mexican Child. Picture: Supplied

2014 Tropfest finalist, A Bit Rich. Picture: Supplied

Jackson Mullane’s short film “The One That Got Away” was short-listed for Tropfest last year, but is hoping to have more luck this year.

“It is always competitive but I am really happy with what we have brought together,” Jackson said.

“We have a feature we want to get made next year so hopefully we can use this to speak to the right people.”

Tropfest founder and director John Polson said: “It’s been 23 years since Tropfest first began and every year films entered into the competition remind me of why I started this in the first place — to raise the profile of creative filmmakers and to share stories that, without this platform, might not have otherwise been told,” Polson said.

“It’s a privilege to see the world of such incredible talented filmmakers enter our festival, and this year is no exception.

“Tropfest audiences across the world are in for really entertaining evening of film on December 7.”

Source: http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/entertainment/sydney-confidential/this-years-crop-of-tropfest-short-films-cover-the-whole-gambit-from-but-most-aim-to-win-a-laugh/story-fni0cvc9-1227120846132?nk=0b37bee270a89676325370d660377fa0

2014 Tropfest finalist, FIXED. Picture: Supplied

2014 Tropfest finalist, Granny Smith. Picture: Supplied

Tropfest Winners

 A Lady & A Robot

 Toby Morris, (NSW, Newtown)

 Cavity

 Jacobie Gray (NSW, Cammeray)

 Little Bondi

 Michael Demosthenous, (NSW, Putney)

 Red Nuts

 Jackson Mullane, (NSW, Stanwell Tops)

 INVERSE

 Liam Connor, (NSW, Burringbar)

 Spirit Stones

 Millie Rose Heywood, (NSW, Surry Hills)

 Twisted

 Stuart Bowen, (NSW, Newtown)

 Untitled

 David Karacic, (NSW, South Hurstville) Michael Karacic, (NSW, South Hurstville)

 You wanna order pizza?

 Laura Hughes, (NSW, Birchgrove)

 The Home Video

 Nhu Hoang Dang, (NSW, Pyrmont)

Little Dragon Laneway Festival 2015 Sideshows

Written by Marc Zanotti on 6th November, 2014

Not just content to tour as part of Laneway Festival 2015, Swedish quartet Little Dragon have announced two headlining sideshows to take place in Melbourne and Sydney. Little Dragon will play 170 Russell on Monday, 2nd February before heading up to Sydney for their first-ever performance at the Opera House on Thursday, 5th February.

By the time Little Dragon return it will only have been seven months since the band toured Australia. Visiting in August behind latest album Nabuma Rubberband, both of their headlining shows sold out. While in the country the band dropped in to Music Feeds Studiofor Music Feeds Live to deliver some sweet cuts off their new record.

As part of Laneway 2015 Little Dragon will tour with the likes of Royal Blood, St Vincent, FKA Twigs, and Flight Facilities. You can check out the full festival lineup here. Tickets for Little Dragon’s Laneway sideshows are on sale now. Full gig details below.

Little Dragon Laneway Festival 2015 Sideshows - On sale now:

Monday, 2nd February 2015
170 Russell, Melbourne
Tickets: via 170 Russell

Thursday, 5th February, 2015
Sydney Opera House, Sydney
Tickets: via Sydney Opera House

One Direction On the Road Again Australian tour 2015

Much to the excitement of teenage girls, the world's biggest boy band One Direction have announced they are heading back to Australia next year as part of their On the Road Again tour.

It's just seven months since Liam, Niall, Harry, Zayn and Louis toured Australia, but they are now lining up to play shows in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth next year. The band sold all 190,000 tickets for 18 shows across Australia and New Zealand for the Take Me Home at the end of last year.

"Our Australian fans have been there for us since day one, and we always have such a great time there," Liam Payne said.

"We'll see you all in February next year!"

The band are currently travelling with their mammoth Where We Are Tour which has just visited South America and will hit Europe and the US this year. Sydney boy band 5 Seconds of Summer are supporting.

Since the band were put together by Simon Cowell in 2010, they have been an unstoppable force around the globe, amassing a $US100 million fortune along the way, according to estimates.

Get your tickets from the official Ticket master website: http://www.ticketmaster.com.au/One-Direction-tickets/artist/1645840

On the Road Again 2015 Australian tour dates:
February 7:   Sydney, Allianz Stadium
February 11: Brisbane, Suncorp Stadium
February 14: Melbourne, Etihad Stadium
February 17: Adelaide, AAMI Stadium
February 20: Perth, Patersons Stadium

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/one-direction-heading-back-to-australia-for-2015-tour-20140519-zrgor.html



Need accommodation close to One Direction tour stadiums? 
Metro Hotels have hotels and serviced apartments in most major cities throughout Australia:


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Darts Invitational Challenge 2015

Simon "The Wizard" Whitlock was pipped in the grand final 2014

Get your tickets now for the exciting Darts Invitational Challenge where fans and dart enthusiasts come together for this huge annual event!

When: 9 - 10th Jan 2015
Where: Etihad Stadium - Docklands, VICTORIA
Tickets: http://www.ticketmaster.com.au/Darts-Invitational-Challenge-tickets/artist/1889078

Recap of the 2014 event:

Fans enjoy costume drama of a night at the darts

THOUSANDS of fans - many in fancy dress - transformed Etihad Stadium on Saturday night for the finale of an international darts tournament.

