Here’s the latest Artsweek column by arts editor HELEN MUSA for Canberrans looking for artsy things to watch or do.

Cooma filmmaker James Litchfield will be on hand for a post-screening Q&A following his debut feature Alphabet Lane, an off-kilter thriller about a young Sydney couple who make a tree change to the Monaro region, only to find life taking unexpected turns. Arc Cinema, Acton, June 20.

Berry’s increasingly popular A Day Well Spent live music series returns with a funk and soul takeover across seven venues in the South Coast town, featuring Sydney soul powerhouse CINTA, Melbourne favourites Velvet Bloom and a line-up of acclaimed touring, regional and emerging artists. Berry, June 18 and 21.

The postponed Queanbeyan Multicultural Festival will now coincide with World Refugee Day, bringing a vibrant celebration of culture, community and diversity to the region. Queanbeyan Park, June 20.

Ed Coper will discuss his new book Angertainment with political commentator Mark Kenny as part of the ANU Meet the Author series. Lowitja O’Donoghue Cultural Centre, June 23.

Stage

• Rare Bird Ensemble, Ambrosia Lounge and Mill Theatre combine live entertainment with fine dining in the immersive cabaret experience Love & Forgetting, Tales from a Young Mixer. Ambrosia Lounge at Dairy Road, June 18-20.
• The first Q The Locals production of 2026 is the world premiere of The Good Boy Game by American playwright Patrick Vermillion, directed by Caitlin Balker. The Q, Queanbeyan, June 18-20.
• Punko Regarto Productions presents SICK DAY, an improvised theatre show disguised as a nostalgic romp, directed by Veronica Noon. The Red Room at Smiths Alternative, June 19.
• Robert Harling’s comedy-drama Steel Magnolias returns in a new production centred on the friendships, heartbreaks and resilience found in Truvy’s hairdressing salon. The Playhouse, until June 21.

Concerts

• London’s Doric String Quartet joins Australian clarinettist Lloyd Van’t Hoff for a program spanning Beethoven and Britten to Thomas Adès’ remarkable Alchymia. Llewellyn Hall, ANU, June 19.
• Melt presents Massa Fusa, a long-form musical jam bringing together jazz players, noise musicians and a performer on the 2,700-year-old Chinese guzheng in an intriguing collaboration. Level 1, 131 City Walk, June 19.
• Canberra Qwire will explore the passage of time through song in Time & Its Passing, a concert showcasing the proudly LGBTQIA+ choir’s rich and varied repertoire. Llewellyn Hall, June 20.
• The Resonants choir, conducted by Helen Swan, will perform Fauré’s Requiem alongside Morten Lauridsen’s luminous Lux Aeterna. Presbyterian Church of Saint Andrew, Forrest, June 20.
• Wayfarers Australia’s flagship Canberra concert, Musica Vitae, journeys through the major eras of Western choral music, featuring works by Australian composers Liam Waterford, Ruth McCall and Stephen Leek, alongside Judith Clingan’s The Prophet, inspired by the writings of Kahlil Gibran. Orana Steiner School, Weston, June 20 and 21.
• Canberra Community Chorale, under musical director Olivia Swift and accompanied by a string ensemble and pianist Lucas Allerton, presents New Worlds, featuring works by Dan Walker, Christopher Tin and Dobrinka Tabakova. Wesley Uniting Church, Forrest, June 21.

Galleries

• The Goulburn Art Award 2026, open to artists working in any medium within a 120-kilometre radius of Goulburn, offers a total prize pool of $15,000 and showcases the strength of regional artistic practice. Goulburn Regional Art Gallery, June 19-July 18.
• [Un]common Ground brings together internationally recognised artists and 2026 Canberra Potters artists-in-residence Paul Davis and Jacqueline Clayton in an exhibition. Watson Arts Centre, Watson, June 19-July 19.
• Tuggeranong Arts Centre opens four new exhibitions: Artist Books Fold Stitch Bind by Marissa McDowell, Rechelle Turner and Us Mob Writers; Dyeing Words: From Soil to Silk by Wallabindi and Harry’s Clarry; Sistahood: Circles, Cycles & Spirals; and Leilani Dewis’s Ngiaga (I/I Am). Tuggeranong Arts Centre, June 19.
• Canberra-based director, producer and writer Belinda Barancewicz presents her first solo visual arts exhibition, Empty Vases, featuring original pen-and-ink botanical works inspired by native trees, flowers, seed pods and foliage observed throughout Canberra. The Front Gallery, Lyneham, June 19-July 1.
• A world-first exhibition, Arthur Boyd: Tapestries reunites all 20 monumental tapestries depicting scenes from the life of St Francis of Assisi as interpreted by the renowned Australian artist. National Museum of Australia, June 20-October 18.