CITY HUB 30 January 2020

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“I’m not even the funniest person in my family.”

Page 12

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HubNEWS

Metro misses those beyond Bankstown (See p. 10)

Bondi Beach more wheelchair-friendly HubARTS If Labor had read this book there would have been no need for an internal inquiry (See p. 15)

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Waverley Council is improving disabled access to Bondi Beach via the northern end. Photo: Alec Smart

by ALEC SMART Waverley Council is improving disabled access to popular tourist spot Bondi Beach, which, on hot summer days, can attract up to 40,000 people.

On Sat 1 Feb at 11am they’re launching Access Bondi, the official opening of the new accessible ramp at North Bondi, near the Wally Weekes and North Bondi Children’s. Beach matting will also be rolled out and beach wheelchairs available to use, accompanied by music and a BBQ. Waverley Council Media Officer Deborah Field informed City Hub: “Access Bondi Project aims to improve access to Bondi Beach including our new accessible ramp, lockers for our beach wheelchairs (that can be booked and accessed independently) and the provision of beach matting from the ramp along the beach.

We were one of the first Councils in NSW to install an accessible ramp at North Bondi many, many years ago, but the recently upgraded amenities at North Bondi were designed with improved access in mind, with accessible toilets and shower.

The beach wheelchairs have also been available to use for some time, but were located under the lifeguard tower. Now, the locker system allows the wheelchairs to

be booked online or over the phone, then accessed independently using a pin code.

We’re also looking to roll out our matting for beach wheelchairs even more regularly, tidal conditions depending. They are currently rolled out a few times a week.”

Beach attracts millions

It is estimated that 2.6 million tourists visit Bondi each year to relax on the sand and swim in the surf. However, it is often challenging for the less mobile, such as wheelchair or mobility aid users, to access the beach or the sea, especially during peak use.

Access Bondi includes

a new ramp, lockers for beach wheelchairs and beach matting Waverley Council is working on several initiatives for the less-mobile. On the council website, former Mayor John Wakefield said: “The Disability Inclusion Action Plan (DIAP) recognises the underlying social responsibility of Local Government to work in partnership with other agencies to remove barriers to participation in our communities,

to protect the rights of people with disability, and to promote the value of diversity and inclusion.

Waverley and Randwick City Councils have worked together to achieve a more coordinated approach to making our communities accessible and welcoming… and include a series of actions to improve the lives of people with disability, their friends, family and carers…”

Waverley Council constructed a wheelchair-accessible path through Marks Park, Tamarama, in 2019, to enable mobility-impaired people to enjoy its sea views all year round.

Sculptures By The Sea, who utilise Marks Park for 3 weeks a year, strongly objected, stating it impinged upon their temporary exhibition space. They used this as their excuse to suspend a 22-year relationship with Waverley Council to host the annual sculpture exhibition along the BondiTamarama seafront trail, and are pursuing more lucrative offers elsewhere.

For those requiring a beach wheelchair advance booking is essential.

Call 9083 8400 or email: bondipav@ waverley.nsw.gov.au Waverley Mayor Paula Masselos will speak at the Access Bondi launch event at 11.30am. city hub 30 JANUARY 2020

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HubNEWS

Opinion

Strip-search reforms proposed by Greens describing the targeting as “out of line with the purpose,” of the legislation.

“The police are quite often bailing up teenagers, 14 or 15 year-olds, and partially undressing them on the street, lifting up their shirts looking down their pants, and they’re not recording those as stripsearches, and one of the reasons they’re getting away with that is because there’s not a functioning definition of stripsearches in the act.

By JAMES HARRISON he NSW Greens have proposed reforms to strip-search and drug dog laws, banning police from stripsearching those under 16 who are not under arrest and forcing people to “squat and cough” during physical examinations.

The reform creates a clear definition of a strip-search and limits instances of stripsearching to when there is an immediate risk to a person’s life and safety, alongside restricting the use of drug-detection dogs to circumstances when police have a court warrant.

T

Civil rights

The call for reform follows NSW Greens MP David Shoebridge’s request for the 2018-2019 financial year strip-search data from NSW Police. This data revealed approximately two-thirds of strip-searches did not result in prosecution, and less than 0.5% of alleged drug detection by a drug-sniffing dog lead to actual drug discoveries,

 Less than 0.5% of Greens MP David Shoebridge wants to ban police strip-searching under 16s who aren’t under arrest. Photo: WikiMedia

with the lowest prosecution rate in seven years.

“Both of the programs we’re looking to reform, the drug dog program and the strip-search powers of the police, are both being used to grossly breach peoples sense of personal security and their civil rights and both of these programs

deliver a level of police abuse that is out of all proportion from the crimes that they’re policing,” said Shoebridge.

