No. 1 Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling author Lee Child follows the electrifying 61 Hours with his second Reacher thriller this year – a story that hits the ground running and then accelerates all the way to a colossal showdown.

Worth Dying For is the kind of explosive thriller only Lee Child could write and only Jack Reacher could survive – a heart-racing page-turner no suspense fan will want to miss.

www.leechild.com

www.jackreacher.co.uk

Check out whats on at the Brisbane Powerhouse this September: Monday 20 September to Sunday 26 September 2010 as part of the Brisbane Festival for 2010

Brisbane Powerhouse and Brisbane Festival 2010 present:
First Love THEATRE

Leading Interpreters of Samuel Beckett’s work, Gare Saint Lazare Players will visit Australia for the first time for Brisbane Festival 2010. Performed by Conor Lovett and directed by Judy Hegarty Lovett, First Love, is one of Samuel Beckett’s early short stories and contains much of his distinctive black humour and a plot that is regarded as a masterpiece of Beckettian perversity. A young man, expelled from the family home, takes refuge on a bench by a canal. There he meets a woman who takes him home, with comically disastrous consequences. Gare Saint Lazare Players have toured internationally with their critically acclaimed presentations of Beckett’s prose works. Conor Lovett’s exceptional performance animates the bone-dry humour of a character besieged with a clutter of emotions.Gare Saint Lazare Players’ precise and elegant work has made Beckett accessible to a whole a new audience and earned the company an enviable reputation around the world.

Tue 21 – Sat 25 Sep 8pm
$34 (f) $26 (c) $25 (group 6+)
Visy Theatre
For more information go to www.brisbanepowerhouse.org

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Brisbane Festival 2010 presents QUT Festival Theatre:
The Dark Party COMEDY

The Dark Party is a journey both literally and metaphorically through the lives of men. Produced by The Dirty Brothers Sideshow from Melbourne, who have just returned from a triumphant season at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, The Dark Party is enjoying rave reviews for rattling the cage of modern circus and bringing sideshow to the world of contemporary theatre.

Tue 21 – Sat 25 Sep 9pm
$35 (f) $25 (group 10+)
QUT Festival theatre
For more information go to www.brisbanepowerhouse.org

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Brisbane Festival 2010 presents QUT Festival Theatre:
Strange Familiar Angel THEATRE

We are all beautiful strangers to ourselves. The latest creation from Circa’s young performance group, Strange Familiar Angel, is a mesmerizing collision of circus skills and young people coming together in a supernova of light, bodies, sound and action. Performing at the open-air QUT Festival Theatre at the Brisbane Powerhouse, Circa Zoo takes the audience on a white-knuckle ride of metaphysical exploration where performers find their limits then leap off into the unknown through acrobatics and action, trapeze and touch, contortion and coming of age.   

Tue 21 – Sat 25 Sep 7.30pm
$35 (f) $25 (group 10+)
QUT Festival theatre
For more information go to www.brisbanepowerhouse.org

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United Way Queensland and Brisbane Powerhouse presents:
Local Eyes Brisbane VISUAL

This exhibition offers a voice to those yet to be heard. Eighteen young storytellers have taken up the camera to allow others a glimpse into their lives. Local Eyes showcases photo stories by 18 individuals from United Way Queensland’s community groups in the greater Brisbane area. We all have an image of Brisbane. We know what it looks like, how it works and how it feels. But our view of Brisbane is just one perspective among thousands. It is through the sharing of stories that the community is formed.   

Tue 21 Sep – Sun 3 Oct
9am – 5pm Mon – Fri, 10am – 4pm Sat + Sun + during performance times.
FREE
Brisbane Powerhouse
For more information go to www.brisbanepowerhouse.org

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Brisbane Festival 2010 presents:
The Oracle DANCE

This sensual and intense dance work by celebrated choreographer Meryl Tankard, featuring dancer Paul White, explores the conflicting forces of nature and man, masculinity and femininity, violence and nurturing, strength and vulnerability. Inspired by the sometimes disturbing human forms in Scandinavian artist Odd Nerdrum’s work, The Oracle is set to Stravinsky’s seminal composition for the infamous 1913 ballet The Rite of Spring, which caused riots at its Paris premiere. The intensity of the subject, the power of the complex, rhythmic musical score and the stark and brooding aesthetic, created by visual & set designer Regis Lansac, deliver an atmosphere of coiled-spring emotions and conflict in this haunting and critically acclaimed work.

