I subscribe to all the things so you don’t have to. This is a curated list of what’s been announced over the past week so you can save the date, or swoop on tickets, and also a list of what’s coming up soon if you’re looking to make last-minute plans
What’s new?
Cold Chisel announce huge 50th anniversary tour
Iconic Australian rock band Cold Chisel are gearing up to celebrate their 50 years in music with a special tour, promising to deliver all their greatest hits. They’ll be coming to Melbourne, Mornington and Ballarat in October and November.
Amy Shark to play at Sidney Myer Music Bowl in October
One of Australia’s premier pop successes, the 8 times ARIA Award winner Amy Shark, has today announced The Sadness Tour – a headline tour of Australia and New Zealand in October and November that will follow the August 16 release of her upcoming third studio album ‘Sunday Sadness’.
Jim Jefferies adds a Geelong show to his upcoming tour
Homegrown comedy superstar Jim Jefferies’ Melbourne performance at Margaret Court Arena sold out instantly on release. Now Victorian fans can have another opportunity to catch the comedy legend at Geelong’s Costa Hall on Thursday 8 August.
See Sex and the City creator Candace Bushnell on stage
International best-selling novelist, author and creator of iconic TV show Sex and The City, Candace Bushnell, is bringing her acclaimed one-woman show “True Tales of Sex, Success and SEX AND THE CITY” to Australia in December 2024. The show will see Candace sharing her remarkable philosophy through stories of fashion, literature, and, of course, sex.
Bernard Fanning and Paul Dempsey to tour their new act
Aussie rockstars Bernard Fanning (Powderfinger) and Paul Dempsey (Something For Kate) have teamed up on a new collaboration called Fanning Dempsey National Park – and they’re dropping an album and going on tour. Their debut album, The Deluge will be released on 2 August and they’ll tour Australia in October and November,
Out On The Weekend Festival date and lineup announced
Melbourne’s favourite Americana, alt country, country and western lifestyle music festival Out On The Weekend, celebrates 10 years of good times at Seaworks, Williamstown on Saturday October 12. The lineup has been revealed and includes acts such as Hurray for the Riff Raff, Nick Shoulders, Emma Donovan, Rose City Band and more. Tickets go on sale on 4 June.
Lime Cordiale set to tour
Lime Cordiale have revealed they will hit the road in October for a run of headline shows across Australia and New Zealand. They’ll be joined by Ball Park Music on all of their Australian dates.
Ridin’ Hearts
Grab your cowboy boots and saddle up, Ridin’ Hearts Festival returns to Melbourne on Sunday 3 November. The full lineup and venue will be announced in coming weeks.
Save the date for these
Also just announced:
- Geelong Arts Centre has revealed three creative projects to be presented as part of its inaugural Launchpad initiative from 22 June in The Open House.
- Northern Ireland’s ASH bring their high-energy, punky pop genius back down under for The Singles Tour. You can catch them at 170 Russell on 11 October.
- For the first time, Synthony is bringing its immersive orchestra experience to Melbourne’s Margaret Court Arena on 20 September. Watch as the biggest dance anthems are reimagined and played by a live orchestra including tracks by Swedish House Mafia, Basement Jaxx, Avicii, Fatboy Slim, Calvin Harris, Faithless, Fisher, and more.
- The Improv Conspiracy (TIC) has announced it is bringing back its annual Defrost Festival for a third year – a yearly spectacle celebrating the art and community of improv. For two weeks from 31 July to 11 August, the festival will play host to the crème de la crème of interstate and local comedians, entertaining and educating a community of thousands with brand new shows, workshops and social events
- Brisbane’s award-winning cult cabaret mischief makers, circus stars and heart-stopping hooligans Briefs Factory present their brand-new show Bite Club: 2nd Serve on the Playhouse stage at Arts Centre Melbourne from 25 – 29 September 2024.
- Marvel Stadium will host an exclusive VIP party in addition to providing a free live site for Game One of the NBA Finals 2024, on Friday 7 June.
- Uniqlo is offering Melburnians an opportunity to pick up a free item of clothing from its HEATTECH thermal range through an immersive product experience at Emporium Melbourne on Thursday 6 June.
- On World Refrigeration Day, 26 June 2024, celebrate 170 years since James Harrison invented an ice-making machine, at the Geelong Showgrounds Museum.
- Visit Collins Square’s Queer Art Pop-up Gallery from 3-28 June and bid on the incredible pieces from Wayde Wiradjuri, an Aboriginal queer artist who uses his own experiences as a person of colour who identifies as gay living in Australia to create stunning and meaningful pieces of art. All proceeds from the auction will be donated to Minus18 Foundation; a registered Australian charity that supports initiatives for LGBTQIA+ youth in Australia.
