Meeting famous People!

Being iconic has its perks! We have meet some really amazingly talented and famous people. Here is a few;

That’s Princess Mary of Denmark! Did you know she was born in Tasmania? She is so beautiful and kind.

Mike Rosenberg sings a cool song called ‘let her go’. It’s a bit mushy for Sid but I love it!

Frank Warren is the amazing soul behind the website ‘Post secrets’. Do you have a secret?

Our creator Natasha got to meet Bryan Brown! One of her fave films of his is ‘Cocktail’. She has even met Tom Cruise! We hope to meet him one day too.

This was the best day ever when we met ‘Rob Schneider’ & Rove McManus’. We couldn’t stop laughing at all their jokes!

It’s been a busy year and can’t wait to meet more and more people! Have you met anyone famous?

Star sparkles forever

Neey

Our creation!

Hi Everyone! My name is Natasha, Sid and Neey are super special to me. Why? Because I invented them! You see, I’ve been involved in the theatre world for most of my life. I love the theatre, and I also love telling people about it.

I was 12 years old when I performed for the very first time at the Sydney Opera House. I was a part of a very large-scale performance event across several venues. This was like jumping off a spring board for me, and I leaped into a world of working within the sacred walls of the Opera House while studying at NIDA, and then with different companies within my professional career.

The Opera House is really something special. There’s something about it that has millions of people visiting every single year – including me! The Opera House is more than just another building: it’s an icon!

When people look at the Opera House, they see the beauty of the building. Australians are filled with pride when they gaze at the House, and even when we’ve been overseas the Opera House is a sign that we are home again. It’s a symbol of Australia, history, entertainment and much more.

One day when I was visiting the Opera House, I watched people interacting with the landmark. The enthralment on the faces of people seeing it for the first time. The worker who still smiles like it’s their first sighting, even though they have worked there for years. The Sydney-siders who still look up at the sails as they jog round it. The tourists ticking an item off their bucket list. Kids that simply stare at it in wonder, run their little hands across the tiles or sprint up the monumental steps.

I wanted to capture all of this, but the problem was that all this warmth and wonder was in response to what is, essentially, a hard, concrete and tiled building. I wanted to give people the chance to love the House – to hug it, squeeze it, take it home with them. But can you imaging cuddling a building? It’s not really appropriate! Thus began the creation of Sid, Neey & Friends. I wanted to create a way for people of all ages to be able to embrace the building – a manifestation of all the emotions people feel when they see the Opera House.

I took the key elements of the look of the Opera House and molded them into a soft, cuddly toy. The shoes reflect all the colours you see on the Harbour that surrounds the house. The legs resemble the big stairs that lead up to a full belly of entertainment, with the welcoming, open arms that always greet you when you visit the House. And of course, this is all topped off with those majestic sails.

This design became Sid & Neey: twins who live and play at the Sydney Opera House!

Once Sid & Neey were locked in, I wanted to add to the family. We have so many iconic elements to Australia, and I didn’t want to leave any out! With that idea, their friends were born. Each friend has their own colour, represent a different Australian state, and they all have their own special talent.

Armed with a big family of characters, I was able to take the idea beyond the look of the Opera House, and give people the chance to see to what’s inside: Theatre!

Sid, Neey and their friends introduce the different venues of the Opera House, and the typical type of performance you are likely to see in that venue.

They introduce people to theatre with a sneak peak backstage, teaching kids about theatre, teamwork and friendship in a vibrantly and engaging way.

What’s really exciting is that these characters do all of this in one book: Showtime! I really wish I had this book as a child, growing up pre-Internet. There wasn’t a huge range of books about theatre for kids let alone a range set in the biggest venue in Sydney!

I hope future generations of Australia develop a passion for the theatre through this book. You can get your very own copy at The Sydney Opera House Stores or on the Sid & Neey website www.sidneey.com.au

The things that we see!

Hi Everyone! 

Sometimes while Sid is off practicing his magic or kicking his footy, I love looking through the different windows in the Opera House and taking pictures of the different things that I can see. 

Sometimes when I look outside, I can see the most amazing ships on the Harbour! There are all kinds of water craft, but none are as spectacular as the ships that come to take people on holidays – the cruise ships! 

Look at this one! 

 

But do you know what? The cruise ship isn’t my favourite thing in this photo! 

