Community Billboard 20 January – 27 January

So Frenchy So Chic In ThePark is about friends, music, food and wine: the simple pleasures brought together on a summer’s day. A party and a picnic in the park celebrating life and culture, the Frenchy way. Join them as they live in the moment, make new memories and get lost in joie de vivre.

Ferrython, one of Australia’s most popular and iconic free events, sees our beloved ferries go head-to-head: racing from Circular Quay to Shark Island and back to a glorious finish at the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Pack a picnic and gather on the foreshore to cheer on the ferries as they get fast and furious. Celebrate Australia Day with music, barbecues and lots of free events around Sydney. Whether you’re heading to the family friendly summer playground in Hyde Park, or packing a picnic and staking your spot by Sydney Harbour, there is plenty of fun for everyone.

It's a tradition: every year, thousands of Sydneysiders head to the Domain with picnics packed and friends in tow. Hear Australia's brightest stars, under the stars, sing opera's most famous arias with the magnificent backing of Opera Australia's very own Opera Australia Orchestra. This January, experience the midsummer night's dream that brings opera to the people. Dress up—or not—it's your night to enjoy the power of the human voice in the kind of communal, cultural celebration Sydney loves best.

Urban Theatre Projects (UTP) gives audiences unforgettable experiences in unusual locations. For their latest venture, they have partnered with the Blacktown Arts Centre, to invite you into three tales unfolding in a multi-level car park in Blacktown – exploring different ideas of what it means to be ‘home’. With Aboriginal Elder Uncle Cheeky as your host, Home Country shares perspectives on place and identity. Over the course of the evening (which includes a communal feast) meet Ali from Algeria and neighbour Zaphora who clash over cultural values, sharp-witted Pita caught between the old and new Greek culture and the Blacktown angel, restless in the afterlife.

Presented in association with Sydney Festival, this solo exhibition by internationally renowned Australian artist Vernon Ah Kee is a thought-provoking portrait of black and white political issues, attitudes and ideologies. From masterful drawings of his forebears to text-based installations and paintings, Ah Kee weaves together the history and language of colonisation to expose the underlying racism in contemporary Australian society. The project marks the 50th anniversary of the 1967 referendum which which amended the constitution to remove provisions that racially discriminated against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, including their omission in the national Census. When Vernon Ah Kee was born in far north Queensland, he was not counted as a citizen.