Belgrave Survival Day 2020

Join us for another day of celebrating the survival of Australia's First Nations people. Music, stalls, children's activities, food and fun.

Belgrave Survival Day Line Up 2020

Dave Arden & Band
Allara Briggs-Patterson
MC Shawn Andrews of Idigicate
Mullum Mullum Indigenous Gathering Place Choir
Uncle Gnarnayarrahe
Wayapa Wurrk session
 
Smoking Ceremony
Live Music
Special theme - Caring for Country
Guest Speakers & Panel discussion
Children’s Activities & Workshops
Bush Tucker & Food Stalls
Information & Craft Stalls
Cultural Dancing & Didgeridoo

The event is organised by a committee of volunteers and generously funded by the Yarra Ranges Council.

More info

Creative Movement and Drama Classes

Please note Term 1 2020 are at the Uniting Baptist Church in Upwey

PLAY UP: Grades Prep – 2 or Ages 5 – 7 years
The emphasis for this age group is on creative play and improvisation. Classes are designed to stimulate the imagination of young children, through participation in various drama, music and movement activities.

ACT UP: Grade 3 – 4 or Ages 7 – 9 years
These classes are designed to encourage children to become confident in presenting their own ideas and to work together in a group. This is achieved through movement, poetry, songs, scripts and theatre games; providing safe, supported performance opportunities.
 
TROUPE: Grade 5 – 8 or Ages 10 – 13 years
These classes are designed to encourage children to become confident in presenting their own ideas and to work together in a group. This is achieved through movement, poetry, songs, scripts and theatre games; providing safe, supported performance opportunities.

ADVANCED TROUPE: By invitation only
This class is for students showing the commitment to work within certain guidelines enabling them to extend their drama experience and skills. It will be a class requiring focus and dedication and within these guidelines each student should have a fully rounded drama experience, still full of creativity and enjoyment but supported by focused behaviour and extended by more advanced scripts, monologues & movement.

Further information:
Classes are facilitated by Dee Whittington who has many years' experience with children and youth of all ages in the areas of creative movement, drama and music, with fabulous outcomes for the participants.

ANY ENQUIRIES please CONTACT the Box Office: Tue-Fri, 10:00am-2:00pm, 9754-8723 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

 

Ann Droid

A reworking of Pinocchio for the 21st century.

The unique show combines theatre with the newest digital technologies: projection, a smart LED costume, a robot ball and a drone in a fascinating story for all ages. In the 21st century Pinocchio paraphrase the goal of Ann, the robot girl is to become human. During her wonderful journey on the ground, in the air and underwater she has to face many challenges that help her discover the most important virtues in life. Before the very eyes of the audience the drawn animation comes to life where performers move together with the projected visuals creating a 3D movie experience.

Recommended for ages 3+  

 

Drop Bear

Beware!

Drop Bear is a fantastic new theatre show starring Australia's most loved comedy Rock duo, Aussie Kids Rock. Fun for the whole family.  Cool guitarist C.J and the ever-comical, and sensational drummer Deano warn visitors to Australia of the dangers, including the dreaded drop bear! This spectacular show aimed at kids throughout the whole primary school age bracket has proven repeatedly to be a great experience for the whole family. Don’t miss this loveable show loaded with laughs! 

Recommended for ages 5+  

 

We Remember - The Anzacs

Great Songs of the War Years

Great Hit Songs of the World Wars ... We’II Meet Again, Underneath The Lamplight, Keep The Home Fires Burning, Tipperary, Pack Up Your Troubles, Blue Moon, Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, with music to celebrate the careers of Dame Vera Lyn, The Andrew Sisters and Many More ... as well as a special tribute to the 100 years of the ANZAC.

Join us after the performance for a cup of tea and an Anzac biscuit.

 

Wabi - Sabi | the Beauty of Imperfection

Each year Dandenong Ranges Open Studios participating artists are asked to create a work based on a collective theme. This year’s theme is WABI-SABI, the Beauty of Imperfection, a Japanese philosophy which encourages us to focus on the blessings hiding in our daily lives and celebrate the way things are rather than how we think they should be. The group exhibition is a unique opportunity to see work from all the artists in one location and select the studios that most intrigue or inspire you to visit during the Dandenong Ranges Open Studios weekend.

Please join us for the exhibition opening on April 23 , 7pm.

This exhibition will be the first exhibition in the new Burrinja Gallery.

