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‘Green Clover’ reigns over City

BY JORDAN FERMANIS Perhaps the party that was hit the hardest by Clover Moore’s historic fourth term as Lord Mayor was the Greens.

In the 2008 City of Sydney Council election the Greens vote was at a healthy 14 per cent. In 2012, it dropped to 6.53 per cent whilst currently the Greens vote stands at a dismal 4.86 per cent of the vote.

Conversely, Clover Moore’s popularity has increased. Her latest victory sealing almost a 10 per cent increase in voters up to 59 per cent of the vote, by some estimates making her the most popular politician in Australia.

This poor set of council results for the Greens reflects the outcome in the seat of Sydney in the 2016 Federal election, where candidate Sylvie Ellsmore was only able to pick up 18% of the vote against incumbent Tanya Plibersek.

Earlier this year it was reported that former executive officer Carole Medcalf took the Greens to the Fair Work Commission in November 2015. Ms Medcalf’s dismissal caused a fissure in the NSW Greens with NSW Greens treasurer Christopher Harris resigning in the fallout.

The passing of Dr John Kaye this year left a power vacuum in the NSW Greens which saw a face-off between the left faction known as the ‘watermelons’ and the right faction of the Greens, the so-called, ‘tree tories.’

Even former Australian Greens leader Bob Brown weighed in for comment after the federal election calling for a clean out of the NSW Greens after a weak election showing.

The Greens candidate for Lord Mayor Lindsay Johnston conceded that the election on September 10 was never going to be easy.

“It was always a difficult campaign; we came off campaigning for the federal election and resources were stretched to the limit. We had 6 months of campaigning.”

“You couldn’t of picked a harder campaign to run,” Mr Johnston said.

In the lead-up to the election the controversial new business voting laws were swooped upon by the Clover Moore team as a ‘gerrymander’ and a tactic from the NSW government to hurt her chances of being reelected.

Mr Johnston said that all the new laws did was push business voters right into Clover Moore’s lap.

“The greatest influence on the council election was the most irrational decision of the NSW government to impose two vote for non-residential voters and to threaten the business community with a $2,200 fine. It has just completely backfired.”

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Lindsay Johnston Photo: Supplied

Clover Moore Photo: Jordan Fermanis

“It’s driven the whole community into Clover Moore’s camp and that is basically what routed our vote,” Mr Johnston said.

After her victory was called on Saturday night, Clover Moore announced that it was a “victory for grassroots democracy.” A slogan not dissimilar from one of the Greens ‘four pillars’ of ‘Grassroots participatory democracy’ according to their website.

Mr Johnston said that at the polling booths on election day he heard Moore volunteers echoing similar slogans seemingly appropriated from the Greens.

“Her booth workers were using Greens slogans openly on election day and I made some criticism of one of them at Town Hall for using known Greens slogans that we’d be using for many years,” Mr Johnston said.

Christopher Harris, former NSW Greens treasurer and City of Sydney Councillor said that in his view, the main reason for the Greens poor election results were voters’ inability to distinguish Clover Moore from the Greens.

“I think Clover is seen as somebody who achieves everything the Greens could possibly achieve and people voted for her instead of voting for the Greens.”

“The average voter would see a vote for Clover as as good as voting for the Greens,” Mr Harris said.

Mr Harris told City Hub that the City of Sydney elections pushed the Greens resources to the limit and that the Greens lost volunteers to the Clover Moore Independent Team.

“It is also tough with City of Sydney elections because a lot of Greens actually work for Clover so we struggle for resources, for volunteers because they work on the Clover campaign,” Mr Harris said.

Labor Councillor re-elect Linda Scott told City Hub that the Greens had suffered “swings against them,” and when asked the reason for Moore’s victory said she too thought it was a reaction to the new business voting laws.

“I think it’s clear it was a protest vote against the Baird Liberal government seeking to gerrymander the City of Sydney for their own benefit,” Ms Scott said.

Greens candidate Lindsay Johnston said he he is “still in there with a shot of a seat” and will be waiting to see the final results as they unfold this week.

Moore wins historic fourth term

BY LUCAS BAIRD Clover Moore won a historic fourth term as the Lord Mayor of the City of Sydney at the council elections on Saturday, 10 September.

Ms Moore won the mayorship comfortably with a swing of approximately eight per cent towards her, despite controversial business voting reforms, which were expected to favour her opponent, Liberal candidate Christine Forster.

Ms Moore will become the longest serving Lord Mayor in Sydney’s history if she sees out the next four years of her term, which will take her to a 16 year tenure. This would beat the previous best of 12 years set by Frank Sartor, who served from 1991 to 2003.

Speaking on Saturday night, Ms Moore thanked her supporters and said that this was a “victory for democracy”.

“This is a real victory for democracy. It’s a victory for good government,” she said to her supporters.

“It’s about the continuation of independent, progressive, community-led government for the city.”

“I have been re-elected Mayor and I will have my majority and perhaps even more than that.”

Ms Moore was congratulated by her opponents and supporters on Saturday night.

State MP for Sydney, Independent Alex Greenwich, said that his word of the night of was “clovered”. Which he defined as “when a gerrymander backfires”, referring to the voting reforms that gave businesses two votes instead of one.

Ms Forster also congratulated Ms Moore on her victory, but said that she would continue to hold the Lord Mayor to account for her decisions in council.

Ms Forster said that she was proud of the effort her campaign had put in and was grateful of her team.

“I will continue listening to the people of Sydney and fighting for

‘Sydney Town Hall’ Flickr taken by Sv1ambo

the policies and change of style my team and I campaigned for,” Ms Forster said.

Ms Forster came second in the race for mayor with 17 per cent of the vote, she was followed by Labor’s Linda Scott (10.68 per cent) and Angela Vithoulkas from the Sydney Matters team (7.75 per cent).

As of the time of writing, the City of Sydney council looks as though made up of at least five members of Clover Moore’s team and one each from the Liberal and Labor parties. The last two seats are currently undecided. city hub 15 SEPTEMBER 2016

3

Woollahra Council approves six storey development for Double Bay

Woollahra Council Meeting Monday September 12.

Photo: Charlotte Grieve

BY CHARLOTTE GRIEVE Despite strong community resistance, on Monday night Woollahra Council passed a motion to approve a six storey development plan for Cross Street in Double Bay. The $12.5 million development will feature five levels of luxury apartments and six commercial units on the ground floor. It has been the subject of numerous public petitions and opposition by residents who claim it will be detrimental to privacy, solar access and the future character of the area.

The plan has also raised concern for its disregard for local planning controls including the Council’s own four storey height limit and floor space ratio restrictions.

“The proposal to wilfully depart from existing regulations significantly breaches our control,” said Councillor Robertson who voted against the motion.

Councillor Petrie, who voted for the motion, claimed that these regulations have been breached before.

“Double Bay is now becoming the way we always wanted it to be,” said Cr Petrie. “We are forced to make ourselves unpopular at times.”

The controversy surrounding this development feeds into the age old debate around the ability to strike a balance between the

need to increase the vibrancy of an area without subjecting it to over-crowding.

Speaking at the meeting, Councillor James Keulemans cited the “merits” of the building’s design, arguing that the development will enhance the local street scape and bring more people to the area.

In contrast, Councillor Luise Elsing reminded the room of the need to “commandeer the views of our constituents.” She also warned of the approval’s ability to set a precedent for increasing density and over-development of the precinct.

