The best things to do in Melbourne this weekend

Australians of a certain generation know all about the fractious debate surrounding the worth of abstract contemporary art. There was a national conniption when the Whitlam government cleared the then-record-breaking $1.3 million purchase of Jackson Pollock’s ‘Blue Poles’ for the National Gallery of Australia in 1973. Two years later, after a double dissolution election, Governor-General John Kerr notoriously dismissed the Whitlam government on November 11, 1975.  The vanquished Prime Minister took an immortal swipe at his political executioner on the steps of Old Government House: “Well may we say, ‘God save the Queen,’ because nothing will save the Governor-General.” With ‘Blue Poles’ now valued at around $350 million, you might say that Whitlam had the last laugh on that front. But the spiritual battle for the arts continues apace, with some of Australia’s most vital institutions subject to savage budget cuts that endanger their very existence and the cultural wealth of our nation.  This raging debate around artistic worth is captured on a much more intimate scale in French playwright Yasmina Reza’s 1994 work, Art. Translated by Christopher Hampton, it receives a rollicking Australian production at the Comedy Theatre directed by Prima Facie’s Lee Lewis. What’s Art all about? Art is a ferociously funny chamber piece in which three so-called best mates come to metaphorical blows over a plain white painting. Only it’s not plain white, according to Damon Herriman’s arty...

Fluffy marshmallows, chewy raspberry lollies, crunchy roasted peanuts and snowy flakes of desiccated coconut all smothered in rich couverture chocolate. Yep, we’re talking about rocky road.  This May, things are set to get sweet when the Rocky Road Festival returns for the entire month, transforming the Yarra Valley Chocolaterie, Great Ocean Road Chocolaterie and Mornington Peninsula Chocolaterie into dessert havens Beyond the classic flavour combo, there's an inventive offering of 31 limited-edition flavours. Think Dubai Dream, Very Berry Tiramisu, Peanut Butter Pretzel, Cherry Pistachio Baklava and Matcha Strawberry Latte. There are also vegan, gluten-friendly and no added sugar options, so nobody misses out. And it doesn’t stop there. You can also treat yourself to scoops of freshly churned ice cream, velvety hot chocolates and old-school milkshakes. You can even roll up your sleeves to create your own custom block or book into a hosted tasting session ($28 per person) held on select dates.  Each of the stores also boast a mega pick'n'mix counter to create take-home packs of your favourite blocks. Hate making delicious decisions? Opt for the Ultimate Rocky Road Festival Box featuring all 31 festival flavours.  Entry is free, with plenty of tastings and a showroom stacked with hundreds of handmade chocolate treats. For those who can’t make the trip, don’t worry – Rocky Road Festival delights can be delivered to your door. Get all the details here.  Stay in the loop:...

Spring, summer, autumn, winter – Vivaldi’s Four Seasons’ violin concertos have been enthralling music lovers for around 300 years. And now, there’s an enchanting new way to enjoy these classical pieces. The Immigration Museum is playing host to Eonarium Enlightenment, an immersive sound and light show from April 24 until May 31.  Dreamed up by Zurich-based art collective Projecktil, this globally acclaimed experience arrives in Melbourne for the first time, following an acclaimed run across Europe and the UK, and after making its Australian debut in Brisbane.  The majestic halls of the Immigration Museum's beautifully restored Old Customs House will come alive with sweeping 360-degree light projections as they dance across heritage walls and ceilings in awe-inspiring waves of colour – all set in time to Vivaldi’s iconic score. The cinematic visuals pull you right into the four seasons as spring blossoms, summer shines, autumn mellows and winter settles in. Equal parts meditative and mesmerising, this immersive sound and light show is perfect for the entire family. Whatever you do, make sure you arrive early for your booked time slot as the experience only lasts for 30 minutes. So, sink into a beanbag (premium seating) or a chair (standard seating) and look up! Find out more and get your tickets here. Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Melbourne newsletter for the best of the city, straight to your inbox. Want more? These are the best exhibitions happening...

