YOUR DAILY GUIDE TO THE ARTS
The Age
Wednesday September 9, 2009
FROM the successful mix of styles presented in their recent production, Concord, the Australian Ballet turns its attention firmly to the classics with its season of The Sleeping Beauty opening tonight (until September 19). The Russian Imperial Ballet, working with Tchaikovsky, staged the original production in 1890. The choreographer was Marius Petipa. Australian Ballet choreographer Stanton Welch adapts Petipa€™s version to enhance its themes of good and evil, romance and enchantment. australianballet.com.au, 7.30pm, State Theatre, Arts Centre, 100 St Kilda Road. Bookings: ticketmaster.com.au or 1300 136 166. POETRY TO ENLIVEN the poetry heats as they move through to the fi nal this Friday, the Overload Festival has hired a ninja to attack any performer who goes over their allocated three minutes. Justice will be swift and toy-sword plasticky. Then there are the judges: five audience members selected because they€™re regular schmos, not sensitive bards. Poetry supergroup the Overload All-Stars also perform. overloadpoetry.org, 7pm, Northcote Social Club, 301 High Street, Northcote. Phone: 9486 16. BOOK LAUNCH CONTROVERSIAL writer Jack Marx (pictured), best known for a Walkley winning expose of Russell Crowe€™s attempts to buy his affections, launches another book tonight. Australian Tragic is a collection of bizarre-but-true tales from the dark side of Australian history. From Aborigines shamefully toured as curios to the Luna Park fire in 1979, these are old-fashioned yarns spun into a national tapestry. 6.30pm, Sun Theatre, 8 Ballarat Street, Yarraville. Phone: 9362 0999. UNTANGLED LOUIS Porter, the English-born Collingwood- based photographer who has an exhibition, Australian Colour, at the Monash Gallery of Art (profiled here last week), also has a great website. Click on Portfolios to view photos from all over the world, including many taken during a residency in China last year. The coolest section though is Found, featuring skip-bin photos, lost playing cards and a taxonomical assessment of businessmen€™s haircuts from the 1980s. ROCK BRITISH electro rockers Does It Offend You, Yeah? put the question live tonight. Unless you€™re allergic to high-energy dance punk, the answer is probably a big €śno way, let€™s rock!€ť They stage an anarchic show; lead singer James Rushent broke his leg during the final show of their US tour last year. And still played the encore. myspace.com/doesitoffendyou. Doors 8pm, Billboard The Venue, 170 Russell Street, city. Phone: 9639 4000.
© 2009 The Age
