BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Ballaarat Mechanics' Institute - ECPv6.16.4.1//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-WR-CALNAME:Ballaarat Mechanics' Institute X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Ballaarat Mechanics' Institute REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:Australia/Melbourne BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:+1100 TZOFFSETTO:+1000 TZNAME:AEST DTSTART:20250405T160000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:+1000 TZOFFSETTO:+1100 TZNAME:AEDT DTSTART:20251004T160000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:+1100 TZOFFSETTO:+1000 TZNAME:AEST DTSTART:20260404T160000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:+1000 TZOFFSETTO:+1100 TZNAME:AEDT DTSTART:20261003T160000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:+1100 TZOFFSETTO:+1000 TZNAME:AEST DTSTART:20270403T160000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:+1000 TZOFFSETTO:+1100 TZNAME:AEDT DTSTART:20271002T160000 END:DAYLIGHT END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260211T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260211T200000 DTSTAMP:20260119T235116Z CREATED:20260119T041205Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260119T235116Z UID:70121-1770836400-1770840000@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Kadampa Meditation Series | A Fresh Start: Discover the Power of Meditation DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/kadampa-meditation-series-11-feb-26/ LOCATION:Lending Library\, Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, Victoria\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:kadampa ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Square-A_Fresh_Start.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Kadampa Meditation":MAILTO:info@kadampa.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260212T193000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260212T210000 DTSTAMP:20260129T033730Z CREATED:20260128T030546Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260129T033730Z UID:70313-1770924600-1770930000@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Ballarat Film Society | Flow DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/ballarat-film-society-flow/ LOCATION:BMI – Minerva Space\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350 CATEGORIES:Ballarat Film Society,Film ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/flow-sq-promo.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260214T120000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260214T140000 DTSTAMP:20260112T060448Z CREATED:20260112T012814Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260112T060448Z UID:69779-1771070400-1771077600@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:In conversation with Tori Baxter | Book Launch DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/in-conversation-with-tori-baxter/ LOCATION:BMI – Minerva Space\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350 CATEGORIES:Author Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Untitled-1.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260215T170000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260215T183000 DTSTAMP:20260123T000304Z CREATED:20260112T034344Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260123T000304Z UID:69818-1771174800-1771180200@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Joseph Tawadros | Solo Oud DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/joseph-tawadros-solo-oud/ LOCATION:BMI – Minerva Space\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350 CATEGORIES:Live Music ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/sq-promo-joseph-tawadros.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260218T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260218T200000 DTSTAMP:20260119T234924Z CREATED:20260119T041316Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260119T234924Z UID:70123-1771441200-1771444800@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Kadampa Meditation Series | A Fresh Start: Discover the Power of Meditation DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/kadampa-meditation-series-18-feb-26/ LOCATION:Lending Library\, Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, Victoria\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:kadampa ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Square-A_Fresh_Start.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Kadampa Meditation":MAILTO:info@kadampa.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260225T183000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260225T200000 DTSTAMP:20251008T030310Z CREATED:20251008T011020Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251008T030310Z UID:67900-1772044200-1772049600@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:In Conversation with Paula McLean DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/paula-mclean/ LOCATION:BMI – Humffray Room\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:Author Talk,Library ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/sp-promo-paula-mclean.webp END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260225T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260225T200000 DTSTAMP:20260119T235607Z CREATED:20260119T041447Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260119T235607Z UID:70125-1772046000-1772049600@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Kadampa Meditation Series | A Fresh Start: Discover the Power of Meditation DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/kadampa-meditation-series-25-feb-26/ LOCATION:Lending Library\, Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, Victoria\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:kadampa ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Square-A_Fresh_Start.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Kadampa Meditation":MAILTO:info@kadampa.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260228T200000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260228T230000 DTSTAMP:20260226T225623Z CREATED:20251202T061155Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260226T225623Z UID:69260-1772308800-1772319600@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Whispers of Shadows DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/whispers-of-shadows/ LOCATION:BMI – Humffray Room\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:Live Music,Theatre Production ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/square-promo-wos.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260302T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260302T210000 DTSTAMP:20260202T022511Z CREATED:20260112T025228Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260202T022511Z UID:69804-1772478000-1772485200@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Pub Cinemas Presents: 'In The Shadow of the Gallows' & short film 'Vendetta 19' DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/pub-cinemas-in-the-shadow-of-the-gallows/ LOCATION:BMI – Minerva Space\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350 CATEGORIES:Film ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/sq-promo-shadow-of-the-gallows.