The best things to do in Melbourne this weekend

With five Grammys, more than 160 million albums sold and a back catalogue packed with household hits, Billy Joel is a true music icon. And while the Piano Man himself rarely makes the trip Down Under – he’s only played one stadium show here in the past 15 years – Melbourne fans can still experience his biggest hits in a whole new way this November. The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra is celebrating Joel’s legendary discography in Piano Man: Celebrating the Music of Billy Joel, a symphonic tribute featuring fresh arrangements of classics like ‘Just the Way You Are’, ‘Only the Good Die Young’, ‘Vienna’ andl of course, ‘Piano Man’. Under the baton of Leonard Weiss, the show features powerhouse vocals from Human Nature’s Phil Burton and musical stars Alinta Chidzey, Jess Hitchcock and Josh Piterman. Directed by Mark Sutcliffe, you can also expect lush new orchestral arrangements by composer Nicholas Buc. Piano Man: Celebrating the Music of Billy Joel will play three shows only at Art Centre Melbourne’s Hamer Hall, from November 14-15. Tickets are on sale now from $78 to $146 for adults. Get yours here.

As fictional antiheroes go, Patricia Highsmith’s deliciously amoral Tom Ripley is simply irresistible. First crushing on, then crushing, sneering dilettante Dickie Greenleaf, Ripley casually assumes his identity (and careless wealth). We should be repulsed by such a repugnant character. Instead, we mentally egg him on. Why? A lot of his inexplicable appeal has to do with class. When we first meet Ripley in Highsmith’s 1955 novel, he’s cruising seedy New York bars, on the lam from cops and debtors pursuing him for petty theft and fraud charges. A man down on his luck, we understand his hustle. Jumping at shadows, the appearance of an impeccably dressed Greenleaf senior, Herbert, startles Ripley. Is the older man an unusually well-dressed detective, or even, *gasp*, a “pervert”? Crashing through the class barrier, Ripley seizes on Herbert’s presumptuous approach with an offer too good to resist: an impossibly well-paid gig, tasked with retrieving Herbert’s recalcitrant son from fictional Italian beach town, Mongibello How could Ripley say no? Once there, how could he let go? A provocation to seize a world well beyond his means. Better the devil we know, we’re on Ripley’s side as he claims his slice of this indulgent life from mean-spirited one percenters. After all, Highsmith borrows Mongibello from the Italian for active volcano Mount Etna, and Ripley’s here to blow shit up. Who’s involved in this latest adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley? The suspenseful, smoky...

Ballarat is bursting with colour this spring as a new art experience, Sunnyside, takes over the historic Mining Exchange and city streets from November 6-23.  Presented by The Social Crew, the centrepiece of the event is ‘Chasing Sunbeams’, a bold new art installation from London-based artist Morag Myerscough. Renowned for her playful interactive style and large-scale, fantastical works that have transformed public spaces around the globe, this marks her first ever major installation in regional Australia. And boy, is it colourful.  The program is packed with highlights – you can join the artist in conversation on November 8 and 15, or book into one of the many hands-on workshops, from neon block printing to stitching granny squares. In one of the workshops, budding artists will experiment with bold colours, patterns and forms as Wadawurrung Traditional Owner and Aboriginal artist Jenna Oldaker guides participants in creating their own artwork. Outside the walls of the Mining Exchange, Sunnyside spills into Ballarat’s laneways with the free Wandering experience. At the Unicorn Hotel, pick up a freshly made zine or pull up a chair and create your own. As you continue exploring, discover something surprising from local makers, vibrant artworks at Alfred Deakin Place and a colourful takeover of Hop Lane in collaboration between Myerscough, Oldaker and the Ballarat community. Ballarat is just a 90-minute drive or V/Line train from the city so why not turn it into a weekender?...

