Vivid Sydney celebrates the grit and glitter of Kings Cross

For the first time, Kings Cross will be an exciting precinct that includes all Vivid Sydney pillars of light, music and ideas, called Vivid KX. The program will include a wonderful mix of genres, theatre, performance, story-telling and light art, and celebrate exactly what makes Kings Cross so special.

Vivid KX will explore the bohemian underworlds that gave The Cross its unique DNA through a genre-bending performance program; pop-up cinema screening the strangest, craziest and best in Australian film; and raw and riveting talks of the days of the ‘Golden Mile’.

For the first time at Kings Cross, the Coca-Cola billboard will come alive to celebrate the talent, colour, creativity and diversity of Kings Cross. Shot by portrait photographer Katherine Williams the Characters of Kings Cross series will feature moving black-and-white portraits of the individuals that make Kings Cross so special. The projected images will feature on the left-hand side of the sign, and will include familiar faces such as Kylie Kwong, along with other Kings Cross locals.

The famous Coca-Cola LED billboard will for the first time in 40 years transform into a continuous light show of vibrant colours and special effects for the entire 23 nights of Vivid Sydney.

Some of the many Vivid KX highlights include:

• Cult Sinema Australiana: Discover the stories behind the stories when Sydney’s cultural underground legends Jay Katz and Miss Death present a subversive program of infamous, legendary and rarely seen cinematic gems in a pop-up cinema, including insights and rare commentary from geniuses who created the weird, ultra-camp and high-art masterpieces. When: 1 – 17 June Where: Kings Cross Hotel

• Hidden Sydney - The Glittering Mile: A wonderfully witty, exceptionally exhilarating cabaret set in a former brothel, dedicated to the cast of colourful characters who made the 50s, 60s and 70s the Golden Age of The Cross, from standover men, crims and crooks to poets, drag queens, witches and eccentric entertainers.When: 26 May – 17 June Where: The World Bar

• Only Heaven Knows: This beloved musical set in bohemian Kings Cross in the 1940s and 50s, tells of a young gay man’s discovery of love and life, which, in the heady freedom of the post-war day, is rudely interrupted with the cold winds of intolerance. When: 26 May – 17 June Where: Hayes Theatre, Potts Point