Upcoming Events & Experiences
Burrinja & THE RABBLE present
WAKE - THE RABBLE
Fri 25 & Sat 26 Oct 7.00pm | Burrinja Theatre
WAKE is a performance installation by powerhouse experimental theatre makers THE RABBLE, created with an ensemble of older women from the Yarra Ranges.
Part party, part surreal vaudeville show, part conversation and part town hall meeting, WAKE asks audiences to consider the difficult and taboo discussions around aging but also celebrates the gloriousness of these spectacular older women. WAKE embraces connection, the rituals we inhabit as we age and the spaces where we feel most comfortable.
Exploring the ever-increasing hostility towards women’s bodies particularly for older people, WAKE features acts of artistic courage created by the participating women, featuring anything from a ukulele solo to a professional wrestling bout; a Shakespeare monologue to a political speech. In an age of dislocation, WAKE is a work of solidarity.
Come and join us for an evening of art and celebration.
The performance on Sat 26 October will have Auslan interpretation.
Duration: 60-75 mins
Age suitability: at parental discretion
Content warnings: mature themes, potential nudity, mild coarse language. This event contains strobe and flashing lights, sudden loud noises and will be presented in low lighting. The performance contains references to sex, death, the process of ageing, euthanasia and mental health, as well as representations of death.
View the WAKE trailer HERE (footage from Hobsons Bay season, 2023)
Tickets - $19 ~ $35
Encore tickets - $24.50
Burrinja presents
Epiphany of Paint | William Holt
Sat 28 Sep - Sun 3 Nov | Gallery 01, Burrinja Gallery
William Holt invites viewers to experience his latest collection of contemporary abstract art, as he delves deeper into his expanded creative practice.
Epiphany of Paint uncovers an experiential release of his artistic process, bestowing the viewer with a primary sensorial exposure to his process driven practice. William fosters a strong connection to the raw quality of the artwork, rather than attempting to showcase a sense of completion or finality. This allows the art to retain life, to be still living within a vibrant imaginative realm of experimentation. William reminds us that art exists in opposition to control, encouraging the viewer to relinquish biases and release their mind to the work, allowing the viewer to occupy the affective presence of the artwork.
William has a Master of Fine Art in Painting from Monash University, alongside a broad range of experience in painting, sculpture, installation art, and has exhibited extensively with a long list of collectors both nationally and internationally. He is also the recent Dandenong Ranges Open Studios exhibition Swinburne University Visual Arts Innovation Award winner.
Please join us for the Exhibition Launch: Sunday 6 October, from 2pm, with complimentary refreshments and live music by local singer-songwriter Jon Collins.
Burrinja presents
From Where I Begin | Nikki Willson
Sat 28 Sep - Sun 3 Nov | Galleries 02 & 03, Burrinja Gallery
We all live between two realities. The internal one of self and the narratives which come with that and the external world and its demands and offerings. We navigate within and between these realities using our bodies as conduit and historian and our memories and identities are built through this navigation.
This video installation examines the connections and ruptures we make during this process. As an artist with a disability, Nikki's experience of living in this world and of reconciling the inherent disconnect between her external and internal existence can be a difficult and painful one. Overcoming the inherent dissonance and understanding connection is an ever present challenge.
With these works she uses the body as a tool to make these struggles visible. Her work is without context and is ambiguous so as to invite the viewer to bring their own narrative to the work and to connect with the universal bodily experience of the audience and the path that we all walk.
Please join us for the Exhibition Launch: Sunday 6 October, from 2pm, with complimentary refreshments and live music by local singer-songwriter Jon Collins.