“They [the developers] will run straight to the courts and say ‘well they’ve done it for them why can’t they do it for us,’” she said.

Councillor Anthony Marano who also voted against the motion said he had “grave concerns” for the alfresco diners and afternoon café-goers of Double Bay’s back lanes.

Councillor Robertson described these sun-lit laneways as “key and unique” to the Double Bay precinct.

While the motion narrowly passed with a five to six vote count, community members are livid with the result.

“This will be the end of Woollahra Council,” said Jasmin Steel, convenor for the Darling Point Society.

Cartoonist: Peter Berner @peter_berner

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Powerhouse Inquiry Update

BY KRISTEN TSIAMIS The Upper House inquiry into the proposed sale of Ultimo’s Powerhouse Museum began hearing formal submissions on Monday 5th and Tuesday 6th September. There has been a further hearing day on the 4th of October because the inquiry committee had certain further questions to ask some of the witnesses.

Patricia Johnson, co-convenor of Save the Powerhouse campaign testified on Monday and said that this extra day is unusual.

According to Ms Johnson, this extra hearing day will be held the day after the regional tour day because “the committee wanted witnesses to clarify some of their earlier testimony.”

Ms Johnson said the Save the Powerhouse campaign is the “only group as far as we know, formed entirely to represent community interests across New South Wales for Powerhouse issues, bar the North Parramatta Residents Action Group who have worked closely together since the campaign started over a year ago. “ Ms Johnon belives the Inquiry has been run smoothly: “it’s been conducted very well, we’re very pleased with the intelligence and thoughtfulness of the committee, and they’re mostly very interested in this issue.”

Greens MP for Balmain Jamie Parker has strongly advocated for the inquiry to help stop the sale, as he believes the proposed sale by the Baird government was “a real estate deal rather than a cultural commitment.”

The proposal, made in late 2015, did not come from the Arts Community, but rather from Infrastructure NSW, established in 2011 under the O’Farrell government to help identify land and property to sell.

The proposal to sell the site where the Powerhouse currently sits was “not a cultural decision, but rather an infrastructure asset decision” that will see an inferior Powerhouse Museum being built in Parramatta” he said.

Even if another Powerhouse were to be build in Parramatta, it

The Powerhouse Museum. Image: Supplied

would need a large injection of funds as “the sale of the Powerhouse will not allow a like for like Powerhouse in Parramatta, but rather an inferior version for the people of Western Sydney.”

The inquiry is a good move forward, according to Mr Parker, as he hopes it will help “remove the veil of secrecy, and show people the true costs of the government’s proposed changes.”

Mr Parker is confident that the inquiry will lead to a change in course by the government, as it will demonstrate how poor the decision was, and highlight the lack of benefit for the public.

Simply moving the Powerhouse to Parramatta, according to Mr Parker, shows the “disdain that the government has for the people of Western Sydney.”

Putting the Powerhouse in Parramatta would “cost an extra $400

million at least, to build a second Powerhouse in the area.”

Ms Johnson agreed with Mr Parker, and says that “neither Parramatta nor broader Sydney want the Powerhouse to be moved, Western Sydney wants a new facility of their own.”

Ms Johnson told City Hub “the recommendations that the committee are going to report should shed a great deal of light on a murky process, as the whole Powerhouse issue has been very nontransparent and with very over-projected costs.”

Ms Johnson said that the future of the Powerhouse is unclear, as even if the inquiry recommends that the Powerhouse not be moved, the government is not legally bound to listen to these recommendations. Although they “must respond, they’re not legally obliged to do anything that is recommended.”

Mr Parker says that even if the government “got $200 million from the sale of the Ultimo site, a new Powerhouse cannot be built from the income of the site sale. It would could hundreds of millions of dollars more.”

Mr Parker said that there are other options for the proposed Parramatta site, including “creating a truly relevant cultural facility in Western Sydney that speaks to the people of the area rather than real estate deal”, a state museum, migration museum, an Indigenous museum or a secondary Powerhouse that helps showcase the more than 90% of unseen artefacts currently in storage at the museum.

The first step before planning a museum of any kind, Mr Parker said, is to ask the public, “ask the people what they want, rather than just putting the museum there.”

Mr Parker said that the inquiry will ultimately “vindicate the concern that the arts community has demonstrated” and will find that “Infrastructure NSW made an infrastructure decision, not a cultural one.”

The committee is expected to report by November 24.

Racism pervades Australia’s Balmain Café Uproar top jobs according to Race Discrimination Commissioner

BY JORDAN FERMANIS On Thursday 8 September, Dr Tim Soutphommasane, the Race Discrimination Commissioner, gave the 24th Annual Kingsley Laffer Memorial lecture at the University of Sydney.

Dr Soutphommasane was appointed to the Australian Human Rights Commission role on the 20th of August 2013, with the appointment lasting for five years. The role has previously been held by the current President of the Australian Human Rights Commission Professor Gillian Triggs.

As the son of Asian migrants to Australia, Dr Soutphommasane has written extensively on cultural assimilation into Australia from migrant communities as well as on the nuances of Australia’s multiculturalism.

In a working group with the likes of the Australia Human Rights Commission, PwC, Westpac and the University of Sydney, Dr Soutphommasane commenced research into cultural diversity in Australian leadership.

The findings display gross inequalities. The results indicate that of ASX 200CEO’s more than 75 per cent were of Anglo-Celtic background, 20 per cent were of European background and less than one per cent were non-European or Indigenous Australians.

More than 80 per cent of the current Federal ministry was of Anglo-Celtic background, out of 42 ministers, not one has a of non-European background except for Assistant Minister of Health and Aged Care Ken Wyatt.

Of Vice Chancellors at Australian universities, 85 per cent were from a Anglo-Celtic background and the remaining 15 per cent were of European extraction.

The findings reveal that among top leadership roles in Australian politics, business and tertiary education, Anglo-Celtic and Australians with European ancestry are over-represented.

Dr Soutphommasane said that the results show that bias and discrimination exist in the upper echelons of organisations in Australia.

“We don’t see quite the level of cultural diversity or multiculturalism that you might of expected of a multicultural success story.”

“Australian society isn’t making the most of its 6

city hub 15 SEPTEMBER 2016

Dr Soutphommasane speaking at the University of Sydney. Image: Jordan Fermanis

cultural diversity. Bias and discrimination does play a part in this,” Dr Soutphommasane said.

In Australian politics, questions of discrimination have been highlighted through debate over repealing section 18c of the Racial Discrimination Act. This section of the act makes it unlawful to: “offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate another person or a group of people” because of their race or ethnicity” with the repeal being driven by Liberal Senator Corey Bernardi.

The electoral success of Pauline Hanson’s One Nation party again puts issues of racial discrimination back into focus with Ms Hanson’s call for a royal commission into Islam.

Dr Soutphommasane said that in the current climate “it is of paramount importance that we do justice to cultural diversity.”

The Commissioner said that although Australia has a rich mix of cultural diversity, more attention needs to be given on how to have a similar mix of cultural backgrounds in leadership roles.

“Australia is an emphatically multicultural society.

We are triumphant about our cultural diversity and few can boast on having our success on it. It is striking that among our leaders today in various spheres, that we are yet to see a multicultural character being reflected. Why don’t we see more diversity among our leaders?” Dr Soutphommasane said.

