Ten things to do in Canberra this week (19 - 25 March)

As usual, the week ahead in Canberra is jam-packed with events that will satisfy all of the family.

There’s another instalment of Mentor Walks, letting women at all stages of their careers connect as they take a morning walk around Lake Burley Griffin. Women looking to improve their public speaking can also head along to WomenSpeak.

If you’re after events the whole family can enjoy, the Lifeline Book Fair is back and there’ll be a variety of multicultural performances at the Lake to celebrate Harmony Day. The hotly anticipated Fangirls will also make its debut at the Canberra Theatre.

Want to get your tastebuds tingling? There’s the Canberra Craft Beer & Festival and Fraser Grocer’s chilli hot sauce tasting event, and all week the Celebrate Gungahlin Festival will keep you entertained.

We haven’t forgotten sports lovers. Tennis ACT’s Canberra Girls Get Active event will be a smash (literally!) and get in the saddle for the Pedal Power Big Canberra Bike Ride.

If you reckon you’re up to it, the Australian School of Stand-up Comedy is running a week-long workshop.

Have a great week, Canberra!

All week

Celebrate Gungahlin

When: 20 to 28 March
Where: Events will take place across Gungahlin; check the website for details
Cost: Free.

Celebrate Gungahlin is a nine-day spectacular celebrating the culture, community spirit and resilience of Gungahlin’s people, community groups and businesses. Uncover new friends and hidden gems in your local area, and learn to see the place you love in a whole new light.

Events will take place right across Gungahlin in a multitude of venues. Many events are free, and there’s something in the program for everyone! While much of the wider world is still off-limits, take a breath and dive deep into your own community and explore all the delights our region has to offer.

Australia’s School of Stand-up Comedy 2021 Five Day Course

When: Starts on Sunday, 21 March from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm
Where: Nesuto Canberra Apartment Hotel, 2 Akuna Stree
Cost: $317.58 – $370.33, tickets available via Eventbrite.

Budding comedians better dust off their microphones and polish their best stage shoes as Australia’s School of Stand-up Comedy is set to celebrate its 11th year of professional stand-up comedy training by delivering its nation-leading course.

Although they make learning comedy fun, it’s not a joke. It’s a serious course with a fair amount of work writing, doing homework and performing in class.

Friday

Mentor Walks Canberra – Fresh Air Walk

When: Friday, 19 March, 7:10 am to 8:30 am
Where: National Library of Australia, Parkes Place, Parkes
Cost: $30 per person, tickets available through Eventbrite.

Mentor Walks bring women from all stages of their careers together, giving them the chance to spend an hour in the morning walking around Lake Burley Griffin and discussing all things career-related, from how to ask for a pay rise to how to excel at an interview.

Mentors and mentees will be pre-matched before the event, so registration is essential.

Saturday

Chilli Hot Sauce Tasting Event

When: Saturday, 20 March, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
Where: Fraser Grocer, 4 Daley Crescent, Fraser
Cost: Free.

Calling all spice fanatics and die-hard chilli fans, Fraser Grocer’s inaugural chilli hot sauce tasting event is on! You’d best believe us when we say this is not one for the spice-shy.

They have teamed up with Canberra Chilli and Hot Sauces and will have a range of products for you to try, all of which are exclusive to Fraser Grocer.

There will also be challenges for the daring, but take heed, there will be tears.

Canberra Craft Beer & Cider Festival

When: Saturday, 20 March, 11:00 am to 6:00 pm
Where: The grounds of the Mercure Hotel, Canberra, cnr Ainslie & Limestone Ave, Braddon
Cost: $20 pp + booking fee, tickets through Moshtix. $30 pp + booking fee on the day. Children under 18 free.

Set in the Mercure Hotel’s heritage grounds, the Canberra Craft Beer & Festival truly features the ‘best of the best’, with entertainment the whole family can enjoy.

There will be over 40 exhibitors on the day and more than 250 different beers and ciders to try from all around Australia.