Image credit: Ronnie Tjampitjinpa (born c.1943) Pintupi language group. Untitled, 1996, acrylic on linen, 122 x 122 cm. Photograph by Andrew Curtis. © the artist l Aboriginal Artists Agency Ltd
Burrinja presents
Three Echoes - Western Desert Art
Sat 9 Nov 2024 - Sun 19 Jan 2025 | Burrinja Gallery
Curated by celebrated curator, writer, artist and activist, Djon Mundine OAM FAHA, Three Echoes - Western Desert Art showcases works by 57 acclaimed artists heralding from Ikuntji (Haasts Bluff), Papunya and Utopia Aboriginal communities in the western desert regions of the Northern Territory. The exhibition of paintings, prints and batiks communicates important stories of tjukurrpa (Dreaming) and Country, and explores the poetic notion of echoes.
Three Echoes - Western Desert Art is an initiative of Museums & Galleries Queensland developed in partnership with Karin Schack and Andrew Arnott, and curated by Djon Mundine OAM FAHA. This project has been assisted by the Australian Government through its Visions of Australia program and through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body. It is supported by the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland. Museums & Galleries Queensland is supported by the Tim Fairfax Family Foundation and receives funds from Creative Australia through the Australian Cultural Fund.
Please join us for the Exhibition Launch: Sunday 10 November. Further details at the link below.
Burrinja presents
Public Program - Three Echoes
FREE illustrated talk by artist and art centre worker Marina Strocchi
Sun 17 Nov 2.00pm 2024 | Burrinja
Family Connections
Marina Strocchi established Ikuntji Art Centre at Haast's Bluff in the early 1990s, when a group of Pintupi women who lived further west organised a ceremony for their female relatives at Ikuntji. Like their male counterparts who painted for Papunya Tula, the women were keen to start painting. Strocchi organised a series of painting camps for them and the resulting paintings were exhibited at Tandanya National Aboriginal Cultural Centre in Adelaide in 1995. Many of the women went on to stellar careers, with national and international exhibitions and their paintings entering significant collections.
FREE (RSVP required)
aerie creative ecology presents
Waste to Wonder | Natasja van Wyk & Macarena Ocea
Sat 19 Oct - Sun 1 Dec | aerie gallery
Join us at Burrinja for an innovative exhibition by emerging artists Natasja van Wyk and Macarena Ocea. This project transforms everyday soft plastic waste into extraordinary textile and mixed media art.
Through punch needle embroidery, up-cycling, quilting and color blocking, Natasja and Macarena create layered artworks that address pressing personal, environmental and social themes. By highlighting the urgent challenges posed by plastic waste, "Waste to Wonder" aims to empower community members to become agents of change. Attendees will gain firsthand insight into sustainable practices and the transformative power of up-cycling.
Experience the beauty of sustainability and art combined. Be inspired to rethink waste, embrace creativity, and contribute to a greener future.
Please join us for the Exhibition Launch: 2pm Sat 19 October – everyone welcome.
This exhibition was accompanied by a series of free workshops in early to mid October exploring art and sustainability. These workshops were supported by Yarra Ranges Council, Creative Victoria and Burrinja Cultural Centre.
Burrinja presents
Double Feature: Sara Storer & Fanny Lumsden - Live in the Lyre
Fri 1 Nov 8.00pm | Lyre Room
Experience a spectacular night at Burrinja with two ARIA and multi-Golden Guitar winning artists, Sara Storer and Fanny Lumsden. Enjoy their unique Australian country sounds and captivating stories in this special double feature event. Each artist will perform a full set, promising an unforgettable evening.
With an ARIA for Best Country Album and 22 Golden Guitar Awards, Sara Storer is celebrated as one of Australia’s greatest singer-songwriters.
Sara writes from the heart, sings from the soul, surveys the people and land around her and lets stories inspire her creativity and guide her craft. Since the release of her critically acclaimed debut album ’Chasing Buffalo’ in 2001, Sara has gained a loyal following across Australia and has earnt high praise for her unique and authentic songwriting from the likes of Paul Kelly, Josh Cunningham (The Waifs), Kev Carmody and John Williamson who have also recorded duets with her.
