The 10 best events at Now or Never

When: August 22-25

Where: Royal Exhibition Building

The Royal Exhibition Building will once again transform into arguably Melbourne’s coolest rave venue across four projection-packed nights. Expect large-scale visuals, genre-spanning line-ups and all-round unforgettable nights. Find the details for each night below.

Thursday, August 22: Ben Frost, Corin, Eartheater, Gabber Modus Operandi

Friday, August 23: Clark, Naretha Williams, Sandwell District, Veronica Vasicka

Saturday, August 24: DJ Aya, DJ PGZ, Donato Dozzy, Estella Boersma, François X

Sunday, August 25: Anthony Naples, Coucou Chloe, Erika de Casier, Sleep D

When: August 22-25; August 29-31

Where: Southbank Promenade

Head down to the Yarra River/Birrarung for this free installation that flows to life after dark. Constellations by Studio Lemercier uses light, water and reflection to create a shimmering celestial formation over the river, which will morph and refract before your eyes. Paul Jebanasam’s electronic soundscape adds another layer to this cosmic experience. Read more. 

When: August 29-31

Where: Trades Hall

Soft Centre is a cutting-edge Sydney-based collective and they’re running a three-day mini festival out of Trades Hall, featuring talks, workshops, screenings and DJ sets. Tickets for this one are selling fast, so get in while you still can. Read more.

When: August 28-31

Where: Arts Centre Melbourne

Catch an entirely new show every night at Plagiary, a dance work exploring the intersection between artificial intelligence and artistry. Choreographed by dance technologist Alisdair Macindoe with video from Sam Mcglip, this innovative performance will see ten contemporary dancers improvise in response to dictation from a computer presence. Read more.

When: August 22-31

Where: Melbourne Museum Plaza

All you need is a free app and all of a sudden you’ll be watching an ephemeral being move through the Melbourne Museum Plaza in this free augmented reality experience. Tardigrades are tiny organisms that can survive even in space, but this tardigrade has been made monumental. Read more.

When: August 29

Where:  Fed Square – the Edge

This one does exactly what it says on the tin and we reckon it sounds like heaps of fun. Each speaker shares an idea, obsession or compulsion using the most corporate of mediums: PowerPoint. The lecture must go for ten minutes and it must be queer – sign us up! Read more.

When: August 29

Where: Melbourne Town Hall

Whether she's poignantly articulating her experiences as a Black woman and self-described fat person in America in books like her hit memoir Hunger, or providing hilarious and insightful commentary on popular culture and trash television, Roxane Gay has a knack for getting you to hang off her every word. Now, Melburnians have a chance to see her speak in-person, with the renowned New York Times-bestselling author and social commentator announcing a one-night only talk. Read more.

When: 22-25

Where: Melbourne Town Hall

Rotating planes of light and sound project through a darkened room in the Melbourne Town Hall, creating a Silent Symphony inspired by ancient philosophy and celestial patterns. This free work never repeats, so you can visit as many times as you like and always see something different. Read more. 

When: August 22-September 1

Where:  Melbourne Town Hall – Forecourt

In a glass box outside the Melbourne Town Hall, a confronting cacophony of data cycles through the display screens. Playing on the information knowledge of the modern age, this installation gives us access to a barrage of live statistics, but what do they all mean? Read more.

When: August 29

Where: Melbourne Recital Centre

Moody Melbourne legends HTRK and London electronic composition giant Actress are joining forces for a one-of-a-kind collaborative performance. This world-exclusive sonic imagining will echo through the grand space of Melbourne Recital Centres’s Elizabeth Murdoch Hall for one unique night. Read more.