Words to Lyrics Ben Ho's observations from the cloud

4 January 2013

Sydney Festival 2013

Filed under: Arts — Tags: , — Ben @ 6:36 pm

Happy New Year everyone! I’m rather happy to be involved in the Sydney Festival again this year as a volunteer and marshal. This year’s festival is jam-packed with events, and is the first to be directed by Lieven Bertels. Some of the main events include the Arrival of the Rubber Duck, Concrete and Bone Sessions: a dance-theatre act held at a skate park and the music events at Paradiso, the Festival Bar in Town Hall.

This is my third year volunteering for the Festival, and I enjoy meeting and talking to all sorts of people that pass through the city. I’m usually at the information booths, collecting about funny questions people ask me, as well as telling people about what they can see at the Festival. It’s pretty obvious that I love when friends and all pass by where I’m stationed, so below are the dates that I’ll be at booths.

Thurs 10 Jan: Martin Place booth 3-7pm
Tues 15 Jan: The Quiet Volume, Mitchell Library 12:30-4pm
Fri 18 Jan: Martin Place booth 1-7pm
Thurs 24 Jan Circular Quay booth 1-5pm

I’m also marshaling at the Arrival (rubber duck) this Saturday 5 January and at the Parramatta opening and closing parties on 19 and 26 January respectively. Do say hello if you see me around, but first and foremost, enjoy these free events!

7 May 2012

Review: Strange Interlude

Filed under: Arts,Attended,review — Tags: , , , — Ben @ 11:45 am

Well, it’s been a while since I wrote a review for a theatre play. I feel I should in this instance because I’ve finally seen something early enough (last night’s performance was a preview) in its run to be able to at least encourage someone to go see it.

Strange Interlude had been written about no less than three times in the Fairfax press. Which was surprising because they wrote a rather harsh review about Belvoir’s previous play, Every Breath. Well, they convinced me to go see this play, and I’m happy to report back to you!

This was the first time I had seen something at Belvoir St. So it was interesting to see whether the crowd was similar to that at Sydney Theatre Company plays (I’m a subscriber to STC). To my surprise, there was a larger contingent of younger people. I think it is great that main stage theatre in Sydney is no longer the domain of older patrons.

Now about the actual play.

Strange Interlude is originally written by Eugene O’Neill, Pulitzer Prize winner and one of America’s well known playwrights. Director Simon Stone has rewritten this with a contemporary twist. No, it’s not a rewrite of the five-hour original, but a compact piece that still gets across the main issues. I really loved how he has kept the original setting and has added references to modern conveniences to make the play remain relevant.

The story goes like this. 20 year old Nina Leeds (played by Emily Barclay, who was recently in This Is Our Youth) has just lost her husband to the war. We follow her life over the next 25 years as she attempts to get her life back on track. Through a series of affairs, another marriage and a pregnancy, we see the small events in life shown against a web of secrets.

The set was minimal, yet functional: a seamless white backdrop (photographer’s heaven) that allowed a lot of imagination. Also fascinating was the rolling shower and the toy train track (which was somewhat distracting).

Because Strange Interlude is set over a long period of time, it is up to the actors to ‘look the part’ to preserve the story, especially in the later scenes. Barclay’s portrayal of Nina remained true and real to Nina’s life. Mitchell Butel’s Charlie Marsden becomes more of a caricature towards the end, which helped keep the comic relief present.

I really enjoyed this play. Some people will never like the classics to be rewritten, but if it gets young people interested, then it is well worth it. You should go see this too, I guarantee you won’t be disappointed.

Strange Interlude plays until 17 June. Tickets are $42 for students/concession, $62 for adults. There is a $29 student rush for the Tuesday evening and Saturday matinée. Details: http://www.belvoir.com.au/productions-1/strange-interlude

30 June 2011

Review: Terminus

Filed under: Arts,Attended,review — Ben @ 4:16 pm

A word of warning before you go see this: If you can’t focus for more than an hour, don’t go. Also, note there is no interval to gather your thoughts.

Terminus by Mark O’Rowe follows the stories of three strangers going about their lives. From the dead of night to the deadly violent, the stories take wild turns until they somehow relate, similar to the 2006 film Babel (starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett). From the stage, we can only rely on the limited body movements and the rich, rhyming dialogue. The rhyme keeps the stories going, renewing the audience’s (and certainly my) attention. There’s not much else to see, except for the occasional flashing light. But from what we get from the stage, the imagination is left to paint the picture of what is going on.

