Things to do in Melbourne this week

The music and magic of Disney has been shaping childhood memories for generations. This March, you can relive all the nostalgia of Disney’s  timeless film scores – including songs from Hercules, The Little Mermaid, The Lion King, Frozen and more – with the full backing of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and an all-star cast of musical performers at Disney in Concert: Live at Arts Centre Melbourne. Following sold-out performances of Disney 100 in Sydney, Brisbane and Perth last year, this much-loved concert event returns Down Under, this time bringing the magic of four special shows to Melbourne.  “We will never forget the audience reaction when the iconic Disney castle appeared on the big screen at our premiere performance,” says vocalist and artistic director Amy Manford. “It warmed our hearts and we always look forward to recreating the magic of that moment. It is such an honour to be able to produce and perform in this concert, and to finally bring the magic of Disney in Concert to Melbourne is the icing on the cake.” Manford (who is best known globally for her performance as Christine Daaé in The Phantom of the Opera, both in Australia and London’s West End) is joined onstage by vocalists Christine Allado (Hamilton, In The Heights), Joshua Robson (The Phantom of the Opera), Nick Afoa (Miss Saigon, Rent) and Ruva Ngwenya (Tina - The Tina Turner Musical, The Lion King, We Will Rock You). Under the baton of acclaimed conductor Jessica Gethin, bangers like ‘Let It Go’,...

It's officially that time of year again when the Moonlight Cinema returns to Melbourne for the summer. There's just something special about snuggling into a bean bag and catching a film under the stars in the Royal Botanic Gardens – with an ice cream or wine in hand, of course.  Australia's favourite outdoor cinema has dropped its summer screening schedule, with blockbusters, nostalgic favourites and comedies on the program. Highlights include Gladiator II, The Substance, Better Man, A Complete Unknown and Wicked (and yes, there's even a sing-along session). Starting from February 11 to coincide with Valentine's Day, there will be a string of romcoms that are guaranteed to warm your heart. Grab your beloved or your bestie and catch everything from classics like Notting Hill and The Notebook to new releases We Live in Time and Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy.  Those looking to splurge can opt for either the Platinum Experience, which includes a deluxe double bean bed (including a blanket you can take home!) for two with waiter service or the Singapore Airlines Gold Grass, with a prime position in front of the screen and an exclusive menu of delicious treats. The Official Aperol Spritz Bar is also returning, so you can sip on that iconic orange cocktail all summer long. Screenings kick off at sundown and even your pooch is welcome. Tickets are now available via the website. Want more fun in the sun? Here are the best things to do in Melbourne this December.

Somewhere off the coast of Devon is a dreary little island with high cliffs, higher tides and no way to escape. It’s Soldier Island: a lovely place to put your feet up, take a dip, meet nine strangers and watch as you all get slowly picked off one by one. This is the wickedly thrilling premise of Agatha Christie’s 1939 classic And Then There Were None. A favourite among Christie fans (and Christie herself), it arrives at the Comedy Theatre in a production that once again proves that the master of the whodunnit can still thrill us nearly 100 years on. Yet this revival from director Robyn Nevin – her second of Christie’s following 2023’s The Mousetrap – rests on the laurels of its author too often, offering a passable but ultimately thin restaging that I think signals the end of the recent resurgence of British classics in our theatres. It’s 1939. Ten people have been invited to Soldier Island under suspicious pretences. They have little in common apart from the skeletons in their closets. For much of the show’s bloated first act we’re watching this motley crew of potential victims introduce themselves to each other. Christie is famous for her ability to construct a complete impression of a person in one short phrase. But here, these characters have a tendency to over explain themselves, and it can get a bit tedious. You can feel Nevin trying to amplify comedic beats or attempt more creative blocking to avoid this exposition-heavy first half from getting too stale. For this,...

