City Hub 23 February 2017

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city hub 23 FEBRUARY2017

America’s cultural autism

BY DENIS A. CONROY President Trump visited the Boeing hangar in South Carolina on 16 February, hours after it was reported he was considering using the National Guard to round up undocumented migrants and had this to say: “We are going to build up a military might so great that no one will dare to challenge it. None!”. Needless to say, the media honed in on his words as if this was the very first occasion where imbecility du jour had raised its ugly head to defile an American presidential narrative.

Talking off-the-cuff, the President…as is his wont…expressed himself candidly in a manner that had the gall to rile an ‘intelligentsia’ essentially mute on the question of America’s inability to comprehend much beyond its own navel. The mess America made in the Middle East falls on the shoulders of the entire American community and the President allows no sensitivities to interfere with his passion for tweeting twaddle concerning the Foreign Policies follies of his predecessors.

Nobody can pretend to be unaware of the carnage America has engaged in abroad. It has gone on for decades, yet amazingly little was said about the subject in the recent presidential elections. The media along with academia may consider it expedient to adopt discretion as the better part of valour, but these instrumentalities at best, merely exist to hoodwink the masses into believing that there is just-cause behind the aggression its government and war profiteers engage in.

Think of it! Presidents and war criminals retire to ponder the nature of love, mathematics, the value of their assets…some even paint pictures... while consigning the history of their imbecility as commanders of one kind or another to their diaries…and the rest of us are expected to merely tag along…it’s the power of the brand that keeps people unfree, coaxing them to get behind that most unholy patriotic narrative that fronts for the armament industry.

Have we come to accept permanent war as the norm? The images of cities destroyed and the ever mounting toll of human collateral damage hardly penetrates public consciousness anymore, because we are told that the ‘other’ had to be destroyed before they became the clients of an alien hegemonic force that could damage our free trade arrangements.

Hegemonic masculinity works in mysterious ways; it is resilient and incorporates an autistic dimension so to avoid explaining itself to Main Street.

The American penchant for growing hegemony vis-a-vis expediency began with the covered wagon and quickly spread across that vast continent under the protection of canon, musket and the protection of the military. The genocidal slaughter used

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Fiction Trumps Fact. Image: Pixabay

against the native peoples to achieve hegemony over their lands was of little concern to them. They were a people who spoke different languages, dressed strangely and had a skin colour that identified them as near subhuman in the eyes of the occupiers.

So, did the cult of the boys-in-uniform find fertile ground in the belief that slaughtering the indigenous population was necessary in order to supplant them with virile American stakeholders attuned to the wiles of colonial exploitation as it was a sure-fire means of thieving from the native people? After all, awareness was something that only occurred in the minds of sissies.

From its inception, America managed to blindside interpretations of its actions by demonising the people it wanted to eradicate. It was through misinformation that it sought to portray its intentions as morally sound, while vilifying all resistance to its cause. In reality, American history has more to do with false-flag misinformation than truth.

The challenge facing America now is its lack of any real selfawareness…or lack of awareness of values outside of its known sphere of limited knowledge, for that matter. The world has become suspicious of an American brand of capitalistic-democracy that continues to impose…by military means…its authority on the rest of the world…hence the blowback against the loud mouth devoid of diplomatic skills.

At home, the media and the intelligence agencies continue to

expunge truth from the public narrative by virtue of their ability to distort reality. Technology is the tool that gives them this advantage.

By virtue of this advantage, security apparatuses in the service of government manipulate public perceptions so as to inform the public whom they should regard as friend or foe.

The elites who control the system instil fake news and fake values in the media in order to control awareness. The interests of the establishment are served by expedients that come in the form of binary perspectives that feed off the fear of blowback. If the rule of the elites is threatened in any which way, the patriotic card is the one that is automatically extracted from the deck.

There is little concern for facts on the ground when corporateminded capitalist expediency vaunts its interests in, and plans for, free trade agreements. The global business trade-cycle ‘in-question’ is nothing more than a scam to eliminate points of particularism that claim the right to retain multiple centres of activity as the healthier way of conducting trade. Neo-conservative capitalism adheres to the myth that one size fits all. American hegemonic enforcement as implemented by the military-industrial-complex will have to inevitably roll back as alternative means of negotiating trade come into existence.

To date, the history of America has been one where hegemonic masculinity appears to have triumphed militaristically over reason.

But with the establishment of an army of intelligence agents, another layer of ‘macho power’ was added to the gun-ships of state. It should be noted that having chosen ‘agro’ as the gene of choice for the State, the skills of diplomacy were stifled very early in the piece. Thus did brawn manage to smother America’s better self and consign its ‘dream’ to the isolation of the autistic ward.

Americans are now struggling to comprehend the thought processes of their Commander In Chief. They sense that the Commanders at The Pentagon, Commanders at Wall Street, Commanders at NATO, Commanders at Fleet Street, Commanders at AIPAC, Commanders at the CIA and the FBI are actively part of a genome chorus of imbedded interests seeking to retain as much power in the chain of command as possible in ways that corrupt the democratic process…which leaves it to the jury to form an opinion.

The jury is the American People and they are slowly becoming aware of the duplicity that has corrupted them from the very start. But wait, the centre is no longer holding and the people might come out of their long coma yet to discover that it is high time they freed themselves from the fake news and fake values that represent the current American brand? Clearly, the existing American brand of governance is the product of straw-men!

Asbestos clouds Westconnex’ reputation

BY LUCAS BAIRD The WestCONnex Action Group has slammed the infrastructure project after a “second potentially deadly breach” in the St Peters area.

The breach involved the unsafe demolition of an asbestos infested house on the 14th of February.

Sydney Motorway Corporation reinvestigated the house at 4 Brown Street for any asbestos in early February after repeated community complaints that an earlier clearance in January wasn’t thorough enough.

Demolition crews began removing the contaminated material from the area after finding more asbestos in the house.

According to residents a significant amount was left on the site.

Demolition crews potentially released asbestos material into the air when destruction of the site continued on the 14th of February.

Tamara Regan, St Peters resident, said: “I couldn’t believe it. I’d just spoken to the demolition workmen. I’d told them there was still asbestos on the property, because it was the same material as the fibro that had asbestos.”

“I kept telling the workers it was asbestos and they laughed at me. It was only when they realised I was filming that they stopped work, rolled out asbestos tape, and put on protective gear.

“It was a really windy day, but they proceeded to remove the asbestos without

WestConnex faces asbestos trouble. Photo: Supplied

sealing off the affected area,” she said.