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260304T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260304T200000 DTSTAMP:20260226T230259Z CREATED:20260226T225959Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260226T230259Z UID:70943-1772650800-1772654400@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Kadampa Meditation Series | How to Solve Our Human Problems: Managing Anger & Difficult Relationships DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/kadampa-meditation-series-4mar/ LOCATION:Lending Library\, Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, Victoria\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:kadampa ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/1-HTSHP-BMI-Square.png ORGANIZER;CN="Kadampa Meditation":MAILTO:info@kadampa.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260310T180000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260310T193000 DTSTAMP:20260309T233337Z CREATED:20251110T032113Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260309T233337Z UID:68454-1773165600-1773171000@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:In Conversation with Kate Mildenhall & Josh Pomare DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/in-conversation-with-christian-white-josh-pomare/ LOCATION:BMI – Minerva Space\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350 CATEGORIES:Author Talk,Library ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/square-promo-kate-josh.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260311T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260311T200000 DTSTAMP:20260226T230419Z CREATED:20260226T230339Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260226T230419Z UID:70950-1773255600-1773259200@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Kadampa Meditation Series | How to Solve Our Human Problems: Managing Anger & Difficult Relationships DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/kadampa-meditation-series-11-mar/ LOCATION:Lending Library\, Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, Victoria\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:kadampa ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/1-HTSHP-BMI-Square.png ORGANIZER;CN="Kadampa Meditation":MAILTO:info@kadampa.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260312T193000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260312T210000 DTSTAMP:20260129T033824Z CREATED:20260129T021756Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260129T033824Z UID:70390-1773343800-1773349200@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Ballarat Film Society | All We Imagine As Light DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/ballarat-film-society-all-we-imagine-as-light/ LOCATION:BMI – Minerva Space\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350 CATEGORIES:Ballarat Film Society,Film ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/all-we-imagine-sq-promo.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260318T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260318T200000 DTSTAMP:20260226T230537Z CREATED:20260226T230513Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260226T230537Z UID:70952-1773860400-1773864000@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Kadampa Meditation Series | How to Solve Our Human Problems: Managing Anger & Difficult Relationships DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/kadampa-meditation-series-18-mar/ LOCATION:Lending Library\, Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, Victoria\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:kadampa ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/1-HTSHP-BMI-Square.png ORGANIZER;CN="Kadampa Meditation":MAILTO:info@kadampa.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260322T140000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260322T173000 DTSTAMP:20260210T004415Z CREATED:20260209T234433Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260210T004415Z UID:70649-1774188000-1774200600@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Ballarat Scottish Country Dance DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/ballarat-scottish-country-dance/ LOCATION:BMI – Minerva Space\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350 CATEGORIES:external event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/ballarat-scottish-square-promo-26.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Ballarat Country Scottish Dancing":MAILTO:heathermross2021@outlook.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260324T180000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260324T193000 DTSTAMP:20260202T030026Z CREATED:20260201T232719Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260202T030026Z UID:70486-1774375200-1774380600@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:In Conversation with Chrissie Bellbrae DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/in-conversation-with-chrissie-bellbrae/ LOCATION:BMI – Humffray Room\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:Author Talk,Library ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/sp-promo-chrissie-bellbrae.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260325T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260325T200000 DTSTAMP:20260302T005942Z CREATED:20260302T002708Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260302T005942Z UID:71005-1774465200-1774468800@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Kadampa Meditation Series | Stillness in Motion: Living Spiritually in a Fast-Paced World DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/kadampa-meditation-series-25-mar/ LOCATION:Lending Library\, Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, Victoria\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:kadampa ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/2-Stillness-in-motion-BMI-Square.png ORGANIZER;CN="Kadampa Meditation":MAILTO:info@kadampa.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260401T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260401T200000 DTSTAMP:20260331T045515Z CREATED:20260302T003106Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260331T045515Z UID:71009-1775070000-1775073600@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Kadampa Meditation Series | Stillness in Motion: Living Spiritually in a Fast-Paced World DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/kadampa-meditation-series-1-apr/ LOCATION:Lending Library\, Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, Victoria\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:kadampa ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/2-Stillness-in-motion-BMI-Square.png ORGANIZER;CN="Kadampa Meditation":MAILTO:info@kadampa.