The best events in May
Put on your thinking caps and practice your belly laughs for this huge month of intrigue and chilly adventures. While April saw the opening nights of the Sydney Writers’ Festival and Sydney Comedy Festival, there’s more on the way in May, plus the glittering beginning of Vivid Sydney.
When you’re not all cosied up inside well-heated theatres, hit the unpaved roads on some of the best walks in Sydney. Don’t forget to bring your binoculars, as it’s also the start of whale-watching season. And double don't forget it's Mother's Day this month, too.
RECOMMENDED: Food and drink festival in Sydney.
The best things to do in May
Puffs, or: Seven Increasingly Eventful Years at a Certain School of Magic and Magic
The universe of Harry Potter truly is a magical place. Unless you spend a few seconds really thinking about it. The kids are armed at 11, there’s mass slavery, rampant racism and a huge class divide. Puffs takes every plot hole to task with a hilariously enchanting mix of parody and homage.
Lie to Me: An Evening of Storytelling at Sydney Town Hall
Keeping in mind the Sydney Writers' Festival theme, 'Lie to me', Benjamin Law will be wrangling questions and answers, stories and songs, from Oyinkan Braithwaite (My Sister, the Serial Killer), former Greens senator Scott Ludlam, playwright Patricia Cornelius, writers Nayuka Gorrie and Ece Temelkuran, political theorist Tim Soutphommasane, and musician Megan Washington.
Alice in Slasherland
Meet Lewis, whose love for his best friend has opened a literal portal to hell and resurrected the soul of a brutally slain girl called Alice. With demons on their trail, it’s up to Lewis, Alice and her trash-talking demonic teddy bear to save the town before senior prom is ruined.
Audiocraft Podcast Festival
Whatever podcast topics you fill your ears with, there’s bound to be a speaker or event that pricks those little listeners at Audiocraft Podcast Festival. They’ve lined some of the best in the audio game to lead masterclasses, panel discussions, workshops, guided listening experiences, and live podcast recordings across three locations over the three-day festival.
Vivid Sydney
The world’s largest festival of light, music and ideas is now in its 11th year. Last year, the annual winter festival received 2.25 million visitors to the city for free illuminations from 6pm every night, plus headline music acts and talks and workshops to stretch those mind muscles.
Mould: A Cheese Festival
Mould: A Cheese Festival is exactly what it says on the tin – a joyous celebration of handmade Australian cheeses. Over two days, you’ll be meeting a more than 60 members of the cheese family, from tart blue veined varieties to crumbling aged cheddars, washed rind numbers and super smooth soft rounds.
MCA Zine Fair
The MCA will become a marketplace of independent self-published zines exploring visual arts, poetry, politics, fanfiction and personal experiences. Meet the makers behind niche reads, hear from creatives and industry professionals and fill your minds with new stories and ideas at the free event on the MCA lawn.
Rhys Nicholson: Nice People Nice Things Nice Situations
When we saw Rhys Nicholson’s last stand-up show, we said: “Most comedians would kill to hear the almost unending screams of laughter Nicholson manages to extract from a crowd.” We're looking forward to seeing what subjects he’ll wrap his sharp tongue and lightning-fast acerbic wit around in May.
Semi Permanent
The three-day design summit Semi Permanent has announced its 17th annual series of talks, workshops, exhibitions, screenings and parties. Anchored on a theme truth, Semi Permanent will investigate how designers can shape and support the creative and economic future they believe in.
The Million Paws Walk
Sydney’s good boys and girls will be stepping it out in a floof pack for the Million Paws Walk. This annual walk for doggos and their owners raises money for the RSPCA in their efforts to rescue, rehabilitate and rehome animals across Australia. Sydney walkers will be romping around Cathy Freeman Park.
TEDxSydney
TEDxSydney will be inviting creatives, industry change-makers and cultural leaders to share their insights in relation to the theme of ‘legacy’. What will this amount to? A full day of talks and performances exploring humanity’s past triumphs and failings, what the future may hold and what we want to be remembered for.