The incident came less than a week after iron sheeting was blown onto a road from a Westconnex demolition site.

Pauline Lockie, WestCONnex Action Group spokesperson, said she believed it was only a “matter of time before someone gets seriously injured or killed” because of Westconnex safety breaches.

“Residents are regularly witnessing violations of health and safety procedures,” Ms Lockie told City Hub. “Even now that it looks like a catastrophic

error has been made, work hasn’t been shut down, and no one at WestCONnex has been held accountable.”

Despite community complaints, a Sydney Motorway Corporation spokesperson said: “The safety of the community and workers is of the highest importance in the management of material containing asbestos.”

The spokesperson said all asbestos containing material had been identified during the clearing work and the site had been subject to regular inspections from SafeWork NSW and other authorities. city hub 23 FEBRUARY 2017

3

Gladys tiptoes through the bush, bulldozes the city

Community defiant in the face of government double standards. Photo: Alex Greenwich Facebook Page

BY JESSICA HILL Premier Gladys Berejiklian has announced that city councils will still be forced to merge, despite a decision to end the forced merger of regional councils.

Woollahra Council is disappointed that the proposed merger with Randwick and Waverly Councils will go ahead.

The Mayor of Woollahra, Councillor Toni Zeltzer, accused the NSW Government of double standards in a press release.

“It’s unbelievable that the NSW Government would adopt one policy for the country and another for the city,” she said.

“We do not understand how the Premier and Minister for Local Government, Gabrielle Upton – in her very own electorate – have turned their back on our community.”

James Keulemans, Liberal Councillor for Woollahra, said extra consideration must be made for rural areas.

He said the cost savings from council

mergers don’t outweigh the value of councils serving smaller population over a large remote areas.

Councillor Keulemans said Woollahra Council should now focus on moving forwards with the merger plan to create Eastern Beaches Council.

“I think we need to work with Randwick and Waverley on delivering a new Eastern Beaches Council that delivers for the community,” he said.

Councillor Keulemans said rate costing is a key consideration for residents under the proposed merger.

“The Woollahra community has been opposed to the merger proposal but I don’t believe it supports any further attempts at a legal challenge in the High Court of Australia.”

“We’ve had two umpire decisions; one in the Land and Environment Court and the other in the Appeals Court and on both occasions, lost. I think

the community now wishes to move forwards.”

Minister Gabrielle Upton, Minister for Local Government and Member for Vaucluse, told City Hub she is in full support of the merging of Woollahra, Waverly and Randwick Councils.

She said the creation of the new Eastern Beaches Council is going to result in better services and infrastructure and believes it is the best way to support the community.

“Since I’ve recently been appointed Local Government Minister I’ve had the opportunity to meet and speak with many stakeholders including councillors, administrators, union representatives and ratepayers. To listen and learn,” she said.

“Communities tell me they care about parks, services and value for their rates.”

Minister Upton said the merger would deliver better value for ratepayers across the state.

Geoff Rundle, the Founder of Residents First Woollahra, said the merger would come at a financial cost to the council. “I can’t see any great savings. By the time we make all the staff redundant and re-employ some of them you spend a lot of money,” he said.

“If Randwick and Waverly were able to gang together then Woollahra wont have a look in.”

Woollahra Council has spent over $1 million in legal fees and community information campaigns in its fight against the forced merger.

Mayor Toni Zeltzer said Woollahra Council would continue with their leave of application in the High Court.

Cartoonist: Peter Berner @peter_berner

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5

Some good news for sleepy Sydney

Victory for KSO. Photo credit: Jess Gleeson, Keep Sydney Open Facebook Page

BY KIERAN ADAIR It’s been a good week for Keep Sydney Open.

With World Bar and Stonewall successfully applying to have their opening hours extended beyond 1.30am and news that the government is assessing another 15 applications from similar venues, their campaign to repeal the lockouts has scored a much needed victory.

On Saturday, the campaign held its third rally in Martin Place, following the last minute cancellation of last month’s protest, courtesy of the NSW Police Force.

Campaign Manager Tyson Koh was joined by City of Sydney Councillor Christine Forster and State MP Alex Greenwhich, who addressed the 500-strong crowd, and spoke of the destructive impact the lockouts have had on small businesses, and Sydney’s standing as a cultural hub.

“Lockout laws, we don’t need them,” said a passionate Forster.

“I’m here to send a message to Macquarie Street that we don’t need them.”

She went on to talk about the businesses and venues in the lockout zone had been “deeply and unchangeably” affected by laws, explaining that they’ve had effects beyond their original intent. “[Gladys Berejiklian] become the Premier with a message that she will listen to the people. So, to Gladys and the rest of the people in Macquarie Street, please listen”.

Alex Greenwich took a more personal note when explaining his opposition to the lockouts. Talking about the lost opportunities for personal connections that result when young people are sent home at 1.30 in the morning.

“I met my husband in a bar on Oxford St after 1.30am. Think of all those who haven’t met their partners because of this” he told the crowd.

Tyson Koh acknowledged the victory the Keep Sydney Open campaign had achieved, with the recent extension of the lockout, but acknowledged there was still a long way to go.

“The current status is still grim and we have a lot of work to do, but we are moving in the right direction and no one can deny that it’s all been because of you and your passion for our city.

“Since our first protest one year ago, our followers have quadrupled. The people and businesses lining up to support us have grown as well and seeing everyone from toddlers to Baby Boomers attend, displayed just how diverse the support is for wanting a vibrant and safe late-night scene in Sydney.”

Last year’s TimeOut Cities index listed Sydney as the third least fun capital in the world to live in, with the lockouts, and their effect on the city’s late-night commerce, thought largely to be at blame for the drop.

Along with a number of live music venues and bars, the lockouts have also forced the closure of several restaurants and late night haunts that relied on the traffic brought in by venues on Friday and Saturday nights.

When asked whether “there’s always something new to do”, only 22 per cent of those Sydney-siders surveyed answered in the affirmative.

Embarrassingly, as Mr Koh pointed out, even Bruce Springsteen was left at a loose end when he was in Sydney last week, after being told he was unable to go anywhere for a late night drink following his concert.

“Fun is not a crime. There is no reason you should be shamed by some out of touch Baby Boomer or politician.” Koh told the rally.

