The Italian Film Festival is coming to Canberra. The festival showcases an incredible selection of new Italian cinema celebrating the country’s language, stories and culture. Featuring an eclectic mix of contemporary Italian auteurs, documentaries, and classic gems. The festival is screening at the Palace Electric cinema in New Acton from Thursday 19th September – 16th October. Further information and the schedule of screenings is available from the Palace cinema’s website.

The Friends of the School of Music ANU in collaboration with the ANU School of Music is hosting a concert featuring some of the historic keyboard instruments from the ANU School of Music’s collection including the French Double Manual harpsichord, Walter fortepiano, and the Square 1799 piano. The performance will feature Marie Searles, John Ma, and the Ellery String Quartet; and will take place at Llewellyn Hall on Wednesday 25 September at 7pm. For further information visit the ANU School of Music website

At the Canberra Contemporary Arts Space Manuka, Wrappers is an evolving, experimental exhibition by Kamberri/Canberra-based artist Ham Darroch. Visitors will be invited to suggest themes and concepts that will continuously transform the work on display. Wrappers will be on display until Sunday 22nd September. The Canberra Contemporary Art Space Manuka is at Furneaux Street, Forrest. Gallery hours are Friday to Sunday, 11am – 5pm.

The Joy Reiher School of Scottish Dancing is celebrating its 50th anniversary with a Reunion of past and present students, members and families – to be held at 7.00 pm on Saturday 21 September at the Ainslie Football Club, Wakefield Ave, Ainslie. Further details the Joy Reiher School of Scottish Dancing Facebook page.

The Llewellyn Choir presents Swing into Spring: a concert of jazz standards from the Great American Songbook, opera favourites, and beautiful works from Samuel Barber and others. The concert will be on Friday 27th September from 6:30pm at the White Eagle Club in Turner. For further information visit the Llewellyn Choir’s website.

At the Bungendore Fine Art Gallery Saturday Painters is an exhibition by eight Canberra painters. The gallery is at Ellendon St, Bungendore and opening hours are Friday to Monday 10 am – 4.30 pm.

The Belconnen Theatre is staging 4 short plays written by local Canberrans: Int. Theatre: is a comedy about getting ready for a show; Sir Harry vs. The University: a comedy about a renowned actor refusing to take rejection lying down; then,BLAME: is a drama about the real events of the 1966 Aberfan disaster, and The Bridge: is a bitter-sweet drama about the passing of a loved one. The plays will be performed from Friday 26th – Sunday 28th September at the Belconnen Theatre is at Swanson Cct, Belconnen.

At the National Library of Australia Fakespeare: The story of the Vortigern hoax. Join Dr Kate Flaherty, senior Lecturer in English and Drama at ANU, and actors from Bell Shakespeare as they uncover one of the most amusing and successful literary hoaxes of all time. The event will take place on Friday 20th September at 6pm . For more information visit the National Library of Australia website.

M16 has four new exhibitions:

Firstly, Spotlight on Sport by Alan Young is a body of work that explores the perspective of participants, spectators and umpires in sports..

Then, Luke Chiswell’s Cutting Off One’s Nose examines humanity’s interconnectedness with the environment through a series of aluminium sculptures.

Next, in Searching for Goulburn Phil Page showcases a unique perspective on Goulburn’s urban environment informed by personal curiosities, interactions and reactions to the city.

And, lastly, Nathan Hughes collaborates with the forces of the environment – gravity, weather and time – to present Crappy Groan Plucky, a sculptural installation that draws together discarded single-use waste and found objects that stand to resist necrocapitalism.

All four exhibitions run until Sunday 25th September. M16 Gallery hours are 12 – 5pm, Wednesday – Sunday.

The latest Canberra Rep theatre production is Michael Gow’s Away: A classic Australian story of found family and connection, where three families set out on their own holidays before a storm brings them together on a Gold Coast beach to grieve, heal, and find hope for the future. Away will be performed until Saturday 21st September. The Canberra Rep theatre is at Repertory Ln in Acton. Further information and performance times are available from their website.

At Photo Access’s Huw Davies Gallery The Spectral Lens by six artists explores how artistic practices can represent (or interrogate) identity in an age of image flux and post-colonial review. The exhibition will be on display from Thursday 12th September until Saturday 12th October. Photo Access is at Manuka Circuit, Griffith. Gallery hours are Tuesday – Saturday 10am – 4pm

At the Drill Hall Gallery Euan Macleod’s Flux surveys a series of Macleod’s en plein air works created on the rugged Haupapa Tasman Glacier in New Zealand’s South Island, alongside a suite of studio paintings whose grand scale emulates their site of inspiration. The exhibition will run from Thursday 12th September until 3rd November. The Drill Hall Gallery is at Kingsley St Acton, Opening hours are Weds-Sun 10am -5pm.

