What’s On in Melbourne for August 2022

We are now officially in the depths of winter! But that doesn’t stop August from shaping up to be a month that is full of wonderfully fun family-friendly events that will warm you up with joy.

Whether you’re into the arts, sports, outdoors, music, or just looking for fun things to do to keep the boredom at bay, these awesome activities and events will help you make the most of the remaining cold winter days! 

This post is updated regularly so check back in to see what’s on in Melbourne today and this weekend, as well as what’s happening for the whole month.

FEATURED EVENT #1

How did we get here? Are aliens real? And is it possible to lick your elbow? From the team behind Beep and Grug, Creation Creation is a wild, theatrical comedy about life’s biggest mysteries playing at Arts Centre Melbourne on Friday 19 August and Satur`day 20 August.

Book Creation Creation Now. 

Melbourne Events AUGUST

What's on in Melbourne CBD / Docklands

• Throwback Lounge (Sun 5 Aug – Sun 28 Aug) – This Winter pop-up will have 90's kids and families walking down memory lane with their favourite childhood snacks. 
• Classic Kids: Pictures at an Exhibition (Sat 6 Aug) – This beautiful concert sees the concert hall and art gallery merge exquisitely into one and is sure to thrill and inspire audiences young and old.
• Japan Winter Festival (Sat 6 Aug) – Enjoy traditional and modern Japanese culture workshops, Crafts, a Tea market and more.
• What Animal Other Than Human Are You? (Sun 7 Aug – Sun 14 Aug) – explore this important question through sculpture and drawing in this workshop for kids 7 to 10 years
• What Animal Other Than Human Are You? (Sun 7 Aug – Sun 14 Aug) – In this workshop, kids aged 11 to 13 years will get to explore this important question through sculpture and drawing.
• Family Gala – DC League of Super-Pets (Sun 14 Aug) – Hero up! In this latest animated film from DC Entertainment, see a troupe of superpowered pets band together to rescue the Man of Steel.
• Heinz One Pan Eatery Free pop-up restaurant (Tue 16 – Sat 20 Aug) – book an immersive experience for FREE, where you will cook up your chosen dish and learn the ease of preparing time-consuming dishes such as risotto and paella in under 11 minutes.
• Playdate at the Library (Wed 17 Aug – Wed 24 Aug) – Unleash your child’s inner musician at the Library with a playful and intuitive learning session for pre-schoolers!
• Inside Out (Thu 18 Aug – Sun 28 Aug) – Use all sorts of inspiring materials on hand for you to create artwork or build a play space together.
• The Children’s Sensorium (Fri 19 Aug — Thu 8 Oct) – an interactive exhibition featuring light, colour, touch, sound, smell and taste
• Creation Creation (Fri 19 Aug – Sat 20 Aug) – a wild, theatrical comedy about life’s biggest mysteries playing at Arts Centre Melbourne.
• Bluey: In Cinema with Joe Brumm (Sun 21 Aug) – join Bluey’s creator Joe Brumm in cinema for a screening and conversation at the Astor Theatre.
• A Wizardry High Tea (Sun 21 Aug – Sun 27 Nov) – An enchanting high tea event, with interactive roaming characters for the whole family to enjoy. Plus, twilight guests will be treated to wicked Cursed Cocktails!
• Daffodil Day at Rialto Piazza (Thu 25 Aug) – Rialto’s Piazza will once again be transformed into a sea of 20,000 yellow daffodils in support of the Cancer Council's annual Daffodil Day Appeal.
• Wellbeing Village (Fri 26 Aug – Sun 28 Aug) – Enjoy informational talks, marquees, a free film screening, and free workshops and classes that will help you learn and experience different paths to a healthier, happier lifestyle.
• Il Mago di Oz (Sat 27 Aug & Tue 30 Aug) – Following inspired retellings on screen as well as spin-off Broadway musicals, the land of Oz is reimagined yet again. Discover composer Pierangelo Valtinoni’s quirky and wondrous new Italian opera, Il Mago di Oz.
• The District Makers Market (Sun 29 May – Sun 27 Nov) – creative and colourful market stalls showcasing a variety of art, craft, jewellery, homewares, gifts and artisanal produce last Sunday of the month. 
• Winter Night Market (Wed 1 Jun – Wed 31 Aug) – this is one of the ultimate ‘whats on Melbourne’ events in winter! Every Wednesday evening enjoy delicious street food, hot bevvies, roaring open fires, great shopping, live music and fun at the silent disco. Winter Night Market review.
• Imaginaria (Fri 10 Jun – Sun 6 Nov 2022) – Fully interactive bespoke sounds, scents and lights activate in response to your movement as you walk, slide and glide through the dreamlike landscapes. Walk into a giant inflatable bubble, navigate a futuristic light maze or jump into a cosmic abyss. Imaginaria Review
• Lightscape (Fri 24 Jun – Sun 7 Aug) – For the very first time, an immersive, after-dark experience comes to Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne this winter. Iconic tree canopies will be drenched in colour, and vibrant bursts of light will tumble from the undergrowth and run-up trees like fizzing fireworks. Lightscape Review.