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260408T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260408T200000 DTSTAMP:20260331T045434Z CREATED:20260302T003212Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260331T045434Z UID:71011-1775674800-1775678400@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Kadampa Meditation Series | Stillness in Motion: Living Spiritually in a Fast-Paced World DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/kadampa-meditation-series-8-apr/ LOCATION:Lending Library\, Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, Victoria\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:kadampa ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/2-Stillness-in-motion-BMI-Square.png ORGANIZER;CN="Kadampa Meditation":MAILTO:info@kadampa.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260410T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260410T203000 DTSTAMP:20260331T045403Z CREATED:20260223T060045Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260331T045403Z UID:70828-1775847600-1775853000@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:The Dog Logs\, A Ballarat National Theatre Production DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/the-dog-logs-10-april/ LOCATION:BMI – Minerva Space\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350 CATEGORIES:Ballarat National Theatre,Theatre Production ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/sq-promo-dog-log-222.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Ballarat National Theatre":MAILTO:contact@bnt.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260411T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260411T203000 DTSTAMP:20260331T045326Z CREATED:20260224T002907Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260331T045326Z UID:70851-1775934000-1775939400@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:The Dog Logs\, A Ballarat National Theatre Production DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/the-dog-logs-11-april/ LOCATION:BMI – Minerva Space\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350 CATEGORIES:Ballarat National Theatre,Theatre Production ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/sq-promo-dog-log-222.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Ballarat National Theatre":MAILTO:contact@bnt.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260412T140000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260412T153000 DTSTAMP:20260331T045248Z CREATED:20260224T003215Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260331T045248Z UID:70853-1776002400-1776007800@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:The Dog Logs\, A Ballarat National Theatre Production DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/the-dog-logs-12-april/ LOCATION:BMI – Minerva Space\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350 CATEGORIES:Ballarat National Theatre,Theatre Production ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/sq-promo-dog-log-222.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Ballarat National Theatre":MAILTO:contact@bnt.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260412T150000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260412T170000 DTSTAMP:20260331T045211Z CREATED:20251203T013015Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260331T045211Z UID:69291-1776006000-1776013200@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Brian Chapman & Friends: A Trio of Stunning Piano Quartets DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/trio-piano-quartets/ LOCATION:BMI – Humffray Room\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:Classical Music,Live Music,Victorian Seniors Festival ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/sq-promo-brian-champman-final.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260414T180000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260414T193000 DTSTAMP:20260331T045131Z CREATED:20260303T223948Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260331T045131Z UID:71084-1776189600-1776195000@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:In Conversation with Gerardine Christou: The story of Peg Rankin DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/in-conversation-with-gerardine-christou/ LOCATION:BMI – Humffray Room\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:Author Talk,Library ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/sp-promo-talks-v4.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260415T173000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260415T183000 DTSTAMP:20260331T033540Z CREATED:20260316T052458Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260331T033540Z UID:71316-1776274200-1776277800@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Twilight Talks: Focus on Ballarat - Henry Lawson in Ballarat revisited DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/twilight-talks-focus-on-ballarat-henry-lawson-in-ballarat-revisited/ LOCATION:BMI – Humffray Room\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:Twilight Talks ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/square-promo-2025-henry-lawson-ballarat-revisited.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260415T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260415T200000 DTSTAMP:20260331T045101Z CREATED:20260302T012118Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260331T045101Z UID:71022-1776279600-1776283200@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:Kadampa Meditation Series | Love Changes Everything: How to Transform Yourself & the World Around You DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/kadampa-meditation-series-15-apr/ LOCATION:Lending Library\, Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, Victoria\, 3350\, Australia CATEGORIES:kadampa ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/3-Love-Changes-BMI-Square.png ORGANIZER;CN="Kadampa Meditation":MAILTO:info@kadampa.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260415T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260415T203000 DTSTAMP:20260331T045021Z CREATED:20260224T003422Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260331T045021Z UID:70855-1776279600-1776285000@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:The Dog Logs\, A Ballarat National Theatre Production DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/the-dog-logs-15-april/ LOCATION:BMI – Minerva Space\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350 CATEGORIES:Ballarat National Theatre,Theatre Production ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/sq-promo-dog-log-222.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Ballarat National Theatre":MAILTO:contact@bnt.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260416T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260416T203000 DTSTAMP:20260331T044945Z CREATED:20260224T003558Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260331T044945Z UID:70857-1776366000-1776371400@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:The Dog Logs\, A Ballarat National Theatre Production DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/the-dog-logs-16-april/ LOCATION:BMI – Minerva Space\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350 CATEGORIES:Ballarat National Theatre,Theatre Production ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/sq-promo-dog-log-222.