FOOD & DRINK, ARTS & CULTURE, LIFE & TRAVEL
Looking for the perfect gift for Mother’s Day? Look no further than these books with a purpose! Not only will they make great presents, but they’ll also help your Mum gain new insights and perspectives. Here are our top picks: Give your Mum a Mother’s Day gift that will inspire and empower her – choose one of these books with a purpose today!
VIVID Sydney is the city’s annual celebration of light, music and experience the city-wide, offering locals and visitors yet another reason to head into town – other than to eat at Sydney’s quality restaurants – to enjoy what the city can put on. And the best view for it all, of course, is from the Sydney Harbour Bridge, courtesy of BridgeClimb. Following the sell-out success of the Vivid Sydney Climb in 2022, BridgeClimb is excited to announce they are expanding their Vivid Sydney program with four extraordinary experiences on the iconic Harbour Bridge, such as: Vivid Sydney Climb This climb is the original Vivid Climb, available from 26 May to 17 June 2023. The Vivid Sydney Climb is an unforgettable experience that offers you the chance to ascend to the Summit of the iconic Sydney Harbour Bridge during the world’s largest festival of light, music, and ideas and immerse yourself as the city transforms into a mesmerising canvas of colour, light, and sound. Light Up Your Senses at the Pylon This climb is a Vivid Sydney first, offering a uniquely Vivid Sydney experience hosted by BridgeClimb within the iconic South-East Pylon of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. This hidden gem, which is a historic landmark, will be open to the public for the first time during the festival, providing guests with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to indulge in the unique views, local sounds, and flavours of New South Wales. Luke’s Vivid Table at the Pylon Lookout This year, with VIVID on and in partnership with chef Luke… Read More
In celebration of the Sydney Opera House‘s 50th birthday this year, Opera Australia, its resident opera and performing arts company, is putting on one heck of a line-up. With the renowned and favourite La Boheme currently on stage until THIS weekend, 11 March, your chance to see it for the season is almost up! It’s a moving story of love gained, shaken and then lost forever, written by famed Italian composer – who wrote quite accessible operas for those who are new to the whole experience – Giacomo Puccini. It’s even got those two renowned arias placed strategically back-to-back in the first act of the performance, that do their job in honing you in and driving you (or maybe just me?) to tears every time. They are: Che gelida manina and Si mi chiamano Mimi. They highlight the very moment Rodolfo and Mimi fall in love and do the best job at positioning Mimi as a delicate flower of a woman, who Rodolfo can’t but help being totally taken with immediately. Have a listen here: You can check out our other thoughts and reviews on the La Boheme production here. To find out why La Boheme is so good and such a must-see, we spoke to the latest lead singers, Atalla Ayan and Rebecca Gulinello who play Rodolfo and Mimi, the main lovers’ storyline, through the production. “Singing La Boheme taught me something beautiful about life: The passion and the joy of living every moment, every second as the last one of your existence. Living for the… Read More
Whether you’re an opera aficionado, or after a new experience for the first time, there’s one thing you can be sure of – you’re not alone! People from all walks of life with all kinds of musical tastes gather on a nightly basis at the world famous Sydney Opera House – which is turning 50 this year! – to see operas by the world-renowned Opera Australia company, which this season is putting on La Boheme and giving even its singers a unique first experience! New singer Rebecca Gulinello is making one of her preliminary performances in the production, taking to the stage after she only took to her first stage performance this January! We got to speak with the highly talented, new singer about her performance as Mimi in La Boheme. Here’s how it went. How excited are you to be playing Mimi this season? To be taking on this role for me is a great responsibility because this stage is my home base. Sydney Opera House is iconic and one of the most coveted stages any singer in the world wants the privilege of being able to sing on. It is where other greats have sung before me and all my incredible colleagues in the company currently perform. To believe in my own greatness and to trust in my voice, my hard work and efforts towards this debut has been the most challenging. The mindset of a singer is also similar to that of a professional athlete. You must maintain a sense of rigour, routine, mental… Read More
Opera Australia is putting on La Boheme this season at the Sydney Opera House, as part of their year-long celebration of the world famous Sydney Opera House’s 50th birthday this year in 2023. Ahead of the show wrapping-up and to remind you that yes, you do need to see it before it leaves the stage, we had a chat to its lead tenor, Atalla Ayan, opera singing extraordinaire who is taking on the role of Rodolfo for Opera Australia in this production on at the Sydney Opera House until 11 March 2023. How exciting is it for you to be taking it on the role of Rodolfo with Opera Australia? Singing Rodolfo means a lot to me – it was the very first role I’ve sang on stage professionally and it is certainly very close to my heart. Singing Rodolfo means experiencing the joy of singing and the passion for living every moment as the last one. Are you excited to be singing in the Opera House? I just love singing in Sydney! People are the nicest, the House is great to sing in and colleagues are the best. It is a pleasure and a true gift for me singing in the magnificent Sydney Opera House! And an honour, really. Also, I’ve got to make a point: the audience is just amazing! H emotionally invested do you have to be in your character. How do you do it? Singing La Boheme taught me something beautiful about life: The passion and the joy of living every moment, every second as… Read More
