All posts tagged: entertainment

Sunset Series 2015

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Melburnians don’t need much coaxing to get out and enjoy the city’s parks during summer, but in case you need some extra motivation, the Sunset Series in Melbourne’s Fitzroy Gardens should give you a kick where you need it. For the next two weekends, there will be free entertainment on Saturday and Sunday evenings, including two dance workshops. The Saturday events — each featuring four music acts — will start at 5pm and last till 8.45pm, while the Sunday dance workshops will also begin at around 5pm. There will be food trucks on site if you can’t muster a picnic. Here’s the full line-up: Saturday 10 January: 5–5.45pm Beautiful Beasts 6–6.45pm Dash 7–7.45pm APES 8–8.45pm Echo Drama Sunday 11 January: 5pm Melbourne Salsa Dance Workshop with Live Latin Band Saturday 17 January: 5–5.45pm Dan Flynn and the State of Things 6–6.45pm The Tiger and Me 7–7.45pm Passerine 8–8.45pm Madre Monte Sunday 18 January: 5pm Rhythm and Spice Bollywood Dance Workshop A couple years back I saw the Bollywood dance workshop and it was a lot …

The Cat Empire free in Fed Squre

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Late notice for this one, but Melbourne’s much-loved band The Cat Empire will play a free gig tonight in Federation Square to mark their 1000th show. The Cat Empire originally grew out of a Melbourne jazz group called Jazz Cat, splintering off into a three-piece outfit in 1999 before adding three more band members in 2001. Their music is notoriously difficult to pigeonhole, with strong jazz, Latin, reggae, hip-hop, funk and gypsy influences creating a rich and seriously infectious sound. It’s almost impossible to stand still at a Cat Empire concert. Despite 1.5 million albums sold world-wide and fans around the globe, The Cat Empire have remained strongly tied to Melbourne, something that’s felt by audiences every time they gig in their hometown. It’s no surprise they’ve decided to give back with this free concert for their original fan base. I first saw these guys play over ten years ago, before the release of their first album. Their performance energy and incredible instrumental skills impressed me then, and they’ve only gotten better since then. Here …

Free tango classes in Fed Square

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Grab your dancing shoes, Melbourne, and practice that smouldering gaze because it’s time to tango. Every second Friday until March there are free tango classes in Federation Square led by performers from the Sidewalk Tango dance company. The classes are open to all skill levels and last for an hour and a half. For more info, check out this link, or visit Sidewalk Tango. The last class will take place on 21 March.   Free tango classes Where: St Paul’s Court, Federation Square (or wet weather alternative) Dates: 24 January 2014, 7 February 2014, 21 February 2014, 7 March 2014, and 21 March 2014. Time: 5.30pm–7pm Tel: 9655 1900 Damage: free  

Night Noodle Market 2013

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From today until 30 November the Alexandra Gardens will be transformed into a Night Noodle Market, complete with over 25 hawker-style food stalls, four bars for all your boozy needs and nightly entertainment. Held as part of The Age Good Food Month, the market will kick off at 5pm on weekdays and from 4pm on weekends. Click here for a full list of participating stalls. — Tuesday 19 November 2013 UPDATE! I haven’t made it to the Night Noodle Market yet, but I’ve heard feedback from a few readers that the queues at the market stalls are atrocious. One said she had to wait an hour and a half for food. If you’ve been to the NNM, let us know how your experience went by commenting below!   Night Noodle Market 2013 Dates: 18–30 November 2103 Address: Alexandra Gardens, Melbourne Opening hours: Monday–Tuesday 5–9pm; Wednesday 5–10pm; Thursday–Friday 5–11pm; Saturday 4–10pm; Sunday 4–9pm    