BY KRISTEN TSIAMIS John Stamolis, ex-councillor on Leichhardt Council and member of the Leichhardt Local Representation Advisory Committee (LRAC) is furious that the Inner West Council have approved plans to make changes to heritage building Fenwick’s Store.

Mr Stamolis says that it’s not the proposal of the café that is the problem, but rather its scale, something he said is unnecessary and over the top.

“Everyone wants a café on the foreshore of Balmain, it’s the scale of the café is worrying.”

Mr Stamolis says that with the Store’s prime location, it seems a waste to put “80 seats inside a stone building…look at Gladstone Park in Balmain, there are only 12 seats inside there, and a large park patrons utilise, and that’s very successful.”

The monetary investment of $2 million to make it a 100-seat café is something that Mr Stamolis can’t understand, and he said that “a 60-seat café is more practical” and said anything larger will “undo the beautiful works we have done to restore it… when it’s just not needed.”

The building, which is right on the Balmain’s foreshore, sits right at the end of the Darling Street Wharf. Surrounding the building is a large park, which already has seating for at least 30 people.

As it stands, Fenwick’s Store is a vacant restored building, that had $2 million put into it when it was restored in 2012.

With all the renovations that have already been done to the Store, combined with the proposed changes to the store, Mr Stamolis says that the café is “…Probably going to be the most expensive coffee shop in the Inner West.

Ever.”

Mr Stamolis is concerned that the proposed plans may be discriminatory for patrons with disabilities.

The proposed positioning of a side door for entry and lift is not only on the

“inconvenient” southern side of the building, but also bordering on discriminatory, as that the building has a double front door.

“Why would you say to persons with a disability ‘you go in the side door while I go through the front door’? It’s wrong.”

The use of public space is something Mr Stamolis says the council promised when the café was first restored. The feeling of betrayal amongst the community is rife as Mr Stamolis said that with these plans being approved, the rest of their promises now seem empty.

“The upper level was supposed to be available for public use, galleries, meetings and exhibitions…publicly available space, but council have stopped that possibility as it is designed to be part of the café” he said.

The uncertainty of the Council sticking to the proposed plans worries Mr Stamolis, and he said the option is there for council to change their plans.

“The 5pm daily restrictions means nothing, how long will this last? The very first council could change that and make it 10pm. It could be overturned when the Expression of Interest happens in a few months, there are all these uncertainties because Council want to overcommercialise a building they said they would never do.”

Mr Stamolis said the resignation of council’s third General Manager is going to make discussions with Council more difficult.

Fenwick’s Store on Balmain’s foreshore.

Photo: Garry Saunders

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Opinion

Good riddance to Coke sign Andrew Woodhouse, “THINGS go better with Coke” ™ was their jingle.

And locals hope this motto applies to the homeless and less well-off in our area now the Kings Cross Coca Cola sign has been sold off, with proceeds going to charity.

The original sign was a 1960s smaller sign on a nearby building. A colourful large mural by an unusually-sounding “Ellis D Fogg” was in place shortly thereafter when the old building was demolished and a new one constructed.

It featured groovy, hip 1970s motifs with psychodelic swirls and what appeared to be a popping champagne bottle and what the artist called “nonsense writing”.

The artist himself may have enjoyed a few sips himself during well-deserved rest breaks.

Its message seemed to be that “This is the place to party”.

The artist, Mr. Fogg, whose real name is Roger Foley, would be pleased his mural is not erased from memory. It sits silently behind the Coke sign, or does it?

No-one knows.

pleased it was off for six months.

Yep, in this city big money and big media manipulation talk, sorry shout, influence.

It is commonly accepted such an icon must, a priori, be heritage-listed. It’s big enough.

However, neither is correct.

What is an icon? My dictionary defines an icon as a religious image which is worshipped.

Think cute 17th century Russian icon oil paintings in gold frames with burnished numina over the Maddona holding the baby Jesus. This hardly compares with a plastic sign some say is just a piece of big, brash, bold, crass commercialism whose product is a cheap, sugar-laden, fizzy, pop drink keeping dentists’ children in private schools and paying for that second, Audi TT run-about and expensive first-class, butler-serviced, overseas holidays, sorry conferences, in Bermuda, Paris and Prague or on a private, sun-soaked Greek Island.

No, it’s not an icon, unless you genuflect and worship Coke (the drink

Going, going… gone to the lady in big hat for… ?

Image: Andrew Woodhouse

Mr Foley says he was commissioned in 1973 to paint images of moving liquids pouring from a tipped bottle onto the wall. “It wasn’t a Coke advertisement at that point,” he said. “I got the impression it was designed to entice someone like Coke to consider using the space for an ad.” The ploy worked. A 42.5 metre-wide Coca Cola sign was installed within 12 months.

So a second, later Coke sign, the one recently in place, was installed and an even larger -- much larger -- sign was proposed for the Sydney 2000 Olympics. Coke was a sponsoring partner. South Sydney Council rejected this proposal as too big. Nevertheless, a second sign the same size was approved, doubling exposure. For the myopic, this was a relief. Less is not more when it comes to advertisements for global corporations.

After 23 years, however, the 1970s sign showed signs of wear and tear.

A recently-approved City of Sydney Council DA for “maintenance”, approved using behind-closed-doors delegated authority, was contentious.

Now the sign has been dismantled, read demolished, questions are being raised about any possible DA breaches.

Whether the recipients of the e-bay action are better off is not a determining factor in assessing non-compliance matters.

Meanwhile, local residents, whose bedtime activities and pillow talk are disturbed and who suffered retina strain from light spill bright enough to light Mascot Airport’s runaway one, were 8

city hub 15 SEPTEMBER 2016

not the drug) at this high altar in that cathedral of drugs, on-street crime, drunkenness and vortex of vice known as Kings Cross.

Nor is it heritage-listed. Heritage is only about one thing, significance.

The sign didn’t have any known historical, social, technical, indigenous, archaeological or architectural significance. By comparison, it lacks the significance of the 1958 Sharpies House sign in Elizabeth Street, one of the first Australian uses of neon to create a moving image: a golf ball “soars” into the air for a hole-in-one.

And now the Coke sign is dismantled, read hacked off and demolished, you can’t heritage-list an item which no longer exists. The issue is otiose.

With Coca-Cola world-wide suffering an economic downturn and its shares plummeting, this latest gift to the disadvantaged is a public relations fillip. The media exposure it has created would have cost millions. It has enhanced their caring community image, given some hope to forlorn and distracts others from any silly DA non-compliance nonsense. After all, in the world of PR, image is god.

It’s my shout so let’s all have a Bacardi and Coke and drink to that.

Cheers.

A techno-groovy Kings Cross 1974 mural by “Ellis Fogg” with artistic items indicated, including “nonsense writing.”

Andrew Woodhouse is tghe President Potts Point and Kings Cross Heritage & Residents’ Society

Business vote bites

BY KRISTEN TSIAMIS The City of Sydney elections have delivered Lord Mayor Clover Moore her best election results ever.

Ms Moore received 58% of the first preference votes.

The Liberal Party came in second, receiving 18.95% of the votes. This was only a 2.8% increase on their 2012 results and far less than was anticipated given new business voting laws. So how did this new legislation affect the Liberal Party?

Of approximately 80,000 businesses currently operating within the City of Sydney, only 22,000 were registered for Saturday’s election.

Councillor Christine Forster, who has been re-elected says that the enrolment process for businesses was the biggest cause for concern. She believes the system for registering businesses has to be dealt with as a matter of priority.

