Free things to do in London this week

For the latest in Goldsmiths CCA’s commissioning series ‘Episodes’, South Korean artist Eunjo Lee showcases her dystopian-filled digital work. Following a narrative centred around figures in the middle ground between human and matter, who sacrifice their bodies to become pure light, the pieces in this exhibition explore themes including the liminal space of acts of creation and the never-ending cycles of life and death.

Covent Garden’s Royal Opera House is one of London’s most iconic performance venues, pulling in crowds of more than 600,000 each year. But while tickets for its world-leading programme of operas and ballets tend to cost a pretty penny – top-price tickets for its biggest shows can set you back upwards of £250 – that’s not the case for its Live at Lunch performances. Taking place on select Friday lunchtimes throughout the year in the Opera House’s magnificent glass conservatory, the free performances feature a surprise line-up of performers from the Royal Ballet and Royal Opera, alongside a range of guest artists. There’s no need to book; simply turn up nice and promptly on the scheduled date and pick up an entry token on arrival. At around 45 minutes long, you can squeeze one in during your lunch hour if you work nearby, which sounds way more interesting than mindlessly scrolling through Facebook while you wolf down a meal deal at your desk. The Time Out office is just around the corner, so you might even spot an editor or two in the wild. See you there!

Ghanaian painter Amoako Boafo has had a meteoric rise in the art world over the past couple of years – thanks, in part, to his eyebrow-raising commission of three portraits which were sent into space on Jeff Bezos’s rocket ship in 2021. Tech bros aside, Boafo is interested in subverting Western views of Africa and the diaspora through his brightly coloured oil and paper transfer paintings, and is becoming recognised for his portraits and figurative works. In some pieces, the figures elegantly recline, in others, they sit contemplatively, always with their eyes transfixed on the viewer. Inspired by Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani’s novel, I Do Not Come to You by Chance, this exhibition at Gagosian will be Boafo’s first solo show in the UK.