CRIME NIGHT

Simplicity is the best antidote to over-complex artistic performance, says 720's cultural correspondent Victoria Laurie

In musical circles, there's a mythical quality to that name, attached as it is to the father of American protest song, Woody Guthrie.

This is Cotillard as you've never seen her, haunted, broken by life, and in the hands of a great director in Jacques Audiard, a visual wild man who takes no emotional prisoners!

There's nothing quite like a portrait exhibition to bring the crowds in. A steady stream of visitors has been arriving at the Lismore Regional Gallery since the 2013 Northern Rivers Portrait Prize opened on June 8.

Explosive drama and long held grievances come home for Christmas in this stylish drama.

A crazy bunch of clowns on a sensory journey

More crazy genre mash-ups with Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, but this comedy sci-fi is lots of giddy fun.

New York cabaret artist, Taylor Mac has a few theories. One is that what he does isn't art, it's performance art. Therefore - he can't lose. If you like his show, he wins. If you don't like it, he wins. After all, the point of performance art is to provoke and move you.

This quietly powerful examination of one man's life is a sad indictment on a modern nation struggling to reconcile with the customs and culture of the original custodians.

Clever dialogue and big British comedy talent make this compulsory viewing especially for radio lovers.

Is it madness? Is it purgatory? Or is it just male mid-life crisis? Whatever it is it is a musical descent into perdition.

A small town with very dark secrets where racism and mistrust are the order of the day.

Abner Bradley, Alirio Zavarce, Ben Wishart, Damien Turbin, Duncan Luke, Kym Mackenzie, Ryan Rowland, Richard Samai

Geoff's Picture Show (and Geoff) review the latest Alexander Payne film, Nebraska.

Geoff Hutchison reviews the most talked about film of the year - 12 Years a Slave.

Love takes strange twists in this wintry tale that's heavy on magic and fantasy but light on heart and intelligence

Last Friday, NORPA unveiled its 2014 season to a packed house at Lismore City Hall. The company's Artistic Director Julian Louis has stuck to a programming formula he's had success with over the years. The mix is one NORPA hopes will represent another year of strong houses. There are a couple of reinvented classics, some edgy new material, some drama, comedy, dance, circus, Indigenous and kid-friendly productions along with something homemade. Several shows use video technology extensively, while others ask you to just bring your imagination. In essence, there's something for everyone.

Geoff Hutchison reviews 'Her' starring Joaquin Pheonix, Amy Adams and Scarlett Johansson as the voice of Samantha.

Nick and Meg escape to Paris in a bid to save their marriage. Will they survive? Geoff Hutchison reviews the latest Roger Michell film, Le Week-end.

AnA Wojak's deeply moving and motivating mixed-media installation, stepping stones at Lismore Regional Gallery is surprising and somewhat overwhelming in its scale.

NORPA's 2015 season was announced earlier this month with the aim of drawing a broader audience to the performing arts.

After Damien Ryan's energetic and enjoyable Henry V last year, it is pleasing to see that Bell Shakespeare has brought the director back to tackle Shakespeare's most complex and nuanced tragedy, Hamlet. And the marriage is a solid one. To start, casting Josh McConville as the grief-struck prince of Denmark has paid off handsomely. McConville approaches Hamlet's descent into his 'prison' of madness with powerful and dexterous complexity, bringing the contradictions that render the character into a fulsome and multi-faceted presentation of Shakespeare's vision for Hamlet.

The gruesome remains of a shark caught on the NSW South Coast have sparked a debate about how the animal met its fate and highlighted the 'amazing healing powers' of the predators.

A self-described experienced horse breaker has been fined and sentenced to a community correction order for a "silly decision" to use a lasso to strangle a brumby.

Meet Payden, who is two weeks old and one of 21,000 babies born into regional NSW towns every year who, on average, have a lower life-expectancy than their counterparts in the city.

A Chinese mining giant is being accused of underestimating the impact a proposed open cut mine will have on groundwater on the New South Wales Liverpool Plains.

Near a small town in northern New South Wales horse blood is being harvested to aid researchers and diagnostics.

As a river runs dry in the northern basin, the blame game continues, and farmer Andrew Watson says irrigators are being unjustly targeted over water use.

A report into hazing at the University of New England finds female students were pressured into sexual acts, "slapped on the arse" by a line of men before entering a party and told to lock their doors at night.

With towns across New South Wales at risk of running out of water within months, there are renewed calls for an urgent upgrade of water storage infrastructure.

About a year ago, my partner and I learned of a revolution in Australia's paddocks. We want to farm in a more natural way, but the stakes are high making the shift could send us broke.

Australia's largest agricultural field day may not exactly be a spending spree this year, but it does provide farmers with a reprieve from drought.

A decision to prioritise a controversial coal project over the protection of Indigenous sacred sites has landed the Federal Environment Minister at the centre of a fierce legal battle.

Three years after shutting down and shedding more than 30 local jobs, Binnaway's abattoir is reopening, offering a much-needed boost.

Business owners in Tenterfield say tourists will be the key to the rural town's recovery, as bushfires and drought take their toll on the local economy.

With towns facing "zero day" water crises National Party MPs are frustrated not enough dams are being built, but states are spending billions to fix a system ill-prepared for crisis.

Almost bone-dry from drought and having endured four major bushfires this year, Tenterfield was due for a break. That came in spades when the town found a new water supply.

A man is sentenced to two months' jail after assaulting a student from Hong Kong who says he was targeted because he was wearing a face mask to protect against coronavirus.

Australia won't run out of things to eat and drink, and shoppers have no reason to panic about any shortages as a result of coronavirus, food growers and manufacturers say.

Rowena has been in and out of jail a handful of times — she says she is doing her best to stay out, but adds "when something bad happens on the outside, you just want to run back to jail and be safe".

There are now 22 people in Tasmania who have tested positive for coronavirus, with five people being diagnosed today, the director of public health says.

Enjoying the sunrise or sunset is a simple pleasure you can do from your home. Tasmanian landscape photographer Nick Monk shares his tips on how to catch the light.

Tasmania confirms eight more cases of coronavirus, bringing the state's tally to 36, as another college ends classroom teaching, citing "mixed and uncertain medical health advice within the community and from various public health authorities".

Beauty services are closed, but hairdressers will still operate. Personal training can go ahead, but with no more than 10 people, outdoors, and observing physical distancing rules. You may be confused about the latest announcement on social gatherings. Let us explain.

Nigel Lazenby always dreamed of owning a house with river frontage, but that turned into a nightmare when a landslip wrecked his and other homes along the Tamar River in 2016. Now, Nigel is one of a group of owners who just want "fair" compensation.

Tasmania's Premier has warned the public they face fines of up to $16,800 if they gather in groups larger than 10 people in public or private, from 6:00pm tonight.

Derek Benson says at 90, "you look around and you've lost all your good friends", and that he'll keep volunteering at the Youngtown City Mission near Launceston "for as long as I can stand up and do it".