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Cock is an attention-grabbing title for a new drama being staged in Melbourne and Brisbane but there is a lot more to it than any assumption about out-of-control promiscuity.

Australian dance-theatre maker Dalisa Pigram hears the wader bird's call, warning of the changing tides. To turn a deaf ear is to risk drowning - a grave metaphor that floods Pigram's debut solo performance Gudirr Gudirr, which has its Queensland premiere on February 20 as part of the World Theatre Festival at Brisbane Powerhouse.

On February 7, a small group of Australian Defence Force soldiers will be given the opportunity to tell their stories on one of Australia's most prestigious stages. The Long Way Home is a play developed in collaboration between the ADF and the Sydney Theatre Company, and as the title suggests, it's an exploration of the challenges, hurdles and struggles many ADF personnel face when making the transition from war zones to home - oftentimes bearing both physical and mental wounds.

Perth was at the centre of a perfect cultural storm on Saturday night with arts lovers enjoying Bruce Springsteen, Laneway Festival, Perth Fringe and the opening events of Perth Festival. Here's three of the best from Perth Festival's opening weekend.

The demise of Australia's major music festivals points to an increasingly fragmented market where niche is king, writes Ed Gibbs.

Central Sydney was overrun by horses of all sizes and colours on Sunday evening as the city celebrated Chinese New Year.

Oscar-winning American actor Philip Seymour Hoffman has been found dead in his New York City apartment after an apparent drug overdose.

Chinese New Year celebrations have kicked off early in Melbourne with the unveiling of a 100-metre dragon at Docklands.

Often maligned by their ill-informed neighbours in Victoria and New South Wales, South Australians increasingly appear to be having the last laugh on their budget-stretched cousins.

Baz Luhrmann's blockbuster The Great Gatsby has swept the Australian Academy Cinema Television Arts awards in Sydney, winning 13 prizes including best film.

Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby has taken an early lead at the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) Awards, winning all six of the technical awards for which it was nominated.

A proposal to demolish one of inner-Melbourne's biggest live music venues has been rejected.

Australian performers will take centre stage at this year's famous Spring Festival Global Gala concert in Beijing.

Legendary American folk singer Pete Seeger, known for renditions of songs like If I Had A Hammer and Where Have All The Flowers Gone, has died at the age of 94, US media reported.

Jacki Weaver is to be honoured with a lifetime achievement award at the national film and television awards later this week.

In an ongoing series, Julie Rigg explores the way cinema shapes our understanding of great cities.

While the films nominated for the Oscars are, on the whole, worthy of the recognition, it would be nave to assume that campaigning and backstabbing don't play their part in Hollywood's night of nights. Indeed, there's a lot our politicians could learn from the political machinations of Hollywood A-listers. First and foremost, a campaign should never start too early. Secondly, when in doubt, spend money. But there is one thing that Australian politicians can teach Hollywood: how to represent broader society. Compared to the Academy, the Australian Parliament is a bastion of equality.

French electronic duo Daft Punk have dominated the 2014 Grammy Awards, winning five gongs including Album of the Year and Recording of the Year. The band - consisting of Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel De Homem-Christo - took the awards by storm with their hit single Get Lucky from the album Random Access Memories. Their five awards in total added to the two they took out in 2009. New Zealand 17-year-old sensation Lorde (real name is Ella Yelich-O'Connor) also had a night to remember, winning two Grammys for her hit song Royals, which came in at number two on triple j's Hottest 100.

Filmmaker Andrew Kidman explains why he took on the task of creating a homage to one of surfing's most iconic pictures.

A new production of the 1975 play The Floating World has scooped a cluster of prizes at the Sydney Theatre Awards.

A Melbourne-based multidisciplinary artist has beaten controversial Russian punk band Pussy Riot to win a $US20,000 ($22,000) Asian art prize.