Things to do in Sydney today

For a few special days every year, Sydney comes alive with writers, journalists, public intellectuals and book lovers – who gather for the Emerald City’s long-standing celebration of literature, reading and ideas: the Sydney Writers' Festival. This year marks the 27th anniversary of our city’s most beloved celebration of words, and the festival’s 2024 theme is Take Me Away – a theme that reflects our universal affinity for escapism, a role that literature has always played in society. Comprising 223 free and ticketed events, this year’s program is a pretty impressive one.  The urban corner of Sydney that’s home to the spectacular space that is Carriageworks will act as the hub for this year’s festival, but events will be popping up across the city: including at Sydney Town Hall, City Recital Hall and The State Library of NSW, as well as at smaller venues across Greater Sydney and the nation through the Live & Local streaming program. Keen to get involved? Read on.For the 2024 program, almost 300 writers from all over Australia and the world will come together to share stories and interrogate ideas, all around the central theme of Take Me Away. A celebration of Australian thought-leaders, 263 of the speakers on this year’s program are Australian, with 35 international speakers joining them on stages across the city.  Highlights from this year’s program will include a live podcast recording with London-based author and podcaster Katy Hessell, a behind-the-scenes look into the m

The weather may be getting cooler, but forget about staying at home. Shell House – Sydney’s second favourite house after the one with white sails – is throwing a two-month party celebrating good food, great music, incredible art and even better times. Called 'Our House,' the event is styled as a love letter to Sydney at the multi-level drinking and dining destination, and it’s got your name on it. Brett Robinson, owner and restaurateur of Shell House said: “Our House is a deeply curated festival of collaboration between our team and the valued, talented, and respected friends in our orbit. “Our House brings together the world’s finest visual artists, musical performers, culinary innovators, winemakers, industry icons and product kings and queens into a two-month-long feast for the senses presented in the place we call home – Shell House.” The line-up is packed with flash dinners, special performances and a whole lot of Champagne-fueled fun (our personal favourite). Starting with the food and beverage program, 'Wet, Cold, and Delicious' spans two events. There’s a dinner exploring Tasmania’s wonderful sea creatures, and a deep dive into tuna with chef Toshihiko Oe from Sushi Oe and Narito Ishii from Sydney Fish Markets, followed by a five-course fresh dinner curated by culinary director Joel Bickford and head chef Brad Guest. 'Prime Time: The Ultimate Beef Dinner' is for all the carnivores among us. Bickford will team up with the king of meat, Anthony Puharich from Vic’s Meats

Musicals are often a product of their time. So, it is somewhat expected that the show will reflect the sentiment, the tragedy, the conflict and the beliefs of that time. What is rare, however, is when a revival of a musical manages to find that stark relevance again, as if history is repeating itself. Off the back of the celebrated Broadway revival starring Ben Platt, this new staging of Parade arrives in Sydney following a sold-out Melbourne premiere in July 2023.  First staged in 1998, Parade is based on the true story of the 1913–1915 trial, imprisonment, and lynching of Leo Frank (Aaron Robuck – The Great Gatsby: An Immersive Theatrical Experience). A Jewish man from Brooklyn, Frank was a fish out of water amongst the residents of Atlanta, Georgia, where he worked as the superintendent of a pencil factory. When he was accused of the tragic assault and murder of a 13-year-old girl named Mary Phagan (Adeline Hunter – Urinetown), the townsfolk’s prejudices and the sensationalist media coverage of the trial stirred up a storm of antisemitic tension. Witness tampering and scapegoating by the local police force led to Frank being landed with a guilty verdict, a ruling which most modern researchers strongly disagree with. Most significantly, the historic trial spurred the formation of the Anti-Defamation League, whilst concurrently initiating the revival of the Klu Klux Klan. Despite some difficulties...this show succeeds in reminding the audience that prejudice, hate, and the

Explore extraordinary art, meet emerging artists and raise a glass (or two) to curious encounters when The Other Art Fair returns to Sydney for its autumn edition from May 16–19. Taking place for the first time at the new White Bay Cruise Terminal in Balmain, this edition of the fair promises to bring inspiration, provocation and a whole lot of fun. Aside from presenting an eclectic marketplace filled with independent artists selling take-home art for all budgets, this four-day fair invites you to enjoy unexpected performances, immersive experiences, and art giveaways. And, if you're brave enough, you can even get a stick-and-poke fine art tattoo (just like our Arts and Culture Editor, Alannah, did in 2023 – check out the video below!).  View this post on Instagram A post shared by Time Out Sydney (@timeoutsydney) Feeling nostalgic about classic carnival games? Head over to Dilara Niriella’s booth, where she has set up a classic fishing game where you can let fate decide which of her fabulous rubber-duck-inspired works will come home with you. Meanwhile, you can also strap in for live competitive painting with Art Battle, or try your hand at screenprinting. “Our new home at White Bay Cruise Terminal is a fun, light-filled venue that’s a world away from silent, intimidating art spaces,” says Fair Director Luke Potkin.  “A cultural building at the centre of plans to reinvigorate and restore Sydney’s industrial harbour, Sydney’s newest waterfront venue is the p

What’s in a name? Quite a lot, if you’re the first named character in the title of a play. Particularly when almost every other legend written about you has you named second, or not at all. This is the plight of Isolde, an Irish princess, star of many stories, but most notably Wagner’s influential opera Tristan und Isolde. Her legend is centuries old, one of the most famous involving a love potion – and now, Sport for Jove brings it to the beloved basement stage at the Old Fitz Theatre in the form of a play written (and crucially, named Isolde and Tristan) by German playwright Esther Vilar, and translated by Udo Borgert and Laura Ginters. The original legend features Tristan, a prince of Cornwall, and Isolde, the princess of Ireland, whose countries are at war. After Tristan defeats the Irish giant Morholt (the Irish King’s brother-in-law) he is tasked with traveling to Ireland to bring Isolde back to marry his uncle, the King of Cornwall. However on the journey, Tristan and Isolde fall madly into forbidden love, thanks to a love potion. Deception, punishment, and death ensue.  Vilar’s play not only switches the names, but also some of the details, and turns the legend from a sweeping and dramatic warning against being “consumed” by love into something pointier, and more complex. It’s certainly not your regular medieval romance, or even your regular opera… clever, biting, and appropriately eerie. Damien Ryan (Artistic Director of Sport for Jove) directs this production, setti