Keep Sydney Open has proposed a number of measures aimed at revitalising the city’s nightlife. These include the introduction of a Night Mayor, currently used in London and Amsterdam as a way of centralising strategic planning of the city’s night time economy, a mechanism to incentivise well-run venues, education campaigns around alcohol fuelled violence, diversification of after dark activities (including live music, extended retail and hospitality hours, and small bars), and 24-hour public transport.

The group believes that these measures, if properly implemented, would ensure public safety and allow the lockout laws to be repealed.

PUBLIC NOTICE NATIONAL PARKS AND WILDLIFE ACT 1974 – PART 6 APPROVALS: In recognition and respect for the role that Aboriginal people play in managing and protecting their cultural heritage and in accordance with Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Consultation Requirements for Proponents 2010, ENE HUB (c/o Trevor Hoggan, Programme Director, 10 Regent Street, Chippendale NSW) and Archaeological Management and Consulting Group in conjunction with Streat Archaeological Services, invite Aboriginal persons or organisations who hold cultural knowledge relevant to determining the cultural significance of Aboriginal object(s) and/or place(s) in the area of the proposed development, to register their interest in participating in the consultation process, regarding the Aboriginal cultural significance and archaeological assessment of the land at Lots 25,26,32,33 and 34 DP 39586 including Lot 1013 DP 1199151 Forming the Royal Botanic Garden, Macquarie Street, Sydney, NSW. This will be carried out with the view to assist ENE HUB in the application for an Aboriginal Heritage Impact Permit, including the completion of an Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Assessment and Archaeological Test Excavation under said permit.

The project consists of the proposed upgrade of the electrical and communication services of the aforementioned property.

Registered parties will be included in the formal consultation process.

To REGISTER FoR CoNSULTATIoN ABoUT THIS PRojECT PLEASE CoNTACT: Archaeological Management and Consulting, 122c Percival Road, Stanmore 2048 or via email: Consultation@archaeological.com.au

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7

Powerhouse Is Clover move could cost prepared to be NSW $2 billion answerable?

BY J E SS ICA H I LL Sydney residents will have the chance to grill Lord Mayor Clover Moore and other councillors on key issues, if the idea of a Q&A proposed by Councillor Christine Forster goes ahead.

Councillor Forster believes her proposal of a short question session at the start of council meetings, would increase government accountability.

“It will allow members of the public to engage with their elected officials to a greater extent and absolutely creates a forum of transparency with regard to government process,” she said.

“It can only be positive that the decisions of council are open to scrutiny by the general public.”

Councillor Jess Scully said Christine Forster hasn’t provided details of the proposal but she doesn’t believe government transparency is a problem for the City of Sydney Council.

the community can ask questions promotes that,” she said.

The City of Melbourne already implements a Q&A session during council meetings. Residents and the media have the opportunity to ask questions without notice.

The Hills Shire Council also has public questions without notice.

Councillor Scully said it was too simplistic to assume a process that is successful for other councils will work for City of Sydney.

She also has concerns about the how the Q&A will be run.

Councillor Scully said the current procedure of having questions on notice provides the opportunity for staff to go away and delve deep into detail before delivering a short and measurable response.

“I think we should prioritise accuracy and clarity as much as we value immediacy and transparency. I would much prefer that someone gets the right answer than the quick answer,” she said.

On track for a major cost blowout. Photo: Supplied

BY SELIN KEMENT The cost of moving the Powerhouse Museum from Ultimo to Parramatta will be as much as $2 billion over a seven-year period.

Lindsay Sharp, a former Director of the Powerhouse Museum estimates that the cost of relocating the museum “could well exceed $2 billion on what we may infer from previous calculations. What can safely be said is that there will probably not be much change left from $1.5 billion and it might go as high as $2 billion, in 2024 dollars.”

Expenses such as parking, placement of facilities and cost escalation during this period have yet to be determined.

Documents show that the NSW Government and the MAAS Board of Trustees have known since July of 2015 that the estimated cost for the move would be at least $450 million, while also knowing that the upper figure for sale at the Ultimo site would not exceed $250 million.

On Friday, February 17, a Parliamentary Inquiry into the relocation of the Powerhouse Museum heard the construction of the Parramatta site alone could cost $600 to $800 million, according to an architect from COX Joe Agius.

“Certainly in terms of our scope the primary purpose of the preliminary business case was to inform the Government’s decision as regards a site selection which best serves the MAAS’s strategic objectives,” he said.

“Our particular scope was fundamentally to test fit concepts for MAAS on two preferred sites arising out of previous studies - namely the riverbank site and the Parramatta golf course site.”

The purchase of the land on Parramatta River and the movement of the museum’s collection will also add to the cost of the relocation. The river’s value currently sits at $150 million.

Mr. Agius told the inquiry that should there be a risk of flooding, the construction costs could further increase. Yet despite these risks, there are also areas of potential for the museum.

“I must say that, yes, it is impacted by 8

city hub 23 FEBRUARY2017

flooding, but there are many institutional buildings that are on flood-prone sites. In fact, we have just completed the Newcastle law courts, which are more adversely affected by flooding than this particular site.”

Despite these areas for growth, there are also major concerns regarding loss of cultural heritage from the site. A report examining the NSW Government’s planning and cost process on the move showed that there would be a waste of existing cultural/heritage artefacts that would amount to a loss of roughly $150-460 million, with most of these artefacts being irreplaceable.

The report also highlights the proposal for development could be a disadvantage to NSW taxpayers, stating that there has been little consultation with communities and Greater Western Sydney on the expectations of long standing supporters for the museum.

Member of Parliament for the Balmain electorate Jamie Parker, says that the government will be paying up to a hundred million dollars per kilometre with the extra distance.

“This project will cost hundreds, probably at least a billion dollars more than originally projected. The government is now starting to realise the enormous costs of this proposed move and the fact that they’re sale of the land would only cover a tiny fraction of the overall cost of the Powerhouse Museum. “ But Mr. Agius said that Parramatta is an area that is turning into its own CBD. “An institution of this scale and this importance in Parramatta has the power to change and transform Parramatta as a strong second central business district.

Other members of the inquiry refused to answer questions that directly related to the specific costs on the project.

Mr. Parker says that the timing for construction is yet to be confirmed.

“All they’re looking at now is the business case which will make a decision on how and when and why the government has said they would like to start the project as soon as possible but they still haven’t even bought the land.”

Clover Moore could be in for some tough questions. Photo: Clover Moor Facebook Page

“The council itself and its operations are very transparent and very open to the public,” she said.

“I think we are by far one of the most transparent and accessible councils and groups of councillors.”