This concern followed NSW Deputy Coroner Harriet Grahame questioning the ethical practice of stripsearches, particularly when enacted against youth, and

alleged drug detection by a drug-sniffing dog lead to actual drug discoveries “(The police) have proven through their own statistics to be woefully inadequate in those large-scale screening operations, which they’re primarily used for. Which is why our proposed reforms require

the police to tell a magistrate about the false positive rates and the lack of success of drug dog operations on prior success,” said Shoebridge.

Legalisation

This proposed reform takes place alongside the NSW Greens’ drug policies, which include the legalisation of MDMA and cannabis and the distribution of these drugs by government agencies.

NSW Greens do not want big pharmaceutical companies to capitalise on this.

“These reforms are in the context of The Greens supporting significant drug law reform as well, including the legalisation of both cannabis and MDMA,” Shoebridge explained. “If we had regulated legalised supply of both of those drugs, a lot of the overt criminalisation of drug use would fall away. However, these reforms are not dependant on the legalisation of cannabis and MDMA.”

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SAT 15 FEB & FRI 21 FEB Chloë Sevigny and Kristen Stewart are forces to be reckoned with in Lizzie, a sexually-charged, feminist take on the motivations behind one of the most notorious murders in American history.

SUN 23 FEB Voguing isn’t just dance moves, it’s attitude. Follow Lasseindra Ninja and her young crew in French Guiana set about demonstrating their authenticity with love, pride and pure fabulousness.

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HubNEWS

Opinion

Yabun calling as Australia Day becomes history Testing Dutton’s wrath

by JOHN MOYLE hoo hoo! Australia Day has passed and Aussies did what they love best: party, party, party!

But that was not the case for many of Australia’s First Nations people who regard the 26th January as the “Day of Mourning.”

Besides the orgy of beer, prawns and general skylarking, 26 Jan is also a day when many new arrivals are sworn in as Australian citizens. These ceremonies are held nationwide by local councils and have become a point of contention between Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton, local councils and the Aboriginal community.

W

Australia Day could be moved to a date that doesn’t commemorate European colonisation. Photo: Wikimedia

Dutton’s threat

Dutton has threatened to remove the right to conduct citizenship ceremonies from councils who do not uphold traditional Australia Day ceremonies.

Late last year the Inner West Council (IWC) decided to drop Australia Day celebrations with Mayor Darcy Byrne saying that it was “the right thing to do,” focusing instead on the Aboriginal Yabun festival held at Victoria Park, Camperdown - to which Byrne authorised sponsorship of $30,000.

However, the IWC will still preside over citizenship ceremonies next 26 Jan.

“Not good enough,” said one Inner West councilor, who wants the council to take their stance further.

there are other more preferable days than 26 Jan when Australia could celebrate its uniqueness “For Inner West residents who have followed Council’s Australia Day debate, it has taken two years to settle the politics and differences and to get to a starting point,” John Stamolis, the Independent councillor said.

“Council’s internal research says that people are opposed to celebrations, citizen of the year award and the citizenship ceremonies on Australia Day.” In 2018 the Greens put up a motion to remove the Australia Day event, which was voted down by Liberal and Labor councillors. Independent councillor Pauline Lockie, who supported the motion, said the issues had been “caught up in the politics of how far that change should go.”

To date only four councils have tested the wrath of the Home Affairs minister and made plans to ditch the traditional 26 Jan celebrations.

They are Darebin Yarra and Moreland in Victoria, Fremantle in Western Australia, and Byron Bay. Dutton issued a stronger threat to wayward councils when, in Nov 2019, he said, “We’re not going to have that disrupted by this nonsense… the rules are pretty clear, if they’re not going to abide by it, then they will find themselves without the ability to conduct the (citizenship) ceremony.”

Cr Stamolis was also critical that IWC covered the meeting without Aboriginal input.

“At the Council meeting, Councillors entered the Chamber ready to debate this very important issue without having contact from key Aboriginal bodies. It was only at the last minute.. that a letter from Reconciliation Australia arrived.”

Reconciliation Australia is an independent organisation and the peak body working with Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islanders and non-Indigenous Australians towards reconciliation in Australia.

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HubNEWS

Opinion

Trashing the Powerhouse Museum S

By KYLIE WINKWORTH omething shifted this summer as communities faced unprecedented bushfires. Quiet coastal villages, once an oasis for sleepy summers, were suddenly on the verge of the apocalypse. Inland from the fiery crisis the relentless drought rolls on, sucking the life out of the rivers, land and spirit.

For many people these catastrophic events marked a loss of complacency about the future of this country. We could see, smell and taste the impacts of global warming. Premier Berejiklian looked concerned as she stood nodding beside the RFS Fire Commissioner.

Repairing the impacts of the fires and drought will take years, even decades. Regional communities and the environment will need sustained investment to recover. The government’s spending priorities need to change; or so one would think.

But while people were stunned by the bushfire crisis, the government got to work, taking out the trash for its most extravagant and toxic project. In midJanuary it pressed on with the next stage of the demolition of the Powerhouse

Museum, setting in motion the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Parramatta museum.