As far as shopping sprees go, there’s nothing quite like rummaging through pre-loved goodies at a garage sale. Part of the joy is never knowing what bargain you’ll find – and not realising how badly you wanted a pair of neon pink parachute pants until you rescue them from a cardboard box. These days, a good garage sale is as rare as an original 1960s troll doll – which is where the Garage Sale Trail comes in. What started on the front lawns of Bondi in 2010 is now a nationwide campaign during which thousands of garage sales run across the country for two massive weekends. The aim is to reduce waste and encourage reusing among local communities, to stop tonnes of perfectly good stuff from ending up in landfill. To run your own garage sale, it's totally free to register. The Garage Sale Trail team will then send you promo materials to help put the word out, plus they’ll list your sale on the official website. If you're looking to score a pre-loved bargain, you can then use the website as a guide to all the sales in their area. So far, it looks like there's almost 300 garage sales registered in Melbourne alone, which is a whole lotta shopping. Plus, there are also group sales where multiple stallholders band together to make a one-stop-shop mega sale. Whether you're selling or buying, it's truly a win-win: finally declutter your wardrobe and make some extra moola, or get your hands on some new-to-you, sustainable treasures.  This year, there will be garage sales across...

We're just as sad as you are that cherry blossom season is over, but the good news is that it heralds the start of the cherry-picking season. And if you can't get enough of those sweet and juicy red morsels, then make your way to CherryHill Orchards this summer to pick and eat as many cherries as your heart desires. This year's cherry-picking season will kick off on November 10 at CherryHill's 40-hectare orchard in Coldstream. On November 24, CherryHill's original orchard in Wandin East will follow suit and open its gates to eager pickers.  Sessions last for two hours, and cherries are charged per kilogram – trust us when we say these are some of the largest, sweetest cherries going around. But as you're picking, feel free to eat as many as you like! The fun doesn't stop at picking cherries; the orchard will host on-site food trucks and stalls hawking food and cherry-flavoured products. On top of the famed cherry ice cream, you can also shop pantry goods like cherry vinaigrette, cherry syrup, cherry barbecue sauce and cherry glaze. You can also bring your own picnic, or pre-order a box of goodies to enjoy on the orchard grounds. And if you visit on a weekend or public holiday, you'll be treated to the sweet sounds of live tunes performed by a rotating line-up of local musos. The cherry-picking festival will run until late December at the Coldstream orchard, and until early January at the Wandin East orchard. For more information and to book your spot head to the CherryHill...

Almost a decade ago, metal detectorists in Kirkcudbrightshire, Scotland, went hunting for lost treasure. To their amazement, they would go on to discover the richest collection of Viking Age objects ever found in Britain or Ireland in a ploughed field. The Galloway Hoard has been hailed as a remarkable discovery, with more than 100 gold, silver, glass, crystal and earthenware objects being uncovered.  Now, everything from piles of silver arm rings to gold-mounted rock crystal jars are heading Down Under, and for the first time ever in Australia, you will be able to see the most important Viking Age discoveries of the 21st century up close at the Melbourne Museum. The Galloway Hoard dates to around AD 900, a period of intense cultural and political upheaval. The collection was buried in four parcels and includes more than 100 astonishing objects, from silver bullion and intricately worked jewellery to items that reveal trade routes stretching as far as Central Asia. Some of the pieces – including recently deciphered runic inscriptions – are still rewriting what we know and understand about the Viking Age today. Treasures of the Viking Age: The Galloway Hoard is a travelling exhibition, developed by National Museums Scotland, that showcases years of painstaking conservation and cutting-edge research. Intricate details, hidden inscriptions and newly uncovered mysteries are revealed for the first time outside the UK. To mark the opening weekend, Dr Martin Goldberg, principal...

Hands up if you were raised on The Sims? Us too. Or maybe you were a dedicated Neopets fan, or obsessed with World of Warcraft. Perhaps you're currently glued to your Switch playing Hollow Knight: Silksong. Whatever your connection to video games, it's safe to say most of us have picked up a controller at some point in our lives and been captivated by what appeared on the screen. Enter ACMI's incredible new exhibition, Game Worlds. Running until February 8, this blockbuster celebration of video games will transport you into the worlds of more than 30 iconic titles, including Final Fantasy XIV Online, Minecraft, Doom and Stardew Valley. Also featured are classics like Maze War and Zork, fan faves with cult followings like The Elder Scrolls Online, and new releases like Guardian Maia. Spanning games from the 1970s right through to this year, you'll be able to check out rare concept art, original design materials, early hands-on protoypes and so much more. There are 44 fully playable experiences (think Celeste speedruns on two huge screens), and four new microgames by emerging and established Aussie game developers have been specially commissioned for the exhibition.  There will also be after-dark sessions, developer talks, themed fan events and and plenty more. And as much as Game Worlds is about exploring how video games are designed, built and experienced, it's also an opportunity to spotlight the community and the friendships that are forged within these immersive digital...