Councillor Scully said the demand for transparency isn’t coming from the community.

“I haven’t had a single piece of feedback from a member of the community that suggests a lack of accessibility or transparency is an issue in the City of Sydney,” she said.

Labor Councillor, Linda Scott, believes the community would support the proposed Q&A sessions.

“It’s important that elective representatives remain highly accountable to the community and having a sessions where

Councillor Forster has also tried to implement the live streaming of City of Sydney Committee meetings in attempt to improve accessibility and transparency.

She said these attempts have been met with extreme opposition from the Clover Moore Independent Party.

If the Q&A proposal is successful five minutes will be allocated to public questions at the start of each of the regular committee meetings. The Lord Mayor may elect to answer or refer to the Deputy Chair of the committee or any other Councillor. The question may also be taken on notice and a written response provided in the minutes of the next full council meeting.

Councillor Forster will put her Q&A proposal to vote at the next City of Sydney Council meeting, to be held on the 27th February 2017.

Great Barrier Grief

Demonstrators shame Adani.

Photo: supplied

BY Nina Kempster Protesters gathered once more at banking giant Westpac’s central headquarters on Kent St early on the morning of Monday February 20th. Nearly 200 people, clad in red and sporting signs urging ‘Don’t Risk the Reef’ called on Westpac clients to divest from the company due to their potential dealings with mining conglomerate Adani.

The ‘Stop Adani’ protest was echoed all over Australia, with turnouts to Melbourne, Brisbane and Canberra Westpac headquarters to advocate for the protection of the reef as customers continue to divest from the company. It was the launch of a long-term collaboration project

between international green group 350. org and national Australian Youth Climate Coalition in a last bid effort to halt Adani’s Carmichael coal mine from receiving funding from Westpac.

According to environmental activist group Market Forces, Westpac is responsible for $5.9 billion in funding to fossil fuel projects from 2008 – 2014, making it overall the fourth biggest lender to fossil fuels in Australia. However in the first six months of 2015, its lending to fossil fuel projects in Australia was more than any other bank.

According to a spokesperson for the Australian Youth Climate Coalition,

“Westpac have been silent on their involvement in Adani’s project, but we know they’ve already loaned the company $641 million and they’re the only big bank that hasn’t ruled out funding it. We have a plan. We know the Westpac board hate it when we talk to their staff, customers and use their brand against them. So that’s exactly what we’re going to do.”

James Dagher, the NSW State Coordinator of the AYCC told City Hub, “We won’t stop until they stop funding Adani.”

Indigenous activist Donna Bartlett called on supporters to use their collective power to resist the encroaching attack on Australia’s future.

“They are the 1%, I’m looking at the 99%. We can do this. We divest, we let them know; you’re not going to destroy my country, and you’re not going to wreck my reef.”

The impassioned crowd responded with cheers and shouts of “No more coal!” and “Divest!” as Westpac employees silently filed past the banners and into the building.

“We have to look after this place. We are the 99%, we have the power. Let’s tell them enough is enough. Let’s look after one another, look after our children. We can’t afford to do this anymore. We don’t have time, people! At the end of the day, we are running out of water. We’re living in a desert. They don’t know that we have the power. They are eco-terrorists. Let’s show them what the 99% look like. Let’s mobilise. We are the rescue team.”

The collective protest will continue weekly, with organised actions outside multiple Westpac branches in Sydney.

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9

FEATURE

Mardi Gras Festival 2017

BY RITA BRATOVICH Summer in Sydney may be drawing to a close, but not without one last celebration of life and love. Mardi Gras is the queer community’s festive season, with an arts and cultural program spanning just over two weeks that culminates with what could be the biggest, sparkliest conga line anywhere in the world.

The theme for this year, “Creating Equality” was predetermined by the mixed, sometimes hostile political climate of the last year or so.Yet it’s not about agenda thrashing. Creative Director of Mardi Gras, Greg Clarke explains: “We look for ways we can weave that theme throughout all our events…it is a community organisation and it is a platform for the LGBTIQ community to do what they want to do.”

“There’s no right way to be an LGBT person and there’s no one way to seek equality,” said Josh Feeney, whose photographic project, Bare Naked Truth (a response to the Orlando shooting) was the foundation for the portraits used on the letters of the “EQUALITY” logo.

The uniqueness and diversity in the community is reflected in its art. The festival program is a melange of styles and subject matter, from tender and poignant, to audacious and sexy, to stark and confronting. And it is fearless.

Theatre group The Sibils Collective are exploring the Bard, freely adapting Twelfth Night into a bawdy, twisted, irreverent comic play set in a pornography studio: 12 Inch Night.

Velma Vegas is back at the Seymour Centre to rock the Mardi Gras again with a brand new cabaret show – The Vegas Lounge! It’s a raucous rollercoaster ride through the best of disco, pop, and diva classics from the 60’s to today.

One part disco, one part comedy

“Shakespeare lends itself very well to gender bending and queer interpretations,” remarked publicist Bina Bhattacharya. “He made stuff that was political and topical but also very silly and funny and appealed to a lot of audiences.”

12 Inch Night’s ironic humour is in the spirit of Shakespeare’s own comedies. Those unfamiliar with Shakespeare won’t feel left out, though – there are plenty of other pop culture references including Game Of Thrones and Grindr.

The play ignores boundaries of conservatism and cultural etiquette. As Bhattacharya explained: “The whole purpose of Mardi Gras is to create a celebration of people who often politically feel like they’re on the back foot or they have to apologise for who they are – and this is the least apologetic thing you’ll ever see!”

In the same vein, Body Map, an adults-only show written and performed by Glitta Supernova, is impervious to constraint. Glitta reveals her charm, her wit and most of her body in this unconventional piece of theatre.

She describes her show as “a challenge to the external life we are consuming and the internal life we are silencing. Biographic warts and all storytelling in a cabaret hybrid format of performance art and queer theatre.”

Something like the Mardi Gras Festival offers rare and valuable stage space that might not be as easy to get in the mainstream arena. That said, Glitta believes things may be changing:

The Vegas Lounge sideshow, this is a live Sydney cabaret show for all, complete with kooky quiz bits and heaps of fun giveaways!

For the final two shows of the season Velma will be joined this week by Vashti Hughes as alter-ego Voice Coach Larry and

Dyan Tai, and next week by Martin Charles Badway and Lucy Suze Taylor as Cher!

Feb 23 & Mar 3, 8pm.

