Your guide to the pick of the bunch of Festival 2018 activities.
Your guide to the pick of the bunch of Festival 2018 activities.
Did you hear? The Commonwealth Games are here and a billion people are about to descend on the Gold Coast. Regardless of the logistics of that scenario, there’s a chance you might get your lid on international telly so that’s fun.
Perhaps you aren’t into competitive sports (if not, are you even Australian) but never fear, there are MANY other fun things going on and we picked five that are definitely worth braving the crazy for.
RITE
Acrobats are superhumans sent from heaven to simultaneously delight and entertain us while also inducing guilt about our daily dog walking exercise regime. We digress. RITE is described as ’10 ferociously committed acrobats putting their bodies on the line’ and there is no way we’re going to miss that. It’s also going to be an electrifying explosion of power and physicality and since alliteration and really strong people are equally welcome in our lives, BRING IT ON.
Find it: Roundabout stage, Broadbeach (various evening shows) – Wednesday 4th April to Sunday 8th April
Museum of the Moon
The moon is coming to the Gold Coast! Well, a seven-metre-wide, floating moon sculpture to be precise. It’s a replica that’s been created from detailed NASA imagery so it may as well be the real moon as far as we’re concerned. Each centimetre of the replica equals five kilometres of the lunar surface and it’s all glowy like the actual moon would be, should you ever get the chance to stand in front of it. You can also learn about the moon and listen to surround sound composition of the moon landings. Cool hey.
Find it: Chinatown, Southport from 10am to 10pm – Wednesday 4th April to Sunday 15th April
Arboria – Architects of Air
First of all, luminarium is the most magical word ever and second of all, there’s one coming to Broadbeach! What is this luminarium? Get excited gang because it’s a walk-in sculpture that’s kind of a maze, kind of a mystical light show and definitely one of the coolest things to ever hit the Gold Coast. There’s rather large domes, crazy colours and people say it’s nothing short of enchanting. We say good luck getting us to leave.
Find it: At Kurrawa Park, Broadbeach from 9am to 5pm – Thursday 5th April to Sunday 15th April
Tide
We’ve discussed this previously but repetition is the only way to get your point across (or so Mum used to say). Here’s the deal; two people (who are clearly very dedicated to their craft) are going to perform a show on a sandbar in Currumbin Creek. For 49 hours. Obviously there are a few things to be concerned about – rising tides, hungry sharks, wayward paddleboarders – we can barely contain our excitement. There’ll be theatre, dance and just general death defiance (that last one might be slightly dramatic). What a time.
Find it: Currumbin Creek, the Palm Beach Parklands side from Sunday 8th Apr at 8am — Tuesday 10th April at 10am
Holoscenes
Fresh outta NYC comes an incredible art performance where water and the human body collide. In what might be the most terrifying thing we’ve ever heard, a tank will fill with said water with said humans inside. The humans (can’t stop now) must then perform everyday tasks such as reading the paper, making the bed etc. while the water level rises and falls. It’s pure insanity but what a time. The soundtrack is hauntingly beautiful and we’re pretty sure it’s going to one of the best things the Coast has ever seen just quietly.
Find it: Surfers Paradise Beach from Thursday 5th April – Sunday 15th April
Basically it’s a big old, 11-day party and everyone’s invited. We heart the Gold Coast.
Words by Kirra Smith
Not only is walking a convenient way to get from A to B, apparently it’s also a great way to learn a thing or two about the city you reside in and gawk at some sweet scenery along the way.
While there are many picture-perfect places to stroll around our beloved Gold Coast, for the purposes of this article we’re going to focus on the latest one.
Surprise, it’s The Commonwealth Walkway which was created for both locals and visitors to embark on a marked, 10km stroll around the Coast while at the same time learning about our city’s unique heritage. Just delightful.
There are 37 markers along the way (bronze, because we’re fancy like that) starting at the Southport Chambers and finishing up at the Evandale Council Chambers.
Along the way you’ll come across incredible stories like that of the Yugambeh people, upon whose traditional land the Gold Coast was built.
A few stops down is the Southport Pier, where the Coast’s first jetty constructed in the 1800s when SoPo was a booming holiday destination.
Moving onto Surfers (we’ve skipped ahead a few steps), you’ll stop at the Gold Coast Meter Maid sign to discover the 1960s origin of the glitter girls and why locals used them to keep tourists coming back.
You’ll say g’day to Matey the dog, a Surfers legend who used to walk patrons home from a long night at the pub, cross the Chevron Island bridge, make your way past the Surfers Paradise Rowers Club (perhaps pause here for a hard-earned frothy) and, eventually, find yourself at the Council Chambers.
Of course, there’s plenty more but what’s the fun in spoiling the surprise.
If you thought the Coast’s history was all 1960s surfers and beach shacks you’d be right but there’s much more to it than that and you’d be doing yourself a disservice if you didn’t find out exactly how our city came about.
Don’t forget, there are plenty of bars and eateries along the way because there’s no need to deprive yourself of the things you love.
Grab your walking shoes and get to it.
LOCATION: Starts at Southport Chambers, 56-58 Nerang Street, Southport
Words by Kirra Smith.
In news that’s sure to transform the Gold Coast’s art and culture scene, The Arts Centre Gold Coast shall, from this moment onwards, be known as Home of the Arts or HOTA (because we Aussies love a good nickname).
With the new name comes a spectacular new outdoor stage and kicking off the 2018 program is none other than internationally acclaimed showman and provocateur Tim Minchin. His FREE concert, to officially launch the program, will be held on March 17th and will be his first in Australia for quite some time.
The $37.5 million outdoor stage is unlike anything the city has seen before and brings with it the capacity for a caliber of cultural performances that will knock your (extremely unnecessary in summer) socks off.
From opera to community events, music and contemporary art, this years program has already attracted the likes of music legend Neil Finn, the Queensland Symphony Orchestra and New York musician and film director Laurie Anderson.
Also unveiled was an incredible new mural, adorning the walls of the HOTA tower, by New York based street artist MOMO. Best known for his huge, playful, complex and brightly coloured abstract murals, the internationally famed artist was chosen from over 120 submissions to create a spectacular piece to mark the introduction of HOTA.
It really is a cultural extravaganza and (of course) just in time for the Coast’s debut on the world stage at the (rapidly approaching) April Commonwealth Games.
Back to Tim Minchin for a minute. They say he’s a bad boy who uses his genius as a force for good and his March show is a rare opportunity to witness his brilliance in an evening of music and hilarity.
While the show (which is definitely going to be a must-see) is free, tickets are required and you can get yours here. It is definitely a good idea to get in quick as the first show in the brand new HOTA precinct is going to be popular with the people.
The next stage of construction, scheduled to begin in mid-2018, will see a new bridge stretching to Chevron Island followed in 2019 by a brand new art gallery. Once built, it will be the largest regional gallery in Australia and is set to become a cultural beacon showcasing the City of Gold Coast’s art collection while also hosting international exhibitions.
To reserve Tim Minchin pre-release tickets:
Sign up to the HOTA e-newsletter HERE before 2am Thursday 8 February (tick to receive emails from HOTA and tick to receive the fortnightly e-newsletter) then wait until 9am on Thursday 8th February when subscribers will be sent an email with a link to reserve tickets. Any remaining tickets will be available on general release Friday 9th February.
So that’s huge, get on it gang, the show is sure to be a hoot.
LOCATION: 135 Bundall Rd, Bundall
Photo credit: John Gollings – HOTA stage images and Joan Marcus – Tim Minchin images
