A Six-Week Music and Arts Festival Is Taking Over Sydney’s Long-Dormant Harbour City Cinema

September 5, 2022

A six-week-long arts and entertainment festival is set to take over Sydney’s long-dormant Harbour City Cinema in Haymarket, kicking off on Thursday, 22nd September and running until the end of October. Each night, the venue, which has been closed for over 15 years, will host a different event spanning live music, film screenings, dance parties, and diverse dining options.

Dubbed Pleasures Playhouse, music acts announced so far for the festival include BBGB (B Wise, BLESSED, Manu Crooks, Kwame and Lil Spacely), Broods, Hiatus Kaiyote‘s Nai Palm, Alex Lahey, Haiku Hands, No Zu, Cry Club and Donny Benét. The Pleasures Playhouse is curated by Heaps Gay and Summer Camp festival founder Kat Dopper.

Pleasures Playhouse Will Be Open Until the End of October

Exclusive: Nothing has happened inside Chinatown’s former Harbour City Cinema for more than a decade. That's about to change | @natassiazc https://t.co/odCrTiYeEr

— The Sydney Morning Herald (@smh) September 5, 2022

The program also includes parties from Heaps Gay, NLV, Leak Your Own Nudes and Athletica, arthouse film screenings and much more. Organisers have linked up with various local Haymarket restaurants to provide food for the Playhouse, while P&V Merchants, Mike Bennie and Archie Rose Distilling Co. are sorting the drinks.

“This is one of the most exciting projects, I’ve been able to work on, literally a dream,” Dopper said in a statement. “Collaborating with all my favs to take over an unused space in Sydney to bring together some of the best of our arts scene to create a new cultural destination that promotes artistic excellence.”

Caitlin McGregor, curator for the festival’s music and arts program, added: “It’s been so amazing putting this program together with Kat. I know I am going to be living at the cinema across these 6 weeks because there is not one night I want to miss out on. It is incredibly important to have new energy and spaces in this city to let art and music thrive again. I’m thrilled to be a part of making this happen!”

Tickets for Pleasures Playhouse events are on sale now via the festival’s website. All tickets will be under $30, and many events are free of charge.