The best things to do this weekend

Featuring Annihilation, Sound of the Xity, Truncate and more

Despite the fact that Beijing's turned into a giant fluffball, the weather forecast for this weekend doesn't actually look too shabby. Make the most of the capital's blue skies with this crackin' lineup of things to do.

THINGS TO DO

Paul Ogata

The Bookworm. Sun 15. 180RMB; 150RMB (presale); 100RMB (students)

A top-rated morning radio host, winner of the 32nd Annual San Francisco International Comedy Competition, a guest of The Late Late Show, Comedy Central’s Live at Gotham, Comics Unleashed and Pacific Rim Comedy, Hawaiian comedian Paul Ogata is absolutely no laughing matter.

Swedish Career Fair

Hangxing Science Park. Sat 14. Free

Looking for a new job? Schmooze with Swedish multinational companies along with representatives from the Swedish Embassy, Business Sweden and Visit Sweden at this career fair. Organised by the Swedish Young Professionals, this is an opportunity to have any questions you may have about studying or working in Sweden answered.

FOOD AND DRINK

Bottega Late Night Pizza Disco

Bottega. Until Dec 31

Inspired by late nights spent eating and drinking in Palermo and Rome, Bottega is bringing vibrant Italian-style weekend evenings to Sanlitun. Dubbed 'Late Night Pizza Disco', this event combines beloved traditional Italian street foods with classic cocktails and a live DJ.

011 Brunch & Day Party

The Bookworm. Sat 14. 250RMB (brunch); 200RMB (brunch, presale); 50RMB (afterparty); 30RMB (afterparty, presale)

011 is a bimonthly brunch party that aims to bring together lovers of good music (R&B, hip-hop, house and Kwaito), good food and chill vibes. Made up of two parts, the event kicks off with a brunch from 12 to 4pm followed by an afterparty from 4 to 8pm.

MUSIC

Thrash China Festival

Mao Livehouse Wukesong. Fri 13. 400RMB; 320RMB (presale); 480RMB (VIP)

German black metal pioneers Destruction headline this rip-roaring night of thrash metal alongside local metal gods Choleraic, Lost Temple and Ancestor.

Sound of the Xity 2018

Various locations. Wed 11-Sat 14. Ticket prices vary

While Modernsky Lab may have closed its doors last year, the label behind the venue is still very much alive and kicking. And what better way to prove it than to organise a gig or two, or even an entire four-day festival? This year's Sound of the Xity features performances from London indie rock band Yuck, Manchester four-piece The Slow Readers Club, The Hormones, plus a whole array of local young guns. For the full lineup, click here.

NIGHTLIFE

Truncate

Lantern. Fri 13. 80RMB

Exactly two years after his first show in Lantern, Truncate returns to Beijing for what's to be his only show in China. Considered one of the shapers of the West Coast techno scene with his East LA Droid crew, David Flores, known for his monikers Audio Injection and Truncate, is as prolific as it gets.

STAGE

Alexei Kornienko and Elena Denisova Concert

Beijing Concert Hall. Sat 14. 100-580RMB

Alexei Kornienko is an Austrian conductor and pianist of Russian descent. Together with his wife, violinist Elena Denisova, Alexei Kornienko initiated the founding of the Austrian Gustav Mahler Music Society, with the Gustav Mahler Ensemble then being established under the Society's aegis.

ART

Alice: Into the Rabbit Hole

Chaoyang Joy City. Until Jul 9. 70RMB

This interactive art exhibition celebrates Lewis Carroll's classic novel Alice in Wonderland with a series of stunning multimedia art and design works. Previously exhibited in Seoul, Korea, Alice: Into the Rabbit Hole quickly became a viral sensation, with 6,000 uploads on social media platform INS per day.

Un rêve français: an exhibition of 19th-century French art

National Museum of China. Until May 6. 50RMB; 20RMB (students)

This stunning exhibition features more than 100 paintings on loan from Paris' Centre national des arts plastiques and Ecole nationale supérieure des beaux-arts. Artwork, stemming from the French Revolution all the way to World War I, includes paintings by Dominique Ingle, William Adolphe Bouguereau, Pascal D'Abou-Bouilleux and more.

FILM

Annihilation

On general release Fri 13

Annihilation is already on Netflix, but here's your chance to see it on the big screen in China. After the sudden reappearance of her husband, cellular biologist Lena, alongside an all-female squad of scientists, goes on a secret expedition into a disaster zone that defies the laws of nature. Director Alex Garland, hot off his critically acclaimed film Ex Machina, delivers a trippy sci-fi thriller with meditative and mysterious ambience, starring Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Oscar Isaac and others.

Rampage

On general release Fri 13

It's been said that giant monster/kaiju films are a symptom of societal anxiety about nuclear annihilation. And so here's another one starring Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson about a gentle ape who gets turned into a raging monster after, you guessed it, a rogue genetic experiment gone awry. 

For more cracking things to do this weekend, hit 'Read more'.

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