Underwhelming

This followed the Arts Minister’s preChristmas announcement of the winning design for the mis-named ‘new Powerhouse’, the alleged replacement for the real Powerhouse Museum in Ultimo. What was badged as the biggest cultural investment since the Opera House was met with jokes and underwhelmed disbelief. The competition jury selected a design that it seems only a few architects will love.

Even David Borger, director of the Western Sydney Business Chamber and the project’s No 1 spruiker, likened the museum design to a milk crate.

It was left to community activist Suzette Meade to winkle out of the government that the new museum will be built on the rubble of St George’s Terrace and Willow Grove. Only last February the Premier promised to retain these listed heritage buildings, at least for the duration of the election campaign.

If the government had any qualms about the contradiction of building a

museum on a heritage crime scene it wasn’t letting on. There was no mention of these heritage losses in the media releases. It seems that Parramatta’s big new cultural landmark requires the sacrifice of its authentic places, culture and heritage.

If the government has any qualms about building a museum on a heritage crime scene it’s not letting on From the announcement of the government’s ‘bait and switch’ museum scam in late 2014, Parramatta’s heritage, culture and stories have been ignored. There was no consultation with museums and heritage places in western Sydney, and no recognition of its World Heritage sites, stories and landscape. Community voices and preferences were ignored. Parramatta was seen a blank cultural slate, its new museum only requiring the decanting of enough of the Powerhouse Museum’s big objects to justify its demolition.

All this is in stark contrast to the way

museums are developed elsewhere in the civilised world. Museums are built on foundations of community consent and trust. Community consultation comes first, and it drives decisions on the museum’s concept, location and design.

The contrast with the NSW government’s secretive planning for the Parramatta museum is striking.

The public had no say in the site selection assessment. The public was given no say on the Parramatta museum’s themes and content. The public was not allowed to see the shortlisted competition designs, let alone voice a preference.

However we will get to pay around $1.5b for a smaller museum half the size of the Powerhouse Museum. All this is more redolent of a command and control Stalinist economy than a modern democracy.

Neo-fascist design

It is no wonder the winning design has certain a neo-fascist character. The initial sketches show vast, near-empty spaces, akin to one of those unsettling de Chirico paintings of an empty arcade or plaza. Given the logistics of managing

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HubNEWS of the Parramatta museum. That too is a secret. We do know that it is smaller, less accessible and will have inferior facilities to what the museum already owns at Ultimo. In effect the real Powerhouse is being stolen and downsized into a regional arts centre.

Only the name will survive as a sad bizarre memory of what NSW has lost.

cultural TRAGEDY

Powerhouse Museum is being stolen and downsized into a regional arts centre in Parramatta. Photo: Jackson Simon

government will change the museum’s Act, as foreshadowed in the business case papers. The Trustees are not mentioned as agents or stakeholders in the project, they are already

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disempowered and irrelevant. Nor are the museum’s donors, members, volunteers, former trustees and Life Fellows identified as stakeholders.

We know little of the design detail

All this a double cultural tragedy for NSW and Parramatta. There is the missed opportunity for a new museum about Parramatta’s remarkable history and contemporary cultures. And just 32 years after its triumphant opening in 1988, the government will demolish the Sulman Award winning Powerhouse Museum in Ultimo years - Australia’s only museum of applied arts and sciences - along with its state-of-the-art infrastructure built for a working life of more than 100.

Half the real Powerhouse will be closed

by June so people should visit to take stock of the government’s slow-motion cultural crime. Make time to see the majestic transport hall and power displays as these objects will never be seen together again. When it comes to the secretive demolition of the Powerhouse Museum, taking out the trash is getting a whole new meaning.

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these spaces 24x7, they may be even creepier in real life.

This is not so much a museum for the people but a statement of Architecture.

The content is not important. The government intends to build its architectural statement and vacate the scene. Infrastructure delivered to grateful populace. Tick.

The EIS letter includes a few cross sections to add to the scant detail on the museum. They show a few planes and helicopters in a trophy hall but otherwise it is a museum in name only, with no vision, compelling concept or rationale and nothing to suggest content or purpose. It is a brutal, overbearing building. The larger building is set so far forward on the site it leaves just a few metres for a cramped river walk.

And as for the fate of the real Powerhouse Museum: it is already being written out of history and barely rates a mention in the EIS letter. Even so, the hidden purpose of the faux museum Architecture project at Parramatta is as cover for the demolition of the Powerhouse, and the appropriation of its land for property development.

The Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences Act is not listed in the section covering the statutory framework. The Act is already ignored by the current management. If it has the numbers, the

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HubNEWS

Opinion

Metro misses those beyond Bankstown

by ROYDON NG onverting Sydenham to Bankstown into Metro Southwest has been promoted as an “upgrade of the Bankstown Line” by the NSW Government.