And the Harbour Bridge is INCREDIBLE, but… even that isn’t my favourite thing in this photo! There are benches to sit on and railings to play on; water to look at and flags waving proudly – but none of these take the spot of being my MOST favourite thing in this photo! 

Can you see it? 

Look at the ground! 

In the puddles! 

My favourite thing in this photo is the way that nature makes the most perfect and beautiful mirrors, with rain. The rain makes puddles and the puddles reflect what they can see. Even in the middle of Sydney, right in front of my House, in one of the busiest cities on EARTH – and nature is still there! 

Sometimes, when the lighting is just right, I can see rainbows in those puddles! 

Have you ever seen rainbows in water? 

Can you name all of the colours in the rainbow? 

See you soon! 

SidNeey Star Sparkles Forever! 

Neey

Panda, panda!

Hi Everyone!

You know how much I love my Australian animals, right? Right! Well, guess what! I have ANOTHER favourite animal!

The PANDA!

What I love most about pandas is that they look like white bears that have gotten really dirty! It’s fantastic the way they are two such different colours. And how cool are their eye masks!

The baby pandas are SO cute! Look!

I bet you’d love to pick one up and snuggle it, just like I would!

Do you know pandas like to eat? That’s right! They love BAMBOO!

Wow, look at those teeth! Crikey they could do some damage! Kind of makes me not so keen to cuddle them after all!

Just like Neey and I, pandas love to play together. It keeps them busy and active, and for the babies, it helps them to learn about their environment and all the special skills that pandas need to know.

Pandas are native animals to China, and they can live for around 20 years in the wild. Pandas have survived through lots of different changes to their environments because they like to adapt. Pandas are really good at fitting in with their environment. Pandas have been endangered because the food they eat – bamboo – has become more and more scarce. That’s because humans keep clearing the land. So the best thing we can do to help the pandas is to support efforts in replanting bamboo, and helping people to understand more about pandas. China and the Adelaide Zoo made an agreement in 2008 to work together to help save the pandas. This is really exciting, because it means that everyone will be able to fall in love with pandas for many years to come – just like I have!

Did you know that we have two pandas here in Australia? They live in Adelaide Zoo, in South Australia. Their names are Wang Wang and Funi.

Do you like pandas? Have you ever seen a panda?

Get Cooking!

G’day! Are you all rugged up?

Sydney has really been cooler than usual the last few days, so Neey and I decided to cook up a belly warmer!

We made some yummy vegetable soup with fresh damper! Damper is a type of bread that is cooked in Australia. Swagmen used to make it, and so did other people who travelled around Australia and needed an easy bread that they could make. Damper can be cooked in the campfire as a loaf, or twisted around sticks and cooked like that, or even cooked in a pan in the oven. Either way, make sure you get some adult help! 

Neey and I made our damper by putting a cup of self raising flour and a pinch of salt into a bowl. Then, we used just enough butter to rub into the flour until it looked like bread crumbs. Once that was done, Neey poured in milk, just a little at a time, and I stirred with my fingers. When our dough came together and was moist… but not really sticky… we knew we were ready to go! 

We put some flour on our baking tray, kneaded the damper into the shape we wanted, and plopped it onto the tray. Then, as something extra special, we grated some cheese on top! 

I ran and got someone to help us put it into the oven at 190 degrees, and made sure that they’d come back to help us get it out in about 20 minutes. 

As soon as our damper came out, Neey and I served our soup and dipped the damper into the soup. Yum! Perfect for these winter days in Sydney! 

Have you ever eaten damper? 

My Brother, Sid

Hi There!

It’s Neey here, and I want to tell you about my twin brother, Sid.

Sid and I are best friends as well as twins – but sometimes, we can get really cross with each other! Sid was so grumpy the other day because I finished all the breakfast things that he wanted. But I didn’t know he wanted them! I had a music lesson, and everyone knows you have to eat cereal when you’re learning the saxophone!

But I have to admit, I love playing practical jokes on Sid! It’s so much fun to see him realise what’s happened!

Don’t worry though – he always manages to get me back. Sid does things like hide my pillows, or fill my socks with sand, or fill my lunchbox with toilet paper! That one made me laugh!

One thing that is great about Sid is that I know if anyone else tried to do these tricks to me, Sid would tell them to stop. Sid and I both look after each other, and it’s like we have a built-in best mate. Because the Opera House is so big, Sid and I always have each other to go exploring with. And I know that Sid will always be at the other end of the walkie-talkie, waiting to hear my voice.

