Bianca Del Rio livens up your week with her Dead Inside Tour. Photo: Events Canberra.
Get ready for a busy week in the bush capital. Movies, art, book fairs, the NRL pre-season, musical powerhouses and virtuosos … and the Multicultural Festival! It’s all happening, and it’s all exciting. Let us bring you the best of what’s to come in the next few days from all across Canberra.
Multiple Days
Dancers take centre stage to celebrate their heritage. Photo: Events Canberra.
National Multicultural Festival
When: 7 February to 9 February
Where: Garema Place and Glebe Park, Garema Place
Cost: Free.
The National Multicultural Festival is back and even bigger than last year. Over 170 different cultures will be celebrated through more than 200 performances, 270 food and culture stalls, hands-on workshops, family-friendly activities and a multicultural parade.
Immerse yourself in the many cultures of Australia, experience the sights, sounds and flavours that make them unique and gain personal insight into the customs of people from just about everywhere you can imagine.
Free public transport and shuttle buses are available to ease movement to the festival.
A young man juggles commitments to family, love, school and religion in Ali’s Wedding. Image: NFSA.
This week at the NFSA
When: 7 February to 14 February
Where: Arc Cinema, 1 McCoy Circuit, Acton
Cost: $12 to $16.
This week, the NFSA is celebrating love with Valentine’s Day-themed films. As always, the NFSA excels in variety, and this week’s theme is no different.
Royal Wedding (1951) is a postwar musical telling the story of a pair of dancing siblings who bring their show to London just in time to see the titular royal wedding. It’s playing on Friday at 7 pm.
Adam Sandler’s The Wedding Singer is a comedic nostalgia trip through the 80s, following an embittered wedding singer left at the altar who has a change of heart at the prospect of new love.
On the big day itself (14 February, in case it skipped your mind, at 7 pm), Hugh Grant and Andie MacDowell star in the 1994 Oscar-nominated instant classic Four Weddings and a Funeral.
The NFSA will also play a special dementia-friendly screening of the 2017 romantic comedy Ali’s Wedding on 8 February at 10:30 am. The film follows Ali, a young man with a girl on his mind. The problem is she’s not the girl that he has been promised to. Ali also has to balance that with being a cleric’s son. Will he fulfil the lofty plans his family has for him?
This screening includes a welcome tea and coffee, an introduction, and an intermission. It will be supervised by Dementia Australia-trained venue staff and will feature low light and quieter sound.
Liza Fauls’ Springtime shows her creative use of multimedia in art. Image: Belco Arts.
Neither Here Nor There
When: 7 February to 13 February, during normal gallery hours. Exhibition opening 7 February 6 pm.
Where: Belconnen Arts Centre, 118 Emu Bank, Belconnen
Cost: Free.
When Liz Faul found an old book in an op-shop with photos of Canberra from the 40s, it started her on a journey thinking about the city and what it means to her. Liz utilises her 23 years of multimedia and visual art experience to create unique pieces that detail Canberra’s history and its personality and her relation to the city.
Faul uses various tools to tell the story of Canberra, including geography, silhouettes, maps and intricate portraits of the city’s flora and fauna. These help viewers see their city in a different light.
Expand your library and your mind at the Lifeline Bookfair. Photo: Lifeline.
Lifeline Canberra Bookfair
When: 7 February, 9 am to 6 pm, 8 February 9 am to 5 pm, 9 February 9 am to 4 pm
Where: Exhibition Park in Canberra (EPIC), cnr Northbourne Av & Flemington Rd, Mitchell
Cost: Entry via gold coin donations, contactless available for cashless transactions.
Fiction, non-fiction, textbooks, foreign language books, maps, CDs and DVDs … It’d almost be easier to name the things that won’t be at the Lifeline Bookfair this weekend. There’s really no telling what treasures you may find. Organisers tell stories of first-edition Harry Potter and Lewis Carroll books uncovered by intrepid bibliophiles, which should be enough to attract every bookworm within flying distance.
The Bookfair also accepts donations all weekend at a designated place near the entrance.
Australian culinary history at the National Museum of Australia. Photo: National Museum of Australia.
Tasting Australia
When: 7 February 3 pm to 4:30 pm, 8 February 9:30 am to 11 am and 12 pm to 1:30 pm
Where: Christina and Trevor Kennedy Garden, National Museum of Australia
Cost: $30 to $35.
This guided walk through the Christina and Trevor Kennedy Garden will show you the plants that have served as medicine and food for Indigenous Australians for thousands of years. The program will begin with a guided tour by Adam Shipp, a Wiradjuri man of Yurbay Consultancies and a passionate advocate for bush foods. The event will finish off with a tasting of some of the bush foods. It’s a unique way to learn about the culinary history of Australia and the way that native foods were found and consumed throughout history.
Friday
Steven Holland’s Sito is part of one of the exhibitions showing at Tuggeranong Arts Centre until 5 April. Photo: Brenton McGeachie.
Exhibitions Opening at Tuggeranong Arts Centre
When: Exhibitions official opening Friday, 7 February 2025, 6 pm. Exhibitions showing until 5 April.
Where: Tuggeranong Arts Centre
Cost: Free.
Three new exhibitions open at Tuggeranong Arts Centre at 6 pm on Friday, 7 February 2025.
