Things to do in Sydney this week

The genre-defying, multi-award-winning, smash-hit Broadway sensation, Hadestown has finally made its way down to Sydneytown – and it’s unlike any musical you’ve ever seen or heard. With industrial steampunk aesthetics, a soulful jazz-folk fusion, and even a comment on our dying world, this is a brave new world for musical theatre. The Down Under debut of Hadestown opened at the Theatre Royal Sydney to a ready-made fanbase. There’s a lot of hype surrounding this show – the Broadway production picked up eight Tony Awards (including Best Musical for 2019) and still plays to packed houses today, and there’s also the highly successful West End production and the North American tour.  An incisive adaptation of the age-old myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, Hadestown is the brainchild of indie-folk musician Anaïs Mitchell (with very clear influences from Justin Vernon, aka Bon Iver, who appeared on the 2010 studio album). It started its life as a song cycle, and then a studio album, and now it’s a fully-formed stage musical with a dedicated international following. Hadestown is a spectacular challenge to what we think a musical is and can be Like many fans, I discovered Hadestown via the studio album and the Broadway recording. With such a strong, atmospheric tone, the music doesn’t even need visuals to shine – featuring everything from chugging vocal sounds, deep growling singing, floating falsettos, muted trombones, a train whistle, and heavy acoustic guitars. Hadestown is the...

A brand-new festival is set to spark playful curiosity around Randwick’s hotspots – and everyone’s invited. The Randwick Creative Night brings vibrant markets and free interactive art activities to three easily walkable locations in Randwick on Friday, April 11, marking the start of the school holidays.  More than 40 market stalls will take over the Heritage Quarter of the hospital, right by the Randwick Light Rail stop, with local favourites like the traditional Portuguese custard tarts from House of Natas, handcrafted smoked meats from Bondi Smokehouse, and pizzas and focaccias from Gargano Pizzeria. Free creative workshops led by acclaimed artists and local talent will be going down from 3pm at Inglis Park at Newmarket (Barker Street) and The Spot (Perouse Road & St Paul Street). Be sure to bring your creative energy as NIDA Open will run several small group acting classes for kids and adults, while Gujaga Foundation will be hosting workshops on Indigenous shell art.  Our tip? Make use of the light rail and get there on a shoestring.  If you’re just passing through, there are plenty of ‘drop in and make’ sessions, including one led by celebrated artist Nadia Odlum, as well as a collaborative community canvas with Mindgardens and the Black Dog Institute. Rochelle Haley, the artist behind the dramatic ‘Lunar Sway’ artwork that lights up Randwick’s Nurses Drive every night, will also be doing an artist talk.   Randwick Creative Night is running on Friday, April 11 from...

Keep Friday, April 4 and Saturday 5 free in your diary, as Stickybeak Festival – a two-day food, booze and music shindig spearheaded by the legends behind Archie Rose and P&V Wine – is once again returning for its fourth year of delicious fun. This year, the fest will be coming to life at The Goods Line in Ultimo, a five-minute walk from Central, from 5-10pm each night. Bring your pocket money and comfy pants, ’cos the line-up is bloody beaut, with food stalls by Firepop, Bessie’s, Flora, Kiln, Lankan Filling Station, Attenzione Food & Wine, TBC by Grape Garden, Takam, Gelato Messina and more. Drinks-wise, expect fun, fruity and refreshing tipples from Archie Rose, as well as PS40, Baptist Street Rec Club, The Waratah, Double Deuce Lounge, Little Cooler, Maybe Sammy and more, plus vino from P&V Wine + Liquor Merchants and cold beers from Grifter Brewing Co. Time Out Sydney’s lifestyle writer Winnie Stubbs popped her Stickybeak Festival cherry last year – and loved it, saying: “If your dream Sydney dinner features a Martini from an Inner City cocktail bar, starters from a wine den in Newtown, mains from a Redfern pasta palace and dessert from a Darlinghurst bakehouse, Stickybeak is a dream come true. It would be a logistical impossibility to hop between 20 venues in one night, but this glorious fest brings them together all in one place,” she added. Ain’t that the truth. Throughout the event, there’ll be DJs and live performances curated by FBi Radio for you to bop along...

These days, it seems the best thing that a musical can be is non-traditional. Countless new productions have landed on our stages in recent years, proclaiming that their show is “like nothing we’ve ever seen before”. And while it is exciting to see new works that push the form into genre-defying territory (the brilliant Hadestown is testament to this) as well as productions that put a new twist on well-trodden territory (like The Hayes’ reinvention of The Pirates of Penzance), it’s a refreshing change to see the complete opposite: a proper classic musical theatre spectacle, that remains authentic to the source material. Opera Australia’s fresh production of Guys & Dolls – the latest outdoor spectacle in the Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour series – gives us just that, with the picturesque backdrop of the Sydney skyline, to boot.  Recommended: get ready with our guide to going to Guys & Dolls on Sydney Harbour The New York imagined by Damon Runyon, whose short stories served as inspiration for Guys & Dolls, is a place of heightened realism, populated by comical gangsters with absurd names like Harry the Horse and a thirst for illegal gambling. Director Shaun Rennie (Jesus Christ Superstar) stays true to this world, while also injecting some fresh touches. Brian Thomson’s heightened stage design perfectly compliments this – oversized set pieces, such as a giant yellow taxi, make the most of the unique outdoor setting and the enormous floating stage.  The production’s stars...

Calling all cost-conscious brides! If your wedding budget is blowing over, we’re here to help. From Saturday, March 29 until Friday, April 4, the Vinnies Waverley store will transform into a wonderland of discounted delights, with a huge selection of new and pre-loved wedding gowns, suits, bridesmaids’ dresses, formalwear, and accessories (including jewellery and shoes). According to Vinnies, the average Australian wedding now costs $36,000 – so any cost-saving measure to lighten that load is a welcome gift. Back in 2023, Vinnies launched their first ever bridal expo, attracting 674 customers over three days of shopping, and helping to raise money for the organisation’s charitable mission. Later this month, the mega sale is coming back – bigger and better than ever. This year’s event will feature more than 500 wedding dresses, 200 of which are brand new, plus outfits for your bridal party and accessories galore. Mapping out your budget? All brand new dresses will be priced at $300, and all pre-loved dresses will be priced at $50. You’ll find the Vinnies bridal expo at Vinnies Waverley, 253-259 Bronte Road, Waverley. The store will be open from 9.30am until 5.30pm Monday through Saturday and from 10am until 5pm on Sunday. It’s a first-in, best-dressed situation, with last year’s event attracting queues down the street as budget-savvy brides-to-be waited to snap up their cut-price finds. Our advice? Grab a coffee and a sambo from Frank’s Deli (a few doors down), and get in...

Summer might be over, but Sydney’s event schedule isn’t slowing down – with Great Southern Nights bringing more than 300 gigs to venues across the city and beyond. Keen to get amongst it? The annual autumn gig series is reaching its peak in one of our very favourite corners of the city; with the Hollywood Quarter (the Surry Hills intersection where some of Sydney’s coolest streets collide) playing host to a crazy-good gig trail on Saturday, April 5 (and deep into the morning of Sunday, April 6).After launching during Great Southern Nights 2024 edition, the Hollywood Quarter Gig Trail is back in a big way for 2025 – with live gigs from established and emerging Aussie artists at venues around the precinct. Running from 12pm on Saturday, April 5 until 4am on Sunday morning, the urban trail will take music lovers from intimate bars to high-end restaurants, with a super-strong line-up of artists (headliners include Babitha, Jono Ma and The Pro-Teens) playing free-to-attend gigs.  Participating venues in this year’s event include Ace Hotel Sydney, the Soda Factory, Alberto’s Lounge, the Burdekin, Golden Age, Hollywood Hotel, Harry’s, Butter, Surry Hills Hotel and Paramount House Hotel. We can also expect pavement gigs and pop-up stages, with Music Curator Trevor Brown encouraging Sydneysiders to “get ready to explore the back alleys, nooks and crannies of the Hollywood Precinct.” Keen? You can learn more about the participating venues and check out the line-up over here. Stay in...

Sydney is abuzz with Lion King-mania. In addition to the announcement of the hit-musical returning to the Capitol Theatre, the Willoughby Symphony Orchestra is giving Sydneysiders the opportunity to experience the film like never before.  While Simba prances through all of the catchiest tunes on the big screen at The Concourse in Chatswood, the Willoughby Symphony Orchestra will congregate down below. The live music will have you feeling like you're among the pridelands – get ready for goosebumps.  From Pumbaa and Timon’s infectiously uplifting ‘Hakuna Matata’ to the rousing ‘Circle of Life’, the movie’s soundtrack was put together by a collection of Oscar- and Grammy-winning musicians like Elton John and composer Hans Zimmer. With all that talent, it’s one of the best scores you could catch live.  There are two daytime performances you can catch – Saturday, April 5 and Sunday, April 6. You can snag tickets, starting from $45 to $275 for a family ticket, here.