This, however, fails to recognise the number of stations being converted into Metro Southwest is actually less than half of all current stations on the T3 Bankstown Line and that commuters outside of Sydenham to Bankstown will be worse off.

It may come as a surprise to some, but the T3 Bankstown Line actually continues to Lidcombe and Liverpool beyond Bankstown.

Transport for NSW has acknowledged that this area, known as “west of Bankstown,” has been seriously impacted by the removal of the Inner West Line’s City to Liverpool via Regents Park service. Stations such as Sefton, Chester Hill, Villawood have to interchange up to three times as a result of the T2 Inner West Line’s removal in 2013.

The NSW Government voted against a motion to restore the Inner West Line (Liverpool via Regents Park) in 2015 and used the debate in the Legislative

East of Sydenham

C

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city hub 30 JANUARY 2020

Fast trains from Liverpool to City Circle via Bankstown will be removed due to Metro Southwest. Photo: Roydon Ng

Assembly to highlight that the alternative to the former Inner West Line was provided by the T3 Bankstown Line.

Liberal MP Mark Coure even yelled out across the chamber that the direct Bankstown Line train to City Circle was a “great service”.

Stations west of Bankstown, including Berala, Regents Park, Sefton, Chester Hill, Leightonfield, Villawood, Carramar, Birrong and Yagoona, will have to interchange twice to reach current City Circle stations.

Chester Hill to Circular Quay will involve

a train or bus to Bankstown then Metro to Central and then another train.

 In the NSW Future Transport

Strategy, it appears that rail west of Bankstown does not exist Southwest stations including Liverpool, Warwick Farm and Cabramatta will lose the express train to City via Bankstown Line introduced in 2017 as a result of the removal of express services on the T2 Leppington Line.

Despite the announcement of Sydenham to Bankstown Metro in 2014, the NSW Government has not provided commuters west of Bankstown and east of Sydenham with information about the upcoming changes to their train services.

When questioned at the NSW Legislative Council Inquiry into the Sydenham to Bankstown Conversion for Metro Southwest in 2019, Sydney Trains Chief Executive Howard Collins was forced to deny accusations that T3 Bankstown Line commuters were being treated as an afterthought.

Documents marked “Sensitive: NSW Government” obtained under Freedom of Information (GIPA) from Transport for NSW show Erskineville and St Peters being serviced only by the T4 Illawarra Line.

Both Transport for NSW and Sydney Trains have remained tight-lipped about options for the west of Bankstown, despite promising during the Legislative Council Inquiry hearings to undertake community consultation. The only information made available has been obtained under Freedom of Information (GIPA), which lists the changes to bus services at stations west of Bankstown after the opening of Metro Southwest in 2024.

Coffin Ed’s NAKED CITY

AUSTRALIA DAY – A POSTSCRIPT A s somebody old enough to remember British Empire Day (aka Cracker Night) in the 50s, through an uneasy transitioning to the official nationwide Australia Day public holiday in 1994, I have to admit I have never been particularly enamoured of the latter. The cultural and political significance of Empire Day was always overshadowed by community bonfires and endless backyard pyrotechnics.

Any thoughts of jingoism were quickly displaced by the thrill of a double bunger dropped in a cranky neighbour’s letter box.

So when I was asked this year to join a Meetup style group, convened with the idea of ‘rediscovering’ Australia Day, I was immediately cautious. However, when the organisers had assured me that is was not a front for the Hillsong Church or the Australian Monarchist League, I was prepared (in the great Aussie tradition) to give it a go.

A disparate group of about 30 people had signed up for the ‘Meetup’ and the old ‘Sydney By Nite’ bus had been hired to ferry us around between the various Australia Day events. We had each been designated to bring a distinct item of Australiana, be it one of those sex doll like blow up kangaroos, an old Blinky Bill t-shirt or simply a plate of lamingtons.

Unfortunately, I had drawn the short

THAT SNEAKY RABBIT

straw and been lumbered with the Australian flag.

Having never actually owned one, I was lucky enough to call on my Kiwi neighbours and borrow their New Zealand flag. “Nobody, will know the difference bro,” my neighbour confided and as it turned out nobody did. Rather than wrap myself in the flag Pauline Hanson style or like those hoons at a former Big Day Out, I managed to fashion it into the shape of a turban.

This immediately drew cries of protest from a number of members of the group, one accusing me of a “cheap and patronising concession to multiculturalism.”

First stop for the ‘rediscovery’ bus were the free concerts at the Opera House and Darling Harbour. “Hey, they always feature the usual suspects,” I reminded some of the younger members of the group. “A lot of ‘professional’ Australians and runners up from TV talent shows, who only ever perform at these kind of events - where the hell is Joe Dolce?”

