The Secret Singer
July 6, 2018 by Geoff Sirmai
Multi-award-winning darlings of the Australian stage and screen, Genevieve Lemon and Kate Mannix star in the world premiere season of a joyful new musical play – based on a true story – by Joanna Weinberg (Goddess, Pandora’s Bag, Lifeforce, The Piano Diaries). Read more
The unexpected from Simon Trpčeski: a music review by Fraser Beath McEwing
July 3, 2018 by Fraser Beath McEwing
Those who have followed the career of Macedonian pianist, Simon Trpčeski, might have expected a program of at least some popular technical showpieces for his solo concert in the Sydney Recital Hall last night. Read more
Singers shine in Lucia di Lammermoor: an opera review by Victor Grynberg
July 3, 2018 by Victor Grynberg
Exquisite singing was the memorable takeout of the re-staging of Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor at the Joan Sutherland Theatre of the Sydney Opera House. Read more
Zbaraz: a community extinguished…a book review by Geoffrey Zygier
July 2, 2018 by Geoffrey Zygier
Once there was a land called Galicia, which straddled the modern-day border between Poland and Ukraine. Read more
Play it again, Avan: a music review by Fraser Beath McEwing
July 1, 2018 by Fraser Beath McEwing
Avan Yu, winner of the 2012 Sydney Piano Competition, was invited back to play a concert at the Sydney Con last night. Read more
An evening with Sir Andrew Davis, Anne-Sophie Mutter and the MSO
June 25, 2018 by Ron Jontof-Hutter
The Melbourne Symphony orchestra conducted by Sir Andrew Davis played a memorable concert on Saturday evening…writes Ron Jontof-Hutter. Read more
Anne-Sophie Mutter with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra: a music review by Victor Grynberg
June 19, 2018 by Victor Grynberg
On her third visit in just six years, arguably the world’s leading violinist, Anne-Sophie Mutter clearly wanted to share her ability with a delighted Sydney audience. Read more
Foxtrot: a movie review by Hila Tsor
June 12, 2018 by Hila Tsor
I’ve never had a movie make me feel in that same way Foxtrot had. I begun crying 10 minutes into the film, and my tears kept rolling right through till the end. Read more
DRESDEN by Justin Fleming: J-Wire has giveaways
June 12, 2018 by Arts Editor
“That was the hour it all began!” Read more
August: Osage County – a theatre review by Hila Tsor
June 11, 2018 by Hila Tsor
Love vs solitude lays at the heart of August: Osage County. Read more
An evening with the MSO and Thomas Hampson singing Mahler: a music review by Ron Jontof-Hutter
June 9, 2018 by Ron Jontof-Hutter
The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra presented a more unusual type of program consisting of three tone poems and a song cycle rather than the traditional overture, concerto, symphony format. Read more
People of the Boot: the triumphs and tragedies of Australian Jews in Sport…a book review by Geoffrey Zygier
June 3, 2018 by Geoffrey Zygier
‘People of the Boot’ is a neat pun as the title of a book about Australian Jews’ contribution to their country’s – and international – sporting life. Read more
Eliyahu’s Mistress: a book review by Geoffrey Zygier
May 29, 2018 by Geoffrey Zygier
Melbourne lawyer Roger Mendelson has chosen a demanding subject for his debut novel ‘Eliyahu’s Mistress’. Read more
Unlocking the Past: Stories from my Mother’s Diary – book review by Jeffrey Cohen
May 22, 2018 by Rabbi Jeffrey Cohen
This book, for it is a little larger than a monograph, tells the story of Shira’s mum and her journey in Jerusalem (and getting there and back) as she pursues her PhD at the Hebrew University. Read more
Bye Bye Germany (Es war einmal in Deutschland): a movie review by Ron Jontof-Hutter
May 21, 2018 by Ron Jontof-Hutter
Sam Garlanski’s film, “Bye Bye Germany“ based on Michel Bergmann’s autobiographical novel is an entertaining addition to Holocaust stories, though this one is set in 1946 Frankfurt. Read more
An evening of Mozart: a music review by Ron Jontof-Hutter
May 13, 2018 by Ron Jontof-Hutter
