It’s high summer in the city, which means it’s officially Festival season. This week, the 2025 program kicks off with a bang, offering up a wealth of entertainment to fill your days and nights.
Your options around town and wider Sydney span unforgettable theatre and dance, hot-ticket music, awe-inspiring visual art and fun for the whole family. So go forth and make the absolute best out of week one.
FRIDAY 3 JANUARY
DAY
If you’re out and about in the Sydney CBD in the morning, head down to Walsh Bay for the official Festival Welcome, including an uplifting live performance from the Tongan National Conference Choir in collaboration with Leo Tanoi.
When: 11am
Where: Pier 2/3, Walsh Bay Arts Precinct
Cost: Free
NIGHT
At Parramatta’s Riverside Theatres, Canadian circus troupe Cirque Alfonse delivers a night of anarchic fun for kids and grown-ups alike. Their latest madcap show, Animal, is a surreal circus experience set to an infectious live soundtrack of 'agricultural funk’. Expect jaw-dropping acrobatics, daring juggling (everything from eggs to giant cowbells), tap dancing, absurd humour and even a tractor doing wheelies.
When: 7pm (until 12 January)
Where: Riverside Theatres
Cost: $49 – $89 + BF
SATURDAY 4 JANUARY
DAY
Throughout the Festival, the Walsh Bay Arts Precinct transforms into The Thirsty Mile, a waterfront summer hotspot featuring seven theatres, exhibition spaces and a lively summer bar with harbour views. Sydney Festival’s Visual Artist in Residence at the Mile is none other than Telly Tuita, whose vibrant ‘Tongpop’ aesthetic will be splashed all over the district. Day or night, you won’t miss it.
When: All day (until 26 January)
Where: The Thirsty Mile, Walsh Bay Arts Precinct
Cost: Free
For any little ones in your life, there’s Colour Maze opening today amid the fun at The Thirsty Mile. Created by Amigo & Amigo and building on Tuita’s ’Tongpop’ vision, kids will wind their way through 10 rooms – with building blocks, swings and knitted playgrounds, and channel their inner artist with hands-on craft and sticker activities featuring Tongan motifs. This creative art adventure is recommended for ages 2–12.
When: Various times (until 25 January)
Where: Pier 2/3, Walsh Bay Arts Precinct
Cost: $23 + BF
NIGHT
After a run of critically lauded releases, including 2024 album Ten Fold, R&B shapeshifter Yaya Bey makes her hotly anticipated Australian debut at the majestic City Recital Hall. Onstage, Bey is a force of nature – as testified by her NPR Tiny Desk Concert last year, which charts a tapestry of emotions in just 16 minutes.
When: 8pm
Where: City Recital Hall
Cost: $59 + BF
For theatre lovers, Canadian First Nations performer Cliff Cardinal returns with As You Like It or The Land Acknowledgement, a daring reimagining of Shakespeare’s As You Like It through the lens of the reconciliation process between Indigenous communities and colonial settlers in Canada. Equal parts laugh-out-loud funny and painfully raw, this one is selling fast, so don’t dawdle.
When: 7:30pm (also 1pm and 6:30pm on 5 January)
Where: Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House
Cost: $59 - $89 + BF
SUNDAY 5 JANUARY
DAY
Need a high-flying Sunday outing that doesn’t cost a thing? Swing! at Darling Harbour features two shows a day from the aerial experts at Sydney Trapeze School. If you like what you see and want to try it out, Sydney Trapeze School will also be running outdoor workshops suitable for all skill levels.
When: 12:30pm and 6:45pm (until 25 January)
Where: Palm Grove, Darling Harbour
Cost: Free
For a matinee theatre performance that’ll stay with you, consider Antigone in the Amazon. Swiss theatre-maker and agitator Milo Rau’s adaptation of the 5th-century BCE Greek play brings it to the edge of the Amazon rainforest in Pará, Brazil, where the future of humanity is at stake. If you’re busy during the day, there’s a second performance at 6:30pm.
When: 1pm & 6:30pm
Where: Roslyn Packer Theatre (The Thirsty Mile), Walsh Bay Arts Precinct
Cost: $69 - $119 + BF
This is also the first weekend to catch the world premiere of Converted! in previews. A wildly funny disco musical from award-winning comedy writer Vic Zerbst and composer Oliver John Cameron, Converted! celebrates queer teenagers in all their complexity and passion. See a Sunday afternoon matinee, and then head out to enjoy The Thirsty Mile.
When: 3pm (until 25 January)
Where: ATYP, The Rebel Theatre (The Thirsty Mile), Walsh Bay Arts Precinct
Cost: $37 - $68 + BF
NIGHT
The Thirsty Mile’s Moonshine Bar will host 12 nights of free live music and DJs overlooking the harbour, starting on this fine Sunday with beloved Sydney dance band Cumbiamuffin and deep-digging DJ La Foxy Fuzz.