2020 Dandenong Ranges Open Studios

Come and explore the secrets of the Dandenong Range’s with this creative and inspiring cultural experience. The Dandenong Ranges Open Studios takes you down the fern lined lanes of the hills to discover a selection of the most intriguing studios. Explore and connect with artists, ignite your creative imagination and step into the hidden gems, curious constructions and awe inspiring spaces of the artists’ creative environments.

Visit the exhibition at the Burrinja Gallery and select the studios that most intrigue or inspire you. You will have the unique opportunity to purchase artwork and hand crafted items directly from the artists, informed by new insight into their creative world.

Dandenong Ranges Open Studios is the biggest creative 'Open Door' of the region.

 

OPEN STUDIOS WEEKEND 
SAT 9 & SUN 10 MAY 2020 

Visit studios between 10am and 5pm during the Open Weekend.

Melbourne International Comedy Festival Roadshow

A bounty of belly laughs is rolling to our doorstep.

A home-delivery of hot and tasty comic treats! A bounty of belly laughs is rolling into Burrinja - pack your laughing gear and get on board the hilarity and fun of the Melbourne International Comedy Roadshow! Gather a gaggle for a night of giggles and laugh out loud entertainment you won’t forget with some of the best comedians of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival! This roving tour-de-comedy features funny-makers from Australia and beyond, showcasing everything from stand-up and sketch to satire and song - in one side-splitting show! Stay tuned for this year’s stellar line-up of fabulous comedians.

Performances often contain coarse language, sexual references and material that can offend. It is recommended for people aged 15 years or older. Smoke Machine/Hazer may be used during this performance.

 

Beethoven Celebration!

The Nicholas Chamber Orchestra presents a Beethoven Celebration on the occasion of his 250th Birthday year. The orchestra will present works of the master himself, and others who admired him, or he admired, as a ‘virtuoso pianist’. Come and be part of this event celebrating Beethoven who is the winner of the ABC Classic FM favourite composer! The Nicholas Chamber Orchestra brings together the finest classical musicians of the Dandenong Ranges to perform under the baton of Eric Klay. 

Recommended for all ages

 

You and I

The Original Stars of Beauty and The Beast reunite after 20 years

A cavalcade of Musical Theatre Hits and Highlights, performed by those who have starred in many of them. Helpman award winners Michael Cormick and Rachael Beck take to the stage for 2 hours of incredible musical theatre performances creating a spellbinding wall of sound.

 

David Bridie

David Bridie is one of Australia’s most prolific and respected songwriters.

He has produced six studio albums with Not Drowning, Waving and seven more with beloved, recently retired group My Friend the Chocolate Cake, as well as innumerable film and television soundtracks. David’s 6th solo album release The Wisdom Line is an immersive multimedia project exploring themes of Melbourne, asylum, home, the transience of our relationships, and trying to make genuine connections in an interconnected world where everyone is talking on their phones.

A Cabaret Star for Hire

A recently retired showgirl discovering her new life’s purpose ... become a secret agent and uncover a global plot. 

After 10 years of writing, performing and touring internationally, Australia’s “Cabaret Queen” is quitting cabaret. Cabaret Star For Hire is part performance-art, part Aussie opera, part physical and musical comedy extravaganza with all-original songs and hysterical musings of an artist on the brink of superstardom, or mental breakdown, or both. Anya Anastasia’s brand new one woman show highlights her bizarre and riotous CV as she publicly seeks new employment. Tired of the razzle-dazzle insta-glam “look at me I’m nailing it” showbiz lie, she has crafted this brazen showcase of one woman’s failures - admitting to everything that she’s messed up or covered up in pursuit of her dreams, and the result is hilarious. Adelaide Fringe 2019 - Winner of the Best Comedy Cabaret (The Sunday Mail)

 

I Have A Face

An honest and hilarious discussion of mental health with a theatrical twist.

Ever wondered if you’re doing it right? Well did you read the label? Life didn’t come with a label, but you will be told your whole life how you should behave or who you should be. You will be told that if you have a problem, there’s a quick fix you can buy… but somehow the problem doesn’t ever seem to really go away. Jude Perl’s insight into her personal and relatable mental health struggles of being an adult, will make you want to sing along, cry and laugh all at once. Sometimes labels are super useful, particularly when you’re washing your fave jumper. But at other times, labels can halt your growth and supress you’re very existence. Jude reminds us when to be aware of these labels, and when the labels are totally useless – and most importantly, that we are not alone. She’ll talk about some tough stuff, make you laugh and make you feel truly human.

Warnings: Contains occasional course language, mild sexual references, very mild drug references, and themes relating to mental health (anxiety/depression)

Recommended for ages 15+

 

International Ballet Gala

Like a fairy tale, the International Ballet with enchant from the first pas de deux 

International stars of ballet together in Australia for the first time to perform a diverse collection of dances from your favourite ballets and modern works. The International Ballet Gala invites the audience to enjoy excerpts from the traditional classical repertoire- Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker to name a few as well as new creations both classical and contemporary dance, introducing the audiences to new international choreographers.

Recommended for all ages

 

Archie Roach: Tell Me Why 

A new work sharing stories and songs from Archie's new memoir and companion album. 

Not many have lived as many lives – from stolen child, teenage alcoholic, seeker, lover, father, musical and lyrical genius, to social advocate and First Nations leader – but it took almost a lifetime to find who he really was.  He is Archie Roach.  His new memoir Tell Me Why (Simon and Schuster) is an intimate, moving and often confronting account of his resilience and strength of spirit, and also of a great love story. It’s an extraordinary odyssey of love and heartbreak, family and community, survival and renewal – and the healing power of music.  The companion album Tell Me Why (Bloodlines), considered Roach’s 18 song ‘magnum opus’, re-imagines eleven songs which have defined his extraordinary career. Roach voices the joy, pain and hope he found on his path through these songs to become the legendary singer-songwriter and storyteller that he is today – beloved and respected by fans worldwide. 

 

National Youth Choir

Singing works from from Beethoven to beatbox.

Bringing together Australia & Britain’s most outstanding young adult singers from across both countries the National Youth Choir of Australia (NYCA) with the National Youth Choir of Great Britain (NYCGB) perform at Burrinja in July 2020. NYCA has performed under some of Australia’s finest choral conductors, as well as visiting conductors such as Anton Armstrong & Weston Noble (USA), Tony Funk (Canada) and NYCA Artistic Director Noel Ancell OAM. NYCGB has appeared at the Royal Albert Hall, Royal Festival Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall and Snape Maltings both independently and alongside artists as diverse as Daniel Barenboim, The Real Group, Kylie Minogue, Gustavo Dudamel and fellow youth choirs from four continents, in repertoire from Beethoven to beatbox.

Apologies this show was incorrectly advertised as receiving the pre-Christmas 15 % off the Adult price of $38 - it is not eligible for the discount .

 

Ches Mills, Rona Green & Joy Serwylo

3 distinct exhibitions from 3 Hills artists exploring the wonder of nature and humanity.

Ches Mills
As a consequence of global warming our oceans are rising and becoming warmer endangering our current shoreline and reef ecologies. The art captures the beauty, complexities and wonder of the ecosystems and to emphasises the urgent need to protect them.

Rona Green
Some they do and some they don't and some you just can't tell is an exhibition comprising fanciful hand coloured linocut prints of anthropomorphised native and introduced animals exploring ideas about the nature of individuality.

Joy Serwylo
Joy draws and paints and collages and constructs books and dioramas, trying to document the demise of our beautiful world while hoping there is still time to rescue it.

learn more

 

Burrinja Circus Festival

School holiday circus fun with Ruccis! 

The Burrinja Circus Festival is back with a jam-packed week of circus fun for the whole family! Flip, climb and tumble your way through school holiday circus workshops for kids of all ages, plus see students from Ruccis in their annual student productions, spectacular skills in a professional circus show, plus a colourful cabaret evening featuring Ruccis coaches and students, circus industry performers and the most exciting up-and-coming circus stars. Run away with the circus as Burrinja transforms into a bustling big top of circus delights!

Recommended for all ages

 

My Robot

A play about making new friends – literally!

When Ophelia moves with her family to the seaside, she’s not impressed. She doesn’t like the beach, misses her old home and thinks the people in this town are pretty strange. She feels like she’s missing a piece of herself. As she unpacks she finds a strange box full of parts with a curious note attached that reads ‘You. Make. Me.’ Ignoring her father’s warnings about the dangers of her ingenious inventions, she sets to work and builds herself a new robot friend, naming her Olivetti. Together they take on the local bully and start making new friends. But are they smart and brave enough to take on a daring rescue at sea? A story bursting with special robot tricks, laughter and bewildered parents My Robot is a must see for all families.

