47 things to do in Sydney this weekend

If you’re a New South Waleser born and bred, you are probably already well versed in how good our state actually is. But for those of us in Sydney who don’t always get the chance to taste, smell and get stuck into the many facets of the state we call home, Pyrmont Festival is ready to celebrate everything that makes NSW such a great place to live.  Quality wines, artisan chefs, farm-fresh produce, delicious treats and live music from all four corners of the state are the earthly delights that await you over the two-day festival that’s set to hit Pirrama Park from May 18 to May 19. Now celebrating its 12th year, Pyrmont Festival will see over 20 wineries, breweries and distilleries all come together alongside food trucks and stands for one mighty event.  Wine’s from Orange's See Saw Wines, Gilbert, Canobolas Wines, Rowlee Wines, Highland Heritage, Swinging Bridge and Ross Hill Wines, the Hunter Valley's Elbourne Wines, Tulloch Wines, Hungerford Hill, Glandore Wines, Horner Wines, Weerona Wines, Petersons Wines, Savannah Estate, Ben Ean Winery, Two River Wines, and Rylstone’s De Beaurepaire Wines will be on offer. Plus, enjoy drops from the first ever Canberra District winery McKellar Ridge Wines.  Expect a whole fleet of food stalls and trucks with eats including fresh oysters from Cheeky Naked Oysters, German pretzels from Knuckles 2 You, a mouth-watering fusion of African fast food at the Pharaoh BBQ and Asian street-food snacks from the Star’s Fat Noodle stand, which reinte

Ray is a farmer. Ray is dying. Ray is falling in love. Ray has had a tough year. Ray mourns his wife. Ray meets his wife. Ray doesn’t want to live in a nursing home. Ray’s kids don’t understand him. Ray doesn’t understand why the world won’t let him live his life. Ray, played with impressive physicality and nuance by veteran actor Colin Friels, is the central figure of Into the Shimmering World – a new work commissioned by Sydney Theatre Company that makes the intimate epic, seesawing back and forth in time but remaining locked in space. The main arena of conflict is the family farm that Ray and his wife, nurse Floss (fellow veteran Kerry Armstrong) have run their entire adult lives. It’s a hard existence, but a rewarding one, contending with droughts, floods, fluctuating markets, and unruly neighbours (one dubbed “The Crook” remains an unseen presence, but a constant source of grievance).  Written by 2020 Patrick White Playwrights Fellow Angus Cerini and directed by STC’s Director of New Work and Artistic Development Paige Rattray, Into the Shimmering World is a study of Australian masculinity – as were the previous works in Cerini’s Australian gothic trilogy, The Bleeding Tree and Wonnangatta. In many ways this play is a study of stoicism, its strengths and its limitations. The laconic Ray meets every challenge with a resigned determination that borders on fatalism, an attitude that has served him well for decades. But the sons his work put through university don’t want to

Are you ready to chase artistic escapades around the city? The Biennale of Sydney is back for its 24th edition from March 9 to June 10, 2024. Whether you’re a dedicated arts fanatic or a casual culture buff, you’ll find something to inspire and provoke you along this epic art trail. The largest contemporary art event of its kind in Australia, the Biennale is taking over six different locations with awe-inspiring installations and intriguing exhibitions. Titled Ten Thousand Suns, this year the festival explores a multiplicity of global cultures, taking on a transgressive spirit as it leans into the origins of Carnivale. As always, the Biennale is free for everyone to visit for a total of 16 weeks.   Of all the locations, White Bay Power Station is absolutely the main character of the Biennale’s 50th year anniversary (and 24th iteration – it takes place every second year). This is the first time the revitalised industrial site will officially open its doors to the public in more than 100 years – and what they’ve accomplished is pretty spectacular. Years of accumulated pigeon poop has been cleared out of the enormous factory spaces, making way for art installations that tower multiple storeys high, and more works hidden in various nooks and crannies. Pop-up bars and brand new bathrooms also set the stage for a packed program of live performances and music curated by Phoenix Central Park. Think of White Bay as a replacement for the role that Cockatoo Island has played in Sydney’s