Paul Kelly best described Sara’s songwriting talents when he said: "She's found her own way to sing the stories that are all around her and then inside her bubbling out. She doesn't copy over-emotive, fake sincere twangy country singers from overseas. She's found her own restraint and steel and lets her songs do their sweet, sly work."
Tickets - $48 ~ $53
Encore tickets - $37.10
Kin Music, Second Sunday and Craft Music present
Katie Noonan & Karin Schaupp - Songs of the Southern Skies Volume 2
Sat 9 Nov 7.30pm | Burrinja Theatre
Katie Noonan and Karin Schaupp have an intuitive musical connection that has developed over the course of the 20 years of their creative relationship. Their collaborations to date have earned them an ARIA Award and widespread praise. Their latest co-creation, Songs of the Southern Skies Volume 2 once again promises to enchant national audiences.
Together they return to their acclaimed Southern Skies catalogue reinterpreting some of their favourite songs by antipodean artists - this time focusing on some of our finest female artists. Performing a varied program with reimagined arrangements of songs by artists such as Aunty Ruby Hunter, Missy Higgins, Sia, Kate Ceberano, Sarah Blasko and more as well as revisiting some favourites from the first Southern Skies installment.
Renowned for breaking down genre boundaries, Katie Noonan’s technical mastery and pure voice makes her one of Australia’s most versatile and beloved vocalists. Guitarist Karin Schaupp is an internationally sought-after recitalist and soloist. These two virtuosi combine forces to create a unique sound and a spellbinding performance.
“Katie Noonan has a voice like warm honey being decanted into melting snow. It is such a thing of beauty that finding a vessel to hold it can be difficult. Happily, in the music of acclaimed German-born classical guitarist Karin Schaupp, Noonan has found the perfect companion." - THE AUSTRALIAN
Tickets - $65 + BF
Burrinja presents
Nigel Wearne - Live in the Lyre
Supporting act to be announced
Thu 28 Nov 8.00pm | Lyre Room
Nigel Wearne saunters after dark in the music of the night, blending blues, jazz and Americana-noir. Swathed with rambunctious horns, Gretsch guitar, drums and double-bass, his hot new band has a retro vibe that smacks it straight back to the 60s. Hailing from Gunditjmara country in South-West Victoria, he’s toured Australia, New Zealand, the US, UK and Canada and played some of the world’s most prestigious music festivals including MerleFest (USA), Cambridge Folk Festival (UK) and Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion (USA). His latest album The Reckoning received a nomination for Best Blues Work at the 2023 Music Victoria Awards and a 4-STAR review in The Weekend Australian.
A deep thinker and truth seeker with a penchant for all things peculiar, Wearne sings of human frailty, grace and the cosmos; songwriting that cuts to the bone. Think after-dark jazz club meets Ennio Morricone with a dose of soul and rock ‘n roll.
“Intoxicating New Orleans-tinged Americana… a bit of Waits, some Early James and C.W. Stoneking.” – POST TO WIRE
"Tailor made for fans of Tom Waits... with fire and brimstone lyrics that recall Nick Cave." – Rhythms Magazine
Tickets - $30 ~ $35
Encore tickets - $24.50
Luna Live presents
Tim Rogers
Sat 14 Dec 8.00pm | Burrinja Theatre
The songs of Tim Rogers weave and glide across the field the way an elite footballer dances through the defence. It appears effortless to us out in the stands. Sometimes we mistakenly call it magic although it is anything but. We don’t see all the hard work that goes into making greatness. For a songwriter, that’s life - the personal struggles, the birthdays missed, the long days far from home, as well as the triumphs, the hits, the encores... Thirty-one years after setting off on the great rock’n’roll adventure with You Am I, Tim Rogers is still operating at the top of his game writing songs as rich and memorable and as heart-breaking as any he has ever written.
The songs Tim Rogers writes are a soundtrack for a lot of lives of others too. Don’t miss this special Christmas show with Tim in an intimate, raw and live performance to remember all summer long and probably for years to come.