• Islands (Thu 30 Jun – Sun 27 Nov) – Escape to a surreal desert island in this interactive exhibition.
• Anything But Square: Under Surveillance program (Fri 1 Jul – Sun 7 Aug) – enter a hair-raising, spine-tingling world – where we are watched, everywhere, all the time. 
• The Eyes (Fri 1 Jul – Sun 7 Aug) – As you stand in the centre of Fed Square, an 8 metre high sculpture of a head made of eyes – so many eyes – will be watching you!
• Neighbourhood Earth: The Ultimate Space Experience (until Sun 28 Aug) – Enjoy many fun learning activities at this award-winning exhibition that creatively tells the story of space exploration.
• Pond[er] NGV (until Sun 28 Aug) A beautiful architectural installation, replete with a pink pond evocative of Australia’s inland salt lakes, has been selected as the winner of the NGV’s 2021 Architecture Commission in the Grollo Equiset Garden at NGV International. NGV Pink Pond Review.
• Seeing the Invisible (Until Fri 30 Sep) – contemporary artworks created with augmented reality (AR) technology, is presented in six countries simultaneously with Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne and Cranbourne as the exclusive Australian locations. Seeing The Invisible Review
• Making Art: Imagine Everything is Real (Until Oct 9) – Enjoy a range of hands-on activities and multimedia experiences inspired by methods of working invented by some of the leading European artists included in the exhibition. Making Art: Imagine Everything is Real Review

• Wild About Babies Docklands (Until November 2022) – A free exhibit featuring 20 life-sized endangered baby animal statues with the purpose of building awareness for vulnerable species everywhere.
• Arts Centre Sunday Market (Sundays) – find unique, quirky and handmade items at the stalls. There are always some yummy treats too!
• The Story of the Moving Image (ongoing) – Journey through the past, present and future of the moving image through interactive experiences, digital innovation and captivating stories. Story of the Moving Image ACMI Review.
• Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (ongoing) – see the award-winning production of the sequel to the Harry Potter series playing exclusively in Melbourne. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Review.

• Storytime by State Library Victoria (Mondays) – Share the delight of stories, songs, and picture books with your preschooler on Wednesdays at the Library. State Library of Victoria Review.
• Queen Street Plaza (Sundays) – find a rotating line-up of delicious street food, live music and entertainment, every Sunday from 9 am.
• Shrine Kids (Daily) – The Shrine of Remembrance is the National War Memorial of Victoria and it makes for an educational (and sobering) outing for families. Shrine Kids Review.
• Melbourne Book Market (Saturdays & Sundays) – curated collection of more than 5,000 new and pre-loved titles selected and presented by 15 of Melbourne’s most experienced booksellers.