“What’s your damage?” One of the many endlessly quotable lines spouted by Winona Ryder’s Veronica and co in Michael Lehmann’s jet-back comedy, Heathers (1989), it’s also the least likely to get you fired from work. The one about the chainsaw? Not so much… Both explosive utterances make it to the delightfully diabolical stage adaptation, Heathers the Musical. With a book, music and lyrics from the Legally Blonde the Musical team-up of Laurence O’Keefe and Kevin Murphy, it follows an unending parade of non-musical films adapted into song-and-dance stage versions, including Back to the Future, 9 to 5, Groundhog Day, Cruel Intentions, Pretty Woman and Mrs Doubtfire. Are we going to prom or to hell with this take? Directed by Andy Fickman with musical direction from Martine Wengrow, Heathers the Musical may be cheesier than the goofy yet undeniably brutal movie, but the slushy-driven “teen-angst bullshit” spirit of the Westerberg High cohort is still present and incorrect. Far more so than, say, the recent jukebox tone-down of far bleaker film, Saturday Night Fever. It really works, though costume designer David Shields’ popping Veronica in blue over black, is a step too far, copied and pasted from a million teen films, notably Allison in The Breakfast Club. Shields’ school set design is also rather perfunctory, as is Ben Cracknell’s basic lighting, but thank goodness the ensemble ably distracts.  How are those teenagers who want to be treated like human beings? Leading the...

Bernie Dieter and her band of legendary misfits have returned to Melbourne once again, to deliver a serving of debaucherous fun and frivolity. Bernie Dieter’s Club Kabarett, starring the legendary queen of Weimar punk described as an "electrifying cross between Lady Gaga, Marlene Dietrich and Frank-N-Futer in sequins", has taken over North Melbourne's historic Meat Market until May 24. Audiences can expect riotous original songs, immense vocal talent and a jaw-dropping line-up of contortionists, sword swallowers, fire breathers and aerialists. For more info and to secure your tickets, head to the website. Read on for our five-star review of Bernie Dieter’s Club Kabarett from the 2022 Melbourne Fringe Festival. *** It’s easy to see why Dieter’s award-winning show has garnered such esteem since touching down in Australia earlier this year. Less than two minutes in and our M.C., Bernie has thrown off her tartan dress to reveal glittery tights and feather-tipped shoulder pads. Soon after, she’s straddling an audience member and enlisting the help of two others – lovingly named ‘Shaven Haven’ and ‘Silver Fox’ – to carry her back to the stage in the splits. The fourth wall is not so much brought down, as elegantly side-stepped by her sky-high stiletto heel. All the while, Bernie’s quick-wit and dirty mouth find comedic beats in the unlikeliest – or, as it were, the most unwilling – of audience members. "Tonight is about letting loose, letting go, and getting a little bit more...

Calling all bookworms, literature lovers and BookTok obsessives: the Melbourne Writers Festival (MWF) line-up has just been unveiled. This year's program reads like a list of the crème de la crème of the 2026 literary world, featuring New York Times best-selling authors, Booker Prize standouts, first-timers and MWF exclusives, with a stellar cast coming together to celebrate the iconic festival's 40th anniversary.  The festival will spread big bookish energy across the city and surrounds via four days of workshops, talks, events and panels, running from May 7-10. This time around, the central theme of the program is 'Visions and Revisions' – which will explore the ideas that matter, futures we imagine, the strange stories we all carry, and the particular revisions, both personal and collective, that work to define us. International highlights include former NZ prime minister and all-round fan favourite, Jacinda Ardern, international bestseller R.F Kuang (Yellowface and Babel), recent Booker prize winner David Szalay (Flesh) and acclaimed Booker winner Yann Martel, whose known worldwide for his beloved book, The Life of Pi.  On the local front, expect to see journalist and human rights advocate Antoniette Latouff present 'Women Who Win', alongside activist and former Australian of the Year, Grace Tame. We'll also see Stephanie Alexander (aka the queen of Australian homestyle cooking) in conversation with beloved author and philanthropist Alice Zaslavsky, in a Mother's Day...

There’s something special about sitting your kids down to watch the same show that you and and your parents did, decades ago. Believe it or not, Play School has been captivating little eyes since 1966 and ACMI is giving you the chance to come and explore the set brought to life, for free.  You can explore the Play School: Come and Play! exhibition at ACMI in Federation Square now until July 12. The perfect outing for two- to five-year-olds, little ones have the chance to check out the Rocket Clock, meet Big Ted, Jemima and Humpty Dumpty, sing songs and learn.  Kids can play presenter, camera operator or director – whatever tickles their fancy. The exhibition also includes Auslan translations throughout, with sensory-friendly, Auslan and audio-described sessions available. Plus, a chance to see what goes on behind the scenes and even hear from hosts like Leah Vandenberg and childhood experts in the Play School Talks series throughout April, June and September. Ready to come inside? Tickets to Play School: Come and Play! are free but make sure you book your spot here. Catch the exhibition at ACMI from 10am to 5pm until July 12.

