Max your summer in Sydney

The late, great David Hockney (July 9, 1937 – June 11, 2026) passed away earlier this year, but his art is very much alive. You might know the British artist for his sun-drenched Los Angeles swimming pools, including A Bigger Splash (1967), or Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures) (1972), which fetched a whopping $90.3 million at auction in 2018. Or, perhaps you’ve seen his portrait of pop star Harry Styles that he painted in just two days, or his vibrant digital landscapes that he created on an iPad. Or maybe you just dig the fact that Hockney wore yellow Crocs when he met King Charles.  Now, Sydneysiders can step right into Hockney’s colourful, endlessly curious world as his acclaimed immersive experience, David Hockney: Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away), makes its Australian debut at Carriageworks. Running until January 24, 2027, this spectacular 360-degree production transforms the vast Bay 17 into a kaleidoscope of colour, movement, sound and light. Created by London’s Lightroom, the experience has captivated audiences from Seoul to Singapore since premiering in London in 2023. Bigger & Closer takes you inside Hockney’s artistic imagination, tracing six decades of creative experimentation. Narrated by Hockney himself and accompanied by an original score by composer Nico Muhly, it reveals the stories, ideas and happy accidents behind his extraordinary body of work. Journey through the San Gabriel Mountains, cruise along California’s Mulholland Drive...

Sculpture by the Sea, the world’s largest free outdoor sculpture exhibition, is back in Sydney until November 2 for its 30th anniversary. Founded by David Handley as a one-day event in 1997, it has since grown into a major cultural fixture, attracting more than 12 million visitors. “It was intended to be a gift to the people of Sydney and add to the sense of community,” says David. This year’s exhibition stretches for 2km along the coast from Bondi to Tamarama and features more than 100 works by artists from Australia and around the world, set against the backdrop of Sydney’s spectacular coastline. “It brings us joy, makes us laugh and makes us reflect,” says Allegra Spender, Federal Member for Wentworth. Keep an eye out for Surface Breach by Andre Braun, a striking white hand that appears to push its way out of the rugged rocks, as though something is reaching up from beneath the earth. Another personal favourite is The Guardians by Ulan and Rachel, a sculptural tree with long, dangling roots that catch the sunlight and create an almost otherworldly silhouette. Then there’s Judy Witherdin’s Phatyma, a riot of multicoloured mosaic that brings a vivid splash of colour to the coastal landscape. While many works spark joy and laughter, others invite us to stop, pause and reflect. Love by Stephanie Quirk is an aerial skywriting artwork created in response to the community following the tragic December 14 Bondi attack. Four times during the exhibition, the word ‘Love’ will be...

You should know the premise by now – divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived all set to a fiery, feminist live band. Henry VIII’s six ex-wives reclaim their stories and their thrones in the worldwide sensation that is Six the Musical. This is the fourth time in (wouldn’t you know it) six years that the queens have graced Sydney stages, the second at the Theatre Royal. So has Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss’ Tony- and Grammy-nominated electrifying pop-concert hit lost some of its glam? The short answer is “No Way”. What is the plot of Six? What started as an Edinburgh Fringe hit went on to capture the hearts of the West End, Broadway, and beyond. At its core, Six retains those fringey roots in its tight 80-minute, one-set, one-act pop-concert musical in what is a song-cycle of the Tudor Queens turned Pop Princesses who remix five hundred years of history to win their crowns. Who had it the worst under Henry’s reign? Who deserves the most sympathy? And is it all about his-story or is it time for a bit of herstory? The beauty of Six is that it’s a star vehicle for female and gender diverse talents. Thankfully, the creative team have offered up six of the best to fangirl over, from young veterans of the stage through to mainstage debuts: Sarah Murr as Catherine of Aragon, Mia Paris Scalise as Anne Boleyn, Cara Bessey as Jane Seymour, Kadesa Honeyhill as Anna of Cleves, Angela Brischetto as Katherine Howard, and Lorinda May Merrypor as Catherine Parr. Alongside them...

