DAWN CHORUS

5:30am SYDNEY BEACHES

Few places can match the splendour of Sydney's beaches at sunrise. Add the angelic voices of Sydney Philharmonia Choirs and you have a very special Festival event.

PLAY ME, I'M YOURS

ALL DAY PARRAMATTA AND SYDNEY CBD

The streets of Parramatta and Sydney's CBD will sound more joyous this January, as British artist Luke Jerram populates the streets with 30 pianos.

FLUFF

11:00am LENNOX THEATRE, RIVERSIDE THEATRES

In a fantasy world of odd-sized boxes, night-lights and handmade gingham costumes and curtains, three intriguing characters make a home for lost toys.

THE WAR OF THE ROSES - PART 1

1:00pm SYDNEY THEATRE AT WALSH BAY

The Sydney Theatre Company Actors Company presents The War Of The Roses, an audacious epic of language and history. Joining the cast is STC Co-Artistic Director Cate Blanchett, on stage in Australia for the first time in almost five years.

EAT DRINK TALK ART

1:00pm THE FAMOUS SPIEGELTENT

Dig deeper into the Festival through our series of lunchtime interviews and forums with the creative forces behind this year's shows at The Famous Spiegeltent.

THE SMILE OFF YOUR FACE

2:00pm, 2:30pm, 3:00pm, 3:30pm, 4:00pm, 4:30pm AADA PILGRIM THEATRE

Sit in a wheelchair, put on a blindfold and indulge your imagination, as Ontroerend Goed digs into your pleasures, fears, desires and memories.

AFTERPLAY

2:00pm PARADE THEATRE

In Afterplay, Brian Friel brings together two of Chekhov's lost souls: Sonya, Uncle Vanya's devoted niece, and Andrey, the three sisters' henpecked brother. Afterplay catches an intimate, fragile moment set against the backdrop of a shattered world.

THE PIANIST

2:00pm BELVOIR ST THEATRE

Acclaimed concert pianist Mikhail Rudy read Szpilman's memoir, The Pianist, and dreamt up a dramatic retelling of his journey. The Pianist is a duet for two Szpilmans: Rudy on piano and a solo actor recounting the story.

IVANOV

2:00pm DRAMA THEATRE, SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE

Budapest's Katona József Theatre presents their acclaimed production of Chekhov's early masterpiece. This remarkable acting ensemble works together like an orchestra, delivering an unsettling and poetic performance about human failing and the unfathomable vanity of a man incapable of love.

FLUFF

3:00pm LENNOX THEATRE, RIVERSIDE THEATRES

In a fantasy world of odd-sized boxes, night-lights and handmade gingham costumes and curtains, three intriguing characters make a home for lost toys.

MOSCOW ART TRIO

5:30pm THE FAMOUS SPIEGELTENT

Misha Alperin's Moscow Art Trio picks up Moldavian and Russian themes, playfully mixing their character with spirited improvisation.

KRISTIN HERSH - PARADOXICAL UNDRESSING

6:00pm BOSCO THEATER

Lead singer for Throwing Muses, Kristin Hersh's solo spoken word performance is funny, sad and candid. This wry and vivid work characterises Hersh as a shy artist who is simultaneously recognised for her brutal honesty in the spotlight.

BON IVER

7:00pm CITY RECITAL HALL ANGEL PLACE

Soulful, intimate and gracious, don't miss Bon Iver play City Recital Hall Angel Place. His shimmering voice shifts smoothly from a spectral falsetto to deeply soulful, grainy tones, layered over and under his spare, atmospheric instrumentation.

THE WAR OF THE ROSES - PART 2

7:00pm SYDNEY THEATRE AT WALSH BAY

The Sydney Theatre Company Actors Company presents The War Of The Roses, an audacious epic of language and history. Joining the cast is STC Co-Artistic Director Cate Blanchett, on stage in Australia for the first time in almost five years.

IVANOV

7:00pm DRAMA THEATRE, SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE

Budapest's Katona József Theatre presents their acclaimed production of Chekhov's early masterpiece. This remarkable acting ensemble works together like an orchestra, delivering an unsettling and poetic performance about human failing and the unfathomable vanity of a man incapable of love.

AFTERPLAY

7:30pm PARADE THEATRE

In Afterplay, Brian Friel brings together two of Chekhov's lost souls: Sonya, Uncle Vanya's devoted niece, and Andrey, the three sisters' henpecked brother. Afterplay catches an intimate, fragile moment set against the backdrop of a shattered world.

THE PIANIST

8:00pm BELVOIR ST THEATRE

Acclaimed concert pianist Mikhail Rudy read Szpilman's memoir, The Pianist, and dreamt up a dramatic retelling of his journey. The Pianist is a duet for two Szpilmans: Rudy on piano and a solo actor recounting the story.

MATTHEW HERBERT BIG BAND

8:00pm CONCERT HALL, SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE

Matthew Herbert's Big Band project combines the cream of the UK jazz scene - on trumpets, trombones, saxophones, piano, bass and drums - with Herbert's own electronic wizardry.

OLD WORLD/NEW WORLD - FESTIVAL SYMPHONY

8:00pm THE DOMAIN

Join us at The Domain as conductor and guide Richard Gill leads the Sydney Symphony through the work of some of Australia's most brilliant composers before taking us back to the beauty and inspiration of the giants of the classical canon.

THE SMILE OFF YOUR FACE

8:00pm, 8:30pm, 9:00pm, 9:30pm AADA PILGRIM THEATRE

Sit in a wheelchair, put on a blindfold and indulge your imagination, as Ontroerend Goed digs into your pleasures, fears, desires and memories.

HYPER-DUB

8:00pm HYDE PARK BARRACKS MUSEUM

Guest curators Inertia and Void program a night of deep future dub with The Bug featuring Warrior Queen, Rhythm & Sound feat. Tikiman, Mark Pritchard, Sub Bass Snarl, Steve Spacek and more.

MORPHOSES

8:00pm THEATRE ROYAL

Christopher Wheeldon is one of the most celebrated figures in contemporary ballet and a major creative force in the dance world. The scope and originality of his work has won him an unrivaled international reputation.

LA CLIQUE

9:30pm, 7:30pm THE FAMOUS SPIEGELTENT

An inspired melange of cabaret, new burlesque, circus and contemporary vaudeville, La Clique is sexy, funny and dangerous.

REGGIE WATTS

9:30pm BOSCO THEATER

Reggie Watts shakes new meaning into what you can do with a microphone and a loop machine. Exploiting a jaw-dropping ten-octave vocal range, he creates funky bass lines and soulful diva-esque vocals to underpin hilarious, off-the cuff riffs.

LATE AT THE GARDEN

11:30pm THE FAMOUS SPIEGELTENT

Late at the Garden's unpredictable collection of music's most eclectic offerings could not be more at home than in the Samsung Mobile Festival Garden. Keep the Festival party going well into the night.

SAMSUNG MOBILE SECRET SHOWS

11:45pm THE FAMOUS SPIEGELTENT

Witness the magic of spontaneous performances and collaborations between Festival artists in the intimacy of the Bosco Theater.