The ACT Textile Arts Association annual exhibition Hanging by a Thread will showcase the many talents of the group from Textile Art, Embroidery, Crochet, Knitting, Dressmaking, Sewing, Printing, Dyeing and everything in between. Hanging by a Thread will be on display from Friday 13th – Sunday 22nd September at the Queanbeyan Art Society Gallery which is at Trinculo Place Queanbeyan. For further information visit the ACT Textile Arts Association website.

At the Megalo print studio Plate to Plate features works and installations created by Hands On Studio as part of a uniquely collaborative project – stemming from partnerships with the Hands On Cook On Club, MULCH community gardens, local artist Robbie Karmel, book designer Caren Florence and the Megalo Print Studio. Plate to Plate will be on display from Friday 31st August until 12th October. The Megalo print studio is at Wentworth St, Kingston. Opening hours 9.30am – 5pm, Tuesday – Saturday.

At the Canberra Glassworks, there’s the exhibition Hanging by a Thread – Mosiac for Afghan Women which is part of a world-wide project drawing attention to the social and economic conditions of women after the Taliban takeover. Mosaic artists and community members from each state in Australia and New Zealand worked to create a giant glass mosaic scarf mounted on panels.The exhibition runs until 22nd October. Canberra Glassworks is at Wentworth Avenue, Kingston. Gallery hours 10am – 4pm Wednesday to Sunday.

At the Australian National Capital Artists Gallery This is Not a Solo Show (v2) is an exhibition of works by artists, Peter Sharp and Michelle Cawthorn. Both are artists, with recognised individual art practices, that happen to be partners. Works in the exhibition include singular and collaborative works of drawings, paintings and sculpture. This is Not a Solo Show (v2) runs until Sunday 29th September. The Australian National Capital Artists Gallery is at Rosevear Place, Dickson. Gallery hours Wednesday to Sunday 12:00 – 5:00pm.

At the Yarralumla Gallery and Oaks Brasserie Lake and Beyond by Sylvie Carter and Claire B Cusack is an exhibition featuring oil, watercolour and pastel paintings exploring life on the lake and beyond on Ngunnawal, Ngambri and Yuin country. Lake and Beyond will be on display from Sunday 8th September until 20th October. The Yarralumla Gallery and Oaks Brasserie is at Robert Boden Grove, Yarralumla. Gallery Opening Hours : Mon to Friday : 9.30am-4pm and Sat – Sunday 8.30am – 4pm.

The Kyeema Gallery at Hall has Three Artists, Three Styles by Jay Kottege, Rosemary Brock and Ruth Dodd. The exhibition runs from Thursday 29th August until Sunday 29th September. Gallery hours 10:30 am to 5 pm, Thursday to Sunday. For further information go to the Capital wines website.

At the Canberra Potters Gallery, 55 is an exhibition celebrating 55 years of Malcolm Cooke’s ceramic practice. 55 will be on display until Sunday 22nd September. Canberra Potters is at Aspinall St Watson. Gallery hours are 10am to 4pm, Tuesday to Saturday and 11am to 3pm Sunday.

The next Geoff’s Jazz will be The Tom Fell Quartet bringing the west coast sound to life with tributes to the music of Gerry Mulligan and Chet Baker. The performance will be on Weds 4th September at 7pm at Smiths Alternative. For more information go to the Smiths Alternative website.

Tuggeranong Arts Centre has three new exhibitions. First, Old Gods, Beliefs and Superstitions by Idiom Anitu. This exhibition presents ceramics representing the indigenous Gods of the Philippines, exploring their connection to identity, culture and community. Next, Longing and Belonging is a curated exhibition bringing together ten female artists in a shared investigation of migrant experiences. And last,there’s Kambah 50. In 1974 Kambah’s first residents moved in! This exhibition marks and celebrates fifty years of Kambah, in works created by local artists, archival images and documents, and artefacts from residents of Kambah. All three exhibitions run from Friday August 16 till October 12. More information is available from the Tuggeranong Arts Centre’s website.

Currently at the National Archives of Australia, the 2024 Waterhouse Natural Science Art Prize. This visiting exhibition brings together a diverse array of artworks that map the intersection of nature, science, and art, through a range of creative mediums. The works of the finalists and prize winners will be on display at the National Archives of Australia at Kings Avenue Parkes, in the Parliamentary Triangle each day from 9am to 5pm until the 27th October. For more information go to the National Archives of Australia website.

At the National Museum of Australia, Tony Armstrong’s Extra-Ordinary Things  is an exhibition of selected objects discovered by ABC personality Tony Armstrong as seen in his ABC five-part TV series. A vintage ute, a novelty cheque, an elite boxing trophy and an unforgettable letter from then Prime Minister Bob Hawke are among the seemingly ordinary objects. The exhibition will be on display until October 13. The museum is open daily 9am -5pm. Further information available from the National Museum of Australia website.

At Australian Parliament House the Napier Waller Art Prize exhibition. The prize is open to all current and former service personnel in the Australian Defence Force. A panel of art experts and professionals will select the winning work from the shortlist of 17 highly commended entries displayed in this exhibition, which will run at Parliament House until October 13. For more information and to vote for the People’s Choice Award visit the Australian War Memorial’s website.