The only time Sid might not want to play is when I’ve pulled a really good trick on him.

Which is why I’ve already chosen a jigsaw puzzle to work on this afternoon, because I know he’s not going to be happy when he finds out that I’ve hidden all his footballs in the wardrobe! When he opens that door they are going to tumble all over him!

SidNeey Star Sparkles Forever!

 

Neey

neey@sidneey.com.au

My Sister, Neey

Hi Everyone!

I am feeling a bit cranky today! My twin sister, Neey, finished my favourite cereal this morning, and then she drank all of the juice! Not fair! I had to have toast for breakfast, and everyone knows that you need to eat cereal on the days you plan to kick a footy around!

Neey said that I just took too long to wake up, and if you snooze, you lose!

Sometimes, having a sister can be really frustrating!

Neey likes to play tricks on me, too. Once, she tied every single one of my shoes together! It was like a long chain of sneakers, all knotted together by the laces. Another time, Neey put mashed apple onto my dinner and told me it was mashed potato.

Having a twin isn’t all bad though!

There are times when I get picked on, because I feel really nervous and drop things before I go on stage. Neey sticks up for me, and tells the people who are picking on me to leave me alone.

There are times when I finish all of my lunch and I am still hungry. Neey will share her sandwich or fruit with me.

And there are times when I have bad dreams. Neey is always right there for me to remind me that everything is OK.

Having a sister means that I always have someone to play footy with, and I always have someone to talk to, and I always have someone to help me out when I need a hand with something.

But if she messes with my breakfast again, there’ll be trouble!

I have to go, Neey’s about to find out what honey and Vegemite tastes like!

SidNeey Star Sparkles Forever!

Sid

sid@sidneey.com.au

To the moon!

Have you ever been on a spaceship?

Sid and I have!

Here is a picture of our spaceship:

We get onto our spaceship most afternoons, and watch the world go by. Nobody realises that we’re aliens from the planet OPERA, ready to come and live on earth! After we’ve watched everything, we go and climb onto our intergalactic space shuttle! 

The space shuttle rockets Sid and I all over the world! We zip and zoom faster than you can imagine!

As we zoom around, us aliens like to lay a trap for the space monsters that like to try and catch us! But it’s OK because for everyone else, the trap is heaps of fun! Here is a picture of the trap that we weave! Can you see any space monsters?

Sometimes aliens need a drink, because all of that zipping and zapping and shuttling and weaving and trapping gets pretty tiring! It’s hard work, being an alien in Sydney!

Have you checked out the awesome playground in Darling Harbour yet? You should! it’s so much fun! But will you be an alien? Or a pirate!

You can learn lots more about the playground by visiting this website!

SidNeey Star Forever!

Neey

neey@sidneey.com.au

 

 

Kim ‘Busty Beatz’ Bowers – Australian Artist Series with Neey

When the Opera House is your home, you never know who you are going to meet! It’s one of my favourite things about my house: I am always meeting someone new! And most of the time, they are really creative and exciting people. They might be actors or dancers or musicians or directors or artists – you never know who is going to pop up next!

Sometimes, I like to pretend to be a magazine reporter, and I interview my friends. I’m going to share these interviews with you here, so that you can get to know some of my friends, and also find out about some amazingly talented people that have come to work at my home, the Opera House!

But this time, I’m going to ask Neey to do the interview! Because it’s with one of her all time heroes!

I met Kim ‘Busty Beatz’ Bowers when she came and performed as part of a sold out show called Sista She. Since then, Busty Beatz has been my hip hop hero! She helped me to realise that girls can be just as good as boys when it comes to hip hop! I’m so excited that I get to interview her!

 

NEEY: Hi Busty Beatz! Wow, it’s so awesome to get to interview you! You’ve been one of my heroes since the first time I saw you perform! Can you remember how old you were when you started to work in the Arts? 

KIM: I was 15, and playing guitar in a band called Spdfgh in the early 90’s. It was an all-girls band, and we had many influences from early Punk, and also Indie flavours. We made a few records with the help of Half a Cow Records and toured relentlessly for about 10 years. 

NEEY: Wow, I never knew you played the guitar! So does Sid! What happened after that?

