The Wilds (Sidney Myer Music Bowl) – exhibition review

The Wilds, which is the centrepiece of this year’s Rising cultural and artistic festival, is a sensory sensation that I would highly commend to you. You can readily complete a circuit around the “Bowl” in less than an hour. I chose to spend more time there, dwelling around certain installations and taking in the experience of the ice-skating rink, known as Rinky Dink, which you can buy tickets for and then gain entry to The Wilds.

Large, colourful, lit inflatables, artistic sculptures and small green houses are features of The Wilds. They are most creative and quite captivating. In short, well worth a look. Add to that, equally colourful, globular imagery is projected onto the walls of either side of the Bowl and onto a multi-screen set up in the gardens surrounding it.

And then you have the performances by a most talented caterwauling choir in the body of the “Bowl”. The members of the choir harmonise magnificently to popular songs, such as Adele’s Rolling in the Deep and the Eurythmics Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This), to name but two.

Looking down on the skaters, with the choir on either side of the skating rink, at colourful video screens and a couple of super-sized inflatables hanging from the roof is an awesome experience. So, too, the whole event against the night sky, with Melbourne’s CBD skyscrapers as a backdrop.

While wandering through I also came across a collection of street performers in ethereal dress, which added to the mystique. If you want to elevate the experience, you can also take in The Lighthouse, which is a glass-domed fine dining pop up helmed by celebrated chefs David Moyle, Jo Barrett and Curtis Stone.

Regardless, you should buy a ticket to see The Wilds, which is a really well conceived and orchestrated highlight of Rising. The festival continues until 12th June, 2022. To buy tickets and see the whole program, consisting of 225 events involving 801 artists, go to https://rising.melbourne

Alex First