Weekend entertainment: Summer in the Square, Pride Festival, Queens of SKYCITY

Weezer will open for Foo Fighters at Mt Smart Stadium.

Aotea Square:

Fingers crossed for continued good weather because Auckland Live's Summer in the Square series rolls on with five DJs putting their own spin on music of the day. DJ Murray Cammick, the founder of two major New Zealand record labels and one of our most famous record collectors, starts things off this afternoon.

On Friday, DJ Grantis, a hip-hop and R'n'B fan, takes to the decks followed in late afternoon by DJ Lo Key aka Mike Haru. D.A.N.C.E Art Club member DJ Linda T will groove to contemporary Maori and Pacific sounds and jazz on Saturday while DJ Gene Rivers, a veteran of PSC, Ostro, Racket Bar and Rakinos and as member of the Maori HiFi DJ collective, takes listeners on a five-hour Sunday afternoon journey.

Multi-award-winning actor Rob Mokaraka has toured his one-man show Shot Bro: Confessions of a Depressed Bullet for a couple of years now.

It's a highly personal black comedy about his experience with depression and a raw and honest look at how he was shot and the ensuing healing journey. Shining a light on a traumatic event in a way which is both enlightening and educational, Mokaraka brings a free performance to Aotea Square on Saturday.

The weekend wraps with a free Sunday evening concert by the Maori Sidesteps, a contemporary showband who put their own political spin on well-known songs and entertain with soulful harmonies and off-the-cuff comedy.

Known for their self-titled web series and online entertainment, they'll have you singing along and laughing out loud. Summer in the Square, Aotea Square, Today — Sunday

Pride Festival:

Take your pick! There's local and international theatre and cabaret, comedy, dance, art exhibitions, live music, film and digital media, literature, poetry, debates and discussions, drag and burlesque, youth events and workshops, sports and recreation, gardening, pets, pageants and parties. All designed to celebrate diversity and Auckland's rainbow communities.

Queens of SKYCITY, where boys will be girls, features performances from three of NZ's top drag queen entertainers: Kita Mean, Cindy of Samoa and Victoria Secretzz.

Over-the-top costumes, make-up and hairstyles that you'll love coupled with singing along to get-up-and-dance disco like YMCA and Shake Your Groove Thing. Sammy's Lounge, SkyCity on until Saturday, February 17

Paul Ross:

At Q Theatre's Loft, international artist and modern-day crooner Paul Ross brings vocal suaveness in his stylish show billed as celebrating big band music with a "martini twist" on some modern hits.

On stage for one night only with Auckland's very own The Prohibition Swingtet, Paul performs big band standards, For Once in My Life, The Lady Is a Tramp, Fly Me to the Moon and I've Got You Under My Skin, shaken up with big band versions of modern hits from the likes of Oasis, Bon Jovi, Van Halen and Spandau Ballet, and mixed in with songs from gay icons for good measure!
Paul Ross in Concert, Loft at Q Theatre, Saturday

Mt Smart Stadium:

At this point, you know what you're getting from a Foo Fighters show. Evermore. Monkey Wrench. Learn to Fly. The Pretenders.

Two-plus hours of solid rock'n'roll. Dave Grohl's hilarious banter. When the Foos show up at Mt Smart this weekend, their stadium rock routine has been well honed from years of touring down under. But this time will be a little different.

Firstly, there's a really rather good new album Concrete and Gold, from which they'll be playing songs like Run and The Sky Is a Neighbourhood. But there'll also be the added bonus of Weezer, the Californian alt-rock act who will be opening early at 6.50pm. Get there early and find your spot.

You know what you're getting, and what you're getting is going to be good. Foo Fighters and Weezer, Mt Smart Stadium, Saturday night