Check out Tim's music on YouTube.
Duration: 135 mins including interval
Age suitability: at parental discretion. This event may not be suitable for babies and younger children due to content and/or noise levels.
Tickets - $59 ~ $64
Burrinja presents
Where Artists Meet (W.A.M.)
Thu 31 Oct @ 7.00pm | The Fat Goat
Here’s your chance to get out, have some fun and talk shop with other local artists and have a cheeky drink.
These regular gatherings propose space for connecting and developing conversation between local creatives. WAM provides a fun and friendly environment to talk shop with other artists, share tips, discuss creative practice, projects and local arts and culture. With the Dandenong Ranges rich and abundant cultural landscape Burrinja’s WAM events are a great opportunity to develop new creative networks, find out about potential opportunities and connect with your local arts community.
Join us on the last Thursday of every month @ 7pm at the Fat Goat (2 Morris Road, Upwey)
Put W.A.M. in your calendar!
Upcoming dates: 28 November
Burrinja presents
The Story Makers Studio | Amandine Thomas
Stay n' Play
OCT - DEC 2024 | Burrinja Foyer
The Story Makers Studio: Make, Write & Illustrate Your Own Book!
Welcome to The Story Makers Studio, where children can bring their very own stories to life! From folding the pages of their book to filling them with captivating adventures, aspiring storytellers are invited to explore the basic building blocks of what makes a good story and the powerful impact it can have in the world.
Through helpful templates and mystery prompts featuring iconic Australian animals and habitats, creative sparks are sure to be flying, leaving story makers big and small inspired to continue sharing their voice.
Amandine Thomas is an award-winning author and illustrator based in the leafy Dandenong Ranges. Through empowering stories illustrated in a playful style, she explores the themes she is passionate about, such as our environment—and the many ways in which it can inspire and amaze us—or the connections we foster with others, with ourselves and with the world around us.
Website: amandine-thomas.com
Instagram: @amandinethomas
Facebook: @helloamandinethomas
Ash Grunwald
Sun 16 Feb 7.30pm | Burrinja Theatre
Renowned for his electrifying live shows, Ash Grunwald has inspired a generation to hit the road in an old van to ‘surf by day jam by night’. The festival favourite brings a high energy, vibrant live show with stacks of guitars and foot stomping blues. After attending an Ash show you will soon realise why he is also known as The Happiest Blues Man On Earth.
Part troubadour, part storyteller - Ash has been selling out shows all over the country. Don’t miss this one at Burrinja Cultural Centre.
With a career spanning 12 studio albums, six Australian Top-50 albums, five ARIA and four AIR Award Nominations, two APRA Awards, and gong for Best International Act at the LA Music Critic Awards in 2014, Grunwald has cemented his status as one of Australia’s most exciting and entertaining live musicians.
Tickets - $25 ~ $55
Alist Entertainment presents
Jimeoin - Pandemonium
Fri 11 Apr 7.30pm | Burrinja Theatre
Direct from a sell-out season at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, don’t miss Jimeoin’s hilarious new show Pandemonium.
A night spent with this comedy legend is not only funny but full of handy tips. Jimeoin will teach you how to make your bed with very little effort, how to prank your partner and get away with it and how to talk dirty in a nice way…. you’ll come out the other side having laughed yourself stupid and maybe with a life hack or two.
Have you ever wondered what goes on inside Jimeoin’s head? By the end of this show you’ll know that it’s absolute Pandemonium!
“What a fantastic performer, what a wonderful comedian” ★★★★★ Seedoeatreview
“Has his victims doubled up in agonising laughter” ★★★★★ The Herald, Edinburgh
“Wickedly Funny…Exhilarating” ★★★★1/2 The Age
Duration: 110 mins including interval.
Age suitability: MA15+ for adult themes and coarse language. Event not suitable to babies due to content and/or noise levels.