Wed 22 – Sat 25 Sep 7pm
$35 (f) $30 (c) $25 (group 10+)
Powerhouse Theatre
For more information go to www.brisbanepowerhouse.org

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Brisbane Festival 2010 presents QUT Festival Theatre:
Bang! Crash! Tap! DANCE

Bang! Crash! Tap! From Raw Dance is a mind-blowing dance and percussion stage spectacular featuring one of Australia’s most talented drummers, the London Beat Boxing Champion, and two of the fastest tap dancers ever to hit the earth.Creative Producer and Raw Dance founder Andrew Fee has toured the world as Director, Producer and Performer for many of Raw Dance’s outstanding works. His trademark mix of funk/hip-hop, tap and acrobatics is a cornerstone of Raw Dance’s style.

Thu 23 – Fri 24 Sep
Thu 1pm, Fri 10am + 1pm
$20 (f) $10 (c)
QUT Festival theatre
For more information go to www.brisbanepowerhouse.org

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Brisbane Powerhouse, Brisbane Marketing and Brispop Present:
The Residents MUSIC

September Resident: Mr Rascal

MR RASCAL are a contemporary folk collective from Brisbane, Australia. Combining eclectic instrumentation and a musical repertoire ranging from ‘confessionary gospel’ to ‘ramshackle barnyard grumble’ the group’s music is described by Time Off Magazine as ‘songs that sound like old friends even before you’ve heard them’.  Mr Rascal’s latest release ‘My, What a Big Black Cloud!’ is an experiment in song-writing and musicality. Written, recorded and completed in 30 days the release captures the energy and vitality of live performance with the types of universal experiences that can affect any individual in the space of a month. The release has already received glowing reviews, described by Scene Magazine as ‘rather beautiful!’

Friday 24 September 6pm
FREE
Turbine Platform
For more information go to www.brisbanepowerhouse.org

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Saturday Sessions

Qut Creative Industries and Brisbane Powerhouse present:
Popalicious MUSIC

Everybody’s talking about it and QUT students are making it on the fourth Saturday of every month.Fresh Tunes – Contemporary young musicians from QUT’s innovative school of music perform their own original compositions.

Duration: 2 hrs
Every 4th Saturday of the Month
25 September Fornika
For more information go to www.brisbanepowerhouse.org

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Brisbane Powerhouse, Brispop.com and Hutchinson Builders Present:
Live Spark MUSIC

Sunday 26 September 3.30pm
Princess One Point Five + Seja
For more information go to www.brisbanepowerhouse.org

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Brisbane Powerhouse Presents:
Livewired  COMEDY

Funny, free and freakin’ awesome.

Sunday 26 September 6.30pm: Stephen Head
FREE  
Turbine Platform
For more information go to www.brisbanepowerhouse.org

Hundreds or maybe more, unidentified flying objects are expected to hit Sydney’s Eastern suburbs on Sunday 12^th September 2010, and air traffic controllers may be scratching their heads already in fears of a mid-air collision.

From flying cartoon characters to floating dragons or even dancing butterflies… what will this year’s Festival of the Winds bring along?

Come and see a multitude of kites in all shapes and sizes parading over beautiful Bondi Beach at Australia’s largest, longest-running and most exciting kite flying festival.

Waverley Mayor, Sally Betts is urging that no one misses this event, “if you don’t have your own kite, you can buy a variety of styles from one of the many kite stall or better still, make your own at one of our kite making workshops, available throughout the day”.

The festival includes an all day-long dynamic multicultural entertainment program held in the Bondi Pavilion Courtyard Amphitheatre, along with free music, dance workshops and children’s entertainment such as rides, face painting, wandering minstrels, stilt walkers, clowns and kite making workshops.

An aerial art exhibition will also be held in the Bondi Pavilion Gallery, and stalls with foods and drinks from around the world will be available in the Southern courtyard.

Prepare to be blown away, down at Bondi Beach for a fun-filled, family-friendly and most importantly FREE event.

Let’s hope Mr Wind joins the party!

What: Festival of the Winds
When: Sunday 12 September 2010 – 11.00am to 4.00pm
Where: Bondi Beach
Cost: Free

Website: www.waverley.nsw.gov.au

Article by Arno Billard

On Monday Design Federation popped into a construction site in Paddington to check out some magic being made. Photographer, Phu Tang, was shooting his “Shoot The Chef” submission featuring English chef, Jamie Thomas, the food maestro for new restaurant Avido.  

Amid the drilling, concrete dust, sparkies and cement pouring, Tang had his chef (ex Victor Churchill) perched on some scaffolding sharpening his knives in a vaguely psychopathic manner. While the swirling chaos of the restaurant reno moving at pace around them (afterall, doors are scheduled to be swinging open late September) Thomas maintained a stronghold over serenity.  

To further the zen and ambience of the place, enter Matt Woods, new kid on the block when it comes to designer interiors. He’s handling look and feel which was still an unrealised vision on Monday but rumour is, the place will look wicked and if sustainably designed Bloodwood - Matt’s last project – is anything to go by, we should expect to be impressed.