A sawfish swimming alongside a sea turtle in the Pilbara. Royal penguins stopped in their tracks by an enormous elephant seal. A Tassie devil fighting for survival. A whimbrel racing an incoming wave with a freshly caught crab in its beak. Flame-like patterns formed by the tides across a Western Australian sandbank. It’s true what they say: a picture definitely does speak a thousand words. Opening at the Australian Museum on September 12, the 2026 Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year exhibition brings you face-to-face with some of the most extraordinary moments in the natural world. From wildlife encounters to otherworldly landscapes, these photographs offer a rare glimpse into the beauty and fragility of nature in our region. This free exhibition, produced by the South Australian Museum, showcases the finest images selected from 2,129 entries by 501 photographers across 17 countries. Spanning Australia, New Zealand, Antarctica and New Guinea, the photographs take in everything from critically endangered species and dramatic animal encounters to patterns and textures of the natural landscape. Western Australian photographer Matt Deakin has been named the 2026 Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year for Ethereal Encounter. His mesmerising aerial photograph captures a critically endangered green sawfish moving towards a group of green turtles in the shallow waters of the Pilbara. Shot in the last light of the day, the milky water gives the...

It’s been a big twelve months for Sydney on the art front – with the 25th Biennale of Sydney being named the best exhibition in the world worth travelling for, the beloved Brett Whiteley Studio re-opening in Surry Hills, and Mike Hewson’s Key’s Under the Mat changing the way we think about galleries. Mercifully, we’re not stopping there. This spring, one of Australia’s most celebrated artists is getting the blockbuster retrospective treatment that only the Art Gallery of NSW can offer, with Nolan: Origins landing this spring, exploring the formative years of Sidney Nolan’s career. Bringing together more than 150 works from public and private collections, the exhibition traces the period from the late 1930s to Nolan’s departure for the UK in 1953 – the years in which he developed the bold, distinctive style that would help redefine Australian art. According to the gallery, the major drawcard is Nolan’s iconic Ned Kelly series, with all 27 paintings reunited in Sydney for the first time in more than 60 years. The series sees the bushranger transformed into a mysterious, almost mythical figure, and remains one of the defining achievements of Australian art. But there’s plenty more to discover, from Nolan’s early modernist works developed at Melbourne’s Heide to his vivid paintings of the Wimmera, K’gari, outback Queensland and Central Australia. The exhibition will also explore his fascination with Australian legends, including the Burke and Wills expedition, as well as his...

It’s been a great week for women in musical theatre. Recently, new queens of Six took to the stage at Theatre Royal Sydney for the musical’s third Sydney season. Across town at Hayes, another female-led production opened with an altogether bloodier agenda: We Are The Tigers. Both productions reflect a musical landscape increasingly shaped by pop sensibilities, spectacle and stories that put women centre stage. But where Six turns female history into a pop concert, We Are The Tigers trades the royal court for a cheerleading sleepover gone spectacularly wrong. I can’t remember the last time I saw an ensemble of nine women and gender-diverse performers command a musical with such collective force. Their chemistry, vocal blend and sheer stage presence are worth celebrating in their own right. What is We Are The Tigers about? Written by Preston Max Allen, We Are The Tigers premiered in Los Angeles in 2015 and then Off-Broadway in February 2019. The musical follows Giles Corey High School cheer captain Riley (Brianna Bishop, Grease, Hairspray), her best friend Cairo (Olivia Vasquez, In the Heights, West Side Story) and their band of misfit cheerleaders and one aspiring cheerleader-turned-mascot Reese (Caitlin McCallig). Under Riley’s L-E-A-D leadership, the team hopes to redeem themselves after last year’s spectacular flop and that viral incident. But what unfolds is more slaughter than spirit. What are the highlights of the cast, music and performances? Preston Max Allen’s...

Sydney’s immersive art scene is on the up and up, with Balloon Story, Museum of Illusions and Mike Hewson’s The Key’s Under the Mat all alive and kicking in the Harbour City. Now, there’s more. Landing right in the middle of the CBD, DigiPark is a brand-new digital playground that blends science, art, education and entertainment into one futuristic, all-ages experience. Fresh from huge success across Asia, this is the first DigiPark to open in Australia, bringing 19 interactive attractions to Level 5 of Westfield Sydney, just steps from the centre’s ever-busy food precinct. Highlights include the Space & Time Cube, a trippy 3D holographic tunnel that pulls you into a swirling world of light and colour, and the Orbital Cinema (7D) – a flying adventure powered by a massive 180-degree curved screen, motion seats and special effects like wind, vibration and water spray (no VR headset required). There’s also a 3D Figurine Creator Studio, where you can scan yourself and walk away as a custom mini digital avatar, plus dreamy installations like Wandering Planet, Cosmic Space and the Holographic Studio, which blur the line between reality and the virtual world. According to DigiPark’s Head of Sales and Marketing, Jacques Wong, the venue is designed to hook everyone from curious kids to culture-hungry adults – with VR, holograms, kinetic light art, digital play and 3D printing all under one roof. Open seven days a week from 10am to 10pm, DigiPark welcomes all ages (kids under 12...