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Ballarat National Theatre":MAILTO:contact@bnt.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260417T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260417T203000 DTSTAMP:20260331T044911Z CREATED:20260224T003714Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260331T044911Z UID:70859-1776452400-1776457800@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:The Dog Logs\, A Ballarat National Theatre Production DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/the-dog-logs-17-april/ LOCATION:BMI – Minerva Space\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350 CATEGORIES:Ballarat National Theatre,Theatre Production ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/sq-promo-dog-log-222.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Ballarat National Theatre":MAILTO:contact@bnt.org.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260418T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20260418T203000 DTSTAMP:20260331T044832Z CREATED:20260224T003813Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260331T044832Z UID:70861-1776538800-1776544200@ballaratmi.org.au SUMMARY:The Dog Logs\, A Ballarat National Theatre Production DESCRIPTION:This special edition of our regular Twilight Talks series will feature speakers discussing the history of cinema in Ballarat\, complimenting our free exhibition. Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895\, the first screenings were held at the Mechanics’ Institute\, meaning many had their first ever experience of ‘moving pictures’ in our beautiful Minerva Theatre. Since then\, thousands of movies have been screened in the theatre through its many iterations\, including at the Vegas 70 theatre which is being reactivated for this year’s Heritage Week. Come along from 5.30pm to grab a drink and wander through the exhibition in the Williamson Foyer\, the former candy bar of the cinema\, before the talk.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n The BMI’s Twilight Talks series has been a forum for sharing fascinating history and radical futures since 2001\, check out our website for upcoming talks.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n At Play in the Fields of the past: Roleplaying\, gaming and local heritage | Dr David Waldron \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the past few years\, David Waldron has been experimenting with the use of live-play roleplaying game events to explore local Ballarat history and heritage in the community. These have featured events at the past three Ballarat Heritage Festivals featuring the stories Journey to the Southern Cross\, What Lies Beneath\, William Bailey’s Haunted Mansion and this year’s\, Spectral Schemes: the Mystery of the Ballarat Ghost.  David has also recently published a spin-off story that explores the feud between Henry Seekamp and 1850s celebrity Lola Montez. Through these events\, David has endeavoured to create a vehicle for community engagement and re-enchantment in local history\, with a specific orientation to the young adult demographic\, which has often been a difficult audience to attract to local history. This talk explores the process of creating as one of walking a tightrope between historical fiction\, storytelling\, and heritage weaving through surviving sources and historical records designed to create deeply personal engagement with the people\, events\, and places of the past and the very human stories that underlie our local history.  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez and Henry Seekamp as published in Melbourne Punch\,1856 | Seekamp established Ballarat Times in 1854\n \n \n \n \n Lola Montez\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Speaker: David Waldron | Folklorist & Historian \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron is a Senior Lecturer in History at Federation University Australia with a research focus on folklore and community heritage.  He is the author of Sign of the Witch: Modernity and the Pagan Revival (Carolina Academic Press 2008)\, Shock! The Black Dog of Bungay – a Case Study in Local Folklore (Hidden Press 2010) and Snarls from the Tea-Tree: Victoria’s Big Cat Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2013)\, editor/contributor of Goldfields and the Gothic: a Hidden Heritage and Folklore (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2016) and author of Aradale: the Making of a Haunted Asylum (Australian Scholarly Publishing 2020). He is regularly involved in public engagements\, festivals and multi-media displays\, including the Ballarat Heritage Festival\, and is the co-writer and researcher for the National Trust of Australia People’s Choice award historical pod cast series Tales from Rat City.  He is also active in developing history and heritage tours including the NTAV Public Heritage award nominated Ballarat Old Gaol Tour and the Portsea Quarantine Station night tours. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr David Waldron\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Starting at 6pm (bar open at 5.30pm)\, close 7pm. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cost: $12 general admission | $8 BMI members \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Bookings\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n 2024 Twilight Talks\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Thanks to the support of Community Bank Buninyong \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Follow Community Bank Buninyong socials: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This event is part of the Australian Heritage Festival \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n More Twilight Talks \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI news \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | For All The Dead Girls by Sherryl Clark\n For All The Dead Girls Sherryl Clark Don’t miss Sherryl... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n BMI Collection Events\n Events staged in conjunction with our Heritage Collection will be... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Rosemary’s Book of the Week | Where Truth Ends by Mark Smith\n Where Truth Ends Mark Smith Don’t miss Mark who will... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n From the Curator | Arresting the Ephemeral\n The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is custodian of the most intact... \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Load More URL:https://ballaratmi.org.au/event/the-dog-logs-18-april/ LOCATION:BMI – Minerva Space\, 117-119 Sturt Street\, Ballarat Central\, VIC\, 3350 CATEGORIES:Ballarat National Theatre,Theatre Production ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://ballaratmi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/sq-promo-dog-log-222.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Ballarat National Theatre":MAILTO:contact@bnt.org.au END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR