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Terror comes in waves. The first is the bullet, knife or bomb. Then, the maiming or the death. Then there is the grief. The third drops into lives like a large stone dropped into a lake; it radiates out, slams into those directly affected and touches others with fainter ripples. Sometimes, it drowns those over
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The extra half star is a generous gesture aimed at those who haven’t read the fourth instalment of the Millennium books, written by David Lagercrantz after the untimely demise of original author, Stieg Larsson. Anyone who has read the books, and particularly The Girl in the Spider’s Web, will spend much of the time caught
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Last week I attended the Melbourne chapter of the Australia Council’s national consultation on the strengthening and enhancement of the Major Performing Arts Framework. I came away with a mix of emotions that a week later settled into unease then dread. I’m going to try to unpack that feeling through this essay. I believe the
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The race that stopped the nation stopped the horse. So death becomes us, becomes even more part of our culture, but not in a way that grasps us by the throat and sends us into gasps of grief. No, we say it’s tragic and move on. Culture’s collateral damage really. It’s not as if a
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Head to the cinemas while you still can. In the United States, cinema attendance plummeted to its lowest in 25 years. At home, Screen Australia’s CEO Graeme Mason said movie theatres are surviving on blockbusters alone. With streaming platforms like Netflix freeing us from the collective watching experience – anyone who loves popcorn, a choc
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Art isn’t easy, a composer wrote once. Especially art about art. At least Stephen Sondheim wrote about a real artist and a real masterpiece. If the audience is supposed to believe the art in your story is great, you have to produce art that is, well, genuinely great. Take A Star Is Born. No, not
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In recent years OzAsia has become one of the highlights of Adelaide’s festival calendar but never more so than in 2018. The hugely popular Moon Lantern Parade, cruelly thwarted by uncertain spring weather in recent years and cancelled several times, has benefited now that the festival begins in late October instead of a month earlier.
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The stakes are high in Hamlet Apocalypse: the end is nigh (Q.E.D.). Fortunately, there’s been enough of a heads-up for a group of seven actors to get together and ‘put on a shew’ to face the coming annihilation with a defiant production of Hamlet (Q.E.D., again). As you do. As they would. And for some
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School of Rock kicks ass. Right from the get-go, as power-chords blast through the speakers and morph into a pulsating bass line and pounding drums; as lights (Natasha Katz) slice through thick chugging haze and reveal ‘No Vacancy’ live on stage: you’ll feel a smirk coming on. These dudes may not have armadillos in their
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By Shane Murphy
The Melbourne City Council (MCC) has embarked on quite an ambitious program in using the Town Hall’s grand organ for new works it has commissioned for it. Thursday (November 8), showcased the work of JP Shiloh, the well-known multi-instrumentalist from a number of bands, most notably the Blackeyed Susans. Before JP, the MCC presented artists making
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