Insights - 9 January 2023
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SPECIAL EDITION: SUMMER IN SYDNEY
TURBOCHARGES NSW VISITOR ECONOMY
Sydney has burst into life this summer with concerts, culinary experiences, Christmas markets, international sporting events and arts and cultural events.
The festivities kicked off on 2 December with OPEN FOR LUNCH, the first event in the Summer in Sydney series, presented by Destination NSW.
OPEN FOR LUNCH featured Sydney’s best chefs and restaurants including Luke Mangan, Matt Moran, Anna Polyviou, mimi’s and Tottis, YCK venues, NOLA Smokehouse and Rockpool Bar & Grill.
Thousands of people gathered together on George Street, Sydney and at CommBank Stadium in Parramatta to enjoy Sydney’s longest lunch.
OPEN FOR LUNCH was followed by Noël Sydney, featuring Christmas market stalls, light installations, entertainment and drone shows; and ELEVATE Sydney, which transformed the Cahill Expressway into a festival playground from 3-7 January.
The Summer in Sydney event series injected millions into the local economy and supported local hotels, bars, restaurants, visitor attractions and experiences and a host of small businesses, while bringing people together at this special time of year.
It builds on a major events line-up supported by Destination NSW that includes Opera on Cockatoo Island, Frida Kahlo: The Life of an Icon, the Art Gallery of NSW Opening Festival, Sydney WorldPride, blockbuster musicals, festivals, major sporting events such as SailGP, the United Cup and the HSBC Sydney 7’s.
Minister for Tourism Ben Franklin said: “We are committed to delivering fantastic events that not only provide fun and entertainment for Sydneysiders but also attract visitors from all over the world to experience the Sydney side of summer and position NSW as the major events capital of the Asia Pacific."
Destination NSW is supporting Sydney's events calendar with a ‘Sydney Side of Summer’ campaign, which runs until 28 February 2023 and features public relations activity, outdoor billboards and radio advertising.
The NSW visitor economy is also benefiting from a $142 million boost over summer through 280,000 additional inbound airline seats secured by the NSW Government’s Aviation Attraction Fund, which is managed by Destination NSW.
New increased capacity will peak between December and February on routes between Sydney and Abu Dhabi, Auckland, Christchurch, Colombo, Doha, Dubai, Seoul, Los Angeles, Queenstown, Singapore, Tokyo, Vancouver and Wellington capitalising on Sydney’s appeal as a summer destination. Learn more
NOËL SYDNEY DRAWS THOUSANDS TO HARBOUR CITY
Noël Sydney brought festive cheer to the CBD and regional NSW businesses, with more than 145,000 attendees enjoying the 16-night event.
The popular family-friendly Christmas celebration was held from 9–24 December 2022 and featured digital Christmas trees and market stalls selling products from around the state in the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, plus stunning lighting projections on Macquarie Street heritage buildings, nightly variety performances and spectacular drone shows.
Premier Dominic Perrottet said: “This world-class event has delivered a significant boost to our economy but, just as importantly, it has also provided visitors a summer in Sydney to remember.”
Gabriel Gutnik from Ziggy’s Wild Foods travelled from Bellingen NSW to participate in the Noël Christmas market.
“It's been an incredible opportunity to highlight the importance of artisan products and showcase our unique regional offerings over any type of mass production," he said.
"This has been an amazing initiative, I’ve had the best 15 days here and the support from Sydneysiders and visitors has been tremendous.”
Noël Sydney, created and produced by AGB Events, included:
- 80 artisan products from local businesses and regional NSW and 17 food and beverage offerings
- 13 Christmas Skyshow drone displays over Farm Cove
- 32 variety performances on the Noël Sydney main stage, including appearances by David Campbell, Katie Noonan, Bella Taylor Smith and Emma Pask
- Projection and lighting treatments on five heritage Sydney buildings as part of the Noël Light Trail each evening
- 23 digital Christmas trees lighting up the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney.
ELEVATE SYDNEY TAKES SUMMER TO NEW HEIGHTS
Sydneysiders and visitors to the Harbour City celebrated the first week of 2023 in style, with ELEVATE Sydney repurposing the Cahill Expressway into the world’s most spectacular stage.