Nevertheless, despite my initial cynicism, we soon got in the spirit of the music and the endless exultations from the stage on ‘how good it was to be an Australian’ - and no doubt receive a sizeable sling for their appearance. I was starting to feel the vibe myself when one of the group, an elderly gent in his early 70s, whipped out a wobble board during

a rousing version of John Williamson’s Old Man Emu. Nearby parents and their kiddies looked horrified, particularly as he bore an uncanny resemblance to Rolf Harris. Luckily he was quickly shuffled off by security and that was the last we saw of him that day.

It was time to move on and the bus soon delivered us to Hyde Park, and the at times controversial statue of James Cook. Not surprisingly there were

By Sam Mcnair

#thatsneakyrabbit

numerous locals and tourists gathered around for various photo opps and a slightly awestruck reverence, prompted perhaps by ScoMo’s plans to blow over $50 million on various Captain Cook memorials. “So where is the statue of William Janzsoon?,” asked the only Dutch member of our group, “He first set foot on Australia, way back in 1606, long before your Captain Cook.”

“What are you, some kind of party pooper?,” interrupted one of the more conspicuously patriotic members of our group, clad in a corkscrew hat and a pair of well-worn Uggs. “Bloody foreigner, you don’t know what you’re talking about,” he bleated. Other similarly inclined members of the group soon rallied to his side and I could feel the rediscovery group splitting into two distinct sides.

“How about a game of touch footy in the Domain?,” I suggested, hoping that a bit of sporting interplay might ease the growing tensions. “Bugger that, the splinter group roared at me. We’re off to catch the last few songs of Eskimo Joe at the Opera House.”

As the patriots left for the Quay and the remainder boarded the bus to take them to a sausage sizzle at Botany Bay, I decided to bail out and leave the group.

Standing in front of the monolithic statue of Cook, a pair of clucky pigeons attempting to mate on his head, my thoughts flashed back to the less politicised days of the late 50s and the much loved Cracker night. How I longed for one of those two shilling sky rockets which strategically directed I could fire right up Captain Cook’s arse! city hub 3 OCTOBER 2019

11

Stood Up by

Jack Whitehall “I’m surprised anyone in Australia could even be arsed to come and see me...

I’m not even the funniest person in my family.”

By Jamie Apps ward-winning comedian Jack Whitehall has arrived in Australia well in advance of his upcoming Stood Up tour. Ahead of the tour City Hub spoke with Whitehall about the journey which has led him into comedy and acting alongside some of the biggest luminaries in the industry.

The person who has always been a constant in Whitehall’s life is his father. “My father was always a very funny person growing up. I always looked up to him and admired him. I always wanted to make people laugh and be a raconteur like him,” he reflected.

With his father as inspiration, Whitehall began forging a career in stand-up comedy. As his star grew Whitehall told us he “finally felt I’d gotten out of Dad’s shadow.” That was until Jack and his father paired up for their hit Netflix travel show, Travels With My Father.

“For some inexplicable reason I stepped back into Dad’s shadow and now I’m trapped there again!”

The relationship between Jack and his father has become a key device in in the Stood Up show. So much so that the elder Whitehall will also be making his Australian debut alongside his son in February.

“This show has lots of stories about my life... and a fair bit of material about my Dad,” explained Whitehall.

“I’ve been traveling a lot with him and so he’s a recurring character who I bring up onto stage and throw under the bus quite aggressively. Any fans of our show will enjoy seeing me tell some stories at his expense.”

According to Whitehall, Stood Up has been in development for over a year, with the past three months spent touring it around the UK. During his travels Whitehall has made some hilarious observations about the differences in culture between Britain and the U.S. “Four glasses of wine with dinner in Los Angeles and you’re considered an alcoholic but in Britain

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Photo: Supplied

four glasses with dinner and you’re the designated driver.”

He’s looking forward to coming to Australia where one joke in particular may finally find the right appreciative audience: “I have a whole routine about emus,” he said, “which I’ve been doing in England for the last two and a half months.

People [in the UK] look at me with a blank expression on their face because they don’t know what an emu is. I’ve been forging through and getting big

laughs but now that I’m in Australia I feel like finally the emu material will come into its own.”

Whilst this is Whitehall’s first time performing in Australia he is confident that his past experiences have set him up to succeed.

When Whitehall first began dipping his toes into the stand-up circuit in Putney, in South West London, his local gig was in a “walkabout run by and filled with Aussies.” So despite never even visiting Australia before Whitehall already has an

intricate understanding of the Australian sense of humour.

“Aussie are great! You’re willing to laugh at yourselves,” he said. “Nobody is overly sensitive, so you can make joke and take jokes, which is why I’m excited for the tour rather than apprehensive, which sometimes I can be playing somewhere new.”

As the tour rapidly approaches Whitehall is clearly excited and confident but when the idea was first floated to him it was an entirely different story.

