He Stands Politically Incorrected
’Once you do standup, it spoils you for everything else,’ says Doug Stanhope. ‘There’re no censors, there’re no sponsors to get offended, there’re no standards and practices. It’s just you, and it’s immediate gratification. You say it, and it drifts off into thin air, and you can say it a different way the next day.’ US comedian Doug Stanhope’s confrontational rants saw his live show twice named Best Stand-Up Show of the year by Time Out New York. His material encompasses caustic social commentary, outlandish first-person narratives, graphic sex and perversion – sometimes within the same sentence. Fuelled by equal amounts of anger, outrage and alcohol, Stanhope rails against western civilisation’s slide into apathy and stupidity, always on the edge of implosion yet fully in control and never afraid to risk pissing off his audiences. He plays a very special show at the Byron Brewery on Monday before he kicks off his Aussie tour. Tix at brownpapertickets.com.
Mullum’s Laugh Club
Up-and-coming comedian Paul McMahon has been performing standup since 2008, honing his polite, well-spoken hippy-next-door charm that has seen him twice score a spot as Melbourne Comedy Festival’s RAW Comedy QLD finalist. Paul has been the regular host of open mic comedy at The Buddha Bar in Byron Bay and has performed alongside Tommy Dean, Steady Eddie, Austen Tayshus, Akmal Saleh, Tom Gleeson, Dave O’Neil, and Chris Franklin, and has been part of The Wagon productions comedy roadshow with Mickey D, Matt Okine, Jacques Barrett and Danny Mcginlay. Paul is a regular performer at The Basement comedy at the Gold Coast Arts Centre and is in demand on comedy circuits with his laidback style of observational humour. He is the MC at the Comedy Open Mic at the Court House in Mullumbimby on Thursday from 8pm. Free.
Roundabout Theatre at the Mullum Show
This year, renowned outdoor theatre company Roundabout Theatre will be bringing two of their most popular roving theatre acts, The Lollipop Ladies and The Cupcakesto the Mullumbimby Show. So watch out for these clever street actors that merge clowning with comedy and installation art!
Let’s Get Physical!
Are you a lover of the 80s? Do you secretly desire getting dressed up and having an 80s-style workout, complete with lycra, g-string body suit and headband? Well this could be for you. Pil80s. A combination of pilates and cheesy aerobics with a sprinting of flashdance! Grab your legwarmers and sweat bands. Let your heart race, strengthen your core and tone your smile muscles to a hot 80s soundtrack. Dress up and get down to Byron Sport & Cultural Complex 10–11am Thursdays and Saturdays.
Talking about Being Rational
Ever since Aristotle, we have come to believe in the value of opposing one value against another as a method of determining reality. Whether a thing is hot or cold, heavy or light, black or white, the question of polarity becomes the principal way by which we deal with the world of things. James Cowan will explore the possibility of a third way of dealing with reality through exploration of the medieval Islamic philosophers Suhrawardi, ibn Arabi, and al-Karim Jili. Their concept of the ‘interworld’ might well be the answer to the over-dependence of rationalism in our discourse today. Byron Philo Café will be discussing the topic: Putting the Brakes on Rationalism at the next meeting at Luscious Cafe, Byron industrial estate, on Friday. All welcome for a for meal, a drink (BYO) and a lively discussion at 5.30pm to 8pm. $5 contribution.
Jewellery in Hand
The jewellery and metal artists of Hammer and Hand are holding their much-anticipated spring exhibition opening night this Friday. All 12 members of the eclectic collective will unveil an exciting range of new work inspired by their own Mojo. Unique sculpture and wearable art at studio prices. 4 Ti Tree Place, Byron Bay, Arts and Industry Estate. 5–8pm.
Death & Coffee
Death Café is a global movement that brings people together for conversations about death in a relaxed café setting. It’s about discussing these more confronting death-related concepts, whether personal, philosophical or logistical in nature. This is not a workshop or a therapy group, just a welcoming space for anyone who has a curiosity or wish to discuss death. Tuesday 11 November at 6.30pm at the Empire Café in Mullumbimby. Advanced registration is required: [email protected] or [email protected].
