arts-and-entertainment

Wollongong fashion stylist to recreate Game of Thrones' Night King

The slogan for the show is 'winter is coming', but it came at the start of spring for Wollongong fashion stylist Alarna Hope.

She was contacted by the creators of one of the world's biggest television shows with an unusual request.

The job? To create an identical real life Night King — the number one villain in HBO's all conquering series Game of Thrones.

"The opportunity was an odd one because I don't get these types of calls every day," Ms Hope said.

Princess Diana's 'traditional' memorial raises eyebrows

Chesterfield Borough Council last weekend launched a "well dressing" with a blessing service that marks the 20th anniversary of Princess Diana's death in a Paris car crash.

A well dressing involves using only natural materials, including seeds, berries, leaves and flowers to make a mural.

It's a terrorist attack: Miss America contestants take aim at Donald Trump

During the final question round, Miss Texas Margana Wood took aim at the President's response to the Charlottesville protests, and Miss North Dakota Cara Mund — now Miss America 2018 — called the US withdrawal from the Paris climate accord a "bad decision".

Australian Ballet sends Alice down the rabbit hole

Created by acclaimed British choreographer Christopher Wheeldon for the Royal Ballet, the story is a modern take on the Lewis Carroll classic.

Wheeldon said he had taken some liberties with the story and used new technology in theatre, projection and puppetry to tell it.

"The look of it is unlike any Alice you've ever seen before," he said.

Alice herself has also changed.

"She's feisty. She's inquisitive. She's more of a young woman actually, our Alice," Mr Wheeldon said.

Giant Gromits inspire Christmas tree trail planned for Adelaide

Now Adelaide is about to join that illustrious list, with its own Christmas tree trail.

In a bid to bring festive fun to the Adelaide Riverbank and attract visitors near and far, Renewal SA has sought tenders for the $40,000 project.

The pitch?

To design and manufacture up to 30 Christmas tree sculptures.

Each should be at least 1.2 metres tall, but no more than 2.5 metres (which includes the tree and a stand).

They must be identical and have a surface colour and finish so they are effectively a 'blank canvas'.

World's tallest sandcastle

The team spent more than three weeks in the western German city of Duisburg working on the artwork, which includes a sandy replica of the Great Sphinx of Giza, Venice's Rialto Bridge and the grave of Elvis Presley.

It also features models of tourist attractions such as Athens' Acropolis, Barcelona's Sagrada Familia and the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

Guinness World Record official Jack Brockbank was on hand to approve the new record for the German sculpture, which eclipsed the previous tallest sandcastle, a 14.84-metre world peace monument built in India in February.

Zombie crime scene helping kids learn about science

The amateur detective program was designed by teachers at Penrith Valley School, a facility for children with behavioural problems or complex emotional needs who have struggled with mainstream learning.

"A lot of them have had a lot of poor experiences in the classroom so they've got an expectation of failure that they're bringing in," principal Nic Danta said.

"And so the first stage is just to re-build that trust and connect them with education."

Policeman 'Dancing Dan' lights up Notting Hill Carnival

The officer was spotted getting into the spirit of the Notting Hill Carnival, an annual event celebrating Britain's West Indian community, by an MC on stage.

"We got a policeman over there with some moves," the MC says.

"Make some noise for the undercover raver."

Twitter user @phemmynice shared a video of the officer's antics, and he was quickly identified as Police Constable Dan Graham.

The officer, from Kingston in London's south-west was dubbed 'Dancing Dan' after appearing on Britain's Got Talent earlier this year.

From the Cape to the catwalk: Sharing Indigenous culture through fashion

The first is just days away at the prestigious Melbourne Fashion Week.

They will then go on to represent Australia at the World Indigenous Fashion Week in the Seychelles in October.

Designer Christy Van Der Hayden said they hoped to share the stories of Indigenous culture with the rest of the world.

"I think it's an important time for Indigenous cultures in general to have recognition in their artworks and in their storytelling," she said.

Cast, audience of gay play have tyres slashed in 'hateful' attack

Lane Cove Theatre Company's production of Holding the Man has had a sold out season, but it appears not everyone is a fan of the show.

After last night's performance, 12 cast and audience members returned to their vehicles outside The Performance Space at Longeuville, to find their tyres had been slashed.

A police spokesperson said they would investigate "motives of bias" behind the attack.

It is not the first time the production, which tells the 15-year love story of two men, has been targeted.