Sound Lounge at The Seymour Centre, cnr City Rd and Cleveland St, Chippendale. $27.50-$37.50. Tickets & info: www.seymourcentre.com

12 Inch Night

Lachie Parry, Craig Walker, Kurt McCarthy and Lisa Hanssens Photo: Christopher Quyen at Seakyu

Gras Party – and of course, the world famous Parade.

This year more than 12,000 people will shimmy up Oxford Street for the Mardi Gras Parade. If it follows tradition, Dykes On Bikes will precede the parade to warm up the crowd.

First Nations people together with the original 1978 Mardi Gras marchers will then lead the parade. The signature float will be comprised of oversized letters on wheels, spelling out EQUALITY. It will be accompanied by 60 participants from LGBTIQ communities that were part of the My People My Tribe project.

Community themed floats include Australian Marriage Equality, Farmers Coming Out for the Environment, Keep Sydney Open, Socialist Alliance and the Uniting Church LGBTIQ Network – who are marching to draw attention to the plight of LGBTIQ refugees.

There will of course be plenty of sequins, glitter and colour – and undoubtedly some surprises.

MARDI GRAS FESTIVAL

“I have found that there is a place for queers, freaks and ‘difference’ outside our culture, the world has caught up and is open, hungry for absurd, colourful and camp performance.”

The Festival also features more traditional theatre as well as independent and community works. Live performance highlights include Trevor Ashley’s acclaimed tribute to Shirley Bassey, Diamonds Are For Trevor; and Melinda Schneider’s Doris Day tribute Melinda Does Doris.

The Art Gallery of NSW has some Mardi Gras events including Adman: Warhol Before Pop and the Queer Thinking talks series.

Main events include the indigenous Koori Gras, the ever popular Pool Party at Ivy, the Mardi Gras Comedy Festival [see page12], the Mardi

Feb 17– Mar 5.

Info: www.mardigras.org.au CITY HUB’s TOP PICKS:

12 Inch Night Feb 28–Mar 2, 7pm. E3 Theatre, 107 Projects, 107 Redfern St, Redfern. $15-$20.

Tickets & info: www.mardigras.org.au

Body Map

Feb 24 & 25, 8:30pm. Giant Dwarf Theatre, 199 Cleveland St, Redfern. $30-$35.

Tickets & info: www.giantdwarf.com.au

Mardi Gras Parade

Mar 4, 7pm. Oxford St and Flinders St, Sydney. Free. Info: www.mardigras.org.au

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11

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Mardi Gras Comedy In Difference Festival

Panti Bliss.

Photo: Conor Horgan & Niall Sweeney

There’s a mix for everyone at the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Comedy Festival. ”I would be hard pressed to pick a festival highlight. There was a Comedy Festival built into the Mardi Gras festival 26 years ago but no one really knows why it stopped. So this is the first Comedy Festival in a very long time,” said Managing Director of Frontier Comedy, Andrew Taylor, who’s produced the Festival.

The Mardi Gras Comedy Gala (Feb 28, 7.30pm. $92.) opens the festival at The Enmore

Theatre. If you want to come along and see a broad range of top shelf Australian, American, Irish and English comedians then the Gala’s the thing for you. The hilarious Bob Downe will be co-hosting with hugely popular breakfast radio host Em Rusciano (2DayFM).

Then the following night two of the most exciting international comedians perform: drag queens Panti Bliss and Dixi Longate.

“If you want an award winning show, then probably Panti Bliss’ High Heels in Low Places (Mar 1, 9.15pm. $56.70.) is the show you should see. There’s been a feature film documentary [The Queen of Ireland] made about her campaign for marriage equality in Ireland,” Taylor explained.

America’s most famous Tupperware lady, Dixi Longate, has an amazing show, Dixie’s Tupperware Party (Mar 1, 7pm. Factory Theatre. $56.).

Other highlights include Bridget Everett’s solo show Pound It (Mar 2, 8pm. $52.) at Max Watts.

She’s been called the best performer in New York.

Rounding things out, local stand-ups Joel Creasey and Rhys Nicholson are hosting their very own GAYmes Night (Mar 3, 7.30pm. $39.90.) at the Seymour Centre where they’ll force a bevy of celebrities and gay icons to battle each other live on stage in a series of outrageously naughty games. (MS) Tickets & info for all events: www.mardigras.com.au

In Difference, a physical theatre piece, tells a story about sexuality, identity and equality.The four performers who are both real life couples; Kristina Chan and Timothy Ohl are a married couple, and Joshua Thomson and Craig Bary are a same sex couple.The performance involves small scenes or vignettes linked together based on the performers’ own experiences, their celebrations and their failings.

“I’m looking at the marriage equality debate and bringing to light some very personal issues as a gay man. Obviously Photo: being gay affects my lifestyle, the lack of Matt Cornell equality between same sex partnerships.

We’re using our personal experiences to explore mature artists at their peak. I think that’s often the ideas and themes of the work,” explained Craig rare,” stated Bary.

Bary, In Difference creator, director and performer.

“Dance is such a beautiful medium, you can be “What makes In Difference unique is the fact that abstract and that allows an audience to bring their we are discussing prominent and very topical own personal experiences, their own history, subject matter. It’s not often you see real life whether you’re gay or straight, you can bring your couples on stage opening their hearts up, offering own life into watching dance,” Bary concluded. up their personal lives like we do. It’s quite (MS) confronting but I think it will be engaging for the Mar 2–4, 8pm + 12.30pm Fri. Riverside audience.We’re four very experienced performers, Theatres, cnr Church and Market Streets, very experienced dance makers, we bring a lot of Parramatta. $28-$35.Tickets & info: www. knowledge and performance experience.We’re riversideparramatta.com.au

Mr Stink

The Mystery of Love and Sex

Thuso Lekwape & Contessa Treffone.

Photo: Helen White

The Mystery of Love and Sex had its Australian debut when it premiered at the Darlinghurst Theatre Company earlier this month. Written by Boardwalk Empire’s Bathsheba Doran, the play focuses on relationships and romance. And while this might not sound like anything groundbreaking when it comes to theatre plots, its humorous portrayal of both heterosexual and gay couples is certainly saying something new.

Focused on couple Charlotte and Johnny, audiences witness the changes in their relationship after Johnny begins sleeping with men, and Charlotte develops feelings for Claire.

And while Charlotte’s parents try not to judge their daughter’s relationship choices, they simply can’t help themselves. Director Anthony Skuse stresses the play’s importance in today’s national conversation, with marriage equality an obvious hot topic.