“I had absolutely no idea that anyone knew who I was over here or even watched my stuff. For all I knew I could have been coming to play to 10 people in a shed,” Whitehall recalled before continuing, “The fact that I’m getting to play these venues is so overwhelming, humbling and awesome.”

Outside of the stand-up comedy world Whitehall has also gone through a period of feeling overwhelmed and humbled. In recent years Whitehall has had opportunities to work alongside the likes of Dame Helen Mirren, Morgan Freeman, and Dwayne Johnson, which Whitehall described as true “pinch yourself” moments.

Although Stood Up is built around funny stories and anecdotes from Whitehall’s life he told City Hub that he avoids using stories from his experiences with the Hollywood elite.

“I don’t want to upset any of them. I can slag off my Dad until the cows come home but you need to be a bit more careful with the Hollywood A-listers.”

Even though Whitehall is seeing incredible success in Hollywood he was quick to assure us that stand-up will always be his home.

“I love acting, being part of a cast and pushing myself with new characters but it’s quite an odd medium. You can feel detached from the end product simply because of how long it takes to come out,” Whitehall explained, “Whereas I love the immediacy of stand-up, it’s just about you and that audience on one specific night.”

Feb 7. First State Super Theatre at ICC Sydney, 14 Darling Dr, Sydney. $89.90-$109.90+b.f. Tickets & Info: www.firststatesupertheatre.com.au 12

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HubARTS

Were it not for a chance meeting on a flight Cry Club might not exist.

(See p.14)

ne of the most celebrated and visionary choreographers in contemporary dance is entering the final days of his residency at the Sydney Opera House this week.

Grand Finale is currently being performed by ten dancers from the Hofesh Shechter Company with accompaniment by live musicians. The performance is a hypnotic blend of dance, theatre and live music which will enthrall dance lovers and novices alike.

Photo: Rahi Rezvani

Hofesh Shechter’s Grand Finale O

In the work, Shechter conjures a frighteningly familiar spectacle of the globe at the

REVIEW

Don Giovanni

Baritone Shane Lowrencev.

His rendition of the Cataogue aria midway through the first act brings comic relief to a particularly sombre night. The audience roared as Lowrencev tallied Don Giovanni’s indescretions, “In Germany two hundred and thirty; One hundred in Photo: Georges Antoni France, in Turkey ninety-one; But in Spain already one ozart’s classic opera thousand and three.”Three Don Giovanni takes on added resonance in the wake Australian Sopranos Eleanor Lyons (Donna Anna) Jane of the Me Too movement.

Ede (Donna Elvira) and Anna Don Giovanni translated into Dowsley (Zerlina) are delightful Spanish means Don Juan. in their roles as victims of Don The libretto tells the timeless Giovanni’s advances. Don tale of a licentious lord Giovanni is one of Mozart’s who seduces, entraps and manhandles a host of women. finest works. It serves as eloquent reminder that This season’s production prominent men have used of Mozart’s masterpiece their power and social position casts the Italian Baritone to take advantage of women Luca Micheletti in the role long before Harvey Weinstein of the ignoble nobleman. ever entered a New York City Micheletti is a Renaissance courthouse to face charges of man: an accomplished actor rape. (LG) who holds a PhD in Italian Until Feb 27. Sydney Opera literature. His performance House, Bennelong Point, is dark, dangerous and Sydney. $48-$369+b.f. menacing.His offsider and Tickets & Info: manservant Leporello is www.opera.org.au played by the Australian Bass

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precipice of apocalypse. The only wry hope comes from the dancers urgently embracing

his signature frenetic and ecstatic language – dancing their way to the end of time.

According to Olivia Ansell, Sydney Opera House Head Of Contemporary Performance, “Grand Finale is timely, relevant and hauntingly beautiful, tapping into the terrifying anxieties of now – it is a must for the Sydney Opera House stage with its searing intensity.”

Until Feb 2. Sydney Opera House, Bennelong Point, Sydney. $39-$89+b.f.

Tickets & Info:

Angry Fags

Photo: Bob Seary

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opher Payne’s Angry Fags is a revenge story and a cautionary tale of good gay guys gone bad. Payne’s play is a comedic play portraying support towards LGBTQI rights, exploring themes of friendships, revenge and political satire.

The play is about politics, love and toxic friendships. Payne’s characters uses violence to go against violence, however, it eventually leads to terrible and unforeseen consequences.

The story revolves around the friendship between two gay guys Bennett and Cooper. After a mutual friend, Bennett’s ex-boyfriend gets bashed, outside the carpark of a gay bar. Bennett’s boss, Allison Haines, a state senator up for re-election against the conservative party’s Peggy Musgrove, a female

Republican Evangelical opponent. Haines refused to label it as ‘hate crime’ - as hate crimes against homosexuals don’t exist under Georgia law. Bennet and Cooper became frustrated that they are not respected enough to have equal justice and rights. Initially acting with good intentions the two men turn to fear tactics to achieve what politics and good intentions can’t.