Winyanboga Yurringa
In 1981, a groundbreaking miniseries called Women of the Sun aired on SBS, telling the story of four Aboriginal women living in Australia between the 1820s and 1980s. Andrea James’ new play was inspired by the series and acts as a kind of fifth chapter, adding another generation to the fold.
Hatchie
Hatchie’s creations are the kind you listen to when you’re pinning after a prospective love interest or trying to forget past heartache. Her debut EP Sugar & Spice went through the full rotation of love found and lost, and her new album Keepsake will keep riding that emotional rollercoaster.
Nina Oyama Needs a Lift
Nina Oyama is making her solo stand-up show debut with this set about her journeys as a black market taxi driver. But she’s definitely not a newcomer to comedy, having appeared at Just For Laughs at the Sydney Opera House, on the ABC series Utopia, and as a reporter for Tonightly with Tom Ballard.
The Westies Markets
The non-for-profit collective behind this quarterly market, the Westies, is all about showcasing the Penrith region while giving local growers and makers the opportunity to sell their products. They want to create a lazy Sunday atmosphere, where you get to know the community rather than fight over the bargain bin.
Boozy Finger Painting
This pop-up painting course at Redfern’s Workshop HQ replaces brushes and sponges with your very own phalanges, so you can get really messy making some high concept (read: indistinguishable) artworks. You'll be given step-by-step instruction in creating a specific masterpiece, but in the end you wield creative control.
Sydney Writers’ Festival
Each year Sydney welcomes hundreds of authors, journalists, writers and public intellectuals to speak at the weeklong festival. This year, artistic director Michaela McGuire is inviting 45 international guests and 350 homegrown writers to Carriageworks, and other venues across Sydney. See more of the program in May.
Stephen K Amos: The Story So Far
Comedy giant and honorary Australian Stephen K Amos is back with a show that’s all about the last ten years on stage. It will feature new material alongside some classic bits and the incisively funny – but never threatening – audience participation for which Amos is best known.
MCA Artbar
The MCA's party series used to be held once a month, but as of 2019 is only taking place four times a year. It's the same basic idea: a night curated by a different artist or collective each edition, featuring art, performance and design – with killer views, party tunes and hands-on activities with artists.
Finders Keepers
Australia’s longest running indie design and art market is returning to the Barangaroo Cutaway for three days of refreshing retail that'll match the cool kick of May weather. A line-up of more than 200 stallholders will show off their handcrafted and meticulously designed goods.
Dr Jane Goodall: Rewind the Future
The work of anthropologist and primatologist Dr Jane Goodall has become synonymous with animal welfare and environmental conservation. In this discussion, Goodall will reflect on her contributions to science and consider humanity’s role in correcting the course climate change.
Batch Festival
Griffin Theatre Company has been churning out new Australian plays for more than three decades, but what about the creations that don't quite fit into the neat and tidy "play" category? Last year it launched the brilliant Batch Festival, an alternative performance festival that features everything from plays to poetry, burlesque and comedy.
Jan van de Stool: Parting the Red Curtains
Jan Van de Stool is an international musical therapist and the alter-ego of musical theatre and cabaret star Queenie van de Zandt. If you’re into character-based comedy, killer singing and showtunes, head along to one of the Woy Woy-based guru's “workshops”.
Mother's Day Classic
This year marks the 22nd anniversary for the fun run that raises money for the National Breast Cancer Foundation. There are two courses to have a crack at in Sydney: one around Mrs Macquarie's Chair and one in Parramatta Park. You’re encouraged to donate or commit to fundraising when you register.
Casey Legler: Godspeed
Former French Olympic swimmer and the first woman to sign a male modelling contract with Ford Models, Casey Legler, has an interesting life story to share. Legler will be at the Sydney Writers’ Festival to talk about their unflinching memoir that covers the public life of a competitive swimmer and the private struggle of alcohol and substance abuse.