Fred Flintstone, Where's Wally and fans dressed as Australian cricketers sat on white plastic chairs on turf usually reserved for AFL and soccer stars.

But unfortunately the fans were not treated to a local triumph after Dutch master Michael "Mighty Mike" van Gerwen pipped Australian top seed Simon "The Wizard" Whitlock in the grand final showdown of the Invitational Darts Challenge.

Fans dressed as cricketers at the darts tournament at Etihad Stadium 2014

Orange and purple smoke briefly filled the stadium as a rowdy contingent set off flares during the showdown.

Fans cheered, sang and even raised their chairs aloft as the world's best darts players performed on a makeshift stage in the centre of the oval.

Announcer John McDonald - the world's leading darts MC - dubbed the spectacle "magnificent".

"(The crowd) really understand it," he said.

"You could be anywhere in Great Britain now and it would be exactly the same."

Mr McDonald said there had never been a bigger exhibition of darts anywhere in the world.

Etihad chief executive Paul Sergeant estimated the crowd would reach 8000 across the two-day event.

He said the stadium attracted a capacity crowd of 1000 when it held a smaller darts tournament in one of its function rooms in August - a success which gave him confidence to host a bigger event.

"(Darts) is huge in Europe, and it's getting a significant following in Australia," he said.

"People in Australia don't usually get to see top class darts players."

Joining "The Wizard" and "Mighty Mike" at the tournament were English-born world No. 5 Andy "The Hammer" Hamilton and Australian 2012 World Cup finalist Paul "The Asset" Nicholson.

Fans were delighted to see the world's best players in action up close.

"We only get to see this on TV, on the other side of the world," one said. "It's amazing."

"It's a great atmosphere," Angela Parker agreed.

"It's definitely bigger than I thought - I didn't expect this many people."

About 4500 attended Saturday night's event, bringing the total crowd over two days to 8000.

Source: http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/fans-enjoy-costume-drama-of-a-night-at-the-darts/story-fni0fit3-1226799811021?nk=0b37bee270a89676325370d660377fa0

Perth festival 2015: from intimate to epic – and high on puppetry

The Giants by French theatre masters Royal de Luxe is set to be a highlight of the Perth international arts festival. Photograph: Pascal Victor

Perth will host Royal de Luxe’s giant marionnettes, the Australian premiere of Anthony Minghella’s last production Madama Butterfly and a phone in from Hilary Mantel.

From 30ft marionettes roaming the city’s streets to a teeny tiny love story played out on a miniature paper set, the Perth international arts festival is mixing up large and small in 2015.

In what will be his final program of a four-year tenure as artistic director, Jonathan Holloway says he hopes the festival will offer “experiences both intimate and epic”.

The Giants, by French street theatre masters Royal De Luxe, will tell the story of a girl in an Albany lighthouse who buoys the spirits of troops departing for Gallipoli. First seen in Liverpool, the marionettes almost didn’t make it into the Perth program but for a last-minute letter from Holloway to festival partners and a front page campaign by the West Australian newspaper that raised the final $5.4m from sponsors needed to fund the spectacle.

But it won’t be the only puppetry on show come February. The late Anthony Minghella’s final opera production, Madama Butterfly, gets its belated Australian premiere at His Majesty’s theatre, featuring the award-winning stagecraft of Blind Summit.

Anthony Minghella’s Madama Butterfly will receive its Australian premiere in Perth.Photograph: Robert Piwko

The Paper Architect, a tale of a model-maker whose designs come to life, will show in secret locations in Perth and Albany. And Handspring, the puppetry company behind the UK National Theatre’s international hit, War Horse, brings its South African story, Ubu and the Truth Commission, to the Heath Ledger theatre.

Also premiering at the State Theatre Centre will be The Rabbits, the long-awaited adaptation of John Marsden and Shaun Tan’s Australian picture book of the same name, adapted and directed by John Sheedy with a libretto by Lally Katz.

Meanwhile, Cut the Sky, by the Western Australian Marrugeku company, will weave the poetry of dream catcher Edwin Lee Mulligan and the music of Ngaiire and Nick Cave into a story about Indigenous land rights and our wider custodianship of nature.

Dance highlights include New York’s Mark Morris Dance Group whose Mozart Dances sets modern American choreography to the master composer’s music; Zip Zap Zoom from the West Australian Ballet at the Quarry amphitheatre; and Rising, showcasing emerging British talent Aakash Odedra, choreographed by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Russell Maliphant and his mentor Akram Khan, most recently at Brisbane festival.

Perth has also announced a killer musical program headlined by London Grammar and featuring multi Aria-award nominated Chet Faker among an international lineup that includes Sinead O‘Connor, First Aid Kit, Mogwai, Neneh Cherry and Charlie Musselwhite.

The key draw at the Perth writers’ festival, Hilary Mantel, will appear by video link from London alongside Eat Pray Love author Elizabeth Gilbert.

• Perth festival 2015 runs from 13 February to 7 March – see the full program here: https://2015.perthfestival.com.au/

Source: http://www.theguardian.com/culture/2014/nov/10/perth-international-arts-festival-2015-program