The Best of Brit Film
Palace Cinema’s program of international film festivals finishes 2014 with 21 fantastic films screening in the Emirates British Film Festival from Thursday 6 to Sunday 16 November. Opening night will see the Australian premiere of Testament of Youth direct from its recent world premiere at the London Film Festival. This epic coming-of-age tale of love, loss and war is based on Vera Brittain’s memoir of World War I, which eighty years on remains one of the most powerful and famous memoirs of the 20th century. The opening-night audience are invited to attend pre-film drinks from 6.30pm, and an after-film party with canapés, drinks and live entertainment from Dwayne Cameron. The festival features 13 Australian premieres, plus a specially curated retrospective section Six from the 60s, capturing an era that saw a turn of the tide in British filmmaking. Britain’s cultural revolution in the 1960s gave birth to a more mischievous, spirited cinema, full of expression, vivacity and comedy, reflected in the six films: Billy Liar and Darling, both starring the Oscar-winning Julie Christie; The Italian Job and Zulu, starring Michael Caine in two career-launching roles; and Malcolm McDowell, fresh from A Clockwork Orange, starring in the Palme d’Or-winning If. Celebrating the four Liverpool lads who exploded into worldwide fame in the 60s, the Festival proudly presents two-time Academy Award-nominated A Hard Day’s Night, which captures the true birth of British Beatlemania in one of the most innovative and refreshing music movies ever made. The program hosts more award-winning titles with the extraordinary Mr Turner, exploring the last twenty-five years of one of the most prolific painters of the 19th century, which collected two awards at this year’s Cannes Film Festival including Best Actor for Timothy Spall. God Help The Girl, a film about three young musicians starring Australian actress Emily Browning (Sucker Punch), won the 2014 Sundance Film Festival Special Jury Prize and was written and directed by Belle and Sebastian lead singer Stuart Murdoch. The Festival will close with pre-film drinks before the award-winning thriller The Imitation Game, starring Benedict Cumberbatch in one of the best performances of his career as coding pioneer Alan Turing, instrumental in cracking Nazi Germany’s Enigma code during the darkest days of World War II. The Byron Bay Palace Cinemas from Thursday 6 until Sunday 16 November.
Vatican in 3D
Come inside the Vatican museums and the Sistine Chapel for the very first time, when 3D advanced dimensional techniques show the works of art in these collections in an unprecedented way. Director of the Vatican museums, Professor Antonio Paolucci, expertly leads us through the past, present and future of the museums. From the masterpieces of classic statues to the cast of Michelangelo’s Pietà; Fontana’s modern sculptures; from paintings by Giotto, Leonardo da Vinci and Caravaggio to more modern works by Van Gogh, Chagall and Dalì; from the extraordinary frescos in the Rooms of Raphael, such as The School of Athens to the spectacular masterpieces by Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel, including such iconic pieces as The Creation of Adam and the majestic Last Judgment. Screening at Byron Bay Palace Cinemas 12.30pm, Saturday 8, Sunday 9 and Wednesday 12 November.
SNIPPETS
Byron Sophia
Byron Sophia Philosophical Group: Christ, Christmas – The Gnostic Perspective, presented by Sean and Rachelle White, Gnostic Society, Thursday 6 November 1–2pm at Masonic Centre, 6 Byron St, Byron Bay. Info: Celia 6684 3623.
Death Cafe
Tuesday 11 November 6–8.30pm at Empire Cafe Mullumbimby. Death Cafe is a global movement bringing people together for lively conversations about death while enjoying great food and drink.
Author meet
Friends of the Library Byron Shire invite you to meet David Roland, author of How I Rescued My Brain in conversation, Thursday 6 November 5.30 for 6pm, Byron Bay Library. RSVP 6685 8540 or [email protected].
Sunday Serenade
Sunday Serenade 9 November 3pm in support of Our Kids Lismore – works for soprano, violin and piano by Beethoven, Wagner, Kurt Weill. $45 includes afternoon tea. Bookings essential 0425 243 860, [email protected].
Buddhist meditation
Siddhartha’s Intent Buddhist meditation teaching and practice is now held at South Golden Beach Community Hall on Wednesdays 6–7.30pm. Info 0438 858 842, [email protected].
Heartcircle
Heartcircle devotional singing, sharing, meditation group every Sunday at South Golden Beach Community Hall 10–11.30am. Enq Linda on 0415 412 514.
ADFAS film night
ADFAS Byron Bay Film Night Monday 17 November featuring The Sting (1973) starring Paul Newman and Robert Redford, A&I Hall, Bangalow, film starts at 7.30pm. Doors open at 6.30pm. Enquiries 6684 3249.
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