Recommended for ages 3+

 

Tubular Bells for Two

 One album. Two men. Too many instruments.

Ask anyone who grew up through the 70s and they will know Tubular Bells. Composed by Mike Oldfield in 1973, the first album to be released on Virgin Records, and gaining even more popularity when its opening theme was used for the soundtrack to the film The Exorcist. Now, more than 40 years on, two Australian multi-instrumentalists are presenting this modern masterpiece in a challenging live event. So what’s the catch?

Unlike Oldfield’s multi-track recording technology, in Tubular Bells for Two there are only two men on stage with only four hands and four feet between them. It is an intricately choreographed, thrilling piece of tightrope theatre. Things can go wrong at any moment, and the slightest mistake or misplaced limb can bring the entire show crashing to a halt. Tubular Bells for Two is a multi-award winning, internationally acclaimed musical act that is guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat.

“The musical equivalent to the triathlon. A must see and hear!” ★★★★★ The Scotsman

 

Animal Farm

Shocking, relevant and wickedly funny. Pig in now to avoid disappointment.

Animal Farm, one of the most controversial and studied political commentaries returns in a multi-award winning, critically-acclaimed physical theatre production. 
George Orwell’s simple yet intensely powerful fairy tale illustrates with stunning clarity and grotesque beauty how greed and power corrupts and with devastating consequences, can change the course of history. Revolution has taken place at Manor Farm. The pigs have assumed control and under the principles of Animalism a better life free from human service is promised to all. Guided by a simple set of rules and an unrelenting respect for authority, it is not long until the rules that promised freedom become the chains that bind the animals once again. Directed by Michael Futcher and realised by shake & stir theatre.

Haze, smoke and strobe effects, loud music.

Recommended for ages 12+

 

King of The High C's

In this brand new production dedicated to the ‘Big 3’ - Pavarotti, Domingo and Carreras - the outstanding Roy Best and Alison Jones perform the classic hits that made them the most successful tenors ever. Narrated by Chris McKenna, the production will be packed with classics such as O Sole Mio and Nessun Dorma, right through to Broadway hits such as Be My Love, Strangers In Paradise, Some Enchanted Evening and many more.

 

3 Perspectives | Mary Tonkin, Fred Williams & Miles Evergood.

At one time each of the artists was a Dandenong Ranges local.
The works featured draw from the surrounding landscape of the places they called home.

Mary Tonkin 
Contemporary plein air landscape artist whose detailed large scale representations reflect the forest/bush at her family’s farm estate at Kalorama.

Fred Williams 
One of Australian most significant artists who redefined landscape painting during his Upwey years

Miles Evergood
An impressionist whose 1930s Kalorama paintings are characterised by strong colours and expressive brushstrokes and use of palette knife.

 

Wild Awards 2020

The Wildlife Art Society of Australasia presents their major biennial exhibition ‘The Wild Awards’ in the Burrinja Gallery.

Be moved by this unique exhibition and the passion and talent of a diverse range of artists from the Australasian region. The exhibition features an exquisite array of different animal species and habitats in sculpture, painting and works on paper.

‘The Wild Awards’ encapsulates art excellence and this fine display proudly demonstrates the Society members’ strong passion and respect for wildlife and its habitat. Be delighted and inspired by this stunning collection of beautiful wildlife imagery by The Wildlife Art Society of Australasia. 

Loose Ends

Step into a magical world of wonders and wacky contraptions.h4>

The Adelaide Fringe Award Nominee is coming to Burrinja with his wonderful family show full of wacky thingamabobs, naughty puppets and madcap clowning. With a touch of Wallace and Gromit and Mr. Bean, LOOSE ENDS is a quirky mix of clown powered theatre, objects that come to life and tinker experience, filled with custom built contraptions. It takes you to an eccentric world full of constant surprises, delivering a heartfelt story with lots of irreverent humour.

Recommended for ages 3+

 

Grigoryan Brothers

 

Guitarists, Slava and Leonard Grigoryan are counted amongst the finest musicians of their generation having developed a reputation for enthralling audiences with the energy of their performances and the breadth of their repertoire – embracing genres such as classical, jazz and contemporary music from around the world. Between them, they have received 3 ARIA awards (Australian Recording Industry Association) and an incredible 24 ARIA Award nominations. As a duo they have recorded 11 albums with the 12th coming out in 2019. They have been touring internationally since 2003, regularly performing throughout Europe, Asia, Australia and the USA, as well as more exotic performances in Brazil, South Africa, India and the Middle East.