Live entertainment, great food and a range of high-quality food will also be available.

Meet the brewers, watch master demonstrations, enter the giveaways, enjoy the atmosphere and donate to the Charity Raffle for Rise Above Cancer Relief.

The Festival will be held in two ticketed sessions in line with COVID-19 restrictions, and so more Canberrans can experience the great drops on offer. The first will run from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm and the second from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm. The Festival will be a cashless event.

Sunday

Tennis ACT’s Canberra Girls Get Active Day

When: Sunday, 21 March, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Where: Canberra Tennis Centre, 1 Riggall Pl, Lyneham
Cost: Free.

Tennis ACT has teamed up with a variety of sports across the capital to host a free community event aimed at inspiring, energising and empowering young women to be more active.

The first 100 girls aged 14 or under through the gates will receive a free tennis racquet. The event is open to women and girls of all ages and abilities, and boys and men are more than welcome to attend.

There will also be free classes to try out from our friends at Next Gen, Tennis 4 Teens lessons, a jumping castle, roaming characters, a fundraising BBQ, tunes from a local DJ and much more!

For more information, visit Tennis ACT.

Pedal Power Big Canberra Bike Ride

When: Sunday, 21 March 2021
Where: Parkes Place West, Parkes
Cost: Entry ranges from free to $120, registrations essential at Pedal Power.

Put your pedal to the metal and celebrate all things cycling at the Big Canberra Bike Ride.

This will be Pedal ACT’s 20th annual event, and hundreds are expected to join the festivities. There are rides to suit all skill and experience levels, free family-friendly activities, and delicious food and drink at our event hub on Rond Terrace.

Best of all, every rider will receive a medal!

See the website for the full program of rides.

Unveiling of the Peace Pole 100 of 100

When: Sunday, 21 March, 11:30 am to 1:30 pm
Where: Canberra Nara Peace Park Yarralumla ACT. Flynn Drive Yarralumla, opposite the Hyatt Hotel
Cost: Free.

To celebrate 2021’s Harmony Day, Canberra Multicultural Community Forum and the Rotary Clubs of Canberra and Canberra Burley Griffin cordially invite you to participate in the ceremony Unveiling the Peace Pole 100 of 100.

There will be plenty of multicultural performances on the day to keep you entertained, and you’re encouraged to bring along your own food, drinks and seating.

The event will be COVID-safe and social distancing requirements are in place.

Wednesday

Fangirls at Canberra Theatre

When: Opening night Wednesday, 24 March, 7:00 pm
Where: The Playhouse, Canberra Theatre Centre, Civic Square, London Cct
Cost: from $49 to $99, tickets available via Canberra Theatre Centre.

The hotly anticipated Fangirls is set to make its debut at Canberra Theatre. Performances will run over five days starting from 24 March.

Witty Fangirls follows the story of Edna, a plucky misfit scholarship girl who believes that she alone can win the heart of the world’s biggest pop star, Harry.

The show’s creator, Sydney-born Yve Blake set out to write a show that she wished her 14-year-old self could have seen, a comedy all about the ways that the world tries to convince young women that they’re not as worthy as their brothers.

Thursday

Lifeline Canberra Book Fair

When: From Thursday, 25 March to Sunday, 28 March
Where: Thoroughbred Park, 1 Randwick Rd, Lyneham
Cost: Entry by gold coin donation.

Lifeline’s much-loved fundraising event is back again. Maybe it was because COVID-19 turned us all into bookworms again, but there’s never been such interest in their book fairs.

They have a wide range of fiction and non-fiction books, including rare books and collectibles, children’s books, textbooks, and foreign language books. You’ll also find magazines and pamphlets, sheet music, comics, maps and atlases, talking books, records and CDs, DVDs, games and jigsaws.

Lifeline Book Fairs are essential fundraisers for local crisis support services, so you’re doing yourself and others a good turn. The event is COVID-safe.

Original Article published by Lottie Twyford on The RiotACT.