Now, it’s still a couple of weeks away, but the season’s last hurrah, The Rocky Horror Picture Show on Monday August 26, has already sold out twice over and a third screen has just been added.

Plus, Dendy is hosting a Rocky Horror pre-screening party in the foyer before the show. You’d better dress the part, too, although don’t assume that a pair of fishnets and black lipstick will do the trick; Canberra film lovers take their cult films very seriously, so get cracking.

And as for the next season, it’s just been announced as well, and it’s good news for sci-fi nuts – Alien, Mad Max, The Matrix and more. Visit dendy.com.au for more details.

The Canberra Brick Expo, that mecca for all things Lego on this weekend at the Hellenic Club, is sold out, so if you’re not going, you’ve probably lost your chance to acquire one of these limited edition Parliament House Lego set, released to mark Canberra’s centenary. But here’s a picture of it anyway.

Spoiler alert – Patrick on Offspring died this week, and a nation mourned. And, as the actor who played him, Matthew Le Nevez, is a proud former Canberran, it really did sort of feel like we were mourning one of our own, didn’t it? Not that this could possibly be the last we ever see of him; attempts to get in touch with him in time for this column failed, as we were told he was off “shooting” some “movie” somewhere until next week. Stay tuned. But not to Offspring – it’s dead to us, after springing that doozie of a plot twist.

You might have noticed the recent promos for Australia’s Got Talent 2013, which starts on Channel Nine tomorrow.

There’s a bit where one of the judges, who looks suspiciously like the British comedian Dawn French, goes a bit nuts with joy over one of the performances.

Oh wait, it IS Dawn French, the hilarious lady beloved of all those who, like me, grew up on a strict diet of ABC and BBC sitcoms!

And she just loves our very own Dubulay!

You’ll get to find out why over the next few weekends, as the network begins screening the auditions before going on to the semi-finals, but Private Capital got in there first this week, by asking Dubulay directly.

“Well, see, I wasn’t wearing a shirt,” he explained. “I was wearing track pants and a sleeveless jacket, and I took it off halfway through.”

French’s shrieks even prompted the artist’s girlfriend, Sarah, to stand up in the audience and shout “That’s my man!” he said.

And it wasn’t just French who lost the plot – fellow judge Geri “Ginger Spice” Halliwell also got a bit hot and bothered.

Dubulay – real name Ash Selva – was born in the US, in upstate New York, but did most of his schooling in Canberra, at Marist College.

He said he made sure, when he arrived onstage, to look directly at judge Timomatic – the wildly successful Nigerian-born singer and dancer Timomatic, another Canberra export – when he announced where he was from, prompting an air-punch from Timomatic and screams from the audience.

“Everyone liked my act,” he said. What, even Kyle Sandilands? “He was the nicest of all of them.”

He described his genre as rap, although “I’m not a rapper rapper, I’m a pop rapper,” he said. “I make family-friendly, or radio-friendly, rap.”

He said he was nervous, but not scared, before his performance. “It didn’t put me off – I’ve done lots of shows in the past,” he said, adding that he even opened for US bad-boy Ja Rule when he came to Canberra few years ago.

And it’s not even his first time on the talent show.

“I actually tried for the show last year, and I didn’t get in,” he says, but then he got a call this year from executive producer Greg Beness, inviting him to try again.

He said even if he didn’t make it beyond the semi-finals, his appearance on the show will have been worth it.

“I’ll use my time onscreen to promote myself – I’ll put it on Youtube,” he says. Watch his progress at facebook.com/dubulay

By Erika Bacon

Can artists thrive in the perceived “bureaucratic bubbles of boredom” that exist in planned cities like Canberra?

Or is it only in the sprawling, grown-over-centuries cities that creative types can reach their potential?

That theory will be put to the test when creative minds engage in an idea-sharing exercise with their Brazilian counterparts.

Queanbeyan poet Omar Musa and hip-hop duo D’Opus & Roshambo (pictured) will take part in the Brasilia International Festival’s innovation showcase as part of a partnership between the two capital cities.

Both artists will get the opportunity to perform in front of thousands of Brasilia’s party-goers on August 24, followed by the Champagne Criolina Music Extravaganza on August 26.

Brasilia is the federal capital of Brazil and was planned and developed in 1956.

Much in the way Canberra is referred as the poorer cousin for creative types when compared to Sydney and Melbourne, Brasilia is often unfavourably compared to Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.

Program curator Frank Madrid says the similar planned nature of both cities presents unique challenges for artists to express their creativity.

“Planned cities are more spread out, and do not have the same density of population as unplanned cities – it makes it harder for artists to build contacts,” Madrid said.

“Brasilia is quite similar to Canberra. They’re both young cities, they’re both born out of political decisions, they both don’t have a specific ‘downtown’ area and both have big cities not too far away.

“And artists aren’t as likely to run into connections.”

Despite those barriers, a recent festival in Wollongong showcasing the talent hidden in Canberra opened Madrid’s eyes to changing the city’s stereotypical “boring” label.

“I was impressed by their stage delivery,” Madrid said.

“Australian hip hop is a unique sound, so it will be interesting to see how audiences in Brazil respond.”

Along with the performances, the artists will have workshop sessions with 12 aspiring Brazilian rappers.

Canberra-born film maker Cameron Brown and photo-journalist Cole Bennets will be working to document the exchange, and their works will eventually be shown at the National Film and Sound Archive.

A delegation of artists from Brasilia will travel to Canberra to complete the exchange in October.

If you’re getting tired of seeing the same old faces at the Farmer’s Markets at Epic, head on over the Murrumbateman Farmers Market today from 9am–1pm. Includes all the stuff that makes life good – fresh bread, gourmet sausages, organic tea, fresh fruit and veg, port, wines, jams, honey, olive oil, cushions and more. In the village Recreations Grounds. For more information, visit www.murrumbatemanfarmersmarket.com

Who doesn’t love a miniature locomotive? The Kingston Miniature Railway has a party day tomorrow, and it’s suitable for kids and everyone, really. Trains will be running between 12.30pm till 3.30pm, and are $3 each or $15 for an all-day pass. For more information, call Bob on 1300 73 19 54. Kingston Miniature Railway is at Geijera Place, Kingston.