Polite Society’s June Social Diary

If you’re eagerly awaiting the next season of White Lotus, due to return in 2025, you can get an interim fix with Mike White and Jennifer Coolidge in conversation on June 10 in Sydney. The old friends and White Lotus collaborators – he created, wrote and directed; she memorably starred – will be talking storytelling and satire, friendship and Hollywood, during which their biting wit will surely be on show. June 10, Aware Super Theatre Sydney

Verdi lovers, get your opera glasses ready: Rigoletto is returning to the Sydney Opera House and it’s more lavish and lovely to look at than ever. The revolving La Dolce Vita-inspired sets, the opulent mid-century costuming and all the themes an opera needs – jealousy, passion, revenge! – make this a classic night out. June 13-26, Sydney Opera House

It’s the film buff’s favourite local festival – and this year, the Sydney Film Festival is turning 70. The grand dame of the cultural calendar is celebrating with over 200 movies, plus talks with film industry talents (think Jane Campion and Rachel Ward), and, yes, parties across Sydney, including at the festival’s iconic home, the gilded State Theatre. June 7-18, various locations

For one night only, Sydney’s Carriageworks will transform into a food market featuring over 50 stalls that focus on sustainable food practices. Special menus from iconic restaurants like Rockpool, Three Blue Ducks and Spice mingle with native Australian produce, a zero-waste lineup from food rescue charity Oz Harvest and even sustainable cocktails from Brix Distillers infused with by-products from Bourke Street Bakery. Wear your stretchiest waistband. June 16, Carriageworks

Tasmania’s Museum of Old and New Art is unleashing another boundary-pushing Dark Mofo in Hobart. The arts celebration is packed with edgy shows, installations and gigs, and the lineup is as weird and wonderful as ever. From a Twin Peaks-inspired ball to a teddy bear with laser eyes and a sleepover (yes, an actual sleepover), the temperature might be chilly but the content is hot. June 8-22, Hobart, various locations

Paris’ Musée d'Orsay comes to Melbourne – or at least, more than 100 of its Pierre Bonnard paintings do for a blockbuster Melbourne Winter Masterpieces. Just in time to inject some signature colour to winter, works by the ‘painter of happiness’ rub shoulders with immersive scenography by Paris-based architect and designer India Mahdavi in a world first. Opens June 9, National Gallery of Victoria

Family-friendly Lightscape returns to illuminate Melbourne’s Royal Botanic Gardens with a new trail through the city’s green lungs. Light, colour and plenty of music (the event is created in partnership with Sony Music Entertainment), plus tree art and pop-up bars will transform the normally peaceful gardens. June 7-18, Royal Botanic Gardens

Four hundred artists, 185 events, 12 world premieres and an ice rink: it must be time for Rising. The arts festival spreads through the city from Flinders Street Station to create a walkable lineup of dance, music, theatre, cinema, sculpture, large-scale installations and mass-participation events, from a 10,000 kazoo concert to two Paul Kelly special shows. June 7-18, various locations