- 2024 marks the 30th anniversary of the Jeff Buckley masterpiece Grace. Released on 23 August 1994, it continues to captivate audiences worldwide with its hauntingly beautiful melodies and powerful lyrics. To commemorate this milestone, Taxiride frontman Jason Singh, will pay tribute to Jeff Buckley and this iconic album on its 30th Anniversary At the Memo Music Hall on 23 August 2024.
- Taxiride’s first album Imaginate debuted at number 1 on October 18, 1999. To celebrate this 25th anniversary, they’ll be performing a ‘One Night Only’ show at Memo Music Hall in St Kilda on 18 October 2024.
- Melbourne audiences can expect a kaleidoscope of colour, 80s fashion, pop culture and incredible dancing, when Disco Dancer – The Musical comes to the stage- inspired by the famous Bollywood film – and performed entirely in Hindi. You’ll be able to see it at Hamer Hall on 27 and 28 September.
- The program for the 2024 Bendigo Writers Festival has been launched – bringing together more than 90 writers and thinkers. This year’s festival takes place from Friday 16 August to Sunday 18 August with a packed program featuring Julie Goodwin, Annabel Crabb, Kate Grenville, Thomas Mayo and Kerry O’Brien,
- Knox will transform into an interactive celebration of the arts with the return of Immerse. The month-long event will run from 28 June – 28 July and feature a range of evening projection installations, interactive pop-up events, and surprising performances for community of all ages to attend.
What to do?
Never mind the naysayers, Melbourne is not dead! Here’s a round-up of things happening in and around Melbourne this weekend and over the next few weeks:
- Visit Collins Square’s Queer Art Pop-up Gallery from 3-28 June and bid on the incredible pieces from Wayde Wiradjuri, an Aboriginal queer artist who uses his own experiences as a person of colour who identifies as gay living in Australia to create stunning and meaningful pieces of art. All proceeds from the auction will be donated to Minus18 Foundation; a registered Australian charity that supports initiatives for LGBTQIA+ youth in Australia.
- St Kilda Film Festival (SKFF) is celebrating 40 years of short films on the big screen from 6-16 June. SKFF is returning with another huge year featuring a stellar and diverse selection of Australian short films by both emerging and accomplished filmmakers across a vast range of sessions.
- The Melbourne International 3 Day Event is held every June long weekend when the finest horse riders in the country arrive at the picturesque Werribee Park precinct, to compete at Victoria’s premier eventing competition. You can witness it this year from 6-10 June.
- Uniqlo is offering Melburnians an opportunity to pick up a free item of clothing from its HEATTECH thermal range through an immersive product experience at Emporium Melbourne on Thursday 6 June.
- The Mind Body Spirit Festival is on 7-10 June at MCEC.
- The Mornington Winter Music Festival featuring live music, street entertainment and more is on over the Kings Birthday long weekend – 7-10 June.
- State Library Victoria is proud to present a unique Library after dark experience on 7 June as part of RISING – a party inspired by their new exhibition on Rennie Ellis and the vintage glam of his 1960s to 1980s Melbourne photography.
- The 2024 Mornington Peninsula Winter Wine Weekend is an unmissable four days of wine and food events from 7-10 June.
- Celebrate National Donut Day at the Dandenong Market on Friday 7 June.
- The Melbourne Afro Dance Festival is happening in Footscray on 7-9 June.
- Oz Comic-Con Melbourne is on at Jeff’s Shed on 8-9 June.
- The 32nd Australian Property Expo at MCEC on 8-9 June is your destination to amazing deals, experts’ advice, investment seminars and exclusive offers, all in one place.
- The Australian Model Expo is on 8-10 June at Sandown Park.
- The Waverley Model Railway Club’s 2024 Exhibition takes place in Brandon Park on 8-10 June.
- Motor Culture Australia is back at Wyndham Harbour for Cars and Culture Victoria on Saturday 8 June.
- The 2024 Dragon Boat Community Festival & Rice Dumpling Wrapping Contest is on in Mulgrave on 8 June.
- Acland’s Sweet Side is a dessert tasting experience on 8 June that will showcase the famous St Kilda street as Melbourne’s dessert precinct! Try 4 x cake shops, 4 x ice cream shops AND one yoghurt shop for only $10!
- Whether you’re a dessert enthusiast, a foodie in search of new flavours, or simply looking to immerse yourself in a lively atmospher head to Dandenong Market’s Street Feast – Sweet Edition on 8 June which promises an unforgettable experience for all.
- Prepare to be transported to a realm of wonder and awe as Gumbuya World Theme Park proudly presents ‘Gumbuya Dreaming’, a mesmerising digital light experience created by acclaimed Indigenous artist Wayne Quilliam from 8 June to 21 July
- Celebrate World Gin Day at Bass & Flinders Distillery in Dromana on 8-9 June with live music, food trucks, free gin tastings and more all weekend.
