Performing Sydney

With story, data analysis, and visualisation, this exhibition maps the history of theatres in Sydney over the last hundred years.

When:
2 December 2020 - 14 May 2021
 

Where:
Level 5 Main Library

 

Partners:
UNSW Arts & Media

Performing Sydney maps the story of theatres in Sydney over the last hundred years. With story, data analysis and visualisation by Dr Jonathan Bollen (School of Arts & Media), the exhibition draws on the AusStage database of live performance and theatre programs from the Wolanski collection of performing arts to illustrate what was presented to audiences in Sydney and how the repertoire in performance has changed over time.

View online exhibition.

Image gallery

Two glass display cases sit in the centre of a room, a rainbow-coloured line chart on left, artworks in black frames hang on the right.

Performing Sydney Installation 1

Two glass display cases sit in the centre of a room, a rainbow-coloured line chart on left, artworks in black frames hang on the right.

Performing Sydney Installation 2

Two glass display cases sit in the centre of a room, a rainbow-coloured line chart on left, artworks in black frames hang on the right.

Performing Sydney Installation 3

Two glass display cases sit in the centre of a room, a rainbow-coloured line chart on left, artworks in black frames hang on the right.

Performing Sydney Installation 4

Two glass display cases sit in the centre of a room with artworks in black frames hang in a row on the wall

Performing Sydney Installation 5

Two glass display cases sit in the centre of a room, a woman in a purple dress looks at artworks in black frames hang on the wall.

Performing Sydney Installation 6

Two women look at a colourful chart with curving rainbow lines. To the right hangs a series of small framed artworks.

Performing Sydney - Student Workshop

Two glass display cases sit in the centre of a room, a rainbow-coloured line chart on left, artworks in black frames hang on the right.
Two glass display cases sit in the centre of a room, a rainbow-coloured line chart on left, artworks in black frames hang on the right.
Two glass display cases sit in the centre of a room, a rainbow-coloured line chart on left, artworks in black frames hang on the right.
Two glass display cases sit in the centre of a room, a rainbow-coloured line chart on left, artworks in black frames hang on the right.
Two glass display cases sit in the centre of a room with artworks in black frames hang in a row on the wall
Two glass display cases sit in the centre of a room, a woman in a purple dress looks at artworks in black frames hang on the wall.
Two women look at a colourful chart with curving rainbow lines. To the right hangs a series of small framed artworks.

Events from this exhibition

Opening event

Performing Sydney was opened by Associate Professor Jonathan Bollen and theatre critic John McCallum, gave an account of the theatres in Sydney over the past century

Event was held on Wednesday, 14 April 2021.

Object-based learning workshop

Using theatre programs from the Wolanski Collection of Performing Arts, students in ARTS3125 Performance and Media were tasked with extracting information from the source material and evaluating related information in the AusStage database.