MSO free concerts at the bowl

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    Every year in February, something lovely happens on a grassy hill in Melbourne. We gather, under the stars, to listen to the acclaimed Melbourne Symphony Orchestra play at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl. For free. The Myer Music Bowl is one of my favourite concert venues. It evokes childhood memories of picnic blankets, cold chicken, hushed crowds and falling asleep to floating classical music. At the front of the venue is an undercover seating area, but on a clear night you’ll be much more comfortable lying on the grass that slopes down towards the main stage. Alcohol is not permitted inside the Bowl, but you’re free to bring a picnic. The MSO will perform four free concerts at the Bowl beginning on Wednesday 13 February and finishing on Saturday 23 February. It’s usually best to arrive a little early if you want to stake out of good patch of grass; these events are very popular and the hill will fill up fast. Before each of the two Saturday concerts, there will be pre-concert entertainment …

National indigenous television launched nationwide

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    At 12pm today, National Indigenous Television (NITV) launched free-to-air on Channel 34. Tune in and lend your support to this great initiative, which is providing a much-needed training ground and creative outlet for our indigenous media professionals. You can read more about the launch here. A worthy piece of news to get The Melbourne Local rolling again after a fairly long hiatus, methinks. I hope you’re all enjoying the silly season.      

on the big screen

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      Nowadays, what with the high value of the Australian dollar compared with many major world currencies, Australia is one of the more expensive countries in which to live and travel. For some reason, cinema tickets are particularly pricey in this country; you’ll pay around $18 for a standard adult ticket and up around $22–$25 for 3D films. But where there’s a will, there’s always a way. Most cinemas have a ‘cheap-arse’ day, always at the beginning of the week, when ticket prices are slashed. Here’s a run-down of inner-city Melbourne’s cheap-arse cinema days and times for your cheap-arse viewing pleasure…   Cinema Nova Address: 380 Lygon St, Carlton Cheap arse: Mondays Tickets: $6 before 4pm, $9 after 4pm   Kino Cinemas Address: 45 Collins St, Melbourne Cheap arse: Mondays Tickets: $7 all day   Sun Theatre Address: 8 Ballarat St, Yarraville Cheap arse: Mondays and Tuesdays Tickets: $10 ($3 extra for 3D)   Astor Theatre Address: 1 Chapel St, St Kilda  Cheap arse: Wednesdays Tickets: $10   Hoyts Cinemas Address: Various Cheap arse: Tuesdays Tickets: $11.50   Village Cinemas Address: Various Cheap arse: …

outside-in cinema

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– I love the State Library of Victoria. Not only is it beautiful, with its glorious books and artworks and soaring architecture, but it also features exhibitions and events throughout the year, most of which are free to attend. One of these is the Outside-In Cinema. I only stumbled across this recently, but judging by the line-up of films screening over the next few months, it looks like a great find. The cinema shows contemporary documentaries and animated features in the Experimedia room every second Wednesday from 6.30pm. This coming Wednesday (9 May) showcases the film Crossing The Bridge, a documentary about Turkish music directed by Fatih Akin. You can bring food and non-alcoholic drinks along, and entry is free, although you will need to book a seat online. A few of the other films due to be screened over the next couple months include Babies, Being Elmo and Page One: A Year Inside The New York Times. I’ll try to give you heads up when the screening dates approach. – Outside-In Cinema Film: Crossing The Bridge Address: 328 Swanston …

somebody that i used to know

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    Occasionally, a song comes along that makes you feel as though it’s been written just for you — as though someone has been following your life and taking notes. Of course, this is the mark of a truly great song. And when a truly great song has the pulling power to make millions of people around the world look over their shoulders and wonder who has been able to capture their experiences so truthfully, a global hit is born. Melbourne is currently bristling with pride that local singer-songwriter Gotye‘s beautifully painful song ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’ is at this moment sitting atop the US charts, and has hit the number one spot in eighteen countries so far. Written by Gotye for his album Making Mirrors, the song also features New Zealand singer Kimbra, who appears with Gotye in the mesmerising music video that was produced and directed by Melbourne filmmaker Natasha Pincus. If you’re unfortunate enough to have been through a break-up recently, this song can be tough listening, but that’s just …