Friday, April 27, 2018

Auckland Writers Festival



 
 
AUCKLAND WRITERS FESTIVAL

15 - 20 May 2018
 

WRITERS ON STAGE, ON FILM AND ON SONG

 
 
High entertainment day and night awaits you at this year's Festival! The New Yorker's music critic, Alex Ross takes to the stage; Nancy Brunning directs a talented cast celebrating the life of Māori writer Rowley Habib; Australian writer and actor Emma Mary Hall reflects our sound-bite driven lives; self-confessed Judy Garland obessive, Susie Boyt brings the grande dame to life, right down to her ruby slippers; internationally acclaimed actress Lisa Dwan delivers a performance lecture on Samuel Beckett; jazz doyenne Linn Lorkin takes us into her life onstage; our best slam poets perform as do many of our finest songwriters - Nadia Reid, Lawrence Arabia and Moana Maniapoto. Such a depth of talent!
 
 

IT'S ALL ABOUT JUDY GARLAND 

 
 
 
For Judy Garland fans, self-confessed Garland obsessive Susie Boyt brings us as close as we’ll ever get to the grande dame herself. Join Boyt as she takes to the stage layering biography, autobiography, hero worship and sequin-studded self-help in the name of Judy Garland. Boyt's book was praised by Ali Smith who says "this wonderfully clever book flings its arms out in a rainy street like a wonderful diva. Brava.” There will even be Judy’s own hat and shoes for you to try on, and of course there will be a pair of ruby slippers!  My Judy Garland Life is for anyone who has ever wished upon a star. 
 
 

NANCY BRUNNING, RAWIRI PARATENE
AND FRIENDS ON STAGE!

 
 
 
A star-studded cast including Nancy Brunning, Rawiri Paratene; Te Kahu Rolleston, Tanea Heke and Mitch Tawhi Thomas create a magical performance to celebrate the life of poet, playwright, and author, Rowley Habib, one of the first writers to bring a genuinely Māori perspective to New Zealand stage and screen. "...a warm, joyous and deeply affectionate celebration of a rangatira who carved the path for many others to follow," says Pantograph Punch. Rowley Habib: Portrait of an Artist Mongrel will be a very special show.
 
 

LISA DWAN



The last time she performed Beckett, celebrated Irish actress Lisa Dwan strapped herself to a piece of wood, delivering the monologue Not I in a record-breaking nine minutes. Rehearsing at home for the piece, which toured the world to sell-out audiences, Dwan strapped her head to the banisters and suffered a couple of herniated discs and a temporary loss of vision. While she won't be doing that in Auckland(!), it demonstrates the lengths she will go to. Dwan will treat us to a performance lecture, interweaving stories of Beckett with prose and poetry in Beckett Uncut: Lisa Dwan. 

LINN LORKIN



"..she writes cool, elegant songs with brilliantly tangled rhymes and dizzying musical twists...Lorkin is a national treasure" - William Dart, NZ Listener. In a readers' poll conducted by the same magazine, Linn