Calling all Inner City art fans. For three inspiring weeks this autumn, Neon Playground – Sydney’s largest Asian-Australian cultural arts festival – will transform Haymarket into a luminous wonderland of neon light installations, comedy shows, art exhibitions, incredible live performances and excellent food.  After a hugely popular first year, Neon Playground is back for round two, kicking off this Saturday (Saturday, March 15) with the epic Chinatown Block Party (taking over Dixon Street in the centre of Haymarket). The opening-night event will be headlined by Korean-Australian rap group 1300, with a super-strong line-up (featuring Hong Kong-Australian rapper Tommy Gunn, Taiwanese-Australian pop artist tiffi, CRIMSON dance crew and more) soundtracking the streets from 5pm until 10pm.  Throughout the duration of the festival, a carefully curated program of Asian-Australian artists will perform at a range of free-to-attend and ticketed shows, and the streets will be buzzing with vibrant art exhibitions and light installations. Showcasing a rotating roster of established and emerging Asian-Australian artists including Chris Yee, Kentaro Yoshida, Pei Kwang, Andrew Yee, and Samuel Kim, a magnificent sculpture formed of 14 luminous towers will act as Neon Playground's visual centerpiece. The 4-5 metre towers of light will feature 80 lightbox illustrations; use 1km of neon; and integrate more than 100,000 individual LEDs. Produced in collaboration with world-renowned creative...

Henry V (stylized as Henry 5 in this production) is inarguably one of William Shakespeare’s most martial works. First performed somewhere between 1599 and 1605, there’s debate over whether the play is a deliberate act of nationalistic propaganda – certainly, its initial staging came at a time of English military adventurism, particularly in Ireland and against the Spanish. And Shakespeare, who benefited from royal approval from both Elizabeth I and James I, knew which side of the bread his butter was on. It’s always been popular in times of war – Sir Laurence Olivier’s 1944 film adaptation came mere months after the Allied invasion of Normandy, and leans into the stirring patriotism, the blood and the thunder. The text itself is deliciously ambiguous – occasionally frustratingly so in a time when, culturally, audiences demand straight lines and clear demarcations of morality. Kicking off Bell Shakespeare’s 2025 season, this latest production bucks that trend. Former Associate Artistic Director Marion Potts returns to the company after a 15-year absence to direct this carefully concentrated version. It excises many characters and subplots (farewell, Pistol and the lads from the Boar’s Head) and, of course, keeps the sinew-stiffening and blood-summoning speeches, but leans into the cost of war, taking pains to underscore the horrors. It's 1415 or thereabouts, and newly crowned King Henry (newcomer JK Kazzi), having been convinced in a very funny scene of his claim to certain...

Just like the Easter school holidays creep up on you, so does the spending on activities to keep the kids entertained. Skip out on the eye-watering ticket prices and pay a visit to the great-value Ingenia Holiday Parks Sydney Family Show this autumn. The family affair returns to the Entertainment Quarter in Moore Park, set to put the little – and not-so-little – ones in the Easter spirit without costing you a pretty penny. This year, the festivities kick off on Saturday, April 12 and will run until Sunday, April 27. The jam-packed program features everything from high-energy motorcycle and bike stunt shows to adorable little daschund meet and greets, carnival-style games and a carousel the whole family can enjoy. There will also be an adrenaline-pumping obstacle course, dodgem cars, a thrilling reptile show where you can get up close with snakes and crocs, and an animal nursery with cuddly ducklings, chicks, lambs, goats and piglets. Of course, there will be showbags galore too. For the first time the event welcomes an exciting lineup of shows set to wow little fans. The Paw Patrol Stage Show runs from April 12 to April 22 and the Bluey Live Interactive Experience from April 23 to April 27, and even better, there will be opportunities throughout the day to meet the characters (and snap a cheeky pic, too).  Be sure to go for a wander through the Easter Basket Zone and stock up on some treats. Animal lovers will be pleased to know that April 27 is Greyhound Adoption...