28 June 2019

Seven things to do around Canberra this weekend (28–30 June)

| Zoe Pleasants

These are Extraordinary Eclairs made by award-winning French Chef, Nic Poelaert. These and more at the Handmade Market this weekend. Photo: Handmade Market website.

It is a weekend of film, theatre, music and ethical shopping. The National Film and Sound Archive is screening David Stratton’s annual Essential series of films over the next two weekends. This year, this series features films made by Australian women filmmakers. And Prima Facie, a play about the inadequacies of the Australian legal system, is playing at the Canberra Theatre on Friday and Saturday. Enjoy jazz on Friday night at Makeshift in NewActon, Carmina Burana at Llewellyn Hall on Saturday night and Joseph Tawadros, multi-award winning player of the Oud—a Middle Eastern lute—at the Street Theatre on Sunday afternoon. Shop at the Handmade Markets all weekend and enjoy a styling session at the National Museum shop on Friday night.

All weekend

Handmade Market

Where: Exhibition Park
When: Saturday & Sunday 10 am–4 pm
The Handmade Markets are on again this weekend with stalls selling wares from 260 local and interstate designers and producers. There will be stalls selling art, books, fashion, kids’ stuff, Canberra-themed produce, furniture, homewares, food, stuff for the garden and more. All set in a relaxed environment with plenty of food and good coffee to sustain you and live music to enjoy.

Essential Australian Women Directors—selected by David Stratton

Where: National Film and Sound Archive
When: Friday 10:30 am & 6 pm, Saturday 12 & 2 pm & Sunday 2 pm
Every year, Sydney Film Festival David Stratton curates an Essential retrospective season of films. Previously the Essential season has focused on the work of one significant filmmaker and so far those filmmakers have all been men—Aki Kaurismäki, Martin Scorsese and Ingmar Bergman, for example. This year rather than highlighting the work of one director, David has selected films made by ten Australian women. This weekend see:

  • The Cheaters (1930) directed by Paulette McDonagh (1901–78), Friday 10:30 am
  • Malcolm (1986) directed by Nadia Tass, Friday 6 pm
  • High Tide (1987) directed by Gillian Armstrong, Saturday 12 pm
  • Sweetie (1989) directed by Jane Campion, Saturday 2 pm
  • Love Serenade (1996) directed by Shirley Barrett, Sunday 2 pm

A recurring theme of the ten films is family. Mother and daughter are reunited in High Tide, sisters feature in both Sweetie and Love Serenade and in Malcolm two very different men form an almost fraternal relationship. Tickets for each session are $15 for adults and $13 for concession, or a season pass is $100 for adults, $90 for concession, book here.

Prima Facie

Where: Canberra Theatre
When: Friday 8 pm & Saturday 6 pm
Written by Australian defence lawyer and playwright Suzie Miller and produced by the Griffin Theatre Company, Prima Facie is a play about Tessa, a criminal lawyer at the top of her game. Tessa loves to win cases and knows that to do so she needs to keep emotion out of the courtroom. But when Tessa finds herself on the other side of the bar, she has to confront the price she has extracted from victims of crime to win those cases. Prima Facie is an indictment of Australia’s legal system to provide a reliable pathway to justice for women who have been raped, sexually assaulted or harassed when it is her word against his. Directed by Lee Lewis and starring Sheridan Harbridge as Tessa, Prima Facie is a taut, rapid-fire, gripping one-woman show. Tickets are $69 for adults and $59 for concession, book here.

Friday

Melting Pot

Where: Makeshift, NewActon
When: 8 pm for 8:30 pm
Melting Pot is Canberra’s newest monthly music series. Held on the last Friday of the month in NewActon, it is three hours of original and improvised funk, soul, jazz and blues music. Featuring John Mackey on tenor saxophone, Miroslav Bukovsky on trumpet, Gregg Stott on guitar, Lachlan Coventry on electric bass, Jamie Rea on keys and Peter Campion on drums. This month Melting Pot will also feature special guest Tessie Overmyer on alto saxophone. Tickets are $20 for adults and $18 for concession if you book online and $25 on the door.

Culture Shop

Where: National Museum of Australia
When: 6–8 pm
The Museum’s shop is hosting stylist Trish Murray this Friday night for a seasonal styling session for you and your home. Trish will be joined by a representative from the Australian fashion label Elk Accessories. There will be 20 per cent off storewide on the night, including products by sustainable Australian brands such as Uimi, Waverley Mills and Otto and Spike. Winter warmer soups and drinks will also be available to purchase. Register here.

Saturday

Carmina Burana

Where: Llewellyn Hall ANU
When: 7:30 pm
Conducted by Leonard Weiss, the Canberra Youth Orchestra and Canberra Choral Society are joining forces to perform Carl Orff’s iconic Carmina Burana. The orchestra and choir will also be joined by Seasoned Voices, Canberra’s Children’s Choir and soloists Rachael Duncan, Tobias Cole and Andrew O’Connor. Many of the young performers have been introduced to Carmina Burana though the process of learning and performing it and will bring fresh energy to this work, one of the most popular to be written for orchestra and choir. Tickets are $30 for adults and $20 for concession, book here.

Sunday

Joseph Tawadros Quartet

Where: The Street Theatre
When: 4 pm
Joseph Tawadros is a multi-award-winning player of the Oud—a Middle Eastern lute—a composer, improviser and storyteller. And he is performing with his quartet this Sunday afternoon at the Street Theatre. Joseph’s quartet plays jazz, classical and world music and Joseph’s own compositions which transcend genres. The other members of his quartet are his brother James, a percussionist, bassist Karl Dunnicliff and jazz pianist Matt McMahon. Born in Cairo, Joseph lived in Sydney since he was three years old but currently lives in London. He was nominated for Young Australian of the Year in 2014, received the NSW Premier’s medal for Arts and Culture in the same year and was awarded an Order of Australia Medal for his services to music and composition in 2016. Tickets are $39 for adults, $37 for concession, $30 for under 30s and $25 for students. Book here.

Original Article published by Zoe Pleasants on The RiotACT.