Art by Yolanda Elkhouri

For the past four years, curators at Hardware Gallery have been selecting artists to particpate in our annual google exhibition. The brief is quite simple: On the same day, at the same time, all the artists have to google the same phrase. From a single page of results, all artists must select a single website as their sole source of inspiration for their artwork….and this year’s phrase? Black Sheep of course – the theme of the Sydney Fringe Festival 2010.

Hardware’s annual google exhibition always delivers the unique, the inspired and the unexpected. The 2010 exhibition is no exception, with the widest array of different mediums so far…and artwork from artists both familiar and new.

For 2010, we are presenting the annual google exhibition as part of The Sydney Fringe Festival and featuring the work of 13 artists. Opening night is Tuesday 7th September from 6-9pm and is promising to be a great night.

• The exhibition is to be officially opened by Kath Melbourne, Director, Artstart, the Australia Council for The Arts.
• Providing the sounds for the evening will be Dean Dixon and Dave Fernandes from HAHA Industries.
• Lubrication will come courtesy of the Beer and Cider Co. and The Black Sheep Brewery, Yorkshire, UK
• …and if thats not enough on top of the amazing work by 13 talented artists, you will get to experience some of the artwork unfold right before your eyes with a live installation drawing on the night.

Black Sheep: 4th Annual Google Exhibition
Opening Tuesday 7 September 6-9 pm
Exhibition continues to 25 September 2010

To be opened by Kath Melbourne,
Director, Artstart, Australia Council for The Arts.

Artists featured in this years exhibition:

Lila Afiouni, Yolanda Elkhouri, Andrew Ensor, Andrew McNeill, Mark O’Ryan, Timothy Preston, Deborah Redwood, JD Reforma, Ken Simpson, Kurt Sorensen, Deborah Wilkinson, Susannah Williams, Mark Wotherspoon

What are we trying to escape from in the everyday? Do we endure the physical constraints of everyday or is it the psychological confinements that we place upon ourselves?

These questions form the foundation of upcoming exhibition ʻEndure Everyday,ʼ a collaboration between Melbourne artists Kate Robertson and Alysia Rees.

The two artists who met in 2006 while studying at the Victorian College for the Arts have teamed up to explore the notion of escapism, and the psychological and physical tensions of contemporary society. Both artists come from different disciplines yet were drawn to the idea of distraction, escape and fleeing the restrictions of our daily routine.

The exhibition will be a multidisciplinary site using photography, sculpture and video at First Site Gallery. And it seems that being within a stoneʼs thrown from Melbourne Central, the gallery is the perfect location to explore how individuals while away the hours through shopping, films, entertainment and video games.

The public is invited to negotiate both the physical and emotional landscape as they meander by sand bag sculptures, large-scale photographs that envelop the room and also view a video installation; but also explore varying degrees of escapism. First Site Gallery will be transformed into a space for individuals to explore their own, as well as shared, internal and external tensions.

Exhibition Dates: Tuesday August 31 to Saturday September 11
Location: First Site Gallery
Address: Storey Hall Basement, 344 Swanston Street Melbourne

Outstanding talent and tight competition in this year’s prestigious Grand Final of the ABC Symphony Australia Young Performers Awards on Friday 27 August at QPAC, Brisbane.

Three of Australia’s hottest young talents will meet to compete for the ultimate title of 2010 ABC Symphony Australia Young Performer of the Year at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre, Brisbane on Friday 27 August, 7pm with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra conducted by Marko Letonja.

The 2010 ABC Symphony Australia Young Performer of the Year will receive a $20,000 cash prize, a professionally-
produced promotional recording of their winning performance, a recital program and a concert engagement with a major Australian symphony orchestra. The Grand Final will be also telecast on ABC1 on Sunday 31 October, 4.30 – 5.30pm.

All of the contestants are winners of their respective instrumental categories: violinist Richard Pollett, 24, from Brisbane won the ‘Strings’ Final; pianist Oliver She (pronounced ‘Shay’), 18, Brisbane, won the ‘Keyboard Final’ and Melbourne clarinettist Ashley William Smith, 25, won the ‘Other Instruments’ Final.

“Each of the three Grand Finalists has won many prizes in their respective fields and represents the best of Australia’s emerging musical talent. Their extraordinary abilities will mean that the Awards judges will have a very difficult task in selecting the winner,” says Kate Lidbetter, CEO, Symphony Services International.

“These Awards give musicians both the unique opportunity of playing with a major symphony orchestra and a career launching pad, both here and overseas.”