From the story’s origins hundreds of years ago, to its transformation into the classic 1991 Disney film, Beauty and the Beast really is a tale as old as time. In its musical form, the production hasn’t been seen in Melbourne since the ’90s, when Hugh Jackman famously performed as Gaston in his first professional role. Fast forward three decades and we’re once again seeing a Melbourne stage transformed into the provincial town and Baroque castle we know so well. Only this time round, the lavish set design is augmented with cleverly integrated digital screens. It’s just one of several updates that ensure this reimagined production of the beloved fairytale keeps up with the times. From the moment the curtain rises, it’s clear this is a large-scale musical with all the belles, whistles and big bucks. Visual splendour is the MO here – think kaleidoscopic costumes, gasp-inducing illusions and spectacular lighting – and it’s easy to see why this show broke box office records at Brisbane’s QPAC.  However, all that Disney investment would be useless without the gifted cast. Shubshri Kandiah exudes whimsy-with-a-backbone as bookworm Belle, charming us with her sweet songs and sassy moments – though the folks in her provincial town just don’t get it.  Brendan Xavier’s beast is alternately ferocious and boyish. His startled squeals and hair-twirling moments help make Belle’s dramatic change in feelings a touch more believable. Both leads shine in their solo numbers, with Xavier’s ‘If...

Put Legoland Discovery Centre Melbourne on your radar for a pit stop because the Lego F1-themed Build the Thrill event has rolled into town just in time for the Australian Grand Prix.  From now until April 27, your ticket purchase to the brick wonderland includes a pit pass to some wheel-y cool Lego of epic proportions. Check out a 3D Brick-built Lego F1 car made from more than 21,000 bricks and then build your own version.  You’ll get to choose an F1 team, build your own Minifigure driver and then pop your driver into a custom-built race car. Race on the track, claim all the glory of pole position and celebrate on the Build the Thrill podium. The fun doesn’t stop there. Guests can enjoy interactive challenges, epic photo opportunities, and an exclusive Lego F1 display in Miniland The kids-at-heart can get in on the action too, with an adults-only night on Friday, March 14. Enjoy all of Legoland kid-free and really let your competitive side loose on the track from 6pm to 9pm.  The Build the Thrill event is running at Legoland Discovery Centre Melbourne until April 27. Your pit pass is included in entry, which starts from $36 per person and is free for little ones under two. Purchase your ticket here.

Calling all fashionistas! On March 22 and 23, the National Trust's beloved annual vintage sale is returning to the Abbotsford Convent. This year, the sale will be taking place at the massive Magdalen Laundry from 10am to 4pm. You'll be able to peruse a huge selection of vintage and pre-loved designer clothing and accessories – in the past, brands like Armani, Alexander McQueen, Diane von Fürstenberg and Marimekko have been up for grabs. A lot of household linen, furnishings, dress fabrics, shoes, bags, children's wear and even haberdashery will also be on offer. Bring a gold coin donation for entry and prepare to refresh your wardrobe with fun new designer finds for a fraction of the price. Best of all, proceeds from the sale support the work of the National Trust in conserving our state's cultural and built heritage. Donations are also accepted in the lead-up to the event, so if you have some quality items you'd like to offload in the name of a good cause, now's your chance. For more information on donating and the event, visit the website here. Want more shopping options? Check out the best vintage stores and the best op shops in Melbourne.

Forks at the ready! The Melbourne Food and Wine Festival is returning with its annual jam-packed program from March 21 to March 30. Featuring a star-studded line-up of chefs, local food heroes and special dining experiences, it's a full-throated celebration of Melbourne’s food and drink scene – and we couldn't be more excited (or hungry!). The ten-day event kicks off with the festival's signature World’s Longest Lunch, spearheaded this year by none other than Melbourne-born culinary legend Curtis Stone. Another favourite is the World's Longest Brunch, which this year is being reimagined by beloved author and food personality, Julia Busuttil Nishimura – expect a moving feast celebrating the city's brunch culture. Other highlights include Dim City, which celebrates 80 years of the delicious pork parcel (fun fact: dim sims were invented in Melbourne) with a giveaway of dimmies by chefs Rosheen Kaul (Etta), John Rivera (Askal) and Eun Hee An (Moon Mart). Best of all, it's free! And you won't want to miss Something Saucy, a pasta pop-up in Whitehart Lane or Tacos and Toum, which will see Raph Rashid team up with hummus king Tom Sarafian to explore these two grand culinary traditions. Also returning for its third year is Baker's Dozen. The free event at Fed Square brings together the city's finest bakers and cakers – including Madeleine de Proust, Lune, Tarts Anon, All Are Welcome and Baker Bleu – to whip up some delicious creations. Plus, if you love a cheeky cardamom bun,...

