Live Performances

When my friend Jonathan said he was putting on a Variety Night at the Brunswick Artists' Bar, I said I'll be there. Tickets are $10 on the door, or you can book ahead paying here, and I'll put your name on the entry list. Based on past events, if you want to say hello I'll be wearing a waistcoat and tie, just say hello. My name is Luke. If you don't want to mingle and just want to watch a gig with others without the mingling, then you're welcome to just do that too.

🇦🇺 **HELP AUSTRALIA WIN THE COMMONWEALTH SONG CONTEST!** 🇦🇺 Dear Meetup friends, I’m excited and honoured to share that my song *“Should Words Fail”* (performed by Gentmuse Souls) has been selected to represent AUSTRALIA as a GRAND FINALIST in the Commonwealth Song Contest! 🎶✨ Voting is NOW OPEN until **31 MAY**, and I would truly appreciate your support. I created this event for the votes. ✅ PLEASE VOTE FOR AUSTRALIA ✅ SHARE THIS EVENT WITH FRIENDS ✅ HELP US SPREAD THE WORD Every single vote can make a difference! 🗳️ VOTE HERE PLEASE: **[commonwealthsongcontest.com](https://www.commonwealthsongcontest.com)** 🎵 SONG: *Should Words Fail* 🎼 Songwritten by Jacques Mario Gentil 🎤 Performed by Gentmuse Souls Thank you so much for supporting Australian music on the international stage. Your encouragement means more than words can say. If each and every one of you follow the link and put a vote for AUSTRALIA, we will be in great standing of winning. I have been there for helping you with your music, the least I am asking in return here is to put a vote for Australia. Thank you so very much. 🇦🇺 Let’s bring this home for Australia! 🇦🇺 ***Jacques*** (Organizer, Mentor, Awards-Winning Songwriter)

*🎮 Play games. Make friends 🎲* Make new mates every Tuesday night at Team Up Tuesdays: A fun, social gaming night at Fortress. Hosted in our Tavern, you can enjoy friendly team-based games in a welcoming, social environment. **The Games 🕹️** After checking in with our host, you'll be sorted into one of two teams. These two teams will go head-to-head across 3 rounds of casual games every week! **The Prizes 🏆** \- Fun prizes for everyone on the winning team \- Spot prizes throughout the night **The Venue 🍻** Held in our Tavern, you can enjoy hot food and cold drinks in a fun fantasy setting. *See you next Tuesday!* **TERMS & CONDITIONS** * *Fortress Melbourne is a licensed venue, and as such, a valid ID is required and checked upon entrance to the premises.* * *Unaccompanied minors are not permitted in the venue at any time. Please make sure any guests under 18 are accompanied by a responsible adult at all times.* * *Minors are not allowed in the venue past 8:00 pm* * *No outside food or drinks.* *More information on valid forms of identification and Fortress' minors policy can be found here: [www.fortress.games/minors/](https://www.fortress.games/minors/)*

Hey Shower Singers! Meet us at our new venue the Craftsman's Corner (*313 Lygon St, Brunswick East*) **Please Note:** ACCESS to our rehearsal room requires walking up 2 flights of stairs - there is no lift. You can rock up and and register at the door, or contact us prior if you wish [via our website](https://beyondthebathroom.org/contact-us). We are in person or online, 7.30-9.30pm on Tuesdays. Casual attendance fees are $20 and $15 concession. If it's your first time, please come early so we can give you everything you need for a fun choir session! Looking forward to singing with you soon, BTB

