With Easter marking a pause in the pace of the year, April offers the perfect window to catch up — or get ahead — on culture.
Fortunately, the month delivers, with a lineup spanning film, television, exhibitions and new-season reads. Here is everything worth investing your time in.
FameSick
It’s been 12 years since writer, director and actor Lena Dunham published her bestselling debut Not That Kind of Girl, following her success creating and starring in Girls. Now she returns with a candid memoir about the decade that followed: chronic illness, ambition and the personal cost of life in the spotlight.
Famesick by Lena Dunham (HarperCollins, $34.99) is out April 14.
Flora
Treat yourself to a night of dance at Flora, a collaboration between The Australian Ballet and Bangarra Dance Theatre. With an ensemble of more than 35 dancers, Flora explores the history and resilience of our landscape and its people through the life and renewal of flora.
From April 7 to 18; visit australianballet.com.au.
Your Friends & Neighbours Season 2
If you haven’t seen Jon Hamm’s drama about rich people behaving badly, binge it before season two drops on April 3. Your Friends & Neighbours returns for more glossy suburban suspense, where polished lives hide messy secrets. After losing his job, Andrew Cooper (Hamm) turns to robbing his wealthy neighbours to maintain his lavish lifestyle, exposing the moral rot beneath their picture-perfect lives.
Stream it on Apple TV from April 3.
The River
Miranda Otto returns to the stage for The River, a tense, poetic two-person drama set in a remote cabin. When a man brings a woman to a secluded retreat for a romantic fishing escape, his account of past lovers begins to shift and contradict itself, and the mood turns quietly menacing as truth and fantasy blur.
From March 30 to May 9; sydneytheatre.com.au.
Mother Mary
Before you see Anne Hathaway step back into Andy Sachs’ heels in The Devil Wears Prada 2, don’t miss her in Mother Mary, a stylish, psychologically charged drama about a volatile global pop star unravelling behind the scenes.
In cinemas April 16.
Parrtjima – A Festival of Light
If you’re in the Northern Territory this month, don’t miss the 10th annual Parrtjima festival. Over 10 nights, large-scale light installations transform the desert landscape of Alice Springs
(Mparntwe), sharing powerful Aboriginal stories in an unforgettable open-air setting.
From April 10 to 19; parrtjimaaustralia.com.au
This Music May Contain Hope
For years, Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies” reigned supreme as the solo girls’ anthem. That is, until Raye dropped the chart-topping “Where is My Husband!” Now, she delivers 16 additional
tracks in her sophomore album, This Music May Contain Hope, promising a joy-filled soundtrack for women everywhere.
Stream it from March 27.
The Madison
Michelle Pfeiffer and Kurt Russell reunite nearly 40 years after Tequila Sunrise in The Madison, a six-part drama from Taylor Sheridan, creator of the Yellowstone universe. They play Stacy and Preston Clyburn, a married couple of more than 40 years whose enduring love shapes the lives of those around them.
Stacy thrives in their luxurious New York City life with their two daughters, while Preston dreams of Montana’s wild Madison River Valley. When tragedy strikes, the family travels west, sparking a city-meets-country journey of grief, healing, and self-discovery.
Stream it on Paramount+
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