Through dark comedy, playwright Topher Payne updated his play to include the legalisation of gay marriage in order to reflect on the current state of the American politics and create a timeless play for our time. (KC) Feb 4-Mar 7. New Theatre, 542 King Street, Newtown. $20-$35+b.f. Tickets & Info: www.newtheatre.org.au

The Usual Dagos

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oming together to share the stage in Sydney this February for one show only, a star-studded line-up of A-list comedians will feature in an exclusive stand-up event, The Usual Dagos.

Comedians including Joe Avati, George Kapiniaris and TV star Tahir will welcome new members of the Dagos family to the stage; James Liotta, Piero Viavattene, and a few ‘wogs that weren’t’ - Ashley Fils-Aime and Dane Simpson who will be bringing his Aboriginal background to the cultural comedy celebration.

Australian comedy veteran George Kapiniaris is ready to bring the boys together on stage for another Dagos special.

“It’s going to be jam packed with Dagos, one yak and one Aboriginal,” Kapiniaris said. “We’ve known each other for years, we’re great mates.”

Each comedian will bring their own set to the stage, making The Usual Dagos a night of comedy packed with full sets from each comedian.

“We’re all doing a separate set. I’ll be bringing lots of old and new stuff. All of it will be a little bit controversial… I have a really good go of it.”

Kapiniaris warns that audiences better be prepared for The Usual Dagos line-up.

“This line-up... you’re gonna get a laugh. You’ll get whiplash from laughing so hard. You should bring a cushion. The next day you’ll be so sore from laughing you’ll feel like you’ve gone for a run.”

This show will be the ‘best of the best’ according to Kapiniaris, “There are so many jokes coming. We’ve taken all the best jokes and put them together.

That’s our number one job, to be funny. We’ll all have such a good time nobody will want to leave.” (MB) Feb 1. Enmore Theatre, 118-132 Enmore Rd, Newtown. $60-$80+b.f. Tickets & Info: www.enmoretheatre.com.au city hub 30 JANUARY 2020

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HubARTS

James Smith - Live & Uncensored

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ames Smith doesn’t mince words when he talks about fitness. The outspoken, expletive-happy, nopunches-pulled personal trainer got so fed up with the commercial, sensationalised industry that fitness had become that he had to speak up - loudly. The Brit, who now lives in Bondi, gained fame via social media and YouTube, and now he’s going to deliver his gritty message on stage in his very first tour.

His talks are aimed at disenchanted people “who are probably a little confused on which direction to go - they’ve tried a few gimmicks and succumbed to a few fads before.”

Smith knows what it’s like because he’s been there and done that. He also understands that he needs to be a little

By Jamie Apps ad it not been for a chance meeting on a flight to Japan 2019’s ‘most played artist’ on Triple J Unearthed may not even exists.

The duo of Jonathon Tooke and Heather Riley, best known now as Cry Club, first met on a flight to Japan as part of a university trip. Surprisingly though the duo first began to develop a bond over something other than music.

“Funnily enough the reason we ultimately landed on the name Cry Club goes right back to that first meeting,” explained Tooke before continuing, “We bonded over all of the TV shows that we would cry over.”

Although Tooke and Riley became quick friends their musical collaboration took some time to develop. With Tooke performing Photo: Giulia McGauran

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different to cut through all the other marketing noise.

“People in the industry can be a bit dry on the subject and I know that because I’ve studied under these people, so I know not to make that mistake,” he explains.

One of his big talking points is the notion of “calorie deficit”, that is, ensuring people use more calories than they take in. The idea of counting calories is not new, but the way it’s been taught previously has made people unsuccessful and therefore cynical.

Smith says that any weight loss and fitness plan needs to be customised to suit the individual.

“Every solution out there is a bit like a tailored jacket, and no two jackets are gonna be the same. It’s my job to make

Cry Club in a number of other bands it wasn’t until “a couple of years” later that he had an opportunity to begin a new project.

“I had the start of a song but just needed someone to help finish it. I knew Heather could really sing so Heather came over and we finished the song that day. From that moment I immediately knew ‘oh this works’ and dropped everything to make Cry Club the sole focus.”

Since then the duo has done nothing but grow thanks to their distinctive sound, which Tooke described as, “trying to combine the post-punk that we grew up loving with the pop music that we grew to love.”

sure that it fits that person,” he says.

Smith gets frustrated by people in the industry selling “easy solutions” which invariably require a buy-in, subscription and/or continuous purchase of expensive powders, pills, superfoods.

He’s not about that. He wants people to learn the methods and principles so they can take care of themselves.

“I’m like the driving instructor of fitness, where, unfortunately you are going to have to buckle down for a few weeks and you are going to have to learn and at the end of it we’re gonna get you to a point where I no longer need to sit next to you.” (RB) Feb 7. Metro Theatre, 624 George St, Sydney. $67.90+b.f.