 

Mental as Everything

Bringing mental illness & music together with transparency, comedy and a deep personal narrative. 

Mental As Everything is a raw and honest cabaret performance that explores the multifaceted nature of mental illness. Creator and performer, Damon Smith, will take you on a journey of his deeply personal experience of living with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and bipolar disorder, backed up by his anxious musical cohort Adam Coad. In this two-man show, Damon and Adam, will invite you inside their own minds and take you on an often-awkward journey of hilarious onstage buffoonery and original songs pertaining to mental illness.

Warnings: Potentially triggering content or themes, including mental health
Recommended for ages 15+

 

Legacy: Reflections on Mabo

Legacy: Reflections on Mabo celebrates the man behind the game-changing Native Title Act, Eddie Koiki Mabo.

Co-curated by Gail Mabo, Dr Jonathan McBurnie and Kellie Williams (Director of Umbrella Studio contemporary arts), the exhibition brings together a selection of about 30 works by Indigenous and non-Indigenous artists in the spirit of reconciliation, twenty-five years after the historic achievement.

Each artist has responded to an aspect of Eddie Mabo that they are drawn to, whether it is his life, politics, activism, or legacy. The works come together in surprising ways with reverence, compassion, anger, sadness and respect, celebrating a man who was both a rebel and a dreamer.

Legacy: Reflections on Mabo is an Umbrella Studio touring exhibition.

Kate Ceberano & Paul Grabowsky | Tryst

Following the enormous success of the Love Songs tour in 2016, Australian music greats Kate Ceberano and Paul Grabowsky are set to tour the country once again in celebration of their debut album Tryst. Tryst is a very personal journey into words and music by two of Australia’s most respected musicians reinterpreting of some of the great love songs of our time. Kate and Paul deliver achingly, soulful renditions of songs that connect on a deep emotional level and have influenced both of them at some point in their lives. The repertoire will be as diverse as love itself - from 60s pop with Cilla Black, to 80s Aussie rock with the Divinyls, and flirtations into jazz and chanson along the way.

 

The Crossing Machine plays Juliet Letters by Elvis Costello

In 1993, Elvis Costello stunned critics and audiences alike with his gorgeous and ambitious album and song cycle, The Juliet Letters, recorded with The Brodsky Quartet. Against all predictions, the live-recorded classically leaning album, comprised of imaginary letters to Juliet Capulet climbed the charts worldwide. The Crossing Machine will breathe new life into the album, in a stage production at Burrinja. The Crossing Machine is a Melbourne based string quartet, bringing together some of the most in demand string players in the country. Collectively, they have worked with Alice Cooper, Roger Daltrey, Elton John, Jimmy Barnes, Peter Frampton, Barry Humphries, Billy Thorpe, Guy Sebastian, Kate Ceberano and Circus Oz.

Warning: Contains potentially triggering content or themes, including Death Recommended for ages 15+

 

Whitehorse Orchestra

Bruch’s Violin Concerto

The Whitehorse Orchestra returns to the Burrinja stage in 2020 to perform Bruch’s Violin Concerto. Max Bruch’s was thoroughly schooled in the German tradition through the aesthetic line of Mendelssohn and Brahms. His first concerto is a bravura showpiece for violinists that has never waned in popularity with audiences or performers. The concerto is played in three movements: 1. Vorspiel: Allegro moderato (in G minor) 2. Adagio (in E-flat major) 3. Finale: Allegro energico (in G major) The performance will feature violin soloist Matthew Rigby and be conducted by Gerald Keuneman OAM.

Recommended for all ages

 

Belong...
Become a Burrinja Member

Connect with your community and support arts in the Hills with your $40, and we will give you:

• One FREE theatre ticket each year to a Burrinja show *
  
• Member ticket discounts on Burrinja shows
  
• Free ticket postage
• Updates, insights and special programs
• Special event invitations
• Member priority new season booking
• 10% off Burrinja gallery shop

By becoming a Burrinja Member you will be supporting local arts and culture as well as the many local projects that Burrinja manages, supports and enable - building community through arts.

* Available for Burrinja season shows only, excludes venue hire 'No Free Tickets' shows. To utilise the "FREE" ticket benefit please contact our box office on 03 9754 8723

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