Nazeem Hussain: Basic Idiot
In the last year, Nazeem Hussain became a father, starred in his own sketch series (Orange is the New Brown), and scored a stand-up special on Netflix. Now he’s returning to his stand-up roots with a show that’s sure to tackle all of the recent developments in his life.
Head On Photo Festival
This year Head On Photo Festival is turning ten and bringing out some big guns to celebrate, with 12 international photographers headlining at exhibitions across the city. Six of those will be showing at the festival's hub at Paddington Town Hall, while others will be spread across town.
Nick Murphy
The seven-time ARIA Award-winning Melbourne artist formerly known as Chet Faker has made monumental leaps of success since his cover of Blackstreet’s ‘No Diggity’ went viral in 2011. The electro-soul music maker will showcase this artistic development and his new album Run Fast Sleep Naked in Sydney on May 14.
Vivid After Hours at AGNSW
We’re a big fan of the Art Gallery of NSW’s free Wednesday night art series. But for Vivid, they’re curating some pretty special nights, each led by a discussion about personal histories, spirituality and cultural and social identity, before art-seeking night owls enjoy live music, interactive workshops and gallery excursions.
Alice Fraser: Mythos
Alice Fraser is an ex-corporate lawyer who quit the profession when she found she was writing more jokes than contracts. She’s had a fast rise in comedy, having gained a significant following thanks to her stand-up gigs and podcasts. Her upcoming show is all about the lies we tell about ourselves.
Spanish Film Festival
This year's festival arrives with one big change – the Cine Latino Film Festival has been added to the run, providing an enriched experience for those who want to get their Spanish-speaking film fix in one place. On top of that, the biggest Spanish film of the year, Campeones (Champions), is opening the festival nationwide.
Astrophotography Nightscape Workshop
In this photography course, you'll learn how to immortalise nightscapes through a lens. Keen astrophotographer Steven Morris will be teaching you how to focus manually on the stars, expose those shining beauties at the right level, shoot panoramic nightscapes, choose the correct lens for the job and read the tonal values on your histogram.
Kristen Roupenian: Cat Person and Other Stories
Remember the wave of excitement when The New Yorker published short story ‘Cat Person’, their most shared piece of fiction in the website’s history? Writer Kristen Roupenian is following up on her viral short story with her debut collection of funny and explicit stories exploring gender, sex and power.
Sydney Comedy Festival
Sydney Comedy Festival will continue its take-over of key Inner West venues in May, with a line-up of international, local and interstate comedians across all genres. While not quite as big as its Melbourne counterpart, the Sydney Comedy Festival is still packed with goodies and plenty of high-profile acts.
Sparkling Sydney
Our harbourside town is a primo spot to toss back a prosecco with brunch or a sneaky sparkling accompanied by a salty oyster. So it feels very appropriate that a festival honouring sparkling wine will soon arrive at our shores. It'll offer tastings of more than 60 fizzy pours plus a gin bar and gourmet snacks.
Sounds on the Terrace
Newtown beer barons Young Henrys will be joining forces with the MCA for this season of mid-week art and music parties. The free gigs coincide with the gallery's Wednesday night Lights on Later program, which sees the MCA swing open its doors until 9pm.
Breakfast at Tiffany's in Concert
These days, no one would invent a romance for the movie that did not exist in Truman Capote’s source novella, and certainly nobody would cast a white actor in a Japanese part. And yet Blake Edwards’ film exercises an appeal that is truly iconic. Now the Sydney Symphony is presenting Breakfast at Tiffany’s in Concert.
'Tis the season to carb load
The best Italian restaurants in Sydney
While good pizzerias and dirt-cheap red sauces places are harder to find than the poshest stuff, there are still spades of options to choose from. We've picked our favourites from every style.