What's on in Melbourne North / North-East

• Science on Show (Sat 13 Aug & Sun 21 Aug) – See some of the rarest and most fascinating species displayed at Melbourne Museum, with Museums Victoria scientists sharing insightful stories linked to the unique collections
• Sesame Street Tickets (Wed 17 Aug – Sun 9 Oct) – A 90-minute Circus Spectacular, featuring everyone's favourite Sesame Street Characters
• Dr Hubble at the Preston Market (Sat 20 Aug) – Bring the kids down to the Market to catch one of Dr Hubble's amazing bubble displays! He'll be hosting four 35 minutes fun-tastic sessions with the first one kicking off at 10 am.
• Interspecies and Other Others (Fri 26 Aug – Sun 2 Oct) – See the gardens and architecture of national heritage-listed Abbotsford Convent be transformed through a dynamic, free program of video and sound art, sculpture, installation and performance.
• Hurstbridge Wattle Festival (Sun 28 Aug) – A rural street festival held on the last Sunday in August in Hurstbridge.
• Italian Day Festival (Sun 28 Aug) – Enjoy live entertainment, cooking demos, pop up food stalls, free kids activities, and more!
• Tyama: A multisensory experience of nature (ongoing) – Be transported to Victoria’s nocturnal worlds, immersing you in 360-degree responsive projections, breathtaking effects, and exquisite soundscapes. Tyama review
• Story Seekers Melbourne Museum (Mondays and Fridays) – Join in at the Melbourne Gallery to explore stories that bring life to treasures.
• Tiny Tour Melbourne Museum (Mondays and Fridays) – a 45-minute tour created for early year audiences that will invite them to wonder, discover and be amazed.
• Bite-Sized Science Melbourne Museum (First Saturday of the Month) – Discover our natural world and uncover the secret life of the creatures around us and their ecosystems in these monthly Bite-Sized Science sessions.
• Fitzroy Market (Saturdays) – a one-stop hub for everything produce, food, artisan, handcrafted, vintage, second hand and local.
• Abbotsford Farmers Market (Saturday) – Shop local and seasonal produce and visit the Collingwood Children’s Farm which is just next door.
• VU Play Coburg pop-up playspaces (Tuesdays – Saturdays) – VU early childhood pre-service teachers create pop-up play spaces for children to play.
• Rose Street Artists' Market (Saturdays and Sundays) – Shop directly from Melbourne’s best artists, designers, crafters and makers at Fitzroy’s iconic Rose Street Market.
• Diamond Valley Railway (Sundays) – miniature railway with a playground next door. Diamond Valley Railway Review.
• Mini Mega Model Museum (ongoing) – an exhibition featuring small and big things at Melbourne Museum. Mini Mega Model Museum review. 

What's on in Melbourne South / South-East / Bayside

• Malvern On Ice (Thurs 4 Aug – Sun 7 Aug) – Come down and enjoy a unique experience in the heart of Malvern, with lots of fun activities and give-aways over the four days.
• AYPT presents: Nickelodeon's SpongeBob The Musical (Thu 11 Aug – Sun 14 Aug) – an incredibly fun and family-friendly Musical adaptation of Nickelodeon’s long-running animated children’s sitcom.
• Victorian State Ballet – The Little Mermaid (Sat 20 Aug) – see an underwater world inhabited by myriad sea folk and lively characters be brought to life in this full-length magical classical ballet production of the story by Hans Christian Andersen.
• Crafternoon (Sat 20 Aug) – In this fun workshop for kids, artist Louisa Bufardeci will teach a range of string figures inspired by her current exhibition Figuring.
• Play, Art and Learning (Fri 26 Aug) – Introduce your little one to art through play while inspiring their curiosity, problem solving and creativity.
• Hey Diddle Diddle! (Sat 26 Aug) – Bring your bub for a sensory art experience facilitated by a Barking Spider Visual Theatre artist, who will guide parents/carers and babies through a gentle, sensory, playful experience.
• Book launch: Naturopolis (Sat 27 Aug) – celebrate the gorgeous new picture book NATUROPOLIS by Deborah Frenkel and Ingrid Barkowiak.
• Classic Kids: Pictures at an Exhibition (Sat 6 Aug) – See the concert hall and art gallery merge exquisitely into one as you go on a wondrous musical promenade through Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition.
• Mini Makers (Wednesdays) – Back for Term 3, Mini Makers provides masterclasses for kids ages 2 – 5, where they can explore science, craft, cooking, music, movement and more!
• Seeing the Invisible (Until Fri 30 Sep) – contemporary artworks created with augmented reality (AR) technology, is presented in six countries simultaneously with Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne and Cranbourne as the exclusive Australian locations. Seeing The Invisible Review.
• Mornington Railway (Sundays) – Climb aboard the Mornington Railway steam train for a fun-filled outing.
• Little Play Squad Legoland (Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays) – An interactive parent-child Play & Learn session based on LEGO® DUPLO®. DUPLO Farm Adventure Review.