The MLAI Meetup is a community for AI researchers and professionals which hosts monthly talks on exciting research. Our format is: * 6:00 - 6:20: Socializing * 6:20 - 6:40: Announcements and AI news * 6:40 - 7:40: Talk(s) and Q&A * 7:40 - 8:00 Networking * 8:00: Head to the nearest pub for dinner **Edit: Javier is sick so his talk is postponed! See below for Mike’s talk** **Javier Candeira: "Work in Progress towards Nonaga Zero"** **Talk Description:** Viktor Bautista i Roca's Nonaga is a delightful board game. Google's Alpha Zero paper describes an architecture marrying Monte-Carlo Tree Search with a neural network model in order to win board games at a level above human mastery. Javier is working on an Alpha Zero-style Nonaga playing bot, and will be presenting us with his work in progress. Nonaga Instructions: [https://hiperactivo.com/nonaga](https://hiperactivo.com/nonaga) Talk overview: 1. The Rules of the Game (a reprise of February's presentation) 1. What is Monte Carlo Tree Search, and what flavour of it are we implementing? 1. From Alpha Go to Mu Zero: a brief literature review of Google's findings and how they apply to Nonaga Zero. 1. Status report and next planned steps on the Nonaga Zero project. 1. Q&A: Bidirectional questions and answers, as this is a talk where the speaker has questions of his own! **Speaker Bio:** Javier Candeira is a software engineer, entrepreneur, public speaker, conference organiser, and a lifelong student of way too many topics, including machine learning. **Mike Bailey: "VoiceMode: Natural Voice Conversations with AI Agents"** **Talk description**: What if you could talk with your AI thinking partner while walking the dog, driving, or wherever inspiration finds you? VoiceMode is a free and open-source tool that enables natural voice conversations with AI coding agents like Claude Code. Voice brings situational accessibility to AI — keyboard and screen become optional. You can discuss ideas, capture them, research them, and have them underway before you sit back down. Mike and his AI assistant Cora will present together in real time, covering: * How VoiceMode works under the hood (local Qwen3-TTS, Whisper STT, Kokoro TTS, MCP integration) * Live demo of natural voice conversations with an AI coding agent * Building an open platform that works with any AI agent — not just one vendor **Speaker bio**: Mike Bailey is a Melbourne-based developer and the creator of VoiceMode, a free and open source project that brings natural voice conversations to AI agents like Claude Code. GitHub: mbailey/voicemode (1.2k ⭐) PyPI: voice-mode (200k downloads)

Join me for an evening of live classical music at Hamer Hall as the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra performs Great Passions. The updated program now includes Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 20 and Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 4, with Jaime Martín conducting. Finnish pianist Paavali Jumppanen joins the orchestra for Mozart’s dramatic and expressive concerto, followed by the huge orchestral sound of Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 4. Please note that this program has changed from the original listing: Nemanja Radulović is no longer performing Khachaturian’s Violin Concerto. The event is still listed by MSO as Great Passions. I’ll also be attending the 6:45pm pre-concert talk in the Hamer Hall Stalls Foyer, so the plan is to meet a little earlier, say hello, and then head in together. The talk should be a nice way to learn more about the music before the performance. This will be a relaxed, low-pressure meetup for anyone interested in orchestral music, whether you already attend classical concerts or just feel like trying something different. You’re very welcome to come solo. You can leave after the concert, or join for an optional dinner afterwards if the group feels like continuing the evening. **Links** Meetup start point: [https://maps.app.goo.gl/xjaqi6gBm3z7q8ai7](https://maps.app.goo.gl/xjaqi6gBm3z7q8ai7) Event: [https://www.mso.com.au/performance/2026-great-passions-radulovic-plays-khachaturian](https://www.mso.com.au/performance/2026-great-passions-radulovic-plays-khachaturian) Please check your eligibility for the promo code here: [https://www.mso.com.au/first-look-seats/first-look-seats-faqs](https://www.mso.com.au/first-look-seats/first-look-seats-faqs) **Rough timeline** * 6:20pm — Meet outside Hamer Hall * 6:45pm — Attend the pre-concert talk in the Hamer Hall Stalls Foyer * 7:30pm — Concert begins * Interval — Short break * 9:45pm — Concert finishes and meetup wraps up * Afterwards — Optional dinner nearby if people are interested **Tickets** You’ll need to purchase your own ticket for the concert. I’ve already bought mine. My seat is Stall R40, and I purchased it for $23 using the FIRSTLOOK promo code, though prices, seat availability, and promo eligibility may vary. Please check the official MSO event page and First Look Seats information before booking. First Look Seats are intended for first-time MSO audiences and have eligibility/availability conditions. **Important notes** * Please buy your own ticket before attending. * Ticket prices and availability may change. * The FIRSTLOOK promo code may not work for everyone, so please check eligibility before relying on it. * We’ll meet before the pre-concert talk, then head in together. * You’re welcome to leave after the concert if you don’t want to join dinner. * This is a social meetup to enjoy the concert together, not a formal music discussion group. **Other info** The concert runs for approximately 2 hours and 10 minutes, including a 20-minute interval. The program features large-scale orchestral music, so it should be a strong choice for anyone curious about the drama and power of a full symphony orchestra.

