Here’s arts editor HELEN MUSA with her latest Artsweek column on all that’s happening this week in Canberra’s arts and entertainment scene. 

Herman’s Hermits return to Canberra with an evening of British pop classics and nostalgia. Canberra Southern Cross Club, Woden, August 7.

ANU Meet the Author welcomes political journalist Amy Remeikis in conversation with Virginia Haussegger about her new book, Screw Nice, an examination of the politics of civility. Admission is free. Lowitja O’Donoghue Cultural Centre, August 6.

Australians Studying Abroad is calling for expressions of interest in a proposed 10 day study tour of Albania for the Friends of the ANU Classics Museum in September 2027, offering the chance to explore one of Europe’s best kept cultural secrets.

The Very Short Film Festival brings its 2026 National Tour to Yass for a one night screening celebrating bold new Australian storytelling at the historic Liberty Theatre. Liberty Theatre, Yass, August 8.

Canberra Writers Festival’s Out of Season series presents playwright, screenwriter and novelist Andrew Upton in conversation with fellow former Sydney Theatre Company artistic director Kip Williams about Upton’s debut novel, Krank Fuss. The Street Theatre, August 12.

Stage

• Canberra singer songwriter Creswick and a live band present Channels: Artists On Aging Creatively, a hybrid live documentary with original music exploring creativity and ageing. Tuggeranong Arts Centre, August 6 to 8.
• Liz Lea’s acclaimed celebration of ageing, Diamonds, returns with accessible performances including Auslan interpretation and audio description. The Q, Queanbeyan Performing Arts Centre, August 6 to 8.
• The Jungle and the Sea, written by S. Shakthidharan and directed with Eamon Flack, follows one Tamil family through the decades of Sri Lanka’s civil war. The Playhouse, August 6 to 9.
• The Winter’s Tale opens with preview performances ahead of its full season, bringing Shakespeare’s late romance to the stage. Mill Theatre, with preview performances August 6 – 8 and a full season from August 12 to 15.
• Love & Forgetting: Tales from a Young Mixer continues its winter season, with Jeremy James and Jack Martin blending storytelling, live music and expertly crafted cocktails in an immersive cabaret staged inside a working bar. Ambrosia Lounge, Dairy Road, August 7 to 9.
• Japanese comedian Takashi Wakasugi brings his latest stand up show, Wabi-Sabi Comedy, finding humour in imperfection through the lens of the traditional Japanese aesthetic. The Street Theatre, August 7 to 8.
• Acting For the Fun of It will present Acting the Playtext, From Page to Stage, a six session course running from August 17 to September 3 at the Hedley Beare Centre for Teaching and Learning. Enquiries: Peter Wilkins, 0408 034 373 or wilkinspeter45@gmail.com

Concerts

• The Llewellyn Choir presents Dona Nobis Pacem, a program reflecting on peace, compassion and reconciliation through choral music. All Saints Anglican Church, Ainslie, August 8.
•  The Australian National Eisteddfod’s choirs section returns with 35 choirs competing across a range of age groups and categories, with composer, conductor and educator Paul Jarman serving as adjudicator. Snow Concert Hall, August 8.
• Percussionist Claire Edwardes launches her new solo album, Dual Attractor, in a concert showcasing her virtuosity and adventurous approach to contemporary music. The Street Theatre, August 9.
• The Merry Muse returns with an afternoon of music, featuring Strathmannan, Mad Kelpie Playdate and the popular Blackboard session. Canberra Irish Club, August 9.
• Australian soprano Miriam Allan returns home to perform Bach’s Wedding Cantata and the comic Coffee Cantata with Bach Akademie Australia, joined by her father, baritone Christopher Allan, in a rare family collaboration. Wesley Music Centre, August 11.
• Pianist Edward Neeman performs a lunchtime recital featuring music by Frederick Septimus Kelly, Robert Schumann, Johannes Brahms and Elisabeth von Herzogenberg, with proceeds supporting the ANU School of Music Community Outreach Fund. Larry Sitsky Recital Room, ANU School of Music, August 11.
• Canberra Men’s Choir celebrates its 40th anniversary with a Wesley Wednesday Lunchtime concert ranging from sacred works to uplifting ballads. Wesley Music Centre, August 12.

Galleries

• Martin Paull’s exhibition The Night Will Enclose Me explores Canberra’s planned landscape transformed by darkness into something vast, mysterious and almost epic. Q Gallery, Ainslie Shops, August 7 – 20.

News all day, every day at CityNewsQBN.com.au.