- Four Pillars in Healesville are opening their distillery doors for World Gin Day on 8 June and joining forces with friends Naught Distilling, Island Gin, Itinerant Spirits and Mary Monica Gin to serve up FREE gin tastings in Wilma’s Stillhouse.
- Victorian Bangladeshi Community Foundation is organising Melbourne’s largest Eid Bazaar in Tarneit on 8 June.
- Cinema Nova in Carlton is having an overnight Twilight marathon on 8 June showing all five movies in the franchise back-to-back.
- Head to Pipeworks Market in Thomastown on the evening of 8 June for Alpha Pro Wrestling’s NO REMORSE.
- Help with planting of native beds around the Merri Creek Labyrinth and celebrate World Environment Day on Sunday 9 June.
- Get ready to experience a vibrant celebration of diverse cultures through food, music, art, and more at the Australia Light Foundation’s Multicultural Market Festival in Tottenham on 9 June.
- The Caribbean Rollerama is having a Royal Fog Skate for the King’s Birthday on 9 June.
- Taste of Portugal 2024 is on at the Queen Victoria Market on 9 June and is set to showcase the Portuguese culture, traditions and cuisine in a day of celebration of the Portuguese National Day!
- There’s a Multicultural Eid Festival in Wollert on 9 June.
- Head to ezistreat in North Melbourne on 9 June for the Seoul Winter Market, presented in partnership with My Korean School and Consulate General of Korea in Melbourne and part of Asian Heritage Week. the market will feature over 20 food vendors and stallholders, showcasing the tastiest lineups of Korean foods and coolest crafts.
- A free one-day music festival is taking over Port Melbourne on the Kings Birthday Long Weekend. The Port Melbourne Music Crawl is happening on Sunday 9 June across multiple venues in Port Melbourne from midday to midnight.
- Experience art forms from renowned First Nations artists at 26 Advantage’s Reconciliation Week exhibition of contemporary Indigenous art, until 12 June.
- Circus Latino is a dynamic and exciting show which aims to thrill and captivate audiences of all ages. It’s on at the Ferntree Gully Hotel carpark until 16 June.
- The Science Gallery at the University of Melbourne’s exhibition – NOT NATURAL – explores our increasing ability to control nature and the plethora of possibilities and ethical dilemmas that come with that power. Running until 29 June.
- The Broadway sensation Wicked looks at what happened in the Land of Oz… but from a different angle. See it at Melbourne’s Regent Theatre until 30 June.
- Victoria’s zoos are being transformed into prehistoric playgrounds with Zoos Victoria’s new Dinos at the Zoo immersive experience providing an unforgettable journey back in time until 14 July.
- Melbourne Museum will showcase some of Victoria’s most outstanding VCE and VCE VET design and technology students withTop Designs returns for 2024. The showcase runs until 14 July.
- Object of Projections -An exhibition of works by Sonic Youth’s Kim Gordon is showing at the Substation Galleries in Newport until 24 August.
- Celebrating culture, nostalgia, and the pursuit of happiness, the Immigration Museum’s expansive exhibition Joy features seven Victorian-based artists showcasing their interpretations of joy through immersive installations, until 29 August.
- Visited by more than 10 million people around the world and earning a spot on CNN’s “must-see” list, The Art of the Brick is running until 31 August at the Melbourne Showgrounds. This brand new, immersive version of Nathan Sawaya’s iconic LEGO art exhibit features original collections, over 100 sculptures made from more than 1 million bricks, a LEGO safari, moving installations, 360 degree projections, and much more.
- Jump aboard the Skyline Ferris Wheel that promises breathtaking views of Melbourne’s cityscape, truly a one-of-a-kind vantage point to see a unique perspective of the CBD and beyond. It’s at the Polly Woodside Park next to MCEC until September.
- Endless play abounds at ACMI this winter, as world premiere exhibition Beings comes alive until 29 September 2024. Comprised of 13 artworks drawn from the 20-year career of international art and design collective Universal Everything – including the premiere of four brand new artworks – Beings features an assortment of curious characters born from code.
- Hair Pieces at the Head Museum of Modern Art runs until ^6 October and explores the evocative and complex significance of hair in contemporary culture through a selection of recent Australian and international works of art.
- Coming to Melbourne from the Victoria & Albert Museum (V&A) in London and on display until 6 October at the NGV, the Australian premiere of Africa Fashion features nearly 200 works, including couture, bespoke and ready-to-wear fashions, and body adornments, from over 50 designers from more than 20 countries and regions on the African continent.