**Live Music at Boho Lounge – Conor Sneddon** Keep the good vibes going after our Biggest Morning Tea charity event with an afternoon of live music featuring **Conor Sneddon**. 📅 Sunday 24th May 🕓 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM 📍 Boho Lounge 🎟️ Free entry Join us for an easy, feel-good evening of live music, great atmosphere, and community spirit. Stay on after the fundraiser or come along just for the music — all are welcome for a relaxed Sunday session at Boho Lounge.

The topic for May is "Ink" Speak Easy: true stories, told live. The idea is simple: an audience, an open microphone, and great stories. Hilarious, gripping, poignant- it's up to you. Audiences are invited to come to listen or come to tell as folks from all corners of Columbus offer their stories live on stage! Held at Wild Goose Creative's warm, intimate space, this night of tales occurs on the 3rd Thursday of every month. Doors open at 6:30 pm, show starts at 7:00 pm. Please arrive early if you want to tell, as we generally only have room for a limited number of tellers, and the sign-up sheet has a tendency to fill up fast. Formed around the idea that people need stories--they're what hold and draw us together--SpeakEasy celebrates the strangeness and commonness of being human. And in a world of smartphones, Facebook, Twitter, and more . . . it gives people a real, breathing, in-person way to connect. The night is geared for true stories of all kinds, taking the best tales told around kitchen tables, in darkened pubs, on the street corner, and at late-night parties and giving them an audience. Speak Easy is also a great outlet for performers, writers, and artists looking to share their favorite stories and perfect their skills. We strongly encourage tellers to please tell the story rather than read it so we keep within the spirit of good storytelling and stay engaged with the audience. All are welcome. Hang around after the show for a drink and build community!

Join us as we get together to see Paul Rudd in the latest comedy-drama-musical from John Carney, POWER BALLAD! The film follows a washed-up wedding singer, a fading boy band singer and a stolen hit song. Here’s a description, trailer and plan for this event: DESCRIPTION: Rick, a washed-up wedding singer, and Danny, a fading boy band star, bond over music and a late-night jam session. When Danny turns Rick's song into a hit, Rick sets out to reclaim the recognition he believes he deserves. Power Ballad is written/directed by John Carney, the master of the modern musical and creative mind behind Once, Begin Again and Sing Street! It stars Paul Rudd, Nick Jonas, Peter McDonald, Marcella Plunkett, Havana Rose Liu and Jack Reynor. BUZZ & ACCLAIM: The film premiered to rave reviews at this year’s Dublin International Film Festival where critics call it “a sure-fired crowd-pleaser” that “just might be the feel-good hit of the year!” Others say, “Paul Rudd delivers a career-best performance in this charmer” that’s both “hilarious and deeply moving!” SUMMER OF ICE CREAM, VOL 2: SHAKE NO. 8! Ranked the #1 Ice Cream Shop in Columbus in 2024, this is the perfect place to kick off our Summer of Ice Cream and grab a sweet treat after the show! Their menu features an array of traditional, specialty and vegan shakes, hot cocoa, and more! You can check out their full menu here: [https://www.shakeno8.com/menu.php](https://www.shakeno8.com/menu.php) PLAN: We’ll plan for a 7pm-ish showing and will meet in the lobby area about 20 minutes before the show. Once showtime is announced, advance ticket purchase is advised! Once you have yours, please list your seat number in the Comments section of this event. We'll head to nearby Shake No. 8 immediately following the show! Should be a fun one, Dan