Charles Brasch wrote of “small islands of meaning” and how we make sense
of “the bewildering formlessness” of our place, our times and ourselves. To
find those “small islands of meaning” we launch the search through poets,
historians, musicians, designers, architects, artists and novelists.
We
highlight some of the Going West Festival events:
Gutter Black by Dave McArtney is
the candid, funny, irreverent and sometimes shocking story of Hello Sailor's emergence
from “Mandrax Mansion” in pre-gentrification Ponsonby in the early 1970s.
Publisher Finlay Macdonald and fellow band mates Graham Brazier and Harry Lyon
reminisce and, from time to time, break into song.
Valerie Ringer Monk talks about her Crown Lynn obsession graphic
designer and writer Jonty Valentine explores the career and working process of
a New Zealand design legend, Mark Cleverley who will be on stage with
Objectspace director Philip Clarke.
Wallace Chapman takes architectural authors and commentators Bill McKay
and Andrea Stevens through the story of the state house and social
historians Jenny Carlyon and Diana Brown in Changing Times: New Zealand
since 1945 make sense of state houses, the turbulent times we have lived
through and our place in the world.
New Zealand-born Helen Brown's memoirs Cleo and After Cleo are
international bestsellers. Old friend and colleague Lindsey Dawson converses
with Helen about her latest novel Tumbledown Manor, a richly observed
and laugh-out-loud funny story about a woman of 'certain years' who leaves the
rat race for a quiet life restoring a crumbling country mansion.
Private Lives examines the issue
of the privacy of letters and journals through recent publications of journals
by Charles Brasch and the letters of J.C.Beaglehole.
A 75thanniversary publication of the 1930s South Seas
Vagabonds brings to life the story of Kiwi yachting legend Johnnie Wray and
Hard Country, a memoir by Robin Robilliard, tellingly evokes a classic
story of the resoluteness of New Zealanders who tackle and tame marginal land.
Other writers appearing are Anne Kennedy, Robert Sullivan, Sam Sampson,
John Pule, Jeffrey Paparoa Holman, Kiri Piahana-Wong, Ben Brown, Tina Makereti,
Tina Shaw, Tracey Barnett and Sandra Coney.
Saturday
night sees the Going West Poetry Slam take the stage. Going West was the first
literary festival to front poetry slamming - a genre previously at home in pubs
and halls. Expect it to be clever, funny, heart-warming and confrontational.
Every brave soul who stands in front of a poetry slam audience is a winner so
the generous prizes make it well worth the effort. For details of heats taking
place around Auckland, please see our website.
The
Going West New Zealand theatre season of Goodbye My Feleni by Dave Mamea
pays tribute to Pasifica soldiers in WWII and is performed at the Playhouse
Theatre, Glen Eden 28-31 August.
For
further information: www.goingwestfest.co.nz
Tickets: www.eventfinder.co.nz
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