• Bentleigh Sunday Market (Sundays) – plants, clothing, cosmetics, jewellery, books, videos, tools, antiques, crafts, pre-loved goods, and more! Every Sunday. 
• Frankston Community Market (Sundays) – a weekly community market located in the very heart of Frankston, featuring an ever-changing variety of stalls.
• Camberwell Sunday Market (Every Sunday) – second-hand retro, vintage, antique, fashion and collectible goods you just can't find anywhere else
• Gasworks Farmers’ Market (Third Saturday of every month until Sun 18 Dec) – On Saturdays soak up the vibrant atmosphere and sample the very best of local Victorian produce, directly from Victorian farmers and specialty makers.
• Gumbuya World Wildlife Wanderers (Every Wed) – join in every Wednesday for a day full of fun for your little ones with a 30-minute program, which will include storytime, games and Nature Play-based activities.
• Prahran Market Mini Marketeers (Every Tuesday) – Enjoy free, guided activities teaching toddlers the fundamentals of eating well and putting the ‘yum’ in healthy food choices.
• Camelot Traffic School (Weekends and School Holidays) Ride or scoot in this miniature city and get practical experience riding and learning some road rules. Located in Bentleigh East. Check their hours on their website before you go as they are subject to change. Read my review.
• Young at Art Mornington Peninsula Art Gallery (Tuesdays) – program for 0-5 year olds. Sing, dance, clap and stomp your feet with Matteo! Do an exciting activity with the Education Coordinator afterwards.

What's on in Melbourne East

• Bumble Bee Baby and Children’s Market (Sun 7 Aug) – high quality pre loved, handmade, and new goods at reasonable prices.
• Belgrave Big Dreams Market (Sun 14 Aug) – discover original and bespoke design pieces, some of the yummiest and freshest produce the area has to offer, live music, bouncy castle and face painting for the kids.
• Melbourne Tram Museum (Wed 17 Aug & Sat 27 Aug) – Visit a Melbourne icon at this quirky museum. FULL REVIEW
• Park Orchards Market (Sat 20 Aug) – Enjoy music, kids activities, playgrounds, plenty of parking, coffee, bread, pastries, fresh fruit & veg, local eggs, honey, wholesale meat, artisan deli goods, cheese, wine, plants, gifts, homewares, dogs & cats painter, arts & crafts and jewellery.
• Eastland – Mini Beasts (Sun 26 Jun – Tue 30 Aug) – Discover the luminous Mini Beasts and see them come to life through augmented reality, kids' workshops and entertainment.
• McAdam Square Winter Wonderland (Until Sat 13 Aug) – Enjoy inflatable igloos, face-painting, meet and greets with a real-life ballerina and more!
• Winter Igloo Garden (Until Thu 15 Sep) – Hire a private igloo and enjoy wintery food and beverages. Auburn Hotel Winter Igloo Review.

• Auburn Kids Sunday Funday (Sundays) – Let the kids roam with the barnyard animals at the FREE petting zoo while you enjoy a Sunday Roast! What could be better! 
• Lake Mountain (June – September but dates will vary depending on snow season) – toboggan, cross country skiing and snow play, 2 hours from Melbourne. Read my tips on visiting Lake Mountain with kids
• Mt Baw Baw (June – September but dates will vary depending on snow season) – Melbourne’s closest downhill ski resort is open for the winter season. Read my tips on visiting Mt Baw Baw with kids

• Yarra Valley Railway (Every Sun) – take a trip on the historic Walker RM22 Railmotor from Healesville to Tunnel Hill. Yarra Valley Review.
• Heide Art Babies (Tuesdays) – 30 minutes of sensory play in the gallery, looking, thinking and talking about art. Heide Art Babies Review.
• Mooroolbark Miniature Railway (Runs 4th Sunday each month) – miniature rail running every 4th Sunday.

What's on in Melbourne West

• Little Kids' Day In – Caring for Country (Fri 5 Aug) – celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children's Day with a special day of activities, storytelling and performances dedicated to First Peoples’ knowledge systems, stories and culture.
• Altona Homestead Devonshire Tea (Sun 7 Aug) – historical homestead is open every 1st Sunday for Devonshire Tea.
• Family Swim Nights (Sun 7 Aug) – Windy Hill Fitness Centre will open exclusively for the autism community with Family Swim Night
• Heritage Fruit Tree Festival (Sun 7 Aug) – Explore Werribee Park Heritage Orchard and purchase rare heritage fruit trees for your backyard at home.
• Truffle Festival (Sri 12 Aug) – Grazeland’s vendors will serve up sweet and savoury dishes enhanced by the fungi’s signature umami flavour.
• Weaving Tales (Sat 13 Aug) – Explore how you can tell your family history through textile art in this weaving workshop with artist Ana Petidis!
• Robotics and coding workshop (Sun 14 Aug & Sat 3 Sep) – Discover the power of mBot robots in this fun introductory workshop that explores how simple programs can control complex machines.
• Marble Run (Sat 20 Aug) – Join in creating Hobsons Bay's biggest ever marble run – Construct a course out of recycled materials and pool noodles to keep the marble rolling.
• Explore AI (Sat 20 Aug) – In this hands-on workshop, you will train an artificial intelligence system and see how this technology is used in the world today.
• Eynesbury Market (Sun 28 Aug) – Genuine farmers, producers and makers meet and sell directly to the public fresh, local and organic foods.
• Explore AI (Sat 30 Aug) – a hands-on workshop where you’ll train an artificial intelligence system and see how this technology is used in the world today.
• FCAC Toddler Jam (Thu 14 July – Fri 16 Sep) – getting toddlers active and learning through play, with a mixture of percussion, singing, dancing, story-time and mindfulness. 
• Bulla Railway (3rd Sunday of each month) – Ride the dinosaur trail on the miniature railway. Bulla Railway Review.
• Altona Miniature Railway (3rd Sunday of the month) – between 10am and 3pm ride this wonderful Miniature Railway. Altona Miniature Railway review.
• Story Time With Amanda Falson (Mondays) – Join in this free event with your little ones every Monday morning for story time with Amanda Falson.
• Grazeland (Fridays – Sundays) – huge dining precinct with city views and 50 stalls to choose from. Read the Grazeland Review

• Essendon Traffic School (Saturdays) – Essendon Traffic School is a mini road set up for kids aged two to ten years, complete with road signs, railway bells and traffic lights. Essendon Traffic School review.
• Sunday Funday Station Hotel (Sundays) – Every Sunday The Station Hotel prepares an animal farm and other entertaining activities to keep the little ones busy, while you sit back and relax. Station Hotel Review
• Enterprize Sail Williamstown (usually sails the third Sunday of every month) – go for a one hour sail on tall ship Enterprize in Williamstown

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