Please join us and celebrate with the artists at the official opening of:
- Steven Holland – moonsnake: Thinking about possible connections between the moon and snakes, Steven Holland brings together a recent series of yellow-snake dream drawings with a selection of his bronze Serpent sculptures that were created over several decades.
- John Brookes – unconditional: The images explore different nuances of love exploring how – whilst love can bring joy and happiness – it has a deeper, more self-reflective and pensive side: a truly complex emotion. The diversity of exhibition works reflect the multi-faceted qualities of love, in terms of media used as well as subjects – images will use photography, painting, charcoal, digital media, pencil sketching, ink on wood, and 3D installation.
- This is Studio& – Studio& Inclusive Art Program: This exhibition is a wonderful reminder the power art has in personal expression and community building. Studio& demonstrates that art exists in the exchange, process, collaboration, providing access to and noticing in everyday life.
Braithwaite is on at the Playhouse for just one night. Image: Canberra Theatre Centre.
Daryl Braithwaite at the Canberra Theatre Centre
When: 7 February, 8 pm
Where: The Playhouse, Canberra Theatre Centre, Civic Square, London Circuit
Cost: Tickets from $79– $89.
Daryl Braithwaite is a heavyweight in the Australian musical world and his established hits from the 70s, 80s and 90s have made him a household name. It’d be easy to rest on those fairly comfortable laurels, but he’s still performing his catalogue of songs both old and new, all dear to the hearts of Aussies. Come see a living Australian musical legend at the Canberra Theatre Centre this Friday.
Sunday
Enjoy an all-you-can-eat Parrilla Feast at Southern Cross Club. Photo: Canberra Southern Cross Club.
All-You-Can-Eat Parrilla Feast and Good Vibes
When: 9 February, 11 am to 4 pm
Where: Canberra Southern Cross Club Tuggeranong
Cost: $49pp, $29 for children 12 and under + free drink on arrival, bookings essential.
Get ready for a sizzling Saturday or Sunday afternoon of mouth-watering Parrilla (pah-rree-shah), live tunes, and good company! This unique event features as much as you can eat Parrilla BBQ meats, fresh salads, and a laid-back atmosphere perfect for sharing with friends.
The UC Capitals go over tactics. Photo: Events Canberra.
WNBL Round 11: UC Capitals v Sydney Flames
When: 9 February, 3:30 pm
Where: AIS Arena, 26 Leverrier St, Bruce
Cost: $20 to $40.
The UC Capitals suffered a heartbreaking overtime loss to the Sydney Flames in one of the games of the season last Friday, and even a spirited performance by captain Jade Melbourne wasn’t enough to get the Caps over the line. Will this week be different when the Caps hit the hardwood at Bruce? Be there and find out this Sunday.
It’s not often you get to witness a virtuoso in the flesh. Photo: The Street.
The Oud Unleashed by Joseph Tawadros
When: 9 February, 4 pm
Where: The Street Theatre, 15 Childers St, City West
Cost: Tickets from $42 to $50.
Six-time ARIA award-winning composer and Oud talent Joseph Tawadros brings his musical skill and personality to this special show. To create his unique sound, Tawadros draws on millennia of musical history as well as more modern influences from musical disciplines like jazz, bluegrass and prog rock. His music ranges from relentless, high-energy songs to more contemplative and relaxed tunes. Throughout the performance, he also brings a lot of personality, with onstage humour and storytelling.
It’s a rare opportunity to see a real virtuoso, with the flair of a born performer, show off the flexibility and range of an ancient instrument.
Monday
Kim Vella Coaching is hosting a free inside look into their Leadership Series. Image: Kim Vella Coaching.
Inside Look: Free webinars for public sector leaders
When: 10 February, 7 pm
Where: Online (via Teams)
Cost: Free. Bookings are essential.
In today’s volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) world, public sector leaders face unique challenges that demand more than traditional leadership approaches. This inside look is a monthly opportunity to explore one key “gap” holding leaders back from thriving in their roles, giving participants a taste of Kim Vella Coaching’s Leadership Series.
Tuesday
Flamboyant, fun and full of energy, Bianca Del Rio never fails to entertain. Image: Bianca Del Rio: Dead Inside CANBERRA/Facebook.
Bianca Del Rio: The Dead Inside World Comedy tour
When: 11 February, 8:15 pm
Where: Llewellyn Hall, ANU
Cost: $120 to $180.
Bianca Del Rio, winner of season six of RuPaul’s Drag Race and one of New York Magazine’s ‘Most Powerful Drag Queens’ is touring down under. On her sixth comedy world tour, she’s bringing her wit, her honesty and, most importantly, her sparkly outfits to Canberra to cover a broad range of topics from politics, everyday life, pop culture and political correctness. She’s put butts on seats in 27 countries and her current tour is selling out worldwide, so book now and don’t miss out on this chance to see a drag queen legend live, even though she’s here to remind us that she’s ‘dead inside’.
Thursday
The countdown to the 2025 NRL season has begun. Photo: Jayzie Photography.
Raiders v Sharks – NRL Pre-Season Challenge Round 2
When: 13 February, 7:50 pm
Where: GIO Stadium Canberra, Battye Street, Bruce
Cost: Tickets from $10 to $40.
Footy season is almost here, but before the NRL proper kicks off in Vegas, the teams will hit the field for the Pre-Season Challenge.
Get out to GIO Stadium and check out the Raiders taking on the Sharks. It’s a new-look team with some major changes – could this be a big year for the Green Machine?
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