With the slew of arts and culture and community events running in Canberra over the past and coming months, I thought Iโd reflect on my time here so far.
I have now lived in Canberra for six months and have attended a wide variety of events.
Each week I put together my pieces for the Canberra Weekly magazine and Canberra Daily website there are always a lot of people and events to cover.
One thing Iโve discovered is we have a lot of local authors, some of whom were brought into the spotlight during the Canberra Writers Festival.
There is also an array of theatre companies, ranging from childrenโs productions to well-known musicals and plays, as well as original content from local playwrights.
Touring shows that have been held, or are coming up at Canberra Theatre Centre, include Peter and the Starcatcher, The Pirates of Penzance and Shirley Valentine.
One of my favourite things to do is to watch live music.
While some people complain the big international artists only travel to Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne, there is an endless stream of well-known Australian artists that include Canberra as a pitstop on their tour. This also applies to comedy events.
We also have the uniqueness of being included in both regional and capital city tours.
While other towns and cities have seen a struggle in their music scenes, Canberraโs appears to be thriving.
CD/CWโs Take 5 section has been very popular with many touring artists approaching the publication to be included!
This has given me the opportunity to interview many artists I grew up listening to and watched live, including Kasey Chambers, Bernard Fanning, Sarah Blasko and John Butler and Pete Murray.
I have not had a chance to chip away at many of the more than 30 galleries across Canberra, so my aim is to start doing that soon.
I was at the opening of Lindy Leeโs $14 million Ouroboros sculpture when it was unveiled at the National Gallery of Australia (NGA). The sculpture has become a favourite place for people to take photographs, either professionally or to post on social media.
Unfortunately, I have not been inside the NGA, but itโs on my list, as is the National Portrait Gallery.
The only gallery I have made it to is the National Archives of Australia (NAA), which is currently holding the 20 Years of Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year exhibition. The entries were quite impressive.
I also managed to get to the gallery section of the National Film and Sound Archive (NFSA) for the launch of Robin Foxโs Constellations, where I got a sneak peek of what else is there and I definitely want to go back!
The one place I have visited the most, which I didnโt expect to, was the Royal Australian Mint.
Canberra is also a foodieโs delight, with cuisines and drinks from all over the world on offer.
The film and television scene is also thriving in the region, with the recent filming of season two of the beloved ABC show Austin, and just outside of the region, Netflix movie Apex, which will feature Ginninderra Falls. It was also lovely to see an IMAX open in Canberra recently.
One of the special things has been seeing Canberraโs events for locals shine across the end of summer and the start of autumn, from the very popular FLIGHT: Drone SkyShow and Night Markets during the Australia Day long weekend, the National Multicultural Festival which was a brilliant showcase of music, dance and food from around the world โ both of which I attended.
One of the most recent events I attended was the Enlighten Festival and I had some friends visit from Victoria for the Canberra Day long weekend, so I thought it was the perfect place to take them to see the sights of Canberra. We had previously been to similar events in Melbourne, including White Night and while Enlighten ran on a smaller scale, I still really enjoyed it.
There were some parts I liked better than others with the majority of our time spent at the Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House (MoAD) and the festival hub. I liked that the activities were spread out and that it never felt crowded.
The recent Canberra Balloon Spectacular also brought more colour to the skies during the autumn mornings, and it was an incredible experience to take a ride in one of the balloons.
What is your favourite place or arts and culture thing to do in the ACT?
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