According to Cr Forster “[the Lord Mayor’s Council staff[ actively created barriers to people trying to get enrolled. The process has always been unnecessarily difficult, as it was in this election. It’s burdensome, which is why 60,000 businesses didn’t make it on.”

Cr Forster said that the Lord Mayor’s campaign was “based around people being angry about what she believes was a gerrymander. The Lord Mayor has been operating her own gerrymander by making it so difficult for businesses to get enrolled. They’ve always had the right to vote, it’s just that they’re not required to be put on the roll by Council, and Council hasn’t done that, it would seem.”

Former City of Sydney Councillor Edward Mandla, who ran on the Sydney Mattes ticket, echoes Cr Forster’s sentiments, arguing there were “a lot of question marks over the whole business vote.” Mr Mandla said that the legislation “was meant to be an auto-enrolment system, much like Melbourne.”

Christine Forster Image: Supplied

“Many businesses that I’ve spoken to were sent away when they went to vote.” Mr Mandla believes that difficulty for businesses to vote was an “absolutely intentional” move by the City of Sydney and believes that “the current Baird government is too distracted and too weak to do anything about it” said Mr Mandla.

In the end Cr Forster believes that the effect on the election of the business vote is “impossible to tell at this stage. But it looks like that the Lord Mayor has taken votes massively off the Greens and Angela Vithoulkas, as well as other candidates.”

Cr Forster believes business vote was clearly undermined, stating there were plenty of people who “were enrolled, who turned up and had trouble casting a vote, or people who thought they were enrolled and found out upon arriving that they are not.”

Cr Forster believes the problem was with the process. “There has been a lot of confusion. It shows there has been a

massive issue with the way Council has gone about putting businesses on the roll. It’s got to be addressed before the next election.”

According to Mr Mandla, Ms Moore’s record victory was a hollow win since the election was “the lowest voter turn-out on record.” Less than 60% of all eligible voters participated.

Of the 141,369 residential and nonpresidential electors enrolled only 83,116 cast first preference votes. These numbers are so low that Mr Mandla says we are “at the realm of non-compulsory voting. It was a stupid decision made by local government minister Paul Toole to stagger local council elections. There is no accountability for that poor decision making, and next year we have to go through the whole circus again when the rest vote.”

To stop the same problem happening in the next election, Mr Mandla said that Minister Paul Toole and Premier Mike Baird should investigate the seriousness of an incorrect electoral roll, as local government should be very important to the Premier.

Mr Mandla also said the government should look at “what penalties could be applied to the City of Sydney and who was responsible”.

At the eventual parliamentary enquiry into election matters, Mr Mandla said this failure of the City of Sydney to properly register all the businesses in the area “has to be a major feature, as hundreds if not thousands of people will be a heavy subject in that inquiry.”

In time between now and the next election, Cr Forster says she will be doing her best to make sure the “Lord Mayor is help accountable.”

Cr Forster said that the Liberal party didn’t have any plans to dispute the returns, however conceded that something needed to change before the next election, and that it was up to the Electoral Matters committee.

Don’t miss this year’s Vegan Day Out

BY CHARLOTTE GRIEVE Increasing demand for meat in Australia has been met with a sharp decline in the number of meat producers. This trend has seen the rise of factory farming throughout the animal agriculture industry that has been accused of widespread mistreatment of animals.

The Cruelty Free shop has become the pioneer of Australia’s vegan movement determined to change this pattern of food consumption. Owner Jess Bailey launched the business 15 years ago and now has stores across Australia.

“People are becoming increasingly aware of the environmental and health benefits of reducing meat consumption,” said Ms Bailey.

This Saturday September 17, they are hosting the fifth annual ‘Vegan Day Out’ food festival in Glebe. The public has been invited to visit the Cruelty Free Store to collect a walking map highlighting free and discounted vegan deals from local stores.

While affordability has been a key concern for those hesitant to make the switch to vegan food, manager Huw Watson says this is because up until now, stock had been imported from overseas.

2015 Vegan Day Out crowd. Photo supplied by The Cruelty Free Store

“The American and European vegan markets grew first so Australia has been playing catch up,” he said. “But now a lot of Australian produce is popping up which is cheaper and really great quality.”

Each year the event has been held more and more people are taking to the streets to throw their support behind the vegan movement.

“In 2013 over 800 people braved heavy rain to join the Vegan Day Out,”

Ms Bailey said. “By 2015 we were welcoming more than 2,500 people through our doors and we are expecting that number to rise dramatically this year.”

As well as being the nation’s largest purveyor of vegan products, The Cruelty Free Shop also engages in political activism and fundraising for animal welfare oriented charities.

“You’ll always see us at the rallies, we’re always there,” said Mr Watson.

FEATURE

Mazel tov! Jewish music festival takes over Bondi

Junkyard Beats

Monsieur Camembert

Benjamin Samuels from Azadoota

Deborah Conway

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the show their gear still hadn’t arrived.“So we basically just went to Bunnings, like the night of the gig and just bought lots of stuff…broomsticks and some saws…” Prior casually recounted.

However, they may well have been able to perform even if Bunnings had been closed, since a key aspect of the show is body percussion.

“Body percussion is the oldest musical instrument in the world. It’s basically drumming on your body but combining movement with it, ” Prior explained.

Every part of the body is played: foot, thigh, chest, face. Sounds are produced by clapping hands, flicking hollowed cheeks, stamping –basically doing anything that makes a noise.

Prior acknowledges his mentor in Israel, Navon Amos from the group Demente, as the inspiration for forming Junkyard Beats when he moved to Sydney two years ago. He also thanks his Jewish heritage for his inherent musicality.

Asked about Jewish content in their set, Prior pointed out that there is “Jewish humour” throughout, and then added: “We do have a drumming routine based on the Hava Nagila beat.”

Benjamin Samuels comes from a very musical Jewish family. Having had music tuition since school, he plays saxophone and clarinet and will be performing with two separate bands at the festival: Azadoota and Beat Lab. Azadoota, which in Assyrian means “freedom”, is a dynamic, multicultural group of musicians who play original music composed by band leader, Robin Zirwanda. Born in Iraq, Zirwanda maintains a close affinity with his Assyrian background, outfitting the band in authentic Assyrian costume and frequently singing in the near-extinct Aramaic language.Yet, despite its gesture of traditionalism,Azadoota aims at having mainstream, broad appeal, with music influenced by jazz, latin, dance, folk and world music.

The group gained entry to the festival by virtue of its Jewish members including Zirwanda and Samuels.As for whether Jewish music will feature in their set, Samuels teasingly said:“It’s not gonna be a fully Jewish set but – there might be something.”

Samuels’ other band,The Beat Lab, is a funk, hip-hop and groove collective with a fun, infectious energy.

“We really encourage dancing and good vibes…” said Samuels. He’s excited about playing with both bands as they provide an artistic balance between traditional folk and “funky and fun”.

The scope and calibre of the Shir Madness Jewish Music Festival program is testament to the rich, pervasive influence Jewish culture has had on Western – and world – culture and music. By all accounts, the festival will keep getting bigger and better. Mazel tov!

Sep 18, midday–10pm.

Bondi Pavilion, Queen Elizabeth Drive, Bondi Beach. $60-$85.