For me, it took a while to ‘settle in’ into the play. The stories become more intense as the play progresses, and more gruesome as well. As for the supernatural element (B gets caught by a demon), it was fun imagining what it was like. (Actually, kind of hard when it is described frequently as a ‘can of worms’!) The thing to take away from this play is that ‘click’ moment, when you realise three stories combine into one, and how much of a train wreck one of the characters is. All in all, I liked it, although I could have been more awake throughout.

This is a play for the mind, not the eyes. You have been warned.

Terminus plays until Saturday, 9 July at the Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House.

20 January 2011

Review: LIVE at Sydney Festival 2011

Filed under: Arts,review — Tags: , , , , , , — Ben @ 8:00 am

The concept for LIVE seems so simple: musicians, black and white, solo performance. But after viewing a few of the 20 performances on show, you’ll realise that there is more behind what you see.

LIVE is a project by Jasmin Tarasin to attempt to study ‘the art of performing’. I have to agree that large-scale performances that musicians do these days have lost their ‘intimacy’, and Tarasin does well to bring us right up close to these artists. Showing the performances in black and white removes the distraction of key elements of a performance such as their dress, and instruments.

The performance that represented Tarasin’s vision the best was that of Julian Hamilton, one half of The Presets. Hamilton’s performance had no instrumentation, so all you could focus on was his singing voice. His vocal part from ‘People’ is vastly different to that on the album recording, and it shows the song from another perspective.

By watching long enough, the subtle differences between performers are apparent, and interesting to watch. At one stage, three guitarists were pictured side-by-side. Each had a different way of playing their guitar. You could notice the positioning of the guitar, and their style of playing.

LIVE is a rather inexpensive way of seeing 20 songs from 20 different artists. I would highly recommend you to see it before it closes this weekend.

LIVE is open until January 23, at the lower part of Sydney Town Hall. Tickets are $15/$12.

PS: I’m volunteering at LIVE handing out headphones on the 23rd between 5pm and 7:30pm. Come visit!

11 January 2011

Review: Annie Leibovitz: A Photographer’s Life, 1990-2005

Filed under: Arts,Attended,review — Tags: , , , , — Ben @ 8:59 am

The first thing that comes to mind when one mentions Annie Leibowitz would be her striking photos of photographs of various celebrities. This exhibition not only invites us to share in these celebrities’ glory, but also to understand her largely unseen personal side.

Sprinkled like confetti between portraits of Donald Trump, Bill Clinton and Nicole Kidman are glimpses of Lebovitz’s family. In these black-and-white images, Lebovitz presents the raw emotion and experience. Rarely do you see a photograph of the ‘happy’ family; a typical photograph found in the family album. It is all about the intimacy, a characteristic not seen much in modern photography.

For me, the portrait of Al Pacino stood out among others. Shot in an empty studio and in monochrome, Pacino is pictured simply with hands in pockets. The message is conveyed very simply via the expression of his face.

Among the personal photographs, eight frames tell the story of a family trip to the beach. The backs of the children and mother can be very revealing (just like Winston Smith said).

All in all, a very revealing, and insightful exhibition. Followers of celebrities and art enthusiasts alike can learn something from the portraits, even if it is as small as understanding someone else’s family situation.

Annie Leibovitz: A Photographer’s Life, 1990-2005 is showing until 31 March at the MCA. Tickets can be booked online to avoid the queue.

18 September 2010

Review: Stories from the 428

Filed under: Arts,Attended,review — Tags: , , , , , — Ben @ 10:01 pm

Earlier this weekend (Sat. 5pm in fact), I went to see Stories From The 428 at Sidetrack Theatre in Marrickville. It’s part of the Sydney Fringe Festival, and it’s got two shows left tomorrow. So if you are reading this now, I suggest you book tickets now, because in short, it’s really good.

Stories From The 428 is a collection of anecdotes and stories collected from the passengers of Sydney Buses route 428 (Canterbury <-> City). It’s presented in a way so that your attention span will not be tested (i.e. short and sweet). As someone who has never caught the 428, it’s an engrossing look into the diverse group of people who fill the seats and aisle. Whether it’s the two old folks, the city worker, the tertiary student or the socialist (oh yes, the socialist!), each have a unique and somewhat relatable story to tell.

I would have thought the monotony of the ordinary bus trip to work or uni would be rather boring. Instead the team of writers and the cast inject plentiful amounts of humour and life into each story. The intimacy of the venue also adds to the experience; it’s just like listening to the passenger next to you. If you have a spare 90 minutes tomorrow, go see this, you’ll smile once you leave.

