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Month: October 2023

SS-Testing-Testing-One-Two
Arts & Culture

Review:

25 October 2023

Some performers are so playful, surprising, or damned funny that you’ll go to some trouble […]

SS-Smashed-Malia-Walsh-photo-by-Jacinta-Oaten
Arts & Culture

Review: Smashed Arvo

25 October 2023

After a busy Fringe, the idea of having one more blowout, without another late night, […]

Message-In-A-Bottle-(2020)-photo-by-Helen-Maybanks
Arts & Culture

Message In A Bottle to make Australian premiere at Sydney Opera House

24 October 2023

In an Australian premiere, spectacular new dance-theatre work Message In A Bottle from award-winning choreographer Kate Prince, set […]

MFF23-Moira-Finucane
Festivals & Events

Melbourne Fringe Festival 2023 Award Winners Announced

23 October 2023

After a mammoth 20-day Festival that featured over 470 shows across the city and suburbs, […]

SOH-Bark-of-Millions-photo-by-Daniel-Boud
Arts & Culture

Review: Bark of Millions

22 October 2023

On Friday evening, 50 years ago to the day when the late Queen Elizabeth II […]

Posts pagination

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Visit Gay Australia

News In Pictures

  • After a critically acclaimed Sydney season, BIG Live brings The Great Gatsby: A Jazz Ballet Odyssey to Melbourne’s Her Majesty’s Theatre for a strictly limited 18-performance season from 18 March 2026. Reimagining F. Scott Fitzgerald’s iconic novel through ballet, tap and jazz, the production transforms one of literature’s most enduring love stories into a large-scale theatrical event. It is not a nostalgic period piece, but a contemporary retelling driven by movement, music and psychological intensity. The Sydney response confirmed there is a strong appetite for narrative-led ballet at scale. The Melbourne season builds on that momentum, positioning the work as one of the most ambitious independent dance productions currently touring in Australia. Directed and choreographed by Joel Burke, the production reframes Jay Gatsby not as satire, but as a man gripped by belief. “For me, Gatsby isn’t irony,” says Burke. “He is a romantic who genuinely believes the past can be remade. I wanted to remove the wink and let the longing sit front and centre.” Burke’s choreography uses physical contrast to drive the narrative. The excess of Gatsby’s parties unfolds in expansive, rhythm-charged ensemble sequences, while moments of deliberate awkwardness and unexpected stillness expose the character’s vulnerability. Movement is frequently interrupted or restrained, allowing hesitation, imbalance and silence to carry dramatic weight. “I’m interested in what happens when the body resists,” adds Burke. “Sometimes the stillness tells the story more truthfully than virtuosity.” An original score by Emmy Award-winning composer Jason Fernandez, alongside Dominic Cabusi, gives the production cinematic propulsion. Classical ballet technique is interwoven with tap and jazz phrasing, creating a physical language that mirrors the glamour of the Jazz Age while revealing its instability. The cast features alumni of the Mariinsky Theatre, English National Ballet, Queensland Ballet, The Australian Ballet and Stuttgart Ballet. From the wildly thrilling scale of Gatsby’s infamous parties to the stripped-back, exposed intimacy of his longing, the production's pacing is designed to be relentless. Visually, musically, and emotionally, the momentum builds continuously toward the final image of the green light. “Even though it’s a full theatrical experience, I want that sensation of, ‘I can’t believe it’s already over,’” says Burke. “Because theatre should feel transporting. It should sweep you up completely... and when the curtain falls, there should be that slight disbelief - that rare feeling that you’ve just experienced something larger than you expected.” The Great Gatsby: A Jazz Ballet Odyssey Her Majesty's Theatre, 240 Exhibition Street, Melbourne Season: 18 March - 5 April 2026 Bookings: www.ticketek.com.au Following the Melbourne season, The Great Gatsby: A Jazz Ballet Odyssey will play Canberra Theatre Centre (8 - 12 April), Cairns Performing Arts Centre (16 - 19 April), Crown Theatre Perth (25 - 26 July), Newcastle Civic Theatre (22 - 23 August) and Her Majesty's Theatre, Adelaide (2 - 6 September). For more information, visit: www.bigliveco.com for details. Image: The Great Gatsby: A Jazz Ballet Odyssey - courtesy of BIG Live
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  • The Cast of Trophy Boys - photo by Ben Andrews
  • The Motley WhereHaus
  • Old-Friends-Sing-Sundays-Mark-Mark-Trevorrow-Bev-Kennedy-and-Rupert-Noffs
  • SGLMG Mardi Gala Ball Taste the Love photo by Ash Penin
  • Tracey Yarad stars in All These Pretty Things - photo by Perez Images

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The Australian Pride Network exists to promote Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI) Pride on a national level, encouraging diverse communities in Australia to hold and attend pride events, whilst increasing promotional and networking opportunities among Australian pride organisations.