“It’s saying something new from a female experience,” he says of the romantic comedy.“For the LGBT community, it’s an affirmation and form of empowerment.

But not only for the LGBT community, but for the broader community too.”

After Doran’s clever script had such success overseas, Skuse believes Australian audiences will fall in love with it, too:“It’s themes are universal. It’s warm and has a lot of human heart.”

And with its season coinciding with Sydney’s Mardi Gras, Skuse hopes The Mystery of Love and Sex will have an impact on audiences: “It’s a play that stretches the empathy muscle.” (CW) Until Mar 12;Tues-Sat 7.30pm, Sun 5pm.

Eternity Playhouse, 39 Burton Street, Darlinghurst. $38-$54.Tickets & info: www.darlinghursttheatre.com

a&e

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city hub 23 FEBRUARY 2017

12,13 STAGE 13 SCENE 14 Sounds 14,15 SCREEN

Romy Watson and Huw Higginson.

Photo: Heidrun Lohr

David Walliams’ award-winning book, Mr Stink is coming to life once again on stage at the Seymour Centre.

In it, Chloe, the loneliest girl in the world, befriends Mr Stink, a local tramp, and keeps him hidden in the garden shed when she realises he needs a place to stay.

“It’s a Mary Poppins story,” said Jonathan Biggins, the director of Mr Stink. “Love and family and home are the most important things you can have.”

Aimed at children aged 6 to 12 years old, this play carries important lessons on inclusion and respect for everyone while maintaining its cheeky tone.

“A pleasant thing about this show is that children really engage with the story,” said Biggins. “They do it because we use fairly

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

traditional theatrical methods to tell the story.”

Recently nominated for a Sydney Theatre Award for Best Production for Children, Mr Stink kicks off a national tour after its Sydney Opera House premiere season last year.

“It’s a show for the whole family… This is a show where everyone gets involved and I think that it’s a much more rewarding story,” said Biggins. “Everyone that comes along will enjoy it and be touched by it no matter what age you are.” (ES) Feb 27 (12:30pm with Q&A, 6pm) + 28 (10am, 12pm with Q&A).

Everest Theatre, Seymour Centre, cnr City Rd & Cleveland St, Chippendale. $29.

Tickets & info: www.seymourcentre.com

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, Olga Azar, Kaiti Haviland, Daniel Jaramillo, Nina Beeston.

With access to instant news and live discussion, teenagers and young adults today are very aware and engaged with current affairs.

Political Children, a verbatim play directed by Felicity Nicol and featuring five young performers from the Inner West Youth Theatre, acknowledges this is a cogent way.

Using actual extracts from Hansard Parliamentary transcripts, news items and social media comments relating to the Safe Schools program and the All Of Us resource, Nicol has created a theatre piece that allows the young actors to present the views of politicians, media, the general public and their peers in a way that reflects their own message.

The application of this material is inventive and theatrical. Some is directly recited; some re-enacted; some has been formulated into a soap opera.

“We’ve also got something like a game show, ‘Spot The Fake News’ which we try and get

audience members involved in. They get to try and choose – out of all the headlines that have happened around Safe Schools – which ones are real [and] which ones are fake,” laughed Nicol.

Though they use humour, Nicol and the cast are very aware of the seriousness of their message. Two of the five actors directly identify with the LGBTIQ community, while the other three are strong supporters.

The material may touch some raw nerves, so an advisory notice has been included on the tickets and at the front of the theatre.

This season has been included in the Mardi Gras Festival program and supported by the Australian Theatre for Young People who are providing the performance space. (RB) Mar 1–3, 7pm + Fri at 1pm.

Australian Theatre for Young People, Pier 4/5 Hickson Road, Walsh Bay. $25.

Tickets & info: www.atyp.com.au

The Trouble With Harry

Lose yourself in a story from Australia’s history, from a time when a person living their life as a man when they had been biologically identified as a woman was considered more of a crime than committing a murder. Siren Theatre Co’s The Trouble With Harry kicks off the theatre season at the Seymour Centre as a part of this year’s Mardi Gras and tells the tale of Eugenia Falleni, better known as Harry Crawford, who scandalised 1920’s Sydney.

“He is a survivor, he is imaginative… he’s very good at guarding his secret,” said Jodie Le Vesconte, who plays Harry. “… He’s good with men and obviously quite charming with the ladies because he married twice,” she laughed.

As he settles down with his wife into adult life almost unscathed from a turbulent childhood, a young woman changes their world, sowing the seeds of a bloody murder.

It is a periodic drama that encapsulates Harry’s world, where deviant was the only word to describe someone who was transgender.

Through the ignorance and judgement from people within the era, the audience is taken to Harry’s haunted everyday living. If Harry had never been arrested, there would be another

THE NAKED CITY

A LEXICON FOR THE AGE OF TRUMP

lingo of the impending apocalypse. Some will have been invented by Trump and his band of maverick cronies – others by the hostile media and the vast majority of Americans who did not vote for him.

Fakir News: Fake news from the Middle East.

An Ivanka: Something made in China by sweat labour but sold widely in the USA. Alternative Lie: A new lie introduced to replace the initial lie which has just been blown out of the water.

The Trump House: The inevitable relocation of the White House to Trump’s far more upmarket $100 million dollar apartment in New York’s Trump Tower.

Trumper: A pet rabbit once owned by Barron Trump but euthanised as a security risk by the CIA. Climate Change: Only ever mentioned when Trump decides to holiday in his Florida Mansion.

The White House Press ‘Corpse’: The body of the CNN journalist found washed up on the banks of the Potomac.

A Trumbull: Any foreign leader whom White With Coffin Ed House press spokesperson Sean Spicer can be bothered It came as no surprise when the Macquarie checking on the correct pronunciation.

Dictionary opted for “fake news” as its word of the Trump Change: The change you get from a $100 bill. year for 2016. The label has had a media thrashing Melania: A disease contracted by coming into close since it first surfaced during the recent US contact with an over abundance of spray tan. election campaign and is still a convenient fall back Agent Orange: Honorary title bestowed on Trump by the FBI. whenever Donald Trump wishes to distance Trump Card: The nuclear codes, sometimes referred to as himself from the latest White House stuff up. the ‘biscuit’, always kept on the body of the President.

