31 October 2019

Ten things to do around Canberra this weekend (1–3 November)

| Zoe Pleasants
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Nick Kyrgios

The Canberra Tennis Centre is hosting a Community Tennis Day this Saturday. Superstar Nick Kyrgios will be on-site signing autographs at the NK Foundation stall. Photo: Michelle Kroll, Region Media.

Afterlife and new life are being celebrated this weekend. On Friday night the National Film and Sound Archive is screening a double-feature of obscure Australian Halloween-inspired movies and keeping its Game Masters exhibition open late. Then on Saturday, the Latin American Festival Day of the Dead is being celebrated at the Polish Club. SpringOUT, Canberra’s annual pride festival kicks off with CBR Fair Day at Gorman House this Saturday, and the Portrait Gallery is hosting its own Spring Festival this Sunday. There are also night markets in Dickson this Friday night as part of the Woolley Street Project and the Makers and Shakers Market returns to the Old Bus Depot in Kingston this Saturday featuring local makers and producers. The Portrait Gallery is hosting the last of its Fashionably Late spring soirees this Friday night and the best of Japanese bikes and cars will be taking over EPIC this Saturday.

All weekend

Woolley Street Project

Where: Woolley Street, Dickson
When: Friday 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm & Saturday 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
The City Renewal Authority is hosting a series of events to trial the use of Dickson’s Woolley Street precinct for community events. Last week they held an open-air cinema, this week they are hosting Night Markets on Friday night and an Origami and Paper Fesitval and a Bonsai and Plant Sale on Saturday. Next week, look out for the Great Woolley Street Feast which will showcase and celebrate Dickson’s many great restaurants. The Night Markets will run from 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm this Friday and will feature stalls of local producers and makers and live entertainment. Combine vibrant late-night shopping with great food from one of Dickson’s restaurants, check out the line-up of performers here. Then on Saturday between 10:00 am and 2:00 pm, find your zen by joining:

  • Local origami experts Makiko from Makico. Happy Creations and Nicolle to learn the traditional art of paper folding and test your skills making anything from an intricate crane to a simple star. There will be public demonstrations and workshops which you sign up for on a whiteboard. Check out the program here.
  • Urban Jungle Canberra, Young Bonsai and Planted for a bonsai and plant sale. There will be indoor plants, pots, bonsai and terrariums for sale as well as workshops and demonstrations on plant care, propagation and the craft of bonsai. Check out the program here.

Friday

Fresh Faced Funk

Where: Tuggeranong Arts Centre
When: 7:30 pm
The Fresh Faced Funk Young Choreographers Initiative invites students to create, rehearse and perform a new dance work. The program has been running for over 10 years and this weekend the latest cohort of choreographers will be showcasing their works. The contemporary and hip-hop dance works are rehearsed for seven weeks and are performed by duos to large ensembles and any size group in between. The young choreographers have full control over their work including lighting design and costumes. Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for concession, book here.

Fashionably Late

Where: National Portrait Gallery
When: 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm
It is the last of the Portrait Gallery’s spring soirees this Friday night. Take a guided tour of the Women in Vogue exhibition, enjoy music from Shoeb Ahmad, Neko Pink and LIV LI, and a sustainable fashion parade showcasing local designers Karen Lee, Edition and Pure Pod. CIT hairdressers will be back to give you a hairdo inspired by the exhibition. Free entry, a ticket for the Vogue exhibition required for the tour.

Game Masters—Friday Night Lates: Halloween Creature Features

Where: National Film and Sound Archive
When: From 5:00 pm
The National Film and Sound Archive is celebrating Halloween this Friday with two Halloween-inspired movies and after-hours access to the NFSA’s Games Masters Exhibition until 8:00 pm, a bar and music in the courtyard. The movies are:

  • Razorback (1984)—6:30 pm—a tongue-in-cheek movie which features a wild boar terrorising the Australian outback. Having lost his son to the beast, Jake vows revenge and enlists the help of Carl who is looking for his wife. Directed by Russell Mulcahy.
  • Howling III: The Marsupials (1987)—8:15 pm—this movie tells the story of the werewolf Jerboa who has escaped her tribe and is seeking refuge in Sydney. There she meets and falls in love with Donny Martin and together they have a baby marsupial werewolf! Directed by Philippe Mora.