Tickets & info: www.shirmadness.com

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BY RITA BRATOVICH It’s going to be Shir Madness at Bondi Beach when the Jewish Music Festival rocks Bondi Pavillion on Saturday.

Now in its seventh year, the festival has grown way beyond the humble expectations of Festival Director Gary Holzman, with this year’s line-up featuring 30 acts and including names like Dave Faulkner from Hoodoo Gurus, Steve Kilby from The Church, Mahalia Barnes, Bernie Hayes, Deborah Conway and many top shelf Australian performers.

Astute observers may notice some distinctly non-Jewish sounding names and genres in the program. Holzman explained:“We’re just highlighting the contribution Jews have made in all areas of music.”

Hence the broad approach to selecting artists for the festival: they had to either be Jewish (or have some Jewish band members); play music that is Jewish or has Jewish influence; or play music written by a Jew.The result is an eclectic mix of performers that will appeal to a wide range of people.

One of the highlights of the festival is Song Of Songs in which some of Australia’s singing elite choose a song written by a Jewish songwriter that has special significance for them. The playlist may end up surprising people.

“There are many, many [Jews] who have written some of the greatest songs of all time,” noted Holzman.

Last year Melbourne hosted the festival for the first time and, due to the enormous success, organisers have made the decision to alternate hosting between Sydney and Melbourne from now on.

Holzman is especially grateful to Deborah Conway and Willy Zygier for their involvement: “[Their enthusiasm] has certainly given us a much higher profile, and their contribution to establishing it in Melbourne is immeasurable.”

The festival offers a diversity of entertainment and one band that exemplifies this is Junkyard Beats. Israeli born leader Oded Prior is the Jewish connection, with other group members hailing from Asia, Brazil, and Australia.Their act includes drummers, dancers, acrobats and circus performers. It is predominantly a percussion group, but not in any traditional sense.

“The group is basically a junk percussion group.All of our instruments are made out of recycled material,” explained Prior.

The collection of improvised instruments includes hang drums, various lengths of plastic tubing, bowls and bottles filled with different levels of water, kitchenware, power tools – they’ve even had a jamming session with plastic bags.

Prior’s idea of bliss is a council clean-up:“I love junk, I collect it, I build it, I use it, I play it.”

In his workshops he encourages kids to be creative, resourceful and sustainable – to use what’s available in their backyard. “One person’s trash is another person’s treasure…you can find music anywhere if you just open your eyes and open your mind, ” he wisely noted.

This make-do attitude has certain advantages. Recently they had a gig in Melbourne where mere hours before

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city hub 15 SEPTEMBER 2016

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT and Elizabeth Routledge (Marlena).

It tells the tale of Jasmin; a Bosnian refugee, an eccentric fellow who has fled from the conflict in his homeland, and finds refuge in the arms of Stasha, a Serbian artist, who coincidentally finds her own refuge in the arms of Jasmin.

But a blossoming relationship breeds a strain on Stasha’s relationship with her only sibling, the straight laced and highly conservative Marlena, who’s suspicious of Jasmin and his motives.

With Jasmin failing to escape conflict wherever he goes, and Stasha failing to depict a life without her younger sister, we can only hope that Marlena can forget a lifetime full of prejudgements and preconceptions and learn to accept people for who they are, and not where they come from. (BS) Until Sep 17, 8.30pm. Reginald Theatre, Seymour Centre, Cnr City Road & Cleveland Street, Chippendale. $25-$30.

Tickets & info: www.seymourcentre.com or (02) 9351 7940

Fag Boy & The Married Guy may seem like a confronting title for a production, but writer Wayne Tunks reassures us it’s a perfect fit.

“The title is confronting and will make people uncomfortable, just like elements of the play,” he explained. “Our lead character Will was called ‘Fag Boy’ every day at school, and 10 years later he still can’t let that go.”

A decade after being persecuted at school for his sexuality, Will finds his tormentor Alex on Grindr, a gay dating app. Will decides to have some fun and invite Alex on a date, little does he know what’s about to happen.

What Tunks loves about this play is there are no boundaries.

“I love that we don’t hold back,” said Tunks.

“The play is gritty, it is violent and it is sexual.

The cast is amazing; it’s exciting that musical theatre star Stephen Mahy [Jersey Boys] is making his non-musical theatre debut with this play. He is such an exceptional talent, it has been a joy to work with him.”

Tunks has channelled much of his own personal frustrations into this show, having put up with a fair deal of homophobic harassment and bullying throughout his formative years, which inspired his writing.

“Writing has been great for me, it has given me a vehicle to get out my frustrations, some people don’t get that – they suffer in silence for many years,” he said.

where memory and imagination are indistinguishable. Undulating through childish glee and sombre darkness, there is ambiguity about what is real and what is illusion, ending with a startling revelation.

“It’s about giving a voice to something that is often lost within the more dominant adult narrative…it’s looking to legitimise the experiences of children,” said Cox. Emerging composers Josephine Gibson and Alexis Weaver have built a soundscape of musical motifs, distorted tunes, voices and effects that reinforce the mood.

Both Cox and West shared a desire to express how children see the world and how they use imagination to deal with grief and life events.They didn’t use child actors because it would have been a distraction and they wanted to challenge “adults to contemplate childhood retrospectively and in very real way”. (RB) Sep 13–17, 7pm. Erskineville Town Hall (Main Hall), 104 Erskineville Road, Erskineville. $11-$22.20.

Tickets & info: www.montaguebasement.com

Review: Our House

Tammy & Kite

As part of Sydney Fringe, independent theatre group Montague Basement has assembled an allfemale cast and crew to create an intimate, sensitive play dealing with the difficult subject of childhood grief.

Tammy & Kite is the creation of Hannah Cox and Caitlin West, who also play the title roles.

Cox is Tammy, a 16-year-old girl, and West is her 9-year-old sister, Kite. They are the only people on stage, although there is also a duck puppet named Philip and some imaginary characters.

The story unfolds through Kite’s innocent eyes,

a&e

11 STAGE 12 Sounds 13 SCENE 14 SCREEN

If 1980’s ska and musical theatre seem like an unlikely fit, then prepare to be surprised. Our House is a musical written by Tim Firth featuring the music of ’80’s British ska band, Madness – and it’s sensational.

Set in the outer London suburb of Camden during the Thatcher years, the story revolves around 16-yearold Joe Casey who lives with his mother and brothers in government housing. Joe’s father, a petty criminal who died before Joe ever met him, shows up as a ghost narrator, trying to will Joe along the path of righteousness.

After Joe commits a minor crime to impress his girlfriend, he finds himself at the fork of two hypothetical future roads. And this is the one weakness of the show. The story splits into “sliding door” style parallel alternatives, but it’s hard to tell which is the better choice. He’s either the successful bad guy or unsuccessful good guy. The ending resolves that for us, even if it is a little contrived.

What is truly impressive is the production.

The limited stage space is a challenge met with resourcefulness and ingenuity by the designer, lighting technician and choreographer. There is

Arts Editors: Jamie Apps - Alannah Maher For more A&E stories go to www.altmedia.net.au and don’t forget to join the conversation on Twitter at @AltMediaSydney

Following a sell-out Melbourne run, FB & TMG is a part of the New Theatre’s Sydney Fringe Festival program. (AMal) Sep 20–24, varied performance times. New Theatre, 542 King Street, Newtown. $20-$25.

