Arts, comedy and culture at Bondi
“Over the past 11 years, Bondi Festival has brought together locals and visitors from across the country and welcomed hundreds of incredible artists to inject culture and joy into Bondi during winter,”
Josh Glanc is bringing the laughs to the Bondi Festival this year.
Running for two weeks over winter, Bondi Festival will transform Sydney’s home by the sea into an eclectic, intimate and welcoming arts precinct for people of all ages to enjoy.
Returning to its spiritual home at the newly refurbished Bondi Pavilion, the 17-day Bondi Festival will present over 30 arts events at Bondi Beach and surrounds, including Bondi Pavilion, Badlambs Barbershop, the Blue Hotel Bondi, Campbell Parade, Queen Elizabeth Drive.
The all-inclusive festival will have family-friendly and adults-only theatre, comedy, cabaret and interactive experiences. Alongside the world-class arts line-up, visitors can enjoy Bondi’s famous ice-skating rink and the legendary Bondi Vista ferris wheel; a 32-metre-high ride with 360-degree views of the stunning Bondi Beach.
Festival director Rachel Chant is excited to bring this festival of contemporary arts back to Bondi.
“Over the past 11 years, Bondi Festival has brought together locals and visitors from across the country and welcomed hundreds of incredible artists to inject culture and joy into Bondi during winter,” said Chant. “This year, I’m so excited to be welcoming returning artists, international guests, national festival stalwarts and emerging artists back to the festival, presenting their works in some really exciting – and sometimes unconventional – venues.”
The opening weekend in Bondi Pavilion’s Garu (northern) courtyard will be a performance from the renowned Jannawi Dance Clan, free shell-art and weaving workshops, bushtucker talks and food demonstrations, First Nations music and First Nations food trucks to enjoy.
Josh Glanc is eager to jump back into the comedy scene, following stints at Just For Laughs in London and Texas, alongside working on a theatre show for Melbourne’s Rising Festival.
“I haven’t been doing my comedy stuff for a couple of months now, so I’m really excited to get back into my solo comedy and revisit stuff that I haven’t done for a bit. It’s wonderful to be coming to the festival with that excitement,” Glanc said.
For comedy seekers at the festival, Josh’s show, Collections, will be bringing together the best of his solo performances, characters, sketches and songs into a wave of laughs for a new show, made especially for the people of Bondi.
“Return audiences can expect an insight into new bits that I’m working on, but if you haven’t seen my stuff before, the show is very fun, it’s very silly and it’s very joyful. There’s lots of songs and characters, and it’s like a surreal joy ride through my meshugane brain,” he laughed.
With this comedy relaunch at Bondi Festival, Josh is hoping to move the goal posts when it comes to the laughs – he wants to avoid comedy becoming boring and keep audiences on their toes.
“I want audiences to get swept up into the mayhem and the tomfoolery on stage,” Josh added. “I just love keeping audiences in that constant state of what’s going to happen next.”
In addition to Josh’s show, audiences can also catch Robyn Reynolds at the festival, performing her latest show, Date Night, with fellow comedian – and boyfriend – Chris Nguyen. Audiences will swoon at Reynolds’s cheeky anecdotes and simper at Nguyen’s classic joke-writing. Date Night is on Thursday, July 13 and Friday, July 14.
Bondi Festival runs from June 30 – July 16. For the full program and tickets, visit bondifestival.com.au
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