Sydney’s cultural life sure does get trash talked a lot these days.
It seems like everywhere you turn there’s another blog or media outlet denouncing our artistic contribution as being almost nonexistent, and any trace of optimism is a hard find. But although it’s fair to say that the lockout laws have a lot to answer for, Sydney’s still got a great deal of kick left, and writing off the city as a ghost town would be a mistake indeed.
Case in point: Parramatta Lanes Festival, a celebration of food, music and art taking place over three jam-packed nights. Though it might be clichéd to suggest that any one festival has ‘something for everyone’, it’s fair to say that the Lanes lineup is varied enough to satisfy most if not all, and the festival’s great strength derives from its diversity. After all, there aren’t many events that allow you to hop from film screening to DJ set to bespoke food van and back again, are there?
That said, all that choice can be a bit overwhelming. To that end, here are our top eight picks from the festival: a collection of events that you would be foolish to ignore. Get to it!
1.Homemade Donuts In Front Of St John’s Cathedral
Now that the weather is finally getting balmy, we should all be taking any excuse to head out into the night air and drink up the beauty that spring evenings offer. What’s that? You need an added incentive? Well how ’bout this: those good folks over at Alexander’s Bakery are hosting a stall in the picturesque confines of St John’s Anglican Cathedral, selling their renowned donuts. Sweet pastries, a perfect setting and a warm, dark evening: the stuff of poetry.
2.A Cheeseburger At The Nighthawk Diner
The American diner experience is very en vogue at the moment, and for good reason too. After all, there’s something inherently comforting about the one-two-three punch of fries, a burger and a milkshake – something that seems deeply pure, even if your arteries won’t be afterwards. But that’s why God invented cheat days, right? Head over to the Nighthawk Diner in Centenary Square and you’ll be able to chew your way through more hot chips that you can poke a stick at.
3.Jane Gillings’ It’s OK To Cry At Roxy Car Park
Jane Gillings’ creative practice has always been about taking the everyday and separating it from its context, injecting images and objects that we are used to encountering with a fresh alien intent. Her massive sculpture on display at the festival It’s Ok To Cry does this brilliantly: the piece – a sculpture 2,000 bottles strong – is arranged in a cloudy weather pattern, a knowing wink towards our consumption of plastic that never preaches or lectures, but rather aims to transcend the boundaries of the known altogether.
4.No Lights No Lycra
You know that old adage, “dance like nobody is watching?” Well now you actually can, thanks in no small part to the genius organisers behind No Lights No Lycra. The event is a pitch-black rave, providing a perfect excuse to dress up in your daggiest clothes and bop your heart away without ever worrying about that smattering of cool kids over by the bar who seem to be judging your every pump and thrust.
5.Tropfest @ Lanes
Don’t pretend you don’t know about Tropfest. The world’s largest short film festival is a homegrown pleasure, one of the biggest events on Sydney’s cultural calendar and a fantastic chance to catch some Aussie talents show off their stuff. Tropfest’s showing at Lanes festival will involve a selection of short films selected from the festival’s archives, giving audiences a range of flicks to lap up. Better still, there will be nearby stalls selling Monster Rolls, slow-cooked meat-filled sandwiches that you can tuck into while enjoying the cinematic exploits occurring onscreen. How ’bout that, eh?
6.Phenomena At Parramatta Artists Studios
Another one for all you visual arts lovers; Phenomena is a totally immersive experience – one that relies on light, colour and shade. The work is vaguely centred around the notion of spirituality, but it’s best to go into the piece not necessarily expecting anything didactic or strictly thematic. The work derives its artistic successes from its esoteric nature, so go in ready for everything, and come out changed.
7.The Plot DJsAt Willow Grove
Willow Grove is one of Parramatta’s many historically-important cultural hotspots (try saying that ten times fast), so its selection as the venue for a series of The Plot curated DJ sets has a nice sense of playfulness to it. After all, who in their right mind would pass up the opportunity to see a succession of electro’s hottest young talents performing in the surrounds of a beautiful, stately grove? Nobody, that’s who.
8.Knafeh BakeryAt Erby Place
The short bio available online for Knafeh Bakery describes its workers as being “dancing and singing bearded bakers”. I’ll repeat that for you one more time: “dancing and singing bearded bakers”. Literally, what more could you possibly ask for? In our technology-saturated, spectacle-filled world, it’s exciting to know that there are still simple pleasures out there to rival the joys of a new iPhone app, or a superhero blockbuster: namely, that there are dancing and singing bearded bakers who actually, truly, really exist. Men prepared to sell you delectable sweet cheese desserts. What a truly beautiful world we live in.
Parramatta Lanes Festival takes place Tuesday October 11 – Friday October 14 at various locations around Parramatta. Head toparramattalanes.com.au for more info.