Need a new fun family photo? We’ve got you. One of the world’s biggest immersive experiences is landing in Melbourne – serving up a fun, surreal backdrop for your Instagram grid glow-up. Bubble Planet: An Immersive Experience is opening in April at Fever Exhibition and Experience Centre, offering Melbournians a transporting, ultra-Instagrammable day out. Already experienced by more than two million visitors around the world, with sell-out runs in Milan, Los Angeles, London and Brussels, and a recent stint in Sydney, Bubble Planet is a fantastical world of optical illusions, cutting-edge virtual reality experiences, giant bubbles, and next-level immersive projections. Visitors to the Melbourne site can expect to embark on a dreamlike journey through 11 otherworldly rooms, home to giant bubble domes, LED underwater-style wonderlands, selfie hubs and VR dreamscapes. Sessions at this bizarre immersive world run for between 60-90 minutes, and the experience is suitable for people of all ages – with kids under four welcomed in for free. Keen? Bubble Planet Melbourne launches on April 1. You can learn more and snap up tickets over here.Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Melbourne newsletter for the best of the city, straight to your inbox. Want fun now? These are the best things to do in Melbourne this weekend.These are the best things to do in Melbourne this week.And these are the must-do activities to add to your Melbourne bucket list.

Remember when we collectively discovered just how obsessed men were with the Roman Empire? Consider this your warning: a major, Melbourne-exclusive exhibition is officially bringing Ancient Rome to Melbourne Museum in April 2026.  Rome: Empire, Power, People is a large-scale exhibition developed by Museums Victoria in collaboration with Italian partners, drawing on extraordinary loans from the Museo Nazionale Romano and the Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Firenze. More than 150 original objects dating from the 1st to 3rd centuries CE will be on display from April 1 to October 25, 2026 – all shown in Australia for the very first time. You can expect original statues, mosaics, frescoes, jewellery and everyday artefacts that trace Rome’s story from the fallout of Julius Caesar’s assassination through the rise of the Empire and its eventual collapse. The exhibition will foreground the lived experience of being an ancient Roman – think experiencing the theatrics of the gladiator arena, the hustle and bustle of marketplaces, domestic life inside Roman homes, and the luxury and politics that shaped the Eternal City. Immersive scenography and multimedia elements will also be used to transport Melburnians through imperial splendour and ordinary life, revealing how Roman ideas of power, governance and spectacle continue to shape the modern world. Beyond the gallery, the Roman theme is taking over the whole museum. Expect Italian-inspired food and drink offerings, exclusive...

Broadway smash-hit musical Waitress is making its Melbourne (and Australian) debut in 2026, blending sweetness, sass and soulful songs in one heartwarming show. The Tony-nominated production is set to premiere at Her Majesty's Theatre in May 2026 for an exciting, month-long run.  As one of the world’s newer Broadway sensations, Waitress made its debut in New York in 2016, where it ran for four years. Based on the late Adrienne Shelly’s cult 2007 indie flick of the same name, the musical has been whipped into a moving tale of self-liberation against the odds. The show is brought to life by a trailblazing, female-led creative team, featuring a book by acclaimed screenwriter Jessie Nelson, an uplifting score by Grammy winner Sara Bareilles (including the showstopper anthem, ‘She Used to Be Mine’), and direction by Tony winner Diane Paulus. “It’s been a dream of mine to see Waitress (finally) find its way to Australia,” said Sara Bareilles. “This story is about dreams, friendship and the courage needed to learn to love oneself, which feels so universal and so timely.” As the name suggests, the story follows Jenna, a small-town waitress and seasoned pie maker who dreams of escaping her rocky marriage and starting fresh. When a baking contest and an unexpected new romance give her a taste of change, Jenna discovers that the secret ingredient to happiness might be closer than she thought. The Australian premiere of Waitress has been years in the baking – and we’re ready to have...