It's been seen by more than a million people on Broadway and many more on the West End, and now the Tony Award-winning MJ the Musical is heading to Her Majesty's Theatre in Melbourne. Centred around the making of his 1992 Dangerous World Tour, MJ the Musical features more than 25 of Michael Jackon’s biggest pop hits set to show-stopping dance numbers, including ‘Beat It’, ‘Smooth Criminal’, ‘Man In The Mirror’ and ‘Thriller’. MJ the Musical is showing at Her Majesty's Theatre until March 1, 2026. For more information and to book tickets, head to the website. *** Time Out Sydney reviewed MJ the Musical when it played at Sydney's Lyric Theatre in March. Read on for that three-star review:   If you’re of a certain age, you have history (HIStory, perhaps?) with Michael Jackson. I remember getting ‘Thriller’ on cassette as a kid. Dangerous was one of the first CDs I ever owned. I remember seeing the extended music video for ‘Thriller’ on VHS, which came packaged with a behind-the-scenes documentary. One woman, cornered for a quick vox pop at one of the filming locations, asserted that she loved Jackson because he was “down to earth”, which is darkly hilarious in hindsight.  Down to earth? The press called him “wacko Jacko” – we all did. He slept in a hyperbaric chamber. He owned the Elephant Man’s skeleton. His skin kept getting paler, his nose thinner. What a weird guy! Was any of it true? Hard to say. Even today, when a careless tweet is like a drop of blood in a shark tank...

Get your wands at the ready, because Melbourne is set to play host to the Australian premiere of Harry Potter: The Exhibition. This behind-the-scenes extravaganza will leave Potterheads spellbound, and features interactive recreations of famous film scenes, props and costumes from the Broadway production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, a multimedia experience featuring the Whomping Willow, dementors, the Marauder's Map and the chance to conjure a Patronus charm. Budding witches and wizards will be sorted into Hogwarts houses and earn points as they explore the exhibition – it could be through a potions class, predicting the future à la Professor Trelawney in Divination or defeating a boggart in Defence Against the Dark Arts. There will also be opportunities to practice spell casting and Quidditch skills, plus win golden snitch medallions to become a model student. Each experience comes with plenty of photo ops and, of course, magical interactive moments. There's even a recreation of the Great Hall for visitors to enjoy in all its splendour, complete with floating candles.  This official Harry Potter exhibition is part of a global tour, previously selling out in cities like Boston and Madrid. You can find out more about this enchanting experience via the website.  Looking for more family-friendly things to do? Here's our guide to the best activities for kids in Melbourne. 

Silly season is upon us – if you’re ready to pop the Champers, laugh ’til your belly hurts and revel in tricks you didn’t know were humanly possible, strap in for a glittering night at Blanc de Blanc Encore.  The cabaret spectacle lands at Melbourne’s brand-new Spiegel Haus in late October as the headline affair. The pop-up entertainment precinct has set up camp on the rooftop of the Golden Square Car Park on Lonsdale Street ready to dazzle Melburnians.  Blanc de Blanc Encore fuses a delectable mix of circus, cabaret, jazz and comedy (with a couple of bottles of bubbles for good measure) for an effervescent night out – leave the kids at home for this one. Blanc de Blanc Encore is the second instalment of, you guessed it, Blanc de Blanc, when it visited Melbourne in 2017. Don’t fret if you didn’t see the first one – you’ll enjoy the encore every bit as much as a standalone. It’s been a hit internationally, and arrives off the back of extended Brisbane and Sydney seasons. Watch Blanc de Blanc Encore at the Spiegel Haus Melbourne from October 31. Group and special events packages are available just in time for Chrissy party planning. Book your tickets here.