THIS weekend is a very special one for Dorset music.

This year the Dorset Rural Music School is celebrating its diamond jubilee and to celebrate this important milestone in its career, a number of concerts are planned, the first of which will take place in St Mary's Church, Dorchester, on Saturday, October 13, at 7.30pm.

The performers will be the Dorchester Choral Society, the Briantspuddle Singers and the Dorchester Area Schools Partnership Choir who, together with tenor Hugh Hetherington and a large string orchestra, will perform Britten's St Nicolas', Two Psalms by Holst and the Vaughan Williams Concerto Grosso.

This last work was commissioned by the Rural Music Schools Association and first performed in the Royal Albert Hall under Sir Adrian Boult by several hundred musicians from all over the south of England, a contingent from Dorset towns and villages included.

DRMS director Dr Richard Hall said: "The concert will be a great celebration very much in the RMS tradition with professional musicians and amateurs of all ages joining together to make music written by composers who thoroughly understood the aims and ideals of the movement."

Tickets priced at £10 are available from the Dorset Rural Music School, The Close, Blandford DT11 7HA. Telephone (01258 452511), email: office@drmsmusic.demon.co.uk, from Harmony Music, The Forum Centre, Dorchester, from members of the choirs or at the door if still available.

This weekend is also a busy one at Weymouth Pavilion.

Tonight sees the harbourside venue stage The Vagina Monologues, the latest incarnation of Eve Ensler's terrific play about the ultimate symbol of femininity. Funny and moving, it is at 7.30pm and tickets are £17 plus concessions. The show is not suitable for anyone under the age of 16.

Tomorrow night the Pavilion is hosting Spirit of the Dance, the award-winning celebration of dance from all over the globe.

The show, which is perfect family entertainment, is at 7.30pm on Saturday, October 13. Tickets are £18.50 plus concessions.

For all Weymouth Pavilion bookings and details, call 01305 783225.

Children's show The Witch's Bogey returns to the stage this weekend, this time at the Octagon Theatre in Yeovil. The show, about the importance of friendship and family ties, is based on the Russian folktale of Baba Yaga, and proved hugely popular when it was staged in Dorset last month.

The performance on Sunday is at 3.30pm and tickets are £7 plus concessions. There is also a workshop where children can go backstage and learn about the theatre. That starts at 2.30pm. Call 01935 4229884 for more information.