There’s little doubt that the current Trump Unfortunately greedy guts Trump ate his! administration will add to a burgeoning vocabulary of Fifty Shades Of Trump: A wry reference to the entire questionably coined words and phrases as it blunders vocabulary of Trump, arguably the most illiterate US from one issue to another. We have already had president ever. Also a possible porn movie shot in a “alternative facts” and the chronic overuse of “terrible” Moscow Hotel Room. and “tremendous” but what awaits us as the madness Trouser Trumpet: An anatomical device employed to really starts to heat up? deliver another burst of Trump’s verbal flatulence – also Let’s jump the gun a bit and suggest a whole bag of applying to any “arsehole” closely associated with Donald Trumpisms that may well become the standard political Trump.

transgender story lost in time.

“It’s really important to put transgender stories into the mainstream. It just shows that transgender history has been really imaginative and fierce and has offered freedom for people even in the most destitute of times,” added Le Vesconte. (JC) Until Mar 3, 7.30pm + matinees. Reginald Theatre, Seymour Centre, cnr City Rd & Cleveland St, Chippendale. $36-$42.

Tickets & info: www.seymourcentre.com

Rod Hunt: Portraits, Pits and Punks Nick Cave 2009

Political Children

Rod Hunt has been taking photographs of rock bands for more than 25 years and for the first time in his career he is showcasing his extensive catalogue of work to the public as a solo exhibition. His photographs have been widely published on prestigious music publications such as Rolling Stone Australia magazine and Metal Hammer amongst others.

It all started for Rod when he was going to local punk gigs in Sydney and taking his stills camera along with him.When he started out in the early 90’s the world of music photography was completely different, there was no online media and the digital revolution was merely an uprising, but in the last 10 years that has all changed.

“With digital photography you can shoot a lot more because it is a lot cheaper than using film and there is room online to have galleries of photos in one webpage,” Hunt told City Hub.“It’s also much easier to have digital photography released immediately, which is beneficial for any artist.”

Hunt also said that “the exhibition felt like the culmination of lots of work that the public would finally have a chance to see”. He expressed that he is incredibly excited to have all his work on display, which includes assignments of live performances, portraits and band photoshoots he has done over the years.

Hunt’s photographs have been shown in group exhibitions before, but if you want to see what his art is really all about then you won’t want to miss Portraits, Pits and Punks. (DJ) Until Feb 26, 11am-4pm. Chrissie Cotter Gallery, Pidcock St, Camperdown. Info: www.rodhunt.com.au city hub 23 FEBRUARY 2017

13

Live Music Guide LIVE WIRE Sydney

By Jamie Apps

Oxtravaganza

Jazz Is Dead: Three exciting young combos, all pushing the boundaries of the broad genre of jazz, return to Venue 505 tonight.The three exciting artists are Oliver Thorpe, Scoredatura and AKA Baz. Thu, Feb 23, Venue 505 Dragon & Mi-Sex: Two of NZ’s greatest rock bands, Dragon and Mi-Sex are set to co-headline a special show tomorrow night.With both bands known for their brilliant and energetic live performances, fans new and old alike will not be disappointed with this exciting double-header.

Fri, Feb 24,The Bridge Hotel Oxtravaganza: A huge community event celebrating the wonder and vibrancy of Oxford Street takes over this weekend. Oxtravaganza looks to re-engage the public with local businesses through special events inside and outside stores and venues, free stuff, performances, food, drink and basically loads of fun and frivolity.

Performing on the day are Ben Fink, the Magda Szubanskis and Vashti.

Broadcasting live will be Bondi Beach Radio and Gay Pop Radio.

Sat, Feb 25, Oxford St – Various Venues Katy Steele: Katy and her band will be bringing a rhythm-filled set with a slick, modern set-up showcasing her breath-taking new album across the country, stopping in in Sydney this weekend.

Sat, Feb 25, Newtown Social Club Moreland & Arbuckle: Washed in hard-hitting Southern soul, Moreland & Arbuckle electrify raw Delta and Mississippi Hill country blues with an unrelenting punk-rock

energy.Their raucous performances have become legendary, leading to packed venues across the US and Europe. Live, the intensity and wild abandon just pours out of this uncompromising three-piece.

Sat, Feb 25,The Basement Joanna Weinberg: The Piano Diaries is the story of Joanna’s life written on the piano, instead of in a diary. It is is an intensely personal account of a life drenched in music and art, love and disappointment, escape, migration, joy, despair… and an indomitable belief in the power of music!

Sun, Feb 26, Camelot Lounge Bondi Hardware Relaunch: Returning this week with the same warm and laid back vibes it’s famed for, but with a fresh new look.

Hardware will still display plenty of elements from its rustic roots, but with a lighter boho and industrial feel. There’s also an exciting new menu, which includes re-visiting and re-working some of the venue’s most popular dishes.

Tue, Feb 28, Bondi Hardware Daniil Trifonov: This exciting 25-year-old has taken the musical world by storm ever since his astounding prize-winning performance at the XIV International Tchaikovsky Competition in 2011. Sydney audiences will have the chance to hear this extraordinary, once-in-ageneration musician make his Australian debut when he performs Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 1 this week.

Wed, Mar 1, Sydney Opera House

Hidden Figures

The term “feel good movie” doesn’t necessarily need to be looked down upon.

Hidden Figures has forged itself a near perfect formula that combines historical grounding, charismatic leads, rich female friendships, a dash of romance, and a nod to 60’s fashions in telling a story that celebrates three incredible characters.

The year is 1961, and the pressure to send an American astronaut to space is kicked up a notch by the news that the Russians have successfully launched a satellite. The brilliant mathematical mind that can help NASA get there belongs to Katherine Johnson (Taraji P. Henson), but the challenge of being the first African-American woman to work in her team is immense – and the lack of a “colored” bathroom anywhere in the building 14

city hub 23 FEBRUARY 2017

Tia Gostelow

By Jamie Apps Last year at just 17-years-old a Mackay based artist by the name of Tia Gostelow took the Australian music world by storm with two singles taking over the airwaves of Triple J. During this time period Tia also snagged a victory in the Triple J Unearthed High Indigenous Initiative.

After such rapid success the teenager, who also successfully graduated high school last year, is still in a surreal bubble. “It’s very cool how quickly everything has happened but it’s also very surreal,” explained Gostelow. “I thought at this point in my career I’d be doing some gigging in Brisbane or Sydney a little bit but nothing compared to what it is now.”

This year though the pace is not slowing down at all for Tia as she has plans to release two more singles, finish up an album for release at the end of the year, and more pressingly will be completing her first tour in Sydney tomorrow night.