Tickets & Info: www.metrotheatre.com.au

As part of their creative process Tooke and Riley often aim to blend disparate elements together. Tooke talked City Hub through an example of this process.

“If we have something that’s really heavy we think ‘what would Katy Perry sing over this?’ Or if we have something super pop we think ‘what would a punk singer sing over the top?’”

By creating music in this way it has meant that Cry Club has been able to build their following in a much more deliberate and discerning way than if they had a major radio hit right out of the gate. Something which Tooke says they are grateful to have had the opportunity to do.

“I’ve been playing in bands for 10 years now, so I’ve seen a lot of the things that can go right and wrong at shows. [For Cry Club] we wanted to make sure our shows were safe and people understood who we are before they came to see us, so we’ve been deliberately holding off on doing headline shows.”

For fans looking ahead to the show this week Tooke told City Hub they can expect “quite a theatrical” performance.

“If I don’t come off stage completely drenched in sweat or feeling like I’m about to pass out from exhaustion I probably haven’t played hard enough.”

Jan 31. Oxford Art Factory, 38-46 Oxford St, Darlinghurst. $13.65+b.f. Tickets & Info: www.oxfordartfactory.com

Kate Ceberano, Steve Kilbey & Sean Sennett The Dangerous Age

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usical artists Kate Ceberano, Steve Kilbey and Sean Sennett have teamed up to produce a new album titled The Dangerous Age. As the name might imply, the album has an overall melancholy and foreboding sound.

Despite these heavy undertones, the collection of works is remarkably upbeat, seamlessly combining Kate, Steve and Sean’s talents and the effortless way they seem to complement one another.

The title track has a particularly chilling, yet oddly soothing effect, drawing listeners in with its breathy and whimsical sound.

Other singles from Kate, Steve and Sean that are certainly worth giving a listen to include So Long Ago and My Restless Heart, which both have a mid-20th century feel. (EE) WWWW

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HubARTS REVIEW

Aaron Patrick The Surprise Party I f Labor had read this book there would have been no need for an internal inquiry into how and why they lost the election because Aaron Patrick tells us in The Surprise Party how the coalition snatched victory from the jaws of chaos.

Blow by blow accounts of both sides leading up to the election shows that everyone played it dirtier than the public ever knew.

All the while Labor refused to recalibrate as the Liberals began picking up support in the coal belts and as inner-Melbourne seats slipped away from Labor.

But Patrick firmly believes that it was Shorten’s own shortcomings

that drove the stake through Labor’s ambitions to lead while the Liberals were still in a state of disarray.

Maybe Patrick spends too much space on Alex Turnbull’s attempt at disruption and not enough on the impact of Clive Palmer’s advertising blitz. But through impeccable sources from both sides and the forensic eye of an experienced journalist Patrick has produced a book that is a taut and gripping account of one of Australia’s biggest political upheavals.

To understand what the bloody hell happened and how it will inform the future of the Morrison government this is a must-read! (JMo)

A Hidden Life Seberg

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irsten Stewart portrays the downward spiral of actress Jean Seberg as she is hounded, spied upon and humiliated by J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI as part of an operation aimed at discrediting the American civil rights movements of the 1960s.

Returning to the U.S. after becoming a star of French New Wave cinema, her passion for civil rights sees her drawn into the world of activist Hakim Jamal (Anthony Mackie), a man with links to the notorious Black Panther movement. The resulting publicity leads to a level of surveillance that ultimately shocked the American public when it came to

light after activists raided FBI offices in 1971.

While there is no doubting this is Stewart’s film and her performance is typically strong, it also explores the toll carrying out such intrusive activities can have on individual psyches, in particular that of a conflicted but powerless agent competently portrayed by British actor Jack O’Connell. Ultimately however, Benedict Andrews’ part biopic, part fictional drama is a somewhat superficial insight into a bleak chapter of American history.

(CCov) WWW

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hauntingly beautiful film about a young couple grappling with the conflict of conscience and duty when faced with the threat of losing their way of life due to the spread of Nazism.

The couple’s daily routines are filmed with great attention to detail with the surrounding countryside like a magnificent painting. The long slow shots of ploughing fields against the backdrop of changing skies along with the silhouettes of village churches, houses, barns and stables nestled in the green hills, creates a sense of infinite peace in the abundance of nature.

Director Terrence Malick juxtaposes

this inner harmony and peace with documentary footage of the emergence of Adolph Hitler. It’s as if the director is asking us to imagine how difficult it must have been to go against the throng and to remain steadfast in one’s belief when pressured to become part of the relentless push forward to ultimate power.

The world they have known, a world of quiet reflection, of poetry in the sound of nature, of being as one with the land, themselves and each other, is about to change forever and there is no way back.

Inspired by true events and brilliant from start to finish.

WWWWW city hub 30 JANUARY 2020

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