Welcome to the 50th blog post of Time Out Sydney's 52 Weeks of #SydCulture 2017 challenge! Up until this point, we’ve had guest bloggers as your guides, but December’s culture selector is one of our own: Time Out’s new national arts and culture editor, Ben Neutze. Every week in December, Ben will be sharing some of his cultural experiences and telling us what he loved the week before. Think of it as your recommendation, from someone who sees a helluva lot of arts and culture. Over to him.
Kings Cross has had a pretty tough time over the last few years. Its long-held bohemian character has been under threat and gradually evolving for several decades, but lockout laws and continuing gentrification have made a massive impact in a scarily short period of time.
So you’ll probably be surprised to learn that there’s been a small but important creative flourishing in the area. Although live music venues mightn’t be doing brilliantly, live theatre has found a way to kick on and grow, against the odds.
It’s rare enough that new theatres pop up in Sydney – or that older ones kick back with new energy – but what makes this rejuvenation really special is that Sydney now has what you could call a theatre district.
It’s not quite Broadway or the West End – or even Melbourne’s newly named East End theatre district – given that the biggest theatre in the area seats just 200 people, but there’s an exciting theatrical energy in Kings Cross and the surrounding suburbs, thanks to long-standing residents like Griffin Theatre Company at the SBW Stables Theatre, and newcomers including Bakehouse Theatre at Kings Cross Theatre and Red Line Productions at the Old Fitz Theatre. Just a short walk away from both of these are Hayes Theatre Co in Potts Point and Darlinghurst Theatre Company’s sparkling new Eternity Playhouse.
For the next three weeks, I’ll be looking at what some of these theatres are contributing to Sydney’s cultural life.
I saw a few things in the Kings Cross district over this week just gone, including High Fidelity at the Hayes and Night Slows Down at Kings Cross Theatre (I'll speak more about that in week 51!).
But the show I really wanted to touch on is Virgins and Cowboys, a crazily inventive and unusual new play at Griffin.
This isn't a review of that show – you can read our review of the Melbourne season, which featured the same cast – instead I wanted to tell you a little bit about Griffin Theatre Company. If you don't know about Griffin Theatre Company, you don't know all you need to know about Australian culture.
The company was established back in 1979, and made the historic SBW Stables Theatre its home in 1980. The Stables is a theatre like no other, and it's called the Stables because, you guessed it, it used to be an actual stable. It's one of Sydney's most intimate theatres – there's no seat from which you can't discern every actor's facial expression – and has an unusual kite-shaped stage, with audience members on either side.
But what's even more fascinating than the venue itself is the work that goes on inside it. Back in 1980, Griffin decided that it would only produce Australian plays. That was a pretty bold move to take at that point, when Australian playwriting was really just burgeoning. But the theatre company has remained successful over the course of almost four decades, and arguably contributed more works to the Australian theatrical canon than just about any other theatre company.
Not bad for a venue that seats just 120 people.
The company is also in the midst of a really strong period, led by its endlessly enthusiastic artistic director Lee Lewis.
Griffin's program for next year is pretty damn exciting. It kicks off with Kill Climate Deniers – the play that Andrew Bolt has already chucked a hissy-fit about – and includes some of Sydney's top actors, including Tara Morice (Fran from Strictly Ballroom) in Good Cook. Friendly. Clean.
The company has both main stage offerings and indie entrants. The indie shows are generally cheaper, but you can see the main stage shows for $60 and just $38 if you're under 35.
See what else is on stage this month, and check out our hit list of the best art in Sydney right now.
While you’re here, check our 52 Weeks of #SydCulture challenge, and let us know what you're seeing/loving on Instagram via the hashtag #SydCulture.