Stories From The 428 Twitter

PS: I’m volunteering at the Sydney Fringe, selling tickets at the Greek Theatre tomorrow afternoon, next Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. If you like, come along, say hi and enjoy a show. Details at the Fringe website.

23 March 2010

Film Review: LOL

Filed under: Arts — Tags: , , , — Ben @ 11:09 pm

I think I’ll write short, sharp reviews because I don’t think people want to know everything about a film before they see it, just the general gist of it. See what you think.

Review: LOL (French Film Festival)

If there’s one word to describe LOL, it’s ‘parallels’. Because that’s essentially what it’s about.

Lola (Christa Theret), a student at a Paris high school has her fair share of friends, complex relationships, and a full social life. Anne (Sophie Marceau), recently divorced, juggles her professional life with raising four kids, and a renewed interest in finding love. We follow both of them, and the events of their life over the course of three trimesters.

The juxtaposition of seemingly mundane events, like a house party and an anti-drug presentation at the school complement perfectly with witty dialogue and screenplay. This along with plenty of laughs throughout make LOL a refreshing feel-good film.

When watching it last Saturday, what was interesting to note, was that at times the subtitles were necessary, not because of the French language, but because of the amount of laughter. If you want a fresh view on teenage life, then this is a film to watch.

The last screening is on Wednesday 24 March, 8:15pm at Palace Norton St cinema.

22 February 2010

Heads Up: French Film Festival

Filed under: Arts,Forward Thinking — Tags: , , — Ben @ 10:16 pm

From now on, I’ll be writing more about the ‘arts’ scene in Sydney. This includes music, film, art etc… I want to eventually spin this off into a new blog, but first I need to gather a few supporters. So enjoy.

The Alliance Française French Film Festival is happening in Sydney from the 2nd March to the end of the month. In the Palace Cinemas in Paddington and Newtown, a total of 43 films will be shown and essentially be used to garner interest into the world of French film.

If you think about it, many films that come out of Hollywood follow the same dry boring formula. Which makes foreign films relatively ‘fresh’ when compared. Now this makes every film equally interesting to the average movie goer. At this stage, I’ll take this position to broaden my view of French film.

After having read some of the synopses of the films, there are already a few that jump out at you. One that I want to see called “LOL” deals with the search for life and love from two contrasting perspectives. Another, “Welcome”, explores separation, risks and persistence.

As with any film screening, theatre production, or music concert, it is always much better when one is accompanied with someone else. This is not only to not look awkward being alone, but also provides a bouncing board for criticism and discussion. So, I encourage you to go along to a film with someone for what I think will be a great night out.

French Film Festival: Sydney website

11 February 2010

Review: Olafur Eliasson at the MCA

Filed under: Arts,review — Tags: , , — Ben @ 3:43 pm

The foyer of the MCA is now lit by an elaborate spherical light. This light, with a complex arrangement of mirrors surrounding it, is the work of Olafur Eliasson, the Danish/Icelandic artist. Eliasson specialises in large-scale installations that “transforms our experience of the space around us”.

Contemporary art for me is always somewhat controversial. Sometimes the artworks are too abstract to interpret, sometimes the message is clear (this is good), and sometimes they raise questions about whether the work is authentic. In regards to the last point, have you ever seen an artwork and said to yourself, ” I could have done that!” ?

Upon walking into the exhibition, there lies a large table of white LEGO blocks, and constructions. There are three tonnes of these ubiquitous blocks, and this installation could potentially win the award for the longest interaction with the audience. Yes, those LEGO blocks are for you to build something to your heart’s content. I must have spent about 20 minutes joining blocks into something unsubstantial. Still, it’s a nice metaphor for “I’m lazy, you make something cool.”

Another of Eliasson’s installations is a room of ‘monofrequency’ lights, shining down to the ground. Once you walk in to the room, your vision is altered by the intense colour of the light. Trying to return to reality is tempting, although your vision entices you to watch it go by, as the sights are somewhat peculiar. Eliasson has several other installations that play with light and your sight.

I was somewhat surprised that I was able to offer an interpretation to most of Eliasson’s works. But I was also surprised that simple elements (like water and light) can combine to create something visually interesting.

If you want to see some ‘different’ art, I would recommend seeing this exhibition. Just make sure you know when you need to return to reality.

MCA website: Olafur Eliasson

Update: The exhibition finishes on the 11th April.

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