How does happiness impact the body? It’s a question that’s crossed all of our minds at one time or another: floating in the ocean or gloriously exhausted after a long run around the city. This year, a globally-renowned exhibition dedicated to answering that question is landing in Sydney. Body Worlds: The Anatomy of Happiness will open in The Rocks on September 17, inviting visitors to explore the links between physical health, emotions and overall wellbeing. Created by plastination pioneer Dr Gunther von Hagens and curated by Dr Angelina Whalley, this blockbuster exhibition explores what happiness actually looks like inside the human body. Through real donated human specimens, interactive displays and multimedia installations, you'll discover how everything from stress and resilience to movement, ageing and social connection leaves its mark on our anatomy. Highlights include an Anatomical Mirror that lets you see where your organs sit inside your own body, side-by-side healthy and diseased organs, brain health displays exploring conditions like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, and a photographic series examining longevity across 100 years of life. Since launching, Body Worlds has attracted more than 58 million visitors across 175 cities worldwide, with more than 270,000 Australians already stepping inside the exhibition during its stints in Brisbane, Perth and Melbourne. Tickets start from $35 for adults and $20 for children, with general sales opening on July 29. Keen to get...

Theatre fans, take note. Sydney Theatre Company – Sydney’s largest and most prominent theatre producer – has just dropped the details for its 2026 season. The beautifully varied 2026 season will comprise 13 productions, with more than 80 beloved and emerging performers set to take to the stage throughout the year. Following Kip Williams' departure from the company, the 2026 season will be the first curated by new Artistic Director Mitchell Butel, who joined STC in late 2025. Reflecting on what theatre-goers can expect in 2026, Butel described the 2026 program as a "season of dream teams: celebrating the diversity of Australian storytelling. Highlights from STC’s 2026 season will include three world premieres of brand-new Australian works, the Australian Premiere of the most awarded Broadway play of 2025, the Sydney premiere of a new Australian musical and a handful of other Australian and international plays. If you’re keen to see something new, get in line for the season’s key world premieres: Whispering Jack: The John Farnham Musical (from award-winning writer and director Jack Yabsley), Bennelong in London (by Jane Harrison, the brilliant playwright behind The Visitors and Stolen) and Strong is the New Pretty by Olivier Award-winning playwright Suzie Miller. Bennelong in London will be showing from July 24 until August 16 2026, Strong is the New Pretty will be playing from October 26 until December 5 2026, and Whispering Jack: The John Farnham Musical will be showing...

If you’re craving something surreal to snap you out of reality for an hour or so, Sydney’s recently opened Museum of Illusions has got your back. The first Aussie outpost of the global concept, this interactive exhibition invites visitors to step into gravity-defying rooms, giant 3D illusions, mind-bending perspective zones, holograms and other sensory experiences – in a vast space spanning over 900 square metres in the heart of the CBD.With more than 80 unique exhibits to explore, the museum doesn’t directly follow its global siblings – it’s packed with bespoke Sydney-inspired rooms that you won’t find anywhere else. There’s a ‘Reversed Room’ inspired by a classic Aussie pub, a ‘Building Illusion’ which echoes Sydney’s iconic skyline, and an immersive exhibit called ‘Following Eyes’ – a playful nod to sunscreen-slapping beach days. Part science, part spectacle, part pure fun, the Museum of Illusions is perfect for families, curious minds, and any office worker who’s finding the return to work a little tricky. Whether you’re chasing an escape from the here and now or an Instagram goldmine, or you’re just keen to see your friends wobble in a room that defies gravity, it’s a one-stop shop for awe, giggles and head-scratching wonder. The experience is open now at 413 George Street in Sydney’s CBD, with regular admission tickets for $47 and family tickets offering slightly reduced rates. We’d suggest giving around 60–90 minutes for wandering, posing, and rethinking the laws of...