Tickets & info: www.newtheatre.org.au

Photo: Grant Fraser

Jasmin On Evil Tracks is a humorous and heart warming production which promises a gentle (and incredibly relevant) reminder about the prejudice and condemnation that many of our friends and family still face in modern society.

“It’s ultimately a story about prejudice, acceptance, tolerance and love,” explained Director/Producer Patrick Matijevic (Jasmin), who stars alongside Debbie Tilley (Stasha)

Fag Boy & The Married Guy Photo: Isobel Markus-Dunworth

Elizabeth Routledge, Patrick Matijevic, Debbie Tilley

Jasmin On Evil Tracks

no sense of smallness with the visually stimulating, cleverly utilised set.

The pop/ska songs are surprisingly versatile, and given new treatments they dove-tail nicely with the story.

Matt Clark in the lead role is outstanding and displays incredible stamina. The entire cast is strong and have great synergy.

Even if you were never a Madness fan, you will find yourself mouthing along to the familiar lyrics. (RB) Until Oct 8; Fri and Sat 8pm, Sun 4.30pm.

Genesian Theatre, 420 Kent Street, Sydney. $30/$35.

Tickets & info: www.genesiantheatre.com.au

Contributors: Carmen Cita, Craig Coventry, Greg Webster, Alicia Sim, Peter Urquhart, James Harkness, Leann Richards, Lisa Seltzer, Mark Morellini, Mel Somerville, Rocio Belinda Mendez, Sarah Pritchard, Athina Mallis, Leigh Livingstone, Joseph Rana, Shon Ho, Jacqui Rothwell, Emily Shen, Andrew Hodgson, Irina Dunn, Caitlin Burns, Zeiya Speede, Rita Bratovich, Chantal Walsh, Raffaele Piccolo, Barbara Karpinski, Taylah Felice, Georgia Fullerton, Bobby Stephenson. city hub 15 SEPTEMBER 2016

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Review: Leap of Faith

Photo: Chloe Snaith

It may have been a gamble when the Rockdale Musical Society decided on producing this lesser known musical, but it is one that pays off.

Based off the 1992 film of the same name, Leap of Faith follows the exploits of charismatic conman the ‘Reverend’ Jonas Nightingale and his travelling ministry of merry crooks. When their bus breaks down in a small, drought-stricken Kansas town, they pitch their tent and invite in the locals for a revival. Promising to save their souls, they intend to take these small town folk for all they’ve got before they skip town.

Daniel O’Connell is suitably magnetic as Jonas Nightingale, and matched against Jessica JamesMoody as the cynical town Sheriff – who is hellbent on keeping Jonas and his shady ministry away from her downtrodden townspeople and

optimistic, wheelchair-bound son – their comedic repertoire and believable chemistry rivals even that of big budget stage romances.

The creative team of this production are each well established in their own right; with director Elle Zattera, choreographer Craig Nhobbs and musical director Josh Ransom. This production plays up the sincere, melodramatic script and stage value of the tongue-incheek gospel themes for all they’re worth.

The set is refined and well considered with some eyecatching focal points; the large and varied cast pull off some exciting choreography; and the singers, from the younger to the more established performers, are all superb.

Not every community theatre show is afforded a live orchestra or a theatre space as expansive as that offered by Rockdale Town Hall, and Rockdale Musical Society use them to the best of their abilities (despite the muffled acoustics of the venue at times making it difficult for the cast to be heard over the band).

This is a show that will leave you grinning from ear-to-ear. (AM) Until Sep 18, Fri–Sun, evenings and matinees. Rockdale Town Hall, 448 Princess Highway, Rockdale. $32-$39.

Tickets & info: www.rockdalemusicalsociety.com

Sydney Live Music Guide LIVE WIRE

By Jamie Apps Hayden James: The musician describes his past 12 months best: “It’s been an absolute privilege to play some of the biggest and most prestigious festivals in the world recently, but there’s nothing quite like coming home. These will be my largest headline shows to date and I can not wait to share new music with you guys.”

Thu, Sep 15, Metro Theatre Woodlock: After a stellar 2015, which saw them charting in the top 50 on iTunes and racking up four million plus streams, before an even more impressive start to this year, the trio from Melbourne look to keep the momentum flowing with their performance in Sydney tomorrow night.

Fri, Sep 16, Plan B Freedman Classical Fellowship Finals: The annual Fellowship awards one classical instrumentalist of up to 30 years of age with a scholarship of $20,000 to undertake a career-enhancing creative project.

The 2016 finalists are violist Stefanie Farrands, percussionist Kaylie Melville and pianist Alex Raineri. For the first time in the Fellowship’s 15 year history, the winner will be announced at a finals concert.

Sat, Sep 17, Eugene Goossens Hall I Love Life Festival: Showcasing some of the most exciting new bands from both the local scene and internationally, such as The Bennies, Pity Sex, High Tension and Lifeboat. This is a festival catering to the discerning music fan who 12

likes to be on the forefront of what’s hot.

Sat, Sep 17, Manning Bar It’s A Family Affair: A great afternoon of live music for families with kids featuring Queen Pertor Stomp,The Answers,The Sticker Club and Moonshine Revue.Who says you can’t still go out when you’ve got the pram to push around!

Sun, Sep 18, Petersham Bowling Club Israel Camerata Jerusalem Orchestra: Israel’s foremost chamber orchestra was founded in 1983 and has become renowned for performing a repertoire ranging from early baroque to contemporary music, including world premieres of works commissioned by the orchestra, with a special emphasis on works by Israeli composers.

Tue, Sep 20, City Recital Hall Amarillo: Fresh from the recent release of their exceptionally well-received first single, Melbourne outfit Amarillo have now shifted their focus to their upcoming album Eyes Still Fixed, which fuses jangly English pop with a dose of Americana.

Wed, Sep 21, Newtown Social Club Tom Lee-Richards: Brings his new single ‘Madness’ and highly textured live show to Sydney this week. The beauty and introspection of the track blended with Tom’s velvet voice is sure to melt even the hardest of hearts.

Wed, Sep 21, Folkswagen

city hub 15 SEPTEMBER 2016

Matthew Backer is developing the knack of playing otherworldly fairies. Having recently played Ariel in Bell Shakespeare’s The Tempest, Backer takes on Puck in the Sydney Theatre Company’s newest version of A Midsummer Nights Dream.

“I’ve spent weeks saying,‘how do I crack this little spirit?’ but I’ve been down this road before.The magic is in the words and it’s about giving them the other-worldly power they need,” said Backer.

‘Dream tracks the explosion of yearning and desire that is unleashed as four young people break away and run headlong into the forest-realm. It is a place of dreams and nightmares, transgression and transformation, and Puck is casting the spells.

The ‘canon-like’ stature of Shakespeare means that any production is invariably judged by its ‘take’ on some very well known material.

According to Backer, director Kip Williams places this version comfortably in its own little world, somewhere outside of space and time.

Likewise, Backer’s portrayal of Puck is destined to overturn audience preconceptions.

Without doubt Williams has assembled an outstanding ensemble – “the bees-knees of a cast”, says Backer. “To be on stage watching Paula Arundel and Robert Menzies go at it, as Titania and Oberon is ‘pinch-me-worthy’...”

Speaking to Backer several weeks into rehearsal, the cast are “well and truly into the woods” and with opening night only weeks away, there is a healthy anxiety: “The good thing about where we are right now is that we have no idea what it is going to be. I think that is terribly cool.” (GW)

Until Oct 22, evenings and matinees.

Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House. $50-$104.Tickets & info: www.sydneytheatre.com.au or (02) 9250 1777

Lastlings

By Jamie Apps Just 12 month ago Josh and Amy Dowdle were a brother and sister simply going through the paces at school. Now they are a touring music act duo which has already seen support from Linda Marigliano, Glass Animals and Triple J. According to Amy this whirlwind, which saw them recently named as finalists in the Triple J Unearthed High competition, began when the siblings “just started playing together”. Prior to this seemingly spur of the moment decision, the two were exploring their musical sides individually, with Amy “playing piano and singing” from the ages of “six or seven” whilst “Josh always played guitar”.

While the duo have seen rather rapid success, it hasn’t always been smooth sailing. “We do fight sometimes, like any other brother and sister, but it’s always over stupid stuff,” explained Amy, with a bit of a giggle. The pair are however obviously incredibly supportive of each other, as prior to our interview Amy had to put her sick, vomiting brother to bed so that

Kuren – Tesseract EP

he could rest up before a show later that evening.

Alongside their musical success Amy is currently still juggling school work with rehearsals, touring and recording.

“Sometimes I find it hard because most of our shows are on the weekend, which is when I try to do most of my assignments, which I can’t do after school because I have lessons,” explained Amy. “I’m doing ok at the moment, so hopefully it’s the same next year when I’m in grade 12.”

The well battered adage is that ‘slow and steady wins the race’ – but in the music game it’s often important to keep moving forward at full pace, so as to stay ahead of the imitators.

Once again Kuren builds his moody, atmospheric soundscapes around big future bass beats and squealing synths. This time around though the pop influences are much more pronounced, perhaps due to the inclusion of a significant increase in vocals from guest collaborators, which are all perfectly executed and incorporated.

Unfortunately for young gun Kuren, this new EP feels like his creative juices may be stagnating. While this is yet another wonderfully produced record, it lacked the level of progression and innovation that I had come to expect from him. (JA) WWW1/2

Despite all the difficulties and stress that juggling school with a budding musical career can cause, having the opportunity to perform alongside and learn from bands such as Glass Animals make it all worth while. “We supported Glass Animals, which was really incredible. They were all really nice guys so it was cool to hang out with the keyboardist and realise that sometimes we will make mistakes, but it’s all about learning from those and growing,” reflected Amy. For such a young performer Amy has an incredibly mature head on her shoulders, but it’s reassuring to hear that Lastlings aren’t taking it all too seriously but rather they are enjoying the ride they are currently on. Amy added: “It’s really exciting to have our first headline shows and it’s awesome performing in front of people that are there to hear our music, so it should be fun.”

Lastlings support Vera Blue at the sold-out Oxford Art Factory show.

Sep 24. Oxford Art Factory, 36 Oxford Street, Darlinghurst. $30+b.f.

Tickets & info: www.oxfordartfactory.com

Leah Flanagan – Saudades

Leah Flanagan has ended the six-year break between her first and second albums with new release, Saudades.

The singer of Irish, Italian and Aboriginal heritage is back with her signature soulful sound and sophisticated songwriting.

On first listen, the softly paced, stirring vocals have an incredibly calming effect. But after that it is impossible to ignore the overpowering sense of sadness or melancholy throughout.

While Saudades is the perfect soundtrack for those days you need to have a good cry, rock ‘n’ roll heavy tracks like ‘A Love Unending’ will help you put yourself back together. (CB) WW1/2

THE NAKED CITY

THE BRASS BAND BEHEMOTH! With Coffin Ed, Jay Katz and Miss Death We’ve said it before – but think of a brass band and you are more than likely to conjure images of a combo from the Salvation Army, a German oompah group or an ensemble of enthusiastic school kids all playing slightly out of tune. Well cast away all those wretched stereoptypes, because brass bands are suddenly very hip, particularly in the city of Sydney.

There’s a qualification of course. The brass bands we’re talking about are the youngish, very funky New Orleans inspired outfits like Cope Street Parade, Blue Tongue Brass Band, The Brassholes and The Glorious Sousaphonics. In New Orleans itself the tradition has been around for decades from the very early marching style brass ensembles through to modern day performers like the Dirty Dozen, Soul Rebels, Rebirth, Newbirth and the Stooges. Anybody who has watched the remarkable HBO series Treme will be familiar with the importance that brass bands have as part of the cultural fabric of New Orleans.

Here in Sydney we have long been used to noisy electric rock bands blowing the heads of punters in venues all over town. There is definitely something acoustically soothing and refreshingly organic about hearing a bunch of brass instruments, occasionally complimented by a low volume guitar. The Naked City recently caught the Glorious Sousaphonics at a midweek gig at Marrickville’s atmospheric small bar, Gasoline Pony, and spoke with one of the band’s founders Sam Golding.

On an unusually balmy late winter’s night in Sydney, you could have easily been forgiven for thinking you were seated in a bar on New Orleans Frenchman’s Street, or something even more down home in the Treme neighbourhood itself. Sam explained that “The

original lineup formed out of a bunch of mates getting together to play some brass band music at the markets around Sydney. We’d all met at the Con where we were studying in the Jazz course in the late 90’s. We all played brass instruments or saxophones. The drums came a bit later (a welcome addition!) and then Charlie’s guitar arrived as the cherry on top.”

Judging from the eclectic nature of the sets that night, it’s easy to see that the Sousaphonics draw their influences from far and wide – Roland Kirk, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Charles Mingus, and

Australia Street – Portraits of the Inner West features a mixture of famous faces and culturally diverse community figures all living on Pithers’ street in Newtown.

This photographic exhibition comes at an important time for Newtown, as its identity as one of the most diverse enclaves of Sydney is under threat from gentrification, rising rent prices, and an influx of party goers due to the CBD lockout laws.

A renowned commercial photographer, Pithers describes the end product as a “coming together of likeminded individuals”. He captured portraits of people as different as Julian Hamilton from The Presets to Elvis Abrahanowicz, owner of the Continental Deli.

“One thing they both – actually virtually everyone in Christopher Thé, pastry chef from Black Star Pastry the series – had in common with his famous watermelon cake was their respect for their community,” said Pithers.

How well do you know your The exhibition will be up for viewing at a neighbours? No, this isn’t a sinister number of participating venues on opening to a true-life murder mystery – Australia Street, including Black Star Pastry, it’s the theme of Zahn Pithers’ latest 212 Blu, and the Continental Deli. (CB) exhibition.

Until Sep 30, 8am-4pm.

The two-year project, entitled Australia Australia Street, Newtown.

Street – Portraits of the Inner West, Info: www.australiastreet-com-au.work

Thelonious Monk, just a few of their favourites according to Sam. “We listen to everything and bring it into the band,” he explained.

“All of the great grooves – rich melodic material from anywhere.

We love doowop, bluegrass, Balkan styles, and olde timey jazz. We seem to have an affinity for old Caribbean music too. Some of the old songs we play had fallen into the cracks – but we like to breathe some Gloriousness back into them.”

Sam went on to comment on the current popularity of brass bands in Sydney today: “The musicians who play in these bands are generally inclined to play exuberantly – they are playing loud instruments and are they often are playing outdoors in big celebrations. The bands naturally engage with people because they play parade music which was designed to move the feet and the soul. What’s not to like?”