The Royal Melbourne Philharmonic and the Melbourne University Choral Society presented an all-Mozart program at St Paul’s Cathedral, Melbourne. Read more
Symphony of Seduction: A book review by Fraser Beath McEwing
May 13, 2018 by Fraser McEwing
Celebrity love affairs have always attracted public interest, especially when the participants are in the creative arts. It is in this light that we look for pre and post bed (or elsewhere) techniques that might be interpreted as extensions of the artistic pursuit. Read more
Breath: a film review by Ben Apfelbaum
Simon Baker’s much-anticipated debut feature BREATH held its Sydney premiere recently at Randwick Ritz. Read more
Australian World Orchestra is among the best: a music review by Fraser Beath McEwing
May 3, 2018 by Fraser Beath McEwing
The choice of two major symphonies by Brahms and Tchaikovsky gave the Australian World Orchestra the chance to shine at the Sydney Opera House last night. And shine it did. Read more
The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society: a movie review by Glen Falkenstein
April 30, 2018 by Glen Falkenstein
The most British thing since the last Lily James Second World War drama, The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society (hereafter mercifully referred to as ‘Guernsey’) is, thankfully, a great deal better. Read more
A unique concert opportunity
April 20, 2018 by Fraser Beath McEwing
Although the now celebrated Australian World Orchestra is scheduled to perform early in May, it is not a symphony orchestra that anybody has ever heard before or will ever hear again…writes Fraser Beath McEwing. Read more
I Feel Pretty: a movie review by Hila Tsor
April 19, 2018 by Hila Tsor
We’ve all had it drilled into us that beauty is within, and that you should be confident in your own skin. These cliches lay at the heart of the romantic comedy film ‘I Feel Pretty’ directed by Abbey Kohn and Marc Silverstein. Read more
Lesser known works from two great composers: a music review by Fraser Beath McEwing
April 12, 2018 by Fraser Beath McEwing
If you want a Beethoven mass you’ve only got two choices: the more secularly accessible 1812 Mass in C major, Op.86 or the longer, holier and meatier 1824 Missa Solemnis which the SSO last presented in 2015. Read more
Thou Shalt Innovate: a book review by Elana Bowman
April 3, 2018 by Elana Bowman
It has been debated and argued that Jews are G-d’s chosen people for two reasons. One is that they honour G-d and the other is Tikkun Olam, an obligation, a duty to help heal or repair the world. Read more
La Bohème: Puccini’s masterpiece of love and loss transfers superbly to Sydney Harbour – reviewed by Victor Grynberg.
March 26, 2018 by Victor Grynberg
This is the sixth opera since Opera Australia commenced their Operas on the Harbour in 2012 with Carmen repeated last year. Read more
The Other Side of Hope: a movie review by Hila Tsor
March 26, 2018 by Hila Tsor
For years we’ve been hearing about the conflict in Syria on the news. Read more
Love, Simon…a movie review by Tayla Rosen
March 25, 2018 by J-Wire
An inspiring story of love and honesty takes viewers on a journey through a more light-hearted coming out story than previous films of its kind. Read more
The Death of Stalin: a movie review by Tayla Rosen
March 25, 2018 by Tayla Rosen
From director Armando Iannucci comes this comedy of cruelty…an avant-garde comic. Read more
The lion never got out of its cage: a music review by Fraser Beath McEwing
March 25, 2018 by Fraser Beath McEwing
The Sydney Opera House organ recital is something like an annual pilgrimage for me. Read more
A thoroughly good weepfest: a music review by Fraser Beath McEwing
March 22, 2018 by Fraser Beath McEwing
If you wanted to feel magnificently melancholic, Sydney’s Recital Hall was the place to be last night. Russian-born violinist Alina Ibragimova joined the Australian Chamber Orchestra to present ‘Death and the Maiden” a title borrowed from Schubert’s Quartet in D minor arranged for string orchestra – which was the final work on the program. Read more
