culture.gov.au

Connecting you with Australian culture online

ausculture newsletter February 2004

Welcome to Australia's Culture and Recreation Portal Newsletter for February 2004

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A very happy New Year to you! We trust that you had a safe and fun-filled break over Christmas and have eased yourself into 2004!

If you're trying to plan your diary for the many thousands of events, exhibitions, and festivals in 2004, this year promises to be a big one in both the cultural and sporting fields! All the usual suspects are coming up including: Chinese New Year, the Archibald Prize, the Miles Franklin Literary Award, the Portia Geach Memorial Award, Anzac Day, and the Melbourne Cup, to name only a few.

There's the Adelaide Festival and the Next Wave Festival - both held only every second year. This year is the International Year of Rice and the Australian Year of the Built Environment with lots of events on for both. And let's not forget the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece!

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Want to find out more about Australians who've achieved success at the Oscars or explore the wonders of Kakadu National Park? How many times has the Royal Family visited Australia? Do you often break into song and feel that you need to explore the world of Opera in Australia or the story behind the Australian National Anthem?

Well, we have some really interesting new articles and you can see them, and loads more articles about Australia's culture, its environment, its people and their recreational pursuits, right here at the Culture and Recreation Portal.
http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/

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Snippets from our What's New page for February 2004
http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/news/

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The National Portrait Gallery's Australians in Hollywood exhibition at Commonwealth Place, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, showcases over 80 Australian actors and technicians who've 'made it' in Hollywood from the current 'invasion' and reaching back into cinema's classic past and is showing until 12 April 2004.
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The 2004 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras will be bigger than ever with over 100 events on the program. This year's Mardi Gras will run from 6 February until 6 March 2004 in various venues around Sydney, New South Wales.

One of the international stars performing in the 2004 festival is Dionne Warwick who will appear at the Sydney Opera House, along with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. Some of the other 'Festival essentials' include the Fair Day, the Parade and the Party as well as heaps of Cabaret, Comedy, Dance, Film, Forums, Literature, Music, Party, Queer Media, Sport, Theatre, Tours, Visual Arts and Workshops.
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The 12th annual Sony Tropfest Short Film Festival will be held on Sunday 22 February 2004. Each year Tropfest asks filmmakers to produce a short film for Sony Tropfest. The films must include the annual Tropfest Signature Item (TSI) which for 2004 is 'HOOK'. Join over 120,000 people as they view the 16 finalist films selected from over 700 entries at venues in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Canberra and Hobart.
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The Adelaide Fringe 2004 is on again from 20 February to 14 March 2004 in various venues around Adelaide, South Australia. It'll be hard to decide what to do first when you have a program which features events such as the Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Arts Program, FreshBAIT, Lighten Up, Tanata Kurta (Many Place) - FringeFAMILY Day, Youth and Education Program (YEP), FringeBinge, Gala4KIDS, Hearsay, and Blast Theory. Festivities start off on 20 February 2004 in the heart of Adelaide with the parade, so have a look at the Adelaide Fringe website for more information.
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Get on the Green is a new program designed to attract new members to lawn bowls. 'Get on the Green is an exciting, modern version of lawn bowls promoting the social and fun side of the game,' the Federal Minister for the Arts and Sport Senator Kemp said. Get on the Green offers a great way for Australians of all ages to take up lawn bowls. Participants can get involved as individuals or as part of a team and is being piloted in nine bowls clubs and will be extended to 36 clubs. Get on the Green is a joint national initiative of the Australian Government, through the Australian Sports Commission, and Bowls Australia.
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Discover the Outlawed! from across the world by looking into the lives of outlaws who became figures of national significance. This new exhibition from National Museum of Australia will explore the personas and stories of outlaws from Robin Hood to Pancho Villa, from Ned Kelly to Jesse James. On display are objects, film, and interactives which reveal the evolution of outlaw legends in popular culture and legend making. It's on until 26 April 2004 at the National Museum of Australia, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, but you can find out more on the Outlawed! website.
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For further details of these and other Australian cultural and recreational news items visit our regularly updated
What's New page at http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/news/.

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We have another free email newsletter - the Portal contributors newsletter - produced and distributed by the Culture and Recreation Portal for the owners and managers of websites listed or indexed by our site.

The Portal contributors newsletter focuses on the online environment, website design, technical innovation, educational opportunities and provides specific information to ensure sites can be indexed successfully through our portal.

If you are one of the over 2,700 Australian culture and recreation websites in our directory, go and subscribe to the Portal contributors newsletter at http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/contributors/.

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