Musicals are often a product of their time. So, it is somewhat expected that the show will reflect the sentiment, the tragedy, the conflict and the beliefs of that time. What is rare, however, is when a revival of a musical manages to find that stark relevance again, as if history is repeating itself. Off the back of the celebrated Broadway revival starring Ben Platt, this new staging of Parade arrives in Sydney following a sold-out Melbourne premiere in July 2023.  First staged in 1998, Parade is based on the true story of the 1913–1915 trial, imprisonment, and lynching of Leo Frank (Aaron Robuck – The Great Gatsby: An Immersive Theatrical Experience). A Jewish man from Brooklyn, Frank was a fish out of water amongst the residents of Atlanta, Georgia, where he worked as the superintendent of a pencil factory. When he was accused of the tragic assault and murder of a 13-year-old girl named Mary Phagan (Adeline Hunter – Urinetown), the townsfolk’s prejudices and the sensationalist media coverage of the trial stirred up a storm of antisemitic tension. Witness tampering and scapegoating by the local police force led to Frank being landed with a guilty verdict, a ruling which most modern researchers strongly disagree with. Most significantly, the historic trial spurred the formation of the Anti-Defamation League, whilst concurrently initiating the revival of the Klu Klux Klan. Despite some difficulties...this show succeeds in reminding the audience that prejudice, hate, and the

This is it, we have found the yassification of Shakespeare. Fuelled by a playlist of certified pop hits, this jukebox romp billed as “the greatest love story ever remixed” poses a simple but provocative question: What if, instead of joining Romeo in eternal slumber, Juliet decided to live? A contagiously joyous musical spectacular, & Juliet has finally landed at Sydney’s Lyric Theatre after being met with critical acclaim on Broadway and the West End, not to mention the rapturously received Australian debut in Melbourne.  Filled with sing-a-long-able chart-topping bangers made famous by the likes of Britney Spears, The Backstreet Boys, Katy Perry and more from the songbook of Grammy-winning Swedish songwriter/producer Max Martin, the Aussie cast is overflowing with talent in this feel-good, flashy production. & Juliet is Shakespeare remixed for the girls, the gays and the theys... [but does it] really cut it as the feminist reclamation that we are promised? Will you be entertained? Absolutely. Does & Juliet set a new standard for jukebox musicals? Yes. Will you see one of the most diverse and charismatic casts of triple-threats ever assembled on an Australian stage? Heck yeah. Does the story deliver on the feminist retribution we are promised? Not quite. “What if Juliet didn’t kill herself?” Anne Hathaway (played by the enthralling Amy Lehpamer) posits to her husband, William Shakespeare (the ever-charming Rob Mills). “She’s only ever had one boyfriend, and frankly, the endi

Calling all amateur Egyptologists, history buffs and lovers of gold and glamour: you can explore a blockbuster exhibition packed with priceless Ancient Egyptian artefacts. Exclusive to the country's oldest museum – the Australian Museum in Sydney – Ramses & the Gold of the Pharaohs is an interactive museum experience more than 3,000 years in the making, and featuring 181 priceless artefacts. The popular exhibition has sold over a record-breaking 330,000 tickets in the first three months alone, becoming the biggest hit in the history of the Australian Museum. Ramses is still in town until May 19, 2024, and the Australian Museum has recently extended its visiting hours, giving you more chances to explore the exhibition after dark. In February, it is now open from 9am–9pm on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday (last entry at 8pm). The museum also continues to be open from 9am–5pm from Thursday to Sunday (last entry at 4pm).  View this post on Instagram A post shared by Time Out Sydney (@timeoutsydney) Ramses is the largest cultural exhibition to visit Australia in more than a decade, and in a huge coup, the Museum even managed to ship over the actual coffin of Ramses the Great for it. You can also excavate further with the museum's Gateway to Egypt public program, an exclusive season of lectures, conversations, and experiences designed to give visitors of all ages a richer understanding of Ancient Egypt, whether an Egyptophile or justEgypto-curious. RECOMMENDED: Thre

For a few special days every year, Sydney comes alive with writers, journalists, public intellectuals and book lovers – who gather for the Emerald City’s long-standing celebration of literature, reading and ideas: the Sydney Writers' Festival. This year marks the 27th anniversary of our city’s most beloved celebration of words, and the festival’s 2024 theme is Take Me Away – a theme that reflects our universal affinity for escapism, a role that literature has always played in society. Comprising 223 free and ticketed events, this year’s program is a pretty impressive one.  The urban corner of Sydney that’s home to the spectacular space that is Carriageworks will act as the hub for this year’s festival, but events will be popping up across the city: including at Sydney Town Hall, City Recital Hall and The State Library of NSW, as well as at smaller venues across Greater Sydney and the nation through the Live & Local streaming program. Keen to get involved? Read on.For the 2024 program, almost 300 writers from all over Australia and the world will come together to share stories and interrogate ideas, all around the central theme of Take Me Away. A celebration of Australian thought-leaders, 263 of the speakers on this year’s program are Australian, with 35 international speakers joining them on stages across the city.  Highlights from this year’s program will include a live podcast recording with London-based author and podcaster Katy Hessell, a behind-the-scenes look into the m