This Sydney World Pride is all about openness, being your best self and living the life you want. And if that involves eating at quality restaurants around the city, then get that too! Here’s a short round-up of some top places we’ve found, offering some of the nicest experiences around the city this Pride. North Bondi Fish For one day only, Bondi Beach will become the city’s hottest club for 12,000 people from 3pm, starring pop sensation Nicole Scherzinger, and featuring an all-Australian DJ line-up including dameeeela, Jarred Baker, Jacqui Cunningham, DJ Charlie Villas and DJ Dan Murphy. Naturally, North Bondi Fish is hosting a pre-beach party, complete with music, margs, love and golden glitter. A line-up of much-loved DJs will be hitting the decks to pump out tunes that evoke nothing but fun, and beats that’ll make you sizzle and dazzle down to Bondi’s sands to continue through til’ late in the night. Plus, their Summer of Margs menu has been extended to Sunday 5th of March to satisfy any margy cravings in conjunction with WorldPride. Go by on Saturday 4 March. Reign at the QVB Indulge in a decadent shared menu and an array of bubbles to suit your palate. Whether you’re looking for a Sunday recovery or a pre-game spot before heading out, Reign at QVB is the perfect destination. Join MC Lady Francesca every Sunday from 10am to 2pm for a four-course brunch with paired bubbles of your choice, served by topless waiters. Lady Francesca is one of the fiercests queens around…. Read More
Just when you thought this season’s Sydney World Pride and annual Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras celebration couldn’t get larger, think again! Ava Max has recently announced she will perform in Sydney’s open air knoll that is The Domain, right in the heart of town, as part of the epic line-up at the official closing concert Rainbow Republic presented by Optus at The Domain on Sunday 5 March 2023. The event will be Ava Max’s first public performance in Australia, and her only Australian appearance this summer. And if that’s not enough, G Flip and Keiynan Lonsdale will co-host Rainbow Republic and perform at the seven-hour closing concert at The Domain, as Sydney hands to baton to the WorldPride 2025 host city Washington DC. Ava Max and Kim Petras are appearing exclusively at Rainbow Republic. Sydney WorldPride has started and runs for 17 days. To mark the start of the festival, for one-night only, the Sydney Opera House will be lit up with the Pride Progress Flag tonight as part of the #RainbowCity public art project. Final tickets to Rainbow Republic presented by Optus are available now at SydneyWorldPride.com.
Presented as part of Sydney WorldPride Pride Amplified, the world-renowned floral show Fleurs de Villes PRIDE is coming back with an exclusive Preview Night, and a groovy Floral Disco, alongside the intriguing guided Queer Plants Walk and botanical Archie Rose Spirits Tasting and Garden Walk adventures all coming to life in the central events hub, The Calyx in The Domain park, Sydney. Minus the alcohol, loud music and obscene (-ly lovely) nudity that takes over Oxford Street and Hordern Pavillion when Mardi Gras is in town, this is a way for friends and members of the rainbow community to celebrate with a little more peaceful contemplation. Flowers have always been a way to express one’s feelings. There is a reason why different flowers emit different meanings. If you have been thinking about gifting a bouquet, why not get flowers online from this website. Here’s a run down of what’s on: Fleurs de Villes: PRIDE The famous international floral show Fleurs de Villes is returning to The Calyx at the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney between 17 – 26 February for another fresh celebration. Fleurs de Villes: PRIDE is a stunning 10-day exhibition celebrating joy and inclusivity by featuring 15 beautiful floral mannequins paying homage to inspirational members and allies to the LGBTQIA+ community. These stunning masterpieces will be designed and created by talented Sydney florists including Uncle & Ghost Botanics, Rose Moon Flowers and Hayfever flowers to name a few. To get a sneak peek of the profound display guests can attend the exclusive Preview Night on 16 February to meet and greet the florists and have their say on… Read More
There’s no secret that the Vengaboys are coming and everybody’s jumping this Sydney World Pride 2023! And to celebrate, they’ve partnered with Uber to shuttle an actual Vengabus around town to cart guests from party to party. From February 17 until March 5 the ultimate party bus called Uber Pride Ride will run throughout the festival, and be jam packed with on-board performances from drag icons like Jojo Zaho, Carla from Bankstown, Coco Jumbo, as well as educational talks from Black Rainbow, which advocates for LGBTQI+SB first nations voices. So get your gladrags on and prepare to party, because Uber is bringing the ultimate inner city disco onwheels to Sydney for Pride. Hosted by 90s pop icons the Vengaboys and drag queen royalty, the UberPride Ride is a free hop-on, hop-off bendy bus, helping festival-goers navigate around events easily,safely and with heaps of fun en route.
There’s a private flight company operating out of London to just make that much difference to your summer holidays this 2023. They’re Aero and offering a personalised jet experience by launching a ‘pop up’ flight from London to Malaga and back throughout April! It’ll get you early access to the sunny Spanish coast ahead of summer before the crowds descend on your favourite Mediterranean destination on the riviera. Responding to their guests’ interest, the flights will align with key calendar dates and events throughout the month, making travelling at times like Easter seamless and stress-free, in true Aero style, they say! In addition to all the perks of a private flight as you’d imagine, Aero has partnered with luxury resort Anantara Villa Padierna Palace, giving you the option of access to the hotel spa wet area on landing, where you can enjoy water circuits with a heated pool, cold plunge pool, saunas and more for the ultimate wellbeing experience. Plus, golf lovers can also look forward to a complimentary one-day pass to enjoy the three world-class courses available at the resort. For more and to get booking head to the Aero website