KIM: I played in a few more bands after that, as well as doing some solo stuff. I mastered my skills as a MC and beatz producer, then got into composition and sound design for theatre. It might seem like an odd transition, but I really had a love for the art form!  At that time, my little sister Candy B was creating an act called Sista She with fellow artist Sarah Ward. They were really gaining some notoriety. They asked if I could program beats for the Hip Hop infused Comedy treats, and a new collaboration was birthed.

NEEY: Performing with your siblings is great fun, isn’t it! What else would you say has been a highlight of your career? 

KIM: There have been so many highlights over the years. Supporting Bikini Kill at the Annandale Hotel. Working with Pioneer Jonzi D on Hip Hop Theatre production East London West Sydney for Sydney Festival was awesome. Late night DJ Sets at the Guilded Balloon at Etinburgh Fringe. Working as Musical Director for Briefs.

NEEY: What projects are you working on now? 

KIM: Candy B and I have set up Black Honey Company, Fearless Sticky Performance. We make cross genre work, music, theatre, live performance and dance for the Hip Hip generation. We have spent the last year touring our kids’ show, MC Platypus and Queen Koala’s Hip Hop Jamboree, Hip Hop Theatre show “Who’s That Chik?” and Comedy show “Australian Booty“.

Currently we are working on Hot Brown Honey Burlesque which is a collaboration between ourselves and Lisa Fa’alafi from Polytoxic Dance Theatre. We have performed at Darwin Festival and Woodford Festival. Its fun, confronting, raw and raunchy. It is also a platform for invited Brown Artists to showcase their skills. We are in creative development with Queensland Theatre Company for our full length musical based on Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night – Twelve: A Soul Musical from the Streets by Candy B and Busty Beatz.

 NEEY: That sounds amazing! You sure are busy! Do you have advice for aspiring artists?

KIM: Keep doing it. Even if it is not where you want it to be, keep doing it. Nothing is ever going to just fall in your lap – you make the work then you work. Be smart. Know your art makes you a change maker. The arts is chaotic and challenging, there are extreme highs and lows, so know your worth. Know your community – you’re an artist and you will need the support of like minded people. Get mentors – know who has come before you, get advice and show respect.

 NEEY: I love the idea that my art can make me a change maker. Busty Beatz, before you go, do you have a favourite memory from the Opera House? 

KIM: I have two memorable moments of the Opera House. The first is when Sista She sold out our inaugural season of “Inna Thigh – The Sista She Story“. We had the most exciting time, coming directly from the Hip Hop underground to the Opera House stage. The second memorable moment was working with the Opera House’s Juvenile Justice program. Candy B, Fred Leone (Impossible Odds) and myself created four tracks with young people in the Opera House Recording Studio with in house engineer, the amazing Jason Blackwell.

 

Isn’t she amazing! You can find out more about Busty Beatz and her work by clicking on the links below! I’m feeling all inspired to go and get practicing!

SidNeey Stars Forever!

 

Neey

WEB:
www.blackhoneycompany.com
www.mcplatypusandqueenkoala.com
www.australianbooty.com
www.hotbrownhoney.com

FACEBOOK:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/MC-Platypus-and-Queen-Koala/294628520666634

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Hot-Brown-Honey-Burlesque/307485559297945?ref=hl

 

Lost Property!

Hi Everyone!

Sid here, and today I am trying to work out who left these things at my home, the Sydney Opera House! You see, I had some of my friends over for game of touch footy on the weekend, and someone left a bag full of stuff! Can you help me figure out who I need to give it back to?

Thanks!

The first thing I can feel is inside a plastic bag. It feels like it is all crumbly and grainy. It’s…

Potting soil! Potting soil? Who carries around a bag full of dirt from the garden? Hmm…

The next thing in the bag feels a lot like paper. In fact, it is paper, but look! It’s music!

 Who do I know who would use this? Do I know anyone who would have a bag of dirt from the garden, and some sheet music in their bag?

I guess I must! But who?

There’s something else in here!

It’s soft… and silky!

It’s ballet slippers!

Ballet slippers?

Really?

Hmmm… I’m trying to think who could have brought these things to the football game. I just can’t work it out!

But these slippers really look familiar. In fact, I think I have seen that sheet music before, too!

Hey!

This is Neey’s bag! Neey loves gardening, and singing, and ballet! It has to be hers!

I better go and find her – she was looking everywhere for her ballet shoes this morning and I bet she’s going to be surprised to see what I found!

SidNeey Stars Forever!

 

Sid