After a number of years playing school concerts for Musica Viva and festival appearances, the ‘Sousas’ are now looking to more regular gigging around town. They have recently formed an association with the larger than life vocalist Nadya Golski, perhaps best known as the fiery singer with the 101 Candles Orkestra. As Sam recalls: “I’ve been working with Nadya for many years. Nadya heard the Glorious Sousaphonics perform in my sister’s backyard and we started kicking around an idea to combine forces. The shared love of Balkan music and all things vocal has made it an easy coming together.”

Catch the Sousaphonics with Nadya Golski this coming Saturday in the Django Bar at Camelot for a musical adventure that knows no boundaries – from New Orleans street party jazz, though popular Russian melodies to operatic flavoured ska.Tickets & info: www.camelotlounge.com

Confluence Festival of India in Australia

This festival marks the most significant showcase of Indian arts and culture to ever be staged in Australia.

Occurring over two months in several cities across the country, the Sydney wing is showing no signs of slowing down – with events celebrating traditional dance, music, theatre and yoga in addition to more contemporary passions shared by our two nations, such as cricket and modern fashion.

This weekend the Confluence Festival Gala at the Sydney Opera House will be the crowning jewel of the festival (Sep 18); an exciting and unique coming together of Australian and Indian performing art forms showcasing distinct movements, rhythms and inherent similarities. One of India’s biggest musical exports, The Raghu Dixit Project headlines the day with their unique brand of infectious, happy music transcends age, genre, and even language.

India’s The Company Theatre brings Piya Behrupiya to the Sydney Opera House stage (Sep 15 & 16), a musical Hindi adaption of Shakespeare’s romantic comedy

Twelfth Night.The joyous stage production has enjoyed international success, including with UK audiences during the World Shakespeare Theatre Festival.

Taking a turn from the more ancient traditions showcased at the festival, well-known Indian political cartoonist Ajit Ninan is hosting nationwide exhibitions of his cartoons including workshops with renowned Australian cartoonists. In Sydney he will be joined in conversation by awarded Australian cartoonist Cathy Wilcox (Sep 27).

Capping off the celebrations in true Sydney style, each weekend during the festival the roof of the National Maritime Museum in Darling Harbour roars into life with the Colours of India light projection installation. Taking inspiration from the colours, patterns, flavours, and sounds of India, the projection echoes the vibrancy of Vivid. (AM) Until Oct 28. Various free and ticketed events throughout Sydney.

Tickets & info: www.confluencefoi.com/sydney city hub 15 SEPTEMBER 2016

13

Lavazza Italian Film Festival

By Mark Morellini This film festival is bigger and better this year with a program showcasing 30 of Italy’s finest films, of which 27 are Australian premieres and one is a world premiere.

The opening night film is Perfect Strangers, a dramedy which asks, ‘how well do we know the most important people in our lives?’ A group of friends who claim they have no secrets pool their mobile phones and share all incoming calls and text messages. This was an incredible box office hit and a national phenomenon in Italy.

The Space Between, a story about love and tragedy, is the first official Italian/Australian co-production and has its world premiere at the festival.

“This has been a long time dream of mine to bring the two film worlds together. I feel like it’s a natural progression with so many Italians having migrated to Australia and such a mutual love affair between the two countries,” explained director, Ruth Borgobello.

“The themes are centred around love and loss and the collision between the two. Often in life, great transformation comes from very difficult moments and in the case of the film, it is through tragedy that the lead character is able to break through the personal blocks holding him back and transform his life.”

** Refer to website for complete interview with Ruth Borgobello **

TOP PICKS Sweet Dreams – A touching story which explores how the death of a mother can have such a profound effect on her young son and the adverse effects suffered into adulthood.

Where Am I Going – This is Italy’s biggest box office hit of all time. The comedy centres around the misadventures of a public servant who refuses to accept redundancy.

The Last Will Be The Last – A tragic story which highlights the extreme measures a pregnant lady takes to reclaim her job in a factory.

Sept 13–Oct 9. Palace Norton Street, Palace Verona & Chauvel Cinema. $20-$80 (5 film pass).

Tickets & info: www.italianfilmfestival.com.au

The Beatles:

Eight Days a Week – The Touring Years

a man coming out of the shower and brushing his teeth.

Yet somehow the rawness, the stillness, is mesmerising. In its latter half, the film develops more purpose, following two Department of Family and Community Services representatives as they interview tenants about their ensuing relocation due to the sale of the building.The pragmatic reality of these scenes against the poetic quietude of earlier scenes gives the film its poignant narrative about people who are invisible until they become inconvenient. (RB) WWW Screening at the Sydney Underground Film Festival: Sep 17, 4pm.The Factory Theatre, 105 Victoria Rd, Marrickville. $13-$15.Tickets & info: www.suff.com.au/films/57lawson

Ron Howard is a gifted storyteller and this is a terrific story to tell. This is the Beatles, not just the greatest musical force to hit the planet, but a global social phenomena.

The post-war economic mire was over and the 60’s were swinging. Beatlemania was the musical canvas. More a verbatim film than your standard music documentary, this film focuses on the touring years.

The footage and still photographs are beautiful. The early interviews capture their unpretentious mischief – they were very funny. Much is made

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of the personal bonds that held the group together through the intense pressure of touring. The innocent stand against racism in America and the ‘Jesus’ quote

by Lennon brought enormous pressure, but it was as much their restless inventiveness that saw them dis-band.

The final scene, the last concert on the rooftop of Apple studios in London, is incredibly cool. It was 1969 and light-years from their beginnings at the Cavern Club in 1961. It was a whirlwind we’ll never see again. (GW) WWWW

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Tom Hanks gives the performance of his career as Chesley Burnett “Sully” Sullenberger, the airline captain who in January 2009 ‘force landed’ US Airways flight 1549 into the Hudson River after a bird strike caused dual engine failure. In the process he miraculously saved the lives of 155 souls on board.

Sully was regarded as a hero by New Yorkers for having achieved the impossible, but his endeavours were scrutinised by a panel of the National Transportation Safety Board who believed one engine had enough thrust for a safe return to LaGuardia Airport.

Directed by Clint Eastwood, the story unfolds through an effective

style of storytelling, where audiences learn how this man transformed into a dedicated and experienced professional through nonlinear flashbacks.

Enthralling and thoughtprovoking, every aspect of this event is thoroughly examined – the forced water landing, the incredible rescue effort and the hysterical media circus that ensued. Sully’s post-traumatic dreams are also cleverly interspersed throughout, highlighting the incredible stress which he was under. Audiences who are not familiar with the actual event should welcome the investigation sequences which ascertain whether Sully was a hero or a fraud. (MMo) WWWW

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57 Lawson

Artistic director of the Sydney Film School, Ben Ferris is about to release his latest documentary, 57 Lawson, which is a passive observation of the social ecosystem in an inner Sydney housing commission block.

Ferris is director and filmmaker behind the 70-minute feature, which is comprised of a series of fixed camera shots capturing real life moments over the course of one night. Each scene lasts several minutes, with unchanged focus, no commentary or music and only background noise.With scenes that include the outside of a building, a city landscape, a kiosk in a park – all in which very little activity occurs. It may seem like the film is a test of endurance.

Even scenes featuring occupants in their apartments depict fairly banal slices of life: a woman reading a cake recipe in a foreign language;

“I hope audiences connect to the journey of the story and reflect on what it means to fall in love and lose someone so important in the same moment,” concluded Borgobello.

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