The weekend looms and arts editor HELEN MUSA’s “Artsday” column offers a comprehensive look at what’s on where.

THE National Capital Orchestra has announced the appointment of conductor Louis Sharpe as its new music director. It’s good news, but no surprise, as Sharpe has been working with the orchestra as its primary conductor for several years, successfully guiding the musicians through lockdown.

STRONGER than Fiction documentary film festival is  screening “Midwives”, set in a remote corner of Rakhine state, where a Buddhist midwife and her Rohingya Muslim apprentice form an unlikely alliance. Dendy Cinemas, 3pm, July 24 and at 6.30pm, July 29.

It’s busy around the galleries:

• NANCY Sever Gallery in Civic is presenting “Resonate”, an exhibition of recent work by abstract artist is Cameron Haas.
• CANBERRA visual artist Lelde Vitols, whose parents escaped from Latvia when the Soviets were returning to occupy the Baltic states, is contributing 50 per cent of the proceeds from her studio exhibition to support for Ukraine. At Warren Place, Chifley, July 23-24.
• AARWUN Gallery has exhibitions by watercolour artist Sandra Hendy and  landscape artists Xiangrong Yu and Andrew Grassi Kelaher, Federation Square, Gold Creek, until August 7.
• CURATED by Alexander Boynes, “Come Back, All Is Forgiven” is an exhibition by Justin Andrews, Stuart Bailey, Leah Bullen, Trevelyan Clay, Helen Shelley, Noël Skryzpczak and Bryan Spier. At Canberra Contemporary Art Space, Parkes.

Music performances  over the weekend:

• DIANNA Nixon’s  students, from Wild Voices Music Theatre, are presenting the annual concert, with performer ages ranging from 10  to 75. The Street Theatre, 4pm, July 24.
  
• “A STONE of Hope” is a public concert by the California State University Fullerton Choir, at Wesley Uniting Church, Forrest, 2.30 pm, Saturday, July 23. Free event, no bookings.
• ENSEMBLE Offspring will be performing Fauré, Hahn, Poulenc, Schumann, Strauss, Mahler and Rachmaninov, in the Windsong Pavilion, Barragga Bay, Bermagui, 4pm, July 23.
• ART Song Canberra has “Romantic Classics” with Andrew Goodwin (tenor) and John Martin (piano). Wesley Music Centre, Forrest, 3pm, July 24.  

News all day, every day at CityNews.com.au.