Tia said she is both “really excited and pretty nervous” especially in regards to tomorrow’s performance because she’s “never played in Sydney, so it’s a whole new thing” for her.

In order to ensure that she meets the expectations of fans, Tia is drawing on her incredibly successful performance at Brisbane’s Bigsound Festival last year.

“Bigsound was insane. It was such a different environment compared to being up in

Horrorshow Bardo State

Mackay. Performing with so many important industry people and other musicians around made it the most important show I’ve ever done, so it was the most nervous I’ve ever been.”

Despite this being her debut performance in Sydney she is confident that she can live up to the expectations fans may have following her

The latest record from the duo of Adit and Solo, who together form Horrorshow, is an inspired and highly considered album that sadly runs out of steam rather quickly.

The opening third of the album comes out with compelling, innovative beat production layered with captivating storytelling. Unfortunately though this momentum cannot be maintained as the record rapidly descends into the same old Aussie hip-hop we’ve all heard before.

This isn’t to say that the final two thirds are trash, there are still occasional highlights such as ‘After Dark ft. Hayley Mary’ or ‘Tell Him He’s Dreaming ft. Kai’, they simply aren’t as innovative as the opening 20-odd minutes.

Had this record been released as a tight six or seven track EP the impact on the world could have been greater. (JA) WW1/2

rapid ascension. “I’ve got the boys from Ivey, a Gold Coast band, acting as my touring band so I think the show will be really cool and something different.”

Feb 24, doors 6pm. Oxford Art Factory, 38-46 Oxford St, Darlinghurst.

Free via RSVP or $5 on the door.

Tickets & Info: www.rare-finds.com.au/rsvp

Electric Guest – Plural

Plural is what happy synthesizers sounds like.

Electric Guest connect with their instruments, they create and they instill their creations with their easygoing approach. Listeners will imbibe the resultant feels.

In each song they will find something different, something rolling through closed eyes is followed closely by introspective travels. Moving past markers signifying depth, the listener falls directly after the artists. A slight tension ticks before the listener like a metronome, constant, relentless, boring a tiny hole into their captive heart. Mellowing out here and letting go there, ramping up and getting weird, there is much to listen for.

Amongst the sounds, the playful melodies and the writhing beats, lies the honest heart of the album, pulsing rhythmic and tantalisingly slow.

Listeners ought to stretch out their arms and their minds and give this album a good listen. (SP) WWW1/2

is not the most or least of her problems.

Meanwhile, Katherine’s peers, the undervalued and unofficial supervisor Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer) and aspiring engineer Mary Jackson (Janelle Monáe) are fighting their own battles to be taken seriously.

Hidden Figures is based on the true stories of these real women whose place in history was almost completely phased off the record, and while it appears that the magic of Hollywood has filled in the gaps, many of the core plot points come straight from fact.

The nuanced and engaging story provides an intelligent representation of the kind of socially sanctioned racism and sexism that carries repercussions through to our society today. The film celebrates the classic underdog story arc of reaching the top through hard work and determination, but doesn’t neglect to illustrate the full impact of the infuriating injustices these women face along the way.

Ultimately, this film had me leaving the cinema swollen with emotion and joy – and the niggling question of whether injecting some intensely modern songs by Pharrell into the otherwise classic soundtrack was really the best choice? (AM) WWWW

Bitter Harvest

The Family

This is an extraordinary epic story of historical significance which details the genocide famine created by the Soviets in 1932/33 known as the Holdomor, recognised today as one of the greatest crimes against humanity.

Russia could not exist without Ukraine’s harvest, so Stalin, the leader of the Soviet Union, unmercifully stripped the farmers of their land, valuables and most of their harvests. The official party lie announced to the outside world was ‘No famine – just a food shortage’.

Told for the first time in feature film history, the story surrounds Yuri (Max Irons), a newlywed living in a simplistic village whose passion was to become an artist. Stripped of his self-expression

Anne Hamilton-Byrne and husband, Bill, helped create a sect in Australia in the 1960’s known as The Family. They “acquired” young children – sometimes newborns – through nefarious means, kept them captive, brainwashed and abused them and even administered LSD. Adults also joined the cult – middle class professionals, academics, high-profile individuals. Anne was a beguiling, charismatic, attractive woman who easily convinced her followers that she was the reincarnation of Jesus Christ. As one person put it: “She had eyes that looked through your soul.”

In a disturbing new documentary, director Rosie Jones reveals the dark secrets and bizarre rituals that took place at a secluded

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forest property at Lake Eildon (two hours from Melbourne). Beginning the narrative in 1987 when police and journalists finally started investigating rumours they had heard for years, Jones gathers news reports, footage filmed by the sect itself, and interviews with former sect children to slowly unfold this horrifying story.

In spite of the abundance of source material, the film feels like it has only broken the skin of the story and Anne Hamilton-Byrne remains an enigma. Or perhaps this is as much as we’ll ever know.

(RB)

WWW1/2

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and individualism, his transition from freedom to enemy of the state is detailed, as he transforms from painter to warrior.

This story of love, honour, rebellion and resilience performed by a cast of predominantly rising stars, perfectly captures the terror and atrocities committed which led to the depersonalisation and forced starvation of an estimated 10 million innocent people.

This powerful film which details one of the lesser known dark chapters in history resonates the importance of freedom and is sure to capture the attention of movie-goers.

(MMo)

• Small Demolition

We Load • Deceased Estates

Mob: 0418 426 422

INTERNATIONAL GRAMMAR SCHOOL

High School open Night 2017 WHERE:

IGS, 4 – 8 Kelly Street, Ultimo

WHEN:

Thursday 9 March, 4pm-7pm

INFO:

Director of Admissions on 9219 6702 or admissions@igssyd.nsw.edu.au NO BOOKINGS REQUIRED

www.igssyd.nsw.edu.au city hub 23 FEBRUARY 2017

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MEZZANINO RISTORANTE, LVL 1 CULTURED CAFÉ

BAKERY

FOURTH VILLAGE PROVIDORE

DANKS STREET CHEESE AFFINEURS

BUTCHER ACCOUTREMENT

HOMEWEARS PASTERIA FRESH FLOWERS HOMEMADE CREPES ARTISANS MERCANTS

Built within the bones of the old Fratelli Fresh Building, Danks Street provides a centre stage for traditional food artisans for you to experience

Open 7 days I www.producemerchants.com.au I Plenty of parking

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city hub 23 FEBRUARY 2017