In conjunction with our Cultural Foundation, the Alliance Française de Sydney regularly organises concerts, performances and musical recitals. This also encompasses opportunities for our supporters to attend events hosted by partner cultural institutions.
The year kicked off with a bang with our partner, the celebrated Francophile festival, So Frenchy So Chic, sporting a line-up of
legendary acts including the melodic Lou Doillon; the Gallic disco queen Corine, and the troubadour TÉTÉ.
Unfortunately, as restrictions tightened around the pandemic, the performing arts were among those most gravely hit. During this time, our
community were able to make the most of our online catalogue of cultural resources which included archives of concerts and shows, available
through our e-library Culturethèque. In addition, they were able to browse live streaming of music festivals like Rock en Seine, Vielles
Charrues, les
Inrocks, Lolapaloosa
Paris and
more through other affiliated platforms such as France TV Spectacles et Culture and Arte Concert.
Later in the year, once some cultural activities had resumed, our members were given the opportunity to win tickets to a special tribute
concert to the legendary jazz musician Don Burrows at the Sydney Opera House. Led by lifelong friend James Morrison, this memorable night
featured performances by the likes of Emma Pask, William Barton and more.
Our members were also lucky enough to go into the running to win tickets to win a reserve double pass to Vivaldi's Venice at City Recital Hall presented by the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra; and a screening of Jules Massenet’s comic opera Manon, an evening which embodied the quintessential expression of the charm and vitality of the music and culture of the Parisian Belle Époque.
With the support of the Lycée Condorcet and the French embassy in Australia, we had the pleasure of organising Piano Concerto for the
Left Hand,
performed by internationally acclaimed pianist Maxime Zecchini. Best known for practising the ‘left hand repertoire’, where a musician uses a
single hand to play compositions that would ideally require all ten fingers, Zecchini treated his guests to a robust program that included Bellini:
Casta Diva,
extract from the opera, 'Norma' and Massenet: Meditation from ‘Thais’ to name a few.
In turn, we were humbled to welcome The OZY Youth Choir Honouring Defence Service at the Alliance Française de Sydney for the launch of its
second singing tour of the Western Front in December 2020; Pour le Devoir de Mémoire (The Duty of Remembrance). During the launch,
guests had the privilege of meeting some of the 2018 tour members who shared stories of their 2018 trip and performed some of their songs
together.
We were also proud to continue our partnership with the annual French festival of food and live music So Frenchy So Chic, which presented
their first ever all-female line-up, including experimental pop artist Camille Dalmais, Yelle, Clara Luciani and Cléa Vincent.
Throughout the year, we also provided opportunities for our supporters to win tickets to Sydney Dance Company’s 50th Anniversary with a
formidable triple bill featuring the world premiere of Rafael Bonachela’s Cinco, Gabrielle Nankivell’s new work Neon Aether and
Melanie Lane’s WOOF.
In addition, our supporters were also able to win tickets to the Blanc de Blanc encore at the Opera House, a refined blend of
vintage French glamour, spectacular aerials, comedy, dazzling dance numbers and acrobatics as well as Mea Culpa, a dance-theatre
ensemble work which saw French choreographer, Cloé Fournier re-evaluate the plasticity of the body as a technological landscape in scrutiny
of the female form.
In July, we also welcomed traditional Cancan performances as part of its annual Bastille Day Celebration which took place at the Argyle, welcoming close to 1,000 Francophones and Francophiles.
