Things to do in Sydney today

Love, for all its risks, is rarely framed as something unsettling or dangerous. Desire, hope and care are often gathered together in pursuit of joy. Though sometimes what emerges is darker: love can shift your sense of self, clouded by danger, deceit and dread. The River, directed by Margaret Thanos, explores the space between desire and deceit in an evocative introspection on love. Written by Tony Award-winning playwright Jez Butterworth, the production forces the audience to confront not only what love reveals, but what it conceals. What is the premise of The River? The Man (Ewen Leslie) and The Woman (Miranda Otto) spend a weekend together at his remote cabin by a river. He is eager to share a particular fishing expedition with her – one that can only happen at night, with no moon. As the play unfolds, what begins as ripples of a tender, romantic escape becomes more uncertain – an estuary sifting through contradiction, manipulation and honesty. The production never fully decides what it wants to be – a romance, a tragedy, or something in between. While these questions linger, Thanos’s creative vision allows the ambiguities to become an asset, giving the audience space to remain in the uneasy territory between desire and distrust, where each confession feels both revelatory and suspect. Rather than resolving its tensions, the production lets them pool and deepen, leaving the audience suspended – albeit a little too long – in its murky emotional currents. Who are the cast...

The glitz and glamour of the cinema's golden age was gilded with the grunt work of working actresses. Their complex lives were replaced with one-dimensional characters and sound bites (some things don’t change). Anton Burge’s Bette & Joan pulls away the façade of the silver screen to delve deeper into one of the biggest Hollywood rivalries of the twentieth century – between Bette Davis and Joan Crawford. In its Australian premiere, directed by Liesel Badorrek, this show balances the vulnerability and venom. What is the premise of Bette & Joan? Loosely based on their real lives, the play is set in the early sixties, with almost-out-of-work actresses, Bette Davis (Jeanette Cronin) and Joan Crawford (Lucia Mastrantone) in the middle of the production of What Happened to Baby Jane?. Both actresses are long past the Hollywood heyday of the thirties and have been provided an opportunity not only to relive the successes of their past but to also critique and challenge the role of older women in the film industry. But the success of this film is probably the only idea Joan and Bette will admit they are in agreement on. The pair’s bitter rivalry stems from their early days of work, and follows the pair through their films, marriages, parenthood and into production. What appears at first to be verbal sparring from two people who seem to be completely different is revealed to be a more thought-provoking exploration of the values and people who shaped them. The production excels in...

Let’s face it: heading to the cinema ain’t cheap these days – add a choc top into the mix and yeesh, you may as well take out a second mortgage. Luckily, Parramatta has the answer once again for families keen to get out and about without blowing the budget. The city’s much-loved Family Movie Nights are returning in April 2026, bringing a series of free outdoor cinema events to parks across the area. Five local parks and reserves will transform into open-air movie theatres across two weekends during the school holidays, inviting families to roll out the picnic blankets and settle in for a night under the stars. Expect a line-up of recent blockbuster flicks – including A Minecraft Movie and Wicked: For Good – projected onto the big screen. But it’s not just about the movies. Each event kicks off with a festival-style atmosphere before sundown, featuring themed activities, roving performers, food trucks and plenty of inflatable fun (think a giant slide, fun house and even a soccer dart board). There’ll also be hands-on activities inspired by the films, like Minecraft LEGO building, potion and wand making, reptile displays and karate headband decorating. City of Parramatta Lord Mayor Cr Martin Zaiter said the annual event continues to bring communities together for a free night out. “This is about getting our communities together for a free, fun night out with a movie, good food and fun activities,” Cr Zaiter said. “Over the past 10 years, thousands of people have packed a...

If you’re looking for a night out where serotonin is dialled up to the max – it’s a seat at The Grand Electric. La Ronde is a cheeky, jaw-dropping performance hitting the intimate stage in Surry Hills this autumn. It has wowed audiences in Adelaide, Newcastle, Darwin, Auckland and Sydney, and now it’s now back in town for a second season.  The high-adrenaline affair made waves as one of the must-see shows of the Adelaide Fringe – clocking up an immense amount of five-star reviews in the process. While some of the other shows by the same creators, like Blanc de Blanc, are a little more risqué, La Ronde is a fun night out for anyone over 15.  Live music sets the stage for some gravity-defying stunts and glitzy disco fever. There’s so much variety in the show that it’s got something for everyone from avid theatre-goers to couples on date night. With a super interactive ringside experience, it also serves as the ultimate group night out where bubbles and gasps flow generously.  Catch La Ronde at The Grand Electric in Surry Hills until May 10. Tickets start from $86 and you can get yours here. 

After a cancellation the previous evening due to the raging storm and winds, the opening night of The Phantom of the Opera was looking dire. But magically at the stroke of 6pm, when the team of Opera Australia’s Handa Opera rolled out the red carpet, the rain dissipated and a warm setting sun floated over Sydney Harbour. The Phantom still has magic left up his sleeve after all. Phantom of the Opera on Sydney Harbour represents that age-old maxim, “The show must go on”. And go on The Phantom of the Opera shall! Rain, wind, or sun, the show is at the mercy of nature, but overcoming the natural challenges from Mother Nature makes it all the more thrilling to witness. Every outdoor spectacle presented by Handa Opera is consistently infused with decadence, and this restaging of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s classic is no different. This is a highbrow spectacle at its most luxurious. What type of show is The Phantom of the Opera? The musical version of the mysteriously masked Phantom living beneath the Paris Opera House has captivated audiences around the world for 40 years. His obsession with the young Christine Daaé and subsequent devious nurturing of her talents has played to more than 160 million people in 58 territories and 205 cities in 21 languages.  As a character, Christine is at the mercy of the men she’s surrounded by. Be it the Phantom’s obsessive love, her saviour in the shape of Raoul, Vicomte De Chagny, or the whims of the new owners of the Paris Opera House, Monsieur...