It’s time to start your engines and move into pole position, because the adrenaline-fuelled F1 Australian Grand Prix is returning to Albert Park from March 13-16.  Following on from the record-breaking attendance of 452,055 people in 2024, this year is shaping up to be even more thrilling, with heated rivalries, newly modified cars and key points up for grabs.  With local hero Oscar Piastri scoring two wins in 2024 (in Hungary and Azerbaijan) and McLaren taking out the Constructors' Championship for the first time since 1998, there will be plenty for Aussies to cheer on. And there's fun to enjoy away from the track, with live music performances, plus world-class hospitality offerings, fan zones, vintage cars and merch stalls. You can view the full entertainment schedule here. Limited tickets are still available, so if you want to experience the high-octane action you'll need to snap up a ticket via the website. And if you can't make the event in person, never fear. Every race of the 2025 Formula 1 World Championship is broadcast live in Australia.  Not into fast cars zooming around the track? Here's what else is on across the weekend.

It’s hard to make good political satire on the Left, though it is easy to make fun of us. There’s no lack of good material, or good satirists. But we’re a constantly moving target with an ever-evolving set of terms, concerns and ideas. And we’re also a bit of a sensitive bunch with a tendency toward self-importance. This is the knife Deborah Frances-White gleefully twists in her satirical dramedy Never Have I Ever. In the program notes for this Australian premiere at the Fairfax Studio you’ll read the show described as “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf for the modern age”. But it’s more Edward Albee via the Netflix Original: an entertaining mix of bawdy wit and fine-tuned political takes with splashes of soap opera-style melodrama. Elevated by a high-energy cast and an evocative set, it promises plenty of light-hearted laughs in between clear-eyed insights into the paradoxes of being a modern progressive. The Fairfax Studio has been transformed into Masada, a Turkish restaurant somewhere in London run by Jacq (Katie Robertson), a white bisexual woman who grew up poor and might be one-sixteenth Turkish. These facts are important to the play and the world of identity politics it wades so confidently into. It’s a familiar realm for Frances-White, the Brisbane-born expat whose The Guilty Feminist podcast built a huge following with its brand of wry self-awareness and nuanced encounters with Leftist hypocrisy since it started in 2015. That was ten years ago, when the language of...

Arrive at the corner of Flinders Lane and Hosier Lane on pretty much any day of the week and you’ll run into a throng of tourists jostling to get ‘the shot’ of Melbourne’s ever-evolving street art hotspot. No two visits to this spray can alley are ever the same, but from December 12 there’ll be another more stable artistic delight to enjoy on the famous corner. To those in the know, Sandra Powell and Andrew King have become shining lights of the Aussie street art scene, known for supporting up-and-coming artists through acquisitions for their extensive private collection 15 years in the making.  Street art legend Rone says the pair, often known as ‘Sandrew’, have been “champions of Melbourne’s street art community for over a decade”. Now, they’re drawing on their personal collection to create a ripper of a free exhibition, running from December 12 until May 2025 at 167 Flinders Lane (right on the aforementioned iconic corner).  The Outsiders Melbourne will feature more than 100 works from Sandrew’s collection, including art never before displayed in public. Expect gems from local names like Rone, Adnate, Sofles, Vexta, Fintan Magee, Meggs, Kaff-eine and more.  On the international side, feast your eyes on art from Barry McGee, Vhils, Swoon, Invader, Shepard Fairey, Ron English, Elle and an entire room dedicated to Banksy himself. Fans of the mystery artist will be pleased to know that this exhibition will also see his new work ‘Firework’ on display in Australia for the...