Explore extraordinary art, meet emerging artists and raise a glass (or two) to curious encounters when The Other Art Fair returns to Sydney for its autumn edition from May 16–19. Taking place for the first time at the new White Bay Cruise Terminal in Balmain, this edition of the fair promises to bring inspiration, provocation and a whole lot of fun. Aside from presenting an eclectic marketplace filled with independent artists selling take-home art for all budgets, this four-day fair invites you to enjoy unexpected performances, immersive experiences, and art giveaways. And, if you're brave enough, you can even get a stick-and-poke fine art tattoo (just like our Arts and Culture Editor, Alannah, did in 2023 – check out the video below!).  View this post on Instagram A post shared by Time Out Sydney (@timeoutsydney) Feeling nostalgic about classic carnival games? Head over to Dilara Niriella’s booth, where she has set up a classic fishing game where you can let fate decide which of her fabulous rubber-duck-inspired works will come home with you. Meanwhile, you can also strap in for live competitive painting with Art Battle, or try your hand at screenprinting. “Our new home at White Bay Cruise Terminal is a fun, light-filled venue that’s a world away from silent, intimidating art spaces,” says Fair Director Luke Potkin.  “A cultural building at the centre of plans to reinvigorate and restore Sydney’s industrial harbour, Sydney’s newest waterfront venue is the p

In paintings dating back to the 18th century, the Nayika (the heroine) can be seen with her Sakhi (her confidante). In ancient Tamil poetry, songs and dance forms such as Bharatanatyam, the cherished Sakhi – the friend, accomplice, and at times, the witness – is a catalyst for the heroine to wrestle with and ultimately to accept her truth. It is thus fitting that in Nithya Nagarajan and Liv Satchell’s Nayika: A Dancing Girl, we meet our heroine (Vaishnavi Suryaprakash – Counting and Cracking) as she is reconnecting with her childhood best friend. Beginning with a meeting over over-priced entrees in Sydney, the story explores bursts of the forgotten joy and sorrow the pair shared in Chennai, India, over four formative years as our heroine learned about love, met a boy, began a relationship and ultimately escaped its perils with her own scars. Satchell and Nagarajan’s script is moving, humorous and sensitive in its exploration of heartbreak and trauma. With dramaturgy support from Nick Enright Prize winner S Shakthidaran (the creator of critically acclaimed works Counting and Cracking and The Jungle and the Sea), Satchell and Nagarajan’s script is moving, humorous and sensitive in its exploration of heartbreak and trauma. As the only actor on stage, Suryaprakash is a captivating performer – she utilises accents effectively to indicate shifts in time and place, and is infinitely expressive as a smitten 13-year-old, finding the giddy exasperation of love with ease.  On the violin

Comedy, in this economy? Well heck, I don’t know about you, but I could sure do with a good hearty chuckle right about now. So it’s a good thing that the Sydney Comedy Festival is back with its biggest program ever in 2024 – more than 750 artists are gearing up to flood the city with laughter at more than 315 shows scattered across all corners of the city from April 22 to May 19.  From the household names we all know and love to ground-breaking newcomers who are shaking up the comedy scene, you can pick and choose between a kaleidoscopic array of gala showcases, intriguing solo stand-up shows and special events. With a whole lot of tickets coming in at under $30, there really is a “comedy concert” for everyone (just don’t look for Che Diaz on the line-up).  You can catch new shows from legendary Aussie comedians like Rhys Nicholson, Will Anderson, Tom Gleeson, Reuben Kaye, Melanie Bracewell, Steen Raskopolous, regular The Project panellist Peter Helliar, a hilarious night with Judith Lucy and Kaz Cooke, comedy crack pot Reuben Solo, the sassy and sardonic Gen Fricker, Lizzy Hoo (loved for her Prime Video comedy special Hoo Cares!?) and 2022 Australia’s Got Talent finalist Emo Majok. Joining the long list of international stars is the much loved Stephen K Amos, 2016 English Comedian of the Year Josh Pugh, plus the fierce and fiery Irish comic Shane Daniel Byrne, and American history-meets-comedy podcast The Dollop is also heading Down Under for the Festival. Some of the most e