Visual Art
Peace may seem elusive in some of the works in the 2024 Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art, writes John Neylon. Nonetheless, there is plenty to capture the interest and stir the emotions of a broad audience.
Adelaide Festival
There was something for everyone in the giant festival finale that the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra cooked up on the weekend. With electronic music duo Electric Fields, the Floods of Fire concert was a joyous occasion.
Akram Khan’s latest collaboration brings Rudyard Kipling’s 19th-century classic into contemporary relevance, its post-apocalyptic setting, reimagined characters and flawless, multi-layered production transforming the beloved children’s tale into an urgent call to action.
Icelandic pianist Víkingur Ólafsson placed his stamp all over Bach’s Goldberg Variations with stunning artistry. An extraordinary show of compassion towards one audience member made it all the more memorable.
The performers from STREB EXTREME ACTION provoke gasps from the audience in a show that impresses with its mix of elegance, brute strength and playfulness.
Leaving behind St Peter’s Cathedral as their usual venue during festival time, Adelaide Chamber Singers took to the Town Hall with exuberance – plus myriad birdcalls.
In a work brimming with vulnerability and vitality, the artists at Australian Dance Theatre ask us to pause and look inwards to our nation’s heart.
In his compelling monologue, Édouard Louis meticulously describes a childhood ruined by poverty, abuse, and alienation. He blames his father but comes to realise there are also much larger social and structural cruelties in play.
The work of 20 mid-career South Australian artists is on display in a fascinating exhibition at Adelaide Railway Station that, in its second iteration, is positioning itself as an important part of the Adelaide Festival program.
Astrid Pill & Collaborators’ unconventional and highly original monologue reflects on mortality, grief and the relationships we have with lovers after they are gone.
In Barrie Kosky’s new version, The Threepenny Opera has had a haircut and a makeover but the satire is still in there, along with Kurt Weill’s splendid music.
If performance art is now, then the intensely thought-provoking, multi-artist production from the Marina Abramović Institute, Takeover, has made its thick presence known.
The stars aligned for readers on Saturday night with four literary luminaries converging on stage to open Adelaide Writers’ Week with a fascinating discussion of power, writing and finding truth in complicated times.
The delightful Grand Theft Theatre manages to capture the joy and significance of theatre while also eschewing the pretension that sometimes surrounds it.
Miraculous in its originality, The Nightingale and Other Fables wins both the heart and mind in the exquisiteness of its storytelling.
Restless Dance Theatre’s exploration of sex, love and intimacy is gentle, playful and moving.
Described as a visual meditation on mourning, Goodbye, Lindita eloquently, and sometimes convulsively, expresses feeling and wonder about the mystery of death – without uttering a single word.
Baleen Moondjan is an epic Ngugi/Nunukul/Moondjan story of great beauty, sorrow and dignity told under darkening sky and measured out by the timeless beat of waves on the sands of Pathawilyangga in this unforgettable performance.
This intense monologue by a debut writer is an oceanic exploration of big themes – love, loss, mental illness and hope – but faces some choppy waters as it fights its way to the surface.