2010 ABC Symphony Australia Young Performers Awards Grand Final
Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Conductor Marko Letonja
Friday 27 August, 7pm, Queensland Performing Arts Centre, Grey Street, South Bank, Brisbane
Tickets: Free, but bookings required, tickets to be collected from QPAC. Bookings: call 136 246 or www.qpac.com.au
www.symphonyinternational.net

No, not the Sydney Film Festival, and not the Melbourne Film Festival… The Other Film Festival!

Check out something a bit different and adventurous as the 2010 festival of New Cinema By, With and About People with a Disability kicks off at the Melbourne Museum this Wednesday 25th August through to Sunday 28th August.

The festival dares to dream that one day everybody’s story will be written boldly across the cinema screen and that universal access to the cinema will be the norm not the exception. The program this year offers an exhilarating array of choices: sessions dedicated to the experience of people who are Deaf or hard of hearing, films that celebrate the power of expressive dance, workshops for emerging actors and filmmakers, a forum on accessible cinema, and of course Rob Spence and the world premiere demonstration of the Eyeborg prosthetic eye.

So come and check out the future, because it’s right here, right now.

Click here to view the program and buy tickets!

AVIDO will be an 80 seat restaurant and wine garden that aims to bring a new style of culinary experience to locals.  The name AVIDO translates in Italian & Spanish, to greedy or hungry and thirsty, reflecting the focus on sharing great food & wine with friends.

Specialising in making the most of simple and sustainable seasonal food, chef Jamie Thomas brings a wealth of experience to AVIDO with 17 years behind him in the food industry and coming to AVIDO from Victor Churchill Woolhara.  AVIDO will establish its individuality with a unique modern Italian/Australian menu that is continually changing its flavours to reflect the tastes of the season. Interesting and diverse additions to the menu include sharing plates, freshly made breads, desserts and select mains.  AVIDO will also offer a breakfast and lunch menu to make it a venue that is open to serve Paddington at all times of the day and night.

Head chef Jamie Thomas comes from the UK where after his apprenticeship he opened Villandry Food & Dining in great Portland Street London at 24 years of age and had access to the best seasonal produce from England, France and Spain.  He then went on to spend two years working alongside Fergus Henderson at the highly reputable St John Restaurant learning more detail about the animal he was cooking, and all the interesting parts a lot of other chefs at the time were throwing away. He then took on his first head chef appointment at the gastro pub The Anglesea Arms in Hammersmith and there, managed to get into the Good Food Guide in his first year with a commendation and stayed in for the following three years. Since arriving in Australia, he jumped at the chance to work with Romeo Baudouin and open Victor Churchill Butchers and learn some more about the art of butchery and especially charcuterie.   It’s with these 17yrs experience that Jamie now is looking to create his own style at AVIDO and also brings with him as sous chef, Luke Smith, also from the Victor Churchill crew.

Also exciting are the visually creative forces behind AVIDO.  Matt Woods (mattwoodsdesign.blogspot.com), known for his work on Newtown’s Bloodwood, is designing interiors.  Matt has just been nominated for 3 ‘IDEA’ awards (Interior Design Excellence Awards); for Bloodwood with Best Hospitality Interior and Best Sustainable Project awards and Matt himself for Best Emerging Designer.  Also on board is Melbourne based Sarah Parkes whose macramé work has been commissioned for Space Furniture, The Ivy Nightclub and fashion designers White Suede and Claude Maus (www.smalltown.net.au). Paddington local, Rory O’Brien of Arcon will oversee the construction and fit-out of the venue.

Proprietor Ian Summers says “This is a very exciting time, seeing what has been months and months of planning now actually begin to take shape.  I can’t wait to open our doors and welcome in people from the local area to experience what we intend to be exceptional food and wine in a setting that is unique in Paddington. The wine garden is going to be an amazing setting for people to soak up the Sydney summer.”  Summers, a local Sydney boy, has a background in finance, having spent the last five years working as a trader in New York with Macquarie Bank, and living in downtown Manhattan. Following the market crash in America, Summers spent most of 2009 travelling throughout America, Asia and Australia, before re-settling in Sydney and deciding it was time to venture into new territory and in the spirit of Masterchef, follow a life-long dream to open up his own restaurant and bar.

Avido Restaurant & Wine Garden
438 Oxford Street
Paddington 2021

This year the exceptional craft skills and extraordinary body of work of Robert Baines, one of Australia’s most prominent and influential jewellers and goldsmiths, is being honoured at Object Gallery through the 2010 Living Treasures: Masters of Australian Craft series.

Object Gallery
417 Bourke Street
Surry Hills NSW 2010
Tuesday – Friday 11am – 5pm :  Saturday & Sunday 10am – 5pm : (Closed Monday)