What's on

Charity/Rock

Music for Africa is a non-profit initiative, formed in 2005 to raise money for charity through music. This time round it is a great gig at the St James on Saturday. There is an excellent musical lineup from the upbeat dub/rock of dDub, to the energetic rock of Steriogram, pictured. All proceeds this year will be donated to Tear Fund and Oxfam to help in the Darfur region of Sudan. Support them if you can. Music for Africa - Saturday, St James with dDub, Electric Confectionaires, Steriogram, Unity Pacific, Midnight Pacific, Dubhead, tickets $39 from Ticketdirect, see www.musicforafrica.com.

DJ

Also on this Saturday is a gig by an intriguing Wellington collective, who claim to be bringing "the Asian underground scene to Aotearoa". Big Bada Boom not only understand the value of alliteration and onomatopoeia, they sound like they know how to rock a show as well. Big bhangra tunes, mixed with Bollywood classics, all performed by two DJs, three MCs and a percussionist. It's Indian dance music influenced by the worlds of drum'n'bass, hip-hop, reggae, dancehall and more. It's time to shake your booty to something different.

* Big Bada Boom - Galatos, Saturday, tickets from Ticketek

Art

The practice of consulting tarot cards to predict the future is not something everyone will be comfortable with, but if it does ignite your interest, read on. This weekend a group of Auckland artists present Arcana, an exhibition exploring the ancient European art of tarot. Performers include comedian Sam Wills and writer Karyn Hay, pictured, while tattoo studio Illicit is among the exhibitors. Visitors can also attend seminars, workshops and watch a detailed presentation of the 600-year-old history of tarot.

* Arcana - Saturday and Sunday, Jubilee Building, 545 Parnell Rd, Parnell, $5, kids free

Dance

Three million people can't be wrong. That's how many have witnessed the hot-blooded dance show known as Burn The Floor. The show's short tour ends with several performances at Auckland's Aotea Centre next week. Elements of Broadway theatre, ballroom dance, latin and rock and roll combine to create a scintillating show. There's a little bit of everything from the 16 world class dancers including Salsa, Samba, Tango and Rhumba. The dancers are joined on stage by vocalists and an eight-piece band.

* Burn The Floor - Aotea Centre, Auckland, Wed, 7.30pm, Thu, 7.30pm; Fri, 5pm & 8pm, tickets $47 from Ticketek

Learn

Best-selling British author Paul Stewart and illustrator Chris Riddell visit New Zealand on Monday, and the public has the chance to hear them talk. The two have teamed up on the million-selling children's books The Edge Chronicles and Far Flung Adventures. Riddell is also a political cartoonist, starting his career at The Economist magazine in the 1980s. Stewart will talk while Riddell draws characters from the books and chimes in with his two cents every now and again. See www.edgechronicles.co.uk for examples of their work.

* Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell - Takapuna Library, Monday, 6pm, free

Rock

What happens when a member of your band just happens to be an astronomer? Naturally, you play a gig at Auckland's Stardome. The Dukes Of Leisure are a six-piece instrumental ambient rock group from Wellington, and will rock the Stardome this Saturday night with Salon Kingsadore, a band who cite their main influences as surf guitar, jazz, European film soundtracks and psychedelic rock. In between sets said musician/astronomer will present a special star presentation.

* The Dukes Of Leisure and Salon Kingsadore - The Stardome, One Tree Hill, Auckland, Saturday, 9.30pm, tickets from Real Groovy

Festival

The Going West Books and Writers Festival runs until September 23. It's a busy event with writer talks, poetry and rap performances, theatre, art exhibitions, markets and more. One of this weekend's highlights is the performance of King & Country, a play which has had success at arts festivals all over the country. It's based on letters and diaries of World War I soldiers, nurses and civilians. Traditional songs are even brought to life by the Waitakere City Brass Band.

* The Going West Festival - to Sep 23, see www.goingwest.co.nz for details; King & Country, Glen Eden Playhouse Theatre, to Sep 2, 8pm, matinee Sep 2, 2pm, book on 836 8000

Sport

The New Zealand Knights football team continue to take it to the Aussies in the Hyundai A-League. This Saturday they play a home game at North Harbour Stadium against Adelaide United. The Knights' line-up includes All Whites Noah Hickey, pictured, and Che Bunce, as well as former Scottish national player Scott Gemmill. If rugby is more your thing, try Eden Park on Friday where the Battle of the Bridge sees Auckland take on North Harbour in the Air NZ Cup.

* Auckland v North Harbour rugby - Eden Park, Friday, 7.30pm; Knights v Adelaide soccer - North Harbour Stadium, Saturday, 12.30pm; tickets through Ticketmaster

Social

Telling your workmates around the water cooler that you had six dates last night may be the sort of thing that raises a few eyebrows. I wouldn't worry, in the world of speed dating, that's nothing. The dating nights happen regularly all over Auckland. Parnell's Iguacu hosts an evening tonight, as does the Empire Tavern. You get five minutes with each person in which to blurt out as much information as possible, from there you indicate who you want to see again, and if there is a match, you're in luck. A bit of fun? Quite possibly.

* Speed Dating - Iguacu, Parnell and the Empire Tavern, 7.15pm, tonight, book online at www.speeddate.co.nz