From 3-7 January 2023, thousands of ticketholders revelled to more than 100 performers, with iconic Sydney Harbour as the backdrop.
Attendees enjoyed the unique outdoor entertainment and cultural celebration with acts ranging from children’s entertainment such as Bluey and Bingo Live to electronic music, Ruby Fields, Spacey Jane, Amy Shark and The Veronicas, plus a nightly SkyShow.
Watch highlights from ELEVATE Sydney here.
SKYSHOW DAZZLES OVER SYDNEY HARBOUR
Building on the popularity of last year’s drone SkyShow, ELEVATE Sydney 2023 featured a dazzling light display with the theme of 'exploring place'. The SkyShow, powered by 600 drones, took viewers on an underwater journey of Sydney Harbour with stunning drone formations that lit up the sky in a choreographed performance.
A favourite character from ELEVATE Sydney 2022 returned - Chrissie the Cockatoo - who was joined by Benny the Seal, based on a much-loved regular visitor to Sydney Opera House who sunbathes on the steps every winter.
Benny took audiences on an underwater journey from the ancient past of this water way that once nourished the Gadigal People to present day Sydney Harbour.
The soundtrack was composed by Hip Hop artist DOBBY and narrated by Uncle Matty Doyle and Kelsey Iris, all of whom are descendants of the Murruwarri people of North Western NSW.
Watch highlights from the ELEVATE Sydney SkyShow here.
ELEVATE Sydney 2023 also introduced an impressive Long Bar, which stretched 127 metres along the Cahill Expressway. The Long Bar welcomed up to 200 guests at each session who were able to drink in the views of Sydney Harbour from this unique vantage point while also enjoying NSW food and wine.
On arrival at the Long Bar, guests were presented with a glass of 4Pines beer or Brokenwood wine and a grazing selection served in a bento-style box, featuring regional produce from Orange, Byron Bay, Pokolbin, Kurrajong and Crookwell.
An array of food trucks also parked on the Cahill Expressway, with homegrown culinary talent and NSW family-run businesses including Burger Head, an initiative by three young chefs from Penrith and Gozleme Food, a three-generation operation from Lidcombe.
UNITED CUP FINALS A SMASH HIT FOR SYDNEY
The United Cup came to an exciting close yesterday with Sydney playing host to the first final of the new international mixed team event.
After a week of competition across the country, the final two countries vied for the inaugural trophy, which saw the United States defeat Italy 4-0.
Minister for Sport Alister Henskens said: “The United Cup brought the summer of tennis to Sydney and hosting at our Ken Rosewall Arena confirms NSW’s mantle as Australia’s premier sporting state.
“It is the first tennis tournament where men’s and women’s performances on court contributes to individual world rankings of their team members.
“The atmosphere at the venue over the past two weeks has been electric and we’ve seen top athletes put on a spectacular show of skill, determination and teamwork in the first event of its kind anywhere in the world.”
Minister for Tourism Ben Franklin said the United Cup was part of the NSW Government’s 10 World Cups in 10 Years program, which would grow the state’s visitor economy.
“We are proud to host the first ever United Cup at Ken Rosewall Arena in Sydney, wrapping up 11 days of competition between 18 countries all fighting for glory,” Mr Franklin said.
“Securing events like the United Cup attracts the world’s best tennis players, officials, and their supporters to the Greater Sydney area, who stay in our hotels, visitor our attractions, and spend in our retail stores, restaurants, bars and cafes."
ICONIC FRIDA KAHLO EXHIBITION LEADS
SYDNEY FESTIVAL OPENING
Sydney Festival 2023 has opened the doors to its signature event, Frida Kahlo: The Life of An Icon.
Destination NSW has secured the exhibition exclusively for Sydney as part of the Sydney Festival program. The exhibition has taken over The Cutaway in Barangaroo with nine rooms of multi-sensory experiences exploring the life and work of one of history's most influential artists.
Minister for Tourism and the Arts Ben Franklin said: “This extraordinary exploration of one of the greatest cultural icons of the 20th century is the perfect way to open Sydney Festival.
