The Year in Review

2006 hasn't really finished in style for the arts scene in Sydney. The Sydney Theatre Company are a little red faced over a minor plagiarism incident in their programs. After getting a bollocking from both Diana Simmonds and the Sydney Morning Herald it will be interesting to see where they go from here on the back of being financially in the red for the second year in a row.

The independent theatre sector is scratching its heads after a three month stall in audiences. All venues reported low audiences for all their final shows, with a few exceptions. How they target their programming and marketing next year will be critical in attracting those audiences back.

Voluntary student unionism has left a stark hole in the activities of universities cultural institutions. Cracks are already appearing with a number of Sydney university arts groups and spaces. More to come on this little forgotten issue.

On the bright side, the Sydney Festival starts in a week. Artistic Director Fergus Linehan has put together a nice bundle of gems that will appeal to a wide range of audiences. He has programmed the usual spectacles which satisfy the free event crowds, brought an array of exotic theatre events to interest the local industry, and is again presenting uber-chic music and dance acts to quench the thirst of a hungry Sydney audience.
Local content is a bit on the light side, but the opening of Carriageworks should bring a lot of attention to that scene. The visual arts are a little under-represented, but the Sydney Biennale just finished which will have satisfied those audiences.

Its also been a positive to see the rise of so many online arts sites. The rise and rise of sites including Sydney Stage Online, Vibewire, The Program, Broadway Australia, Stage Noise and Arts Hub means the traditional arts media will find themselves fighting a battle from a very sophisticated end of the industry. One of the first victims of the new online dominance was State of the Arts magazine, which couldn't offset production costs with advertising revenue.
How the SMH, ABC, The Australian et al approach their journalism both on air, in print and online will, I believe, be governed by the the online movers and shakers of arts journalism.
It will be interesting to see in 2007 how the battle between each of these sites will pan out as they move to expand their influence and compete for the advertising dollar.

The Sydney fascination with chrome continues and has even infiltrated into one of our favourite theatre venues. Company B moved back into their tomato sauce factory after the completion of their multi-million dollar redevelopment. The upstairs theatre is superior to its previous condition, with far more comfortable seating and enhanced sight-lines for many seats. The foyer however is verging on the emotionless corporate feel with freezing cold air conditioning and enough halogen lights to fire up a barbie.

The Sydney Theatre Company made the announcement this year that Robyn Nevin would be resigning as the Artistic Director, and would be replaced by the husband/wife team of Andrew Upton/Cate Blanchett.
The announcement sent a rare shiver of media arts interest even making front page news on the Sydney Morning Herald. A.M on the ABC described the news as a "bombshell". For the industry, the announcement had a number of mixed reviews, the majority of which were excited at the prospect of the new transition.

Colin Rose, reviewer for Sydney's Sun Herald, left our shores this year. It cant be said that he didn't leave a contentious figure, but one thing is for sure, he was always honest and acute in his opinions and never failed to praise or criticise as each show deserved.

The Sydney Film Festival is shifting gear next year, employing Clare Stewart ex-head of Australian Centre for the Moving Image - ACMI - as the new Artistic Director/General Manager. Recent reports were surprised that the film festival managed to turn a profit after initial forecasts of a reduced deficit. At the same time, ACMI was brewing its own financial woes, with the resignation of ex-Telstra chief Ziggy Switkowski as board president, on top of a $5million loss in its first two years. The Sydney Film Festival cant afford many more deficits, so hopefully Stewart will leave her previous financial record south of the border.

Next year, the arts life of Sydney will hopefully take more of a hold on the nightlife of the city. Venues are opening, festivals abound and artists are finding unique ways to try and beat the extraordinary costs associated with putting on events.

Of particular interest is the announcement by Australia Council chairman, James Strong, to propose an inquiry into the theatre sector. Its time that the smaller operators and independent artists unite and give input into this review if it occurs. More information as it comes to hand.

And welcome to my new little blog. I will write little commentaries of events as they happen and review a few shows as the theatre season starts in February. Please make comments as you feel and don't hold back.