Saturday

JDM Masters

Where: Exhibition Park
When: 11:00 am – 4:00 pm
JDM Masters – the Japanese Car and Bike Show – returns to EPIC this weekend. It will feature over 250 Toyota, Nissan, Mitsubishi and Subaru cars and Kawasaki, Honda, Suzuki and Yamaha bikes as well as a program full of music and entertainment including plenty of kids activities. Entry costs $5 at door, kids under 12 are free with a paying adult.

Makers and Shakers Market

Where: Old Bus Depot, Kingston
When: 10:00 am – 3:00 pm
The Makers and Shakers Market is on again this Saturday at the Old Bus Depot in Kingston. The market will feature 70 stalls selling clothes, jewellery, accessories, food and homewares. Check out the stalls here. Get a headstart on your Christmas shopping.

CBR Fair Day 2019

Where: Gorman Arts Centre
When: 11:00 am – 4:00 pm
Canberra’s pride festival, SpringOUT, starts this weekend and runs until 24 November. The festival celebrates Canberra’s LGBTIQ+ community and Canberra as Australia’s most LGBTIQ+ friendly city. As is tradition, the festival starts with CBR Fair Day this Saturday at Gorman House. Hosted by Jordan Raskopoulos, it will be a fabulous day of music, performances, activities, delicious food and market stalls, head-lined by Brendan Maclean. This year marks 20 years of CBR Fair Day launching SpringOUT and the event organisers are inviting you to connect with friends, bright ideas and new experiences; create memories, happiness and art; and celebrate all the wonderful, brave and loveable aspects of Canberra’s LGBTIQ+ culture. This is a family and pet-friendly event; enter your fur baby in the Rainbow Pet Parade here. Parade at 11:00 am.

Community Tennis Day

Where: Canberra Tennis Centre, Lyneham
When: 10:00 am – 12:00 pm
The Canberra Tennis Centre is hosting a Community Tennis Day this Saturday. There will be activities for the kids, including ANZ Tennis Hot Shots sessions, a jumping castle and face painting, a chance for parents to dust off their tennis racquets and get out on the court for cardio tennis sessions, a sausage sizzle and much more. Further details here.

Day of the Dead Fiesta

Where: White Eagle Polish Club
When: 12:00 noon – 8:30 pm
Day of the Dead Fiesta or Dia De Muertos is an annual celebration of Latin American music, dance, food and art. Canberra’s celebration of the event is now in its 8th year and features live music and cultural performances, a piñata for kids, a traditional altar – orfenda – built by the local Mexican community, and of course, face painting. Mexican performer, Karina Salgado will MC the event. Eat pan de muertos and mark the Day of the Dead by enjoying the best in life. Note that this year, this event has moved to the White Eagle Polish Club. Tickets are $30 for adults, $25 for concession, $15 for kids aged 5–15 (kids 5 and under are free) and $80 for a family (2 adults and 2 kids). Check out the music and performance line-up and book tickets here.

Sunday

Spring Festival

Where: National Portrait Gallery
When: 11:00 am – 3:00 pm
The National Portrait Gallery is celebrating its renewal with a free Spring Festival this Sunday featuring the Balinese puppeteers, Super Funky Khan Art. There will be performances, live music, movie screenings, tours and fun activities throughout the day. Make a sock puppet from your lonely or discarded sock(s), build a fort using recycled cardboard boxes and masking tape (what else would you need?), watch performances by Super Funky Khan Art, with opportunities to join in at 12:00 pm and 1:30 pm, or a screening of the Disney Pixar movie WALL-E (2008) at 12:30 pm and 2:00 pm (runs for 98 minutes). Take a tour of the gallery with the Sock Sprite at 12:30 pm and 2:00 pm and bop, boogie or tap your toe to the Black Mountain String Band.

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