“Frida Kahlo: The Life of An Icon provides audiences with a uniquely immersive experience through interactive spaces, incorporating photographs, films, digital environments, collector’s items, music and live performance.
“This incredible Frida Kahlo exhibition is expected to draw thousands of visitors to Sydney and inject $3 million into the NSW economy.
“Frida Kahlo: The Life of An Icon is a must-see exhibition at this year’s Sydney Festival, which is once again setting a national benchmark for excellence in major arts and cultural events.”
Frida Kahlo: The Life of An Icon runs from 4 January to 7 March 2023.
BEACH OPERA INSIDE SYDNEY TOWN HALL
Sydney’s iconic Town Hall was transformed into an idyllic beachside setting from 6-8 January for Sun & Sea, a unique opera performing at Sydney Festival.
Secured by Destination NSW as a Sydney exclusive for this year’s Sydney Festival, the internationally acclaimed opera-in-the-round, performed on a sand-filled set, explored themes of our changing climate with humour and power.
From 5–29 January 2023, Sydney Festival is reimagining a range of Sydney’s iconic and undiscovered venues, from the CBD to Western Sydney, with 25 days of site-specific programming that will have audiences viewing Sydney from a whole new perspective.
CIRCUS SUPERSTAR LIGHTS UP ROOM
Destination NSW is supporting the Australian premiere of Swiss-born auteur James Thierrée’s latest work of surreal theatrical imagination, ROOM, during Sydney Festival.
Thierrée, the grandson of Charlie Chaplin, has combined dance, mime, acrobatics, music and jaw-dropping stage effects in the production, which is playing at Roslyn Packer Theatre from 11-25 January 2023.
Minister for Tourism Ben Franklin said: “Sydney Festival is a major visitor drawcard for NSW, which attracts tens of thousands of people to Sydney each year."
MUSICALS MESMERISE AUDIENCES ACROSS SYDNEY
It's a dream summer for musical lovers, with major productions filling Sydney CBD and Western Sydney with song.
Highlights have included Destination NSW supporting the first opera ever staged on the heritage-listed Cockatoo Island, a bold new production of Bizet’s Carmen, from 25 November to 18 December.
The NSW Government also secured the Australian premiere of Madagascar – The Musical performed for a limited season at the Sydney Coliseum Theatre at West HQ in Rooty Hill from 16 December to 1 January 2023. It was a major drawcard for Western Sydney, with thousands of visiting theatregoers, injecting an estimated more than $2 million into the local economy during its two-week run.
Come from Away is playing at Theatre Royal Sydney until 12 Feb 2023. The musical tells the real-life story of the 7000 air passengers who were grounded in Canada in the wake of 9/11, and the small Newfoundland community that invited them into their lives.
Destination NSW has also partnered with Opera Australia and Crossroads Live Australia to bring Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella to Sydney Lyric Theatre until 29 January 2023.
SYDNEY CEMENTS REPUTATION AS ARTS DESTINATION
An exciting new era in the cultural life of the Asia Pacific began on 3 December 2022 when the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new building opened.
The new standalone building is the centrepiece of the most significant cultural development to open in Sydney in nearly half a century. The project has created a new art museum campus comprising two buildings connected by a public art garden overlooking Sydney Harbour.
Destination NSW supported a nine-day celebration for the opening, which included a curated program of talks, workshops, special performances and music, including a nightly drone show designed by Kamilaroi artist Reko Rennie and a free concert in the Domain featuring Ellie Goulding, Meg Mac and Electric Fields.
Destination NSW is also a strategic sponsor of the inaugural major exhibition – The End of Imagination - which runs until mid 2023 and features sculptures by international artist Adrián Villar Rojas in the Tank, a vast underground former World War II fuel tank at Art Gallery of New South Wales.
Across Circular Quay at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Destination NSW is supporting the Southern Hemisphere’s first major solo exhibition by internationally acclaimed artist Do Ho Suh, which runs until 26 February 2023. Do Ho Suh is known for his evocative and visually striking large-scale sculptures and architectural installations.
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