When: From 6pm (until 25 January)
Where: Moonshine Bar (The Thirsty Mile), Walsh Bay Arts Precinct
Cost: Free
MONDAY 6 JANUARY
DAY
If you haven’t already, head to Circular Quay to share messages of hope for our environmental future as part of the interactive bamboo installation What We Leave Behind. Created by art and architecture collective Cave Urban along with Sydney Festival, this brand-new work poses the potent question: What do we want to leave behind?
When: All day (until 26 January)
Where: Tallawoladah Lawn, outside MCA, The Rocks
Cost: Free
Staying on the art theme, esteemed Beijing-based artist Cao Fei brings the energy of the contemporary metropolis to Sydney with a retrospective that includes two new commissions. Cao Fei: My City is Yours 曹斐: 欢迎登陆 is an invitation into Fei’s world of neon, street dance and pop music, utilising various modes including complex multimedia installations and even a replica 1960s Beijing cinema foyer.
When: 10am-5pm
Where: Art Gallery of New South Wales
Cost: $35 (adult)
TUESDAY 7 JANUARY
DAY
If you’re looking to entertain theatre-curious kids over the holidays, you can’t look past opening night of BullyBully, a hilarious new musical for ages 3+ from Netherlands company Maas theater en dans. Told in the style of West Side Story, the zippy and colourful show features many songs, funny quarrels, a bit of bickering and (eventually) a happy ending.
When: 1:30pm (until 12 January)
Where: Riverside Theatres, Lennox Theatre, Parramatta
Cost: $39 + BF
NIGHT
For a more adult experience, the world premiere of AFTERWORLD delves into Greek mythology through the visionary choreography of Sue Healey, the live percussion and electronic music of innovative composer Laurence Pike, and five incredible dancers holding the stage. The performance also features the ethereal film presence of the late 110-year-old Eileen Kramer as Eurydice, in her final dance performance.
When: 7:30pm (until 11 January)
Where: Bell Shakespeare, The Neilson Nutshell (The Thirsty Mile)
Cost: $49 + BF
WEDNESDAY 8 JANUARY
DAY
If you’re spending the day with the sun seekers at Bondi, pop into Bondi Pavilion Courtyard to witness The Whale, an immersive and interactive experience for families that celebrates these magnificent ocean creatures. As the sun sets, a magical night-time lightscape will envelop and enliven the large-scale puppet work from Fremantle’s Spare Parts Puppet Theatre.
When: 1pm-4pm / 5pm - 9pm
Where: Bondi Pavilion, Bondi Beach
Cost: Free
NIGHT
Siegfried & Roy: The Unauthorised Opera is set to be one of the runaway favourites of Syd Fest. A larger-than-life take on the real story of legendary Las Vegas duo Siegfried and Roy, this epic new opera from a powerhouse creative team features extravagantly costumed characters, big vocals, live magic and a streak of absurd humour. Get ahead of the hype at this special preview performance.
When: 7:30pm (until 25 January)
Where: Sydney Theatre Company, Wharf 1 Theatre (The Thirsty Mile)
Cost: $49 - $129 + BF
Also opening tonight is Cowboy, an interactive solo contemporary dance work from creator and performer Michael Smith, armed with an original score by Regurgitator bassist Ben Ely. Giddy up for a wild ride through this immersive Wild West fantasy – where you’re more than just a spectator.
When: 8:15pm (until 11 January)
Where: Riverside Theatres, Parramatta
Cost: $35 + BF
THURSDAY 9 JANUARY
DAY
Vigil: Gunyah is a gathering space at Barangaroo Reserve that is led, curated and designed by and for First Nations peoples, communities and allies. This morning, Tynga Williams of Brolga Dance Academy leads a Dance Workshop that’ll get your day started right.
When: 11am
Where: Barangaroo Reserve
Cost: Free
NIGHT
Fresh from five-star runs overseas, Wild West reimagining Dark Noon transforms Sydney Town Hall for a limited season, pulling audiences into a raw, immersive ride through American history that confronts power, race and displacement. Be sure to arrive early for a drink at the Sydney Festival Theatre Bar, presented by Doltone House.
When: 8pm
Where: Sydney Town Hall
Cost: $89 – $119 + BF
For more mind-expanding theatrics, check out MULTIPLE BAD THINGS. This provocative and highly original production from the internationally acclaimed Back to Back Theatre centres on three employees wrestling with a seemingly pointless task, against a backdrop crafted from the raw material that is all around us in everyday life.
When: 7pm
Where: Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House
Cost: $59 – $89 + BF
Want to keep the fun rolling through January? There's stacks more shows to see and many Festival adventures to have. Check out the full lineup here.
