Sydney's hotlist

Catch The Dirty Three at The Metro tonight before they relocate to the UK in protest at the stinky acoustics they suffered in the Go Pavilion at Sydney's Big Day Out. Special guests Louis Tillett and Charlie Owen, The Thirteens and Automatic Cherry. Tickets $10 in advance, $12 at the door. 8.30 pm.

SATURDAY

If the ankle-biters aren't tuckered out from back-to-school high jinks, send them off to a sports-themed, beach-inspired workout at Bondi Beach between 2 and 5 pm. Main attraction is the terrorist-taming obstacle course including challenges such as the "Fish Catch-a-Tory" and "Elastic Jungle". Nick Takes Over Your Beach moves to Coogee on Feb 17 and North Wollongong on Feb 24. Phone 200 1781. Free.

SUNDAY

Ensemble 24 is the brainchild of cellist Peter Morrison who has assembled 24 of Australia's best classical musicians to begin a four-concert series at The University of Sydney's Great Hall today. 4 pm.

MONDAY

Cybernetic sins and stock market terrorism abound when the super hacker codenamed Puppet Master lets fly during the Manga Film Festival at the Chinatown Cinema until Wednesday. A selection of classic Japanese animations (pictured) as well as new releases screen 1 pm, 5 pm, 7 pm, 9 pm and 11 pm daily. Goulburn Street.

TUESDAY

Max Gillies does Tim "I Love silverchair" Fischer, Johnny "Imagine That" Howard, Paul "You don't have to like him and you don't have to vote for him either" Keating et al in Live at the Club Republic,

8 pm, Playhouse Theatre, Opera House.

WEDNESDAY

Perform the pelvic floor exercises everyone knows you're doing when mambo kings Sierra Maestra appear with the man billed as Britain's leading tropical DJ, Dave "El" Hucker, at The Basement tonight. $22, 8.30 pm.

THURSDAY

Nineteenth-century academic painting meets the Satan-obsessed "cloak and daggerism" of Scandinavian heavy metal at an

exhibition of recent work by Stieg Persson, one of Australia's best new contemporary artists. Art Gallery of NSW.