News in Pictures
  • After a critically acclaimed Sydney season, BIG Live brings The Great Gatsby: A Jazz Ballet Odyssey to Melbourne’s Her Majesty’s Theatre for a strictly limited 18-performance season from 18 March 2026. Reimagining F. Scott Fitzgerald’s iconic novel through ballet, tap and jazz, the production transforms one of literature’s most enduring love stories into a large-scale theatrical event. It is not a nostalgic period piece, but a contemporary retelling driven by movement, music and psychological intensity. The Sydney response confirmed there is a strong appetite for narrative-led ballet at scale. The Melbourne season builds on that momentum, positioning the work as one of the most ambitious independent dance productions currently touring in Australia. Directed and choreographed by Joel Burke, the production reframes Jay Gatsby not as satire, but as a man gripped by belief. “For me, Gatsby isn’t irony,” says Burke. “He is a romantic who genuinely believes the past can be remade. I wanted to remove the wink and let the longing sit front and centre.” Burke’s choreography uses physical contrast to drive the narrative. The excess of Gatsby’s parties unfolds in expansive, rhythm-charged ensemble sequences, while moments of deliberate awkwardness and unexpected stillness expose the character’s vulnerability. Movement is frequently interrupted or restrained, allowing hesitation, imbalance and silence to carry dramatic weight. “I’m interested in what happens when the body resists,” adds Burke. “Sometimes the stillness tells the story more truthfully than virtuosity.” An original score by Emmy Award-winning composer Jason Fernandez, alongside Dominic Cabusi, gives the production cinematic propulsion. Classical ballet technique is interwoven with tap and jazz phrasing, creating a physical language that mirrors the glamour of the Jazz Age while revealing its instability. The cast features alumni of the Mariinsky Theatre, English National Ballet, Queensland Ballet, The Australian Ballet and Stuttgart Ballet. From the wildly thrilling scale of Gatsby’s infamous parties to the stripped-back, exposed intimacy of his longing, the production's pacing is designed to be relentless. Visually, musically, and emotionally, the momentum builds continuously toward the final image of the green light. “Even though it’s a full theatrical experience, I want that sensation of, ‘I can’t believe it’s already over,’” says Burke. “Because theatre should feel transporting. It should sweep you up completely... and when the curtain falls, there should be that slight disbelief - that rare feeling that you’ve just experienced something larger than you expected.” The Great Gatsby: A Jazz Ballet Odyssey Her Majesty's Theatre, 240 Exhibition Street, Melbourne Season: 18 March - 5 April 2026 Bookings: www.ticketek.com.au Following the Melbourne season, The Great Gatsby: A Jazz Ballet Odyssey will play Canberra Theatre Centre (8 - 12 April), Cairns Performing Arts Centre (16 - 19 April), Crown Theatre Perth (25 - 26 July), Newcastle Civic Theatre (22 - 23 August) and Her Majesty's Theatre, Adelaide (2 - 6 September). For more information, visit: www.bigliveco.com for details. Image: The Great Gatsby: A Jazz Ballet Odyssey - courtesy of BIG Live
  • MARVELous: A Risqué Parody
  • APN ACON Australian Pride in Sport Awards
  • Dolly Diamond
  • The Cast of Trophy Boys - photo by Ben Andrews
  • The Motley WhereHaus
  • Old-Friends-Sing-Sundays-Mark-Mark-Trevorrow-Bev-Kennedy-and-Rupert-Noffs
  • SGLMG Mardi Gala Ball Taste the Love photo by Ash Penin
  • Tracey Yarad stars in All These Pretty Things - photo by Perez Images
Latest Posts
  • The Great Gatsby: A Jazz Ballet Odyssey
  • MARVELous: A Risqué Parody
  • Finalists Announced for the 2026 Australian Pride in Sport Awards
  • Dolly Diamond: Tits & Teeth (review)
  • Stage sensation Trophy Boys to open State Theatre Company South Australia’s 2026 season
  • Introducing Melbourne’s largest independent Artist-Run festival venue – The Motley WhereHaus
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