A selection of the top events in North Wales

March 29 to May 5

Oriel Tegfryn at Menai Bridge has an exhibition of work by Wales’ leading artists past and present. There is a broad range of styles and subject matter and many works are available to buy. Prices range from £100 to £50,000. The exhibition is also on view online at www.artwales.com.

Oriel Tegfryn . Tel 01248 715128.

April 1-5

Welsh National Opera comes to Venue Cymru, Llandudno, with ‘Fallen Women’ as the theme for its Spring Season. Verdi’s La Traviata is performed on April 1 and 5, a new production of Puccini’s first great opera Manon Lescaut is on April 2 and 4, and Boulevard Solitude - Hans Werner Henze’s 1950 updating of the Manon Lescaut story - is on April 3.

www.venuecymru.co.uk, 01492 872000

April 11

Strictly Come Dancing is spawning shows which fill theatres up and down the land. Among these is the Stars of Strictly show featuring Pasha Kovalev (who partnered Rachel Riley in the latest series) and Katya Virshilas. Fiery cha cha cha, romantic waltz, passionate rumba and dramatic paso doble are promised.

www.venuecymru.co.uk, 01492 872000.

April 12

A show by renowned ceramic artist Claire Curneen opens at Ruthin Craft Centre. The new body of work, titled To This I Put My Name, is the result of a Creative Wales Ambassador Award given by the Arts Council of Wales. It draws upon Claire’s Irish Roman Catholic upbringing - ceramic figures which conjure with notions of saints, martyrs and relics.

ww.ruthincraftcentre.org.uk, 01824 704774

April 12-13

If you have a hankering for the era of blackouts, big bands and powdered egg, then Colwyn Bay’s 1940s Festival is for you. It’s a feast of fun and nostalgia, from ration book cookery to clothes and vehicles. Colwyn Bay played an important role in the Second World War as headquarters for the Ministry of Food.

April 27

The Gran Fondo Conwy Cycle Sportive is a new event which will see an anticipated 800 riders set off from Conway Castle on a choice of courses: the Mawr at 104 miles, the Canol at 70 miles and the Bach at 42 miles. There is also a free family ride, the Gran Fondo Teulu at 6.5 miles on closed roads.

The Gran Fondo takes riders up the Great Orme for a time trial, and along some of the stage 4 route of the 2013 Tour of Britain.

www.granfondoconwy.com.

May 3-5

Llandudno is just the place for a Victorian Extravaganza. Expect Victorian-style barkers bellowing the enticements of Professor Voltini’s sideshows, Mr Alexander’s travelling show - combining magic, juggling, unicycling and illusion - and Harley the Clown.

This weekend also sees the Llandudno Transport Festival on the seafront showground.

www.victorian-extravaganza.com and www.llantransfest.co.uk

May 5

Nefyn Agricultural Show, at Botacho Fields, Nefyn, sees cattle, sheep, horses, small animals cookery and craftwork up for judging, and an exhibition of classic cars and farm equipment.

www.sioenefynshow.com.

May 5-10

Mold Parish Church’s Virgin Art exhibition is now a firm fixture in the cultural calendar. As in the previous five years, paintings and photographs will be on show in the side aisles and Lady Chapel of St Mary the Virgin Church in High Street, many of them for sale and with some of the proceeds going to church funds.

www.moldchurch.org

May 10

Strap your boots on for the Bala Challenge, which begins and ends at the Leisure Centre in Bala, and goes around the lake using footpaths on the low-lying hills. The less energetic can end their walk after eight miles at Llanuwchllyn and return by Bala Lake railway. Others can carry on round the lake to complete 14 miles, or the really hardy can take a loop up the Aran ridge to Moel Ffenigl to make it a round 20 miles. .

www.balarotary.org

May 11

The Hardy Plant Society Clwyd Group holds a plant fair at Holywell Community Centre, North Road, Holywell, from 11am to 2pm, with plant stalls by members and by nurseries, tombola and refreshments.

May 17-18

Wrexham Food Festival promises two days of tasting and tippling at Llwyn Isaf (the Library Field), where exhibitors will be showing the best of local food and drink.. Try everything from fruit-flavoured gins to curried goat, and, of course, Welsh beef and lamb. www.wrexhamfoodfest.co.uk

May 17 to June 1

The Anglesey Walking and Cycling Festival offers a wide range of opportunities to see the island’s delights, including a marathon-length Walkathon on May 18, a mountain biking challenge on Parys Mountain, Amlwch, on May 25 and a cycling festival on June 1. Some will also be walking the full 125-mile circuit of Anglesey.

www.angleseywalkingfestival.com, 01248 725700.

May 30 to June 1

The All Wales Boat Show at Conwy Quay Marina will showcase not just the awe-inspiring vessels available to those with the right bank balance, but also coastal property rentals and sales, chandlery, watersports and other coastal activities. The value of the marine leisure industry in Wales is put at £200m annually.

www.allwalesboatshow.com, 0845 123 5438.

May 31 and June 1

The Wales Game and Country Fair is a weekend of family fun at Bodelwyddan Castle, near St Asaph, with a range of country leisure pursuits, including gundog displays, terrier and lurcher shows. The Welsh Horse Yeomanry will be presenting The Welsh Horse Musical Ride www.countryfairs.info

June 4-7

The Three Castles Welsh Classic Trial is a car event in the grand tradition, with venerable vehicles being tested on roads across some lovely landscapes of north Wales and Anglesey, interspersed with plenty of conviviality for the drivers at the event’s base, Llandudno, and at various points along the way. Drivers will cover around 450 miles in all, including the closed roads of the Great Orme and several stately home drives.

www.three-castles.co.uk, 0208 255 4860.