All the arts news that matters, it’s HELEN MUSA’s “Arts in the City” column.

ROBYN Archer plans to transform The Playhouse stage into a cabaret, not the first time she’s done this kind of thing in Canberra. In “An Australian Songbook” (July 7-8), she uncovers hidden gems of Australian music, from Bon Scott to Kate Miller Heidke, with piano accordion wizkid George Butrumlis, Cameron Goodall on guitar and Enio Pozzebon on keyboards.

FORMER “CityNews” Artist of the Year in 2019, Michael Dooley, will present a concert of his original instrumental music, conducted by Max McBride. It includes “The Piano Concerto #1”, performed by pianist Andrew Rumsey; “The Land That Is Very Far Off” performed by violinist Timothy Wickham and “Australian Landscapes”, a suite of five impressionistic movements for piano and orchestra. Llewellyn Hall, July 4. 

“BEAUTIFUL Wickedness”, the most significant exhibition of Canberra artist eX de Medici’s work to date, is showing at Queensland Art Gallery of Modern Art until October 2. Highlights include de Medici’s botanical studies, her dazzling large-scale watercolours and her 2001 portrait of Midnight Oil.

FEATURING in the cast of a new production of “Billy Elliot” on the Gold Coast is long-time Canberra musical star Kate Peters, appearing not in her usual glamorous role but as “Grandma”.

CANBERRA Community Chorale aims to demonstrate that Johann Sebastian Bach’s music is light, airy and buoyant when it presents a program of Bach’s choral music, “The Castle of Heaven”, under the direction of Dan Walker with soloists AJ America and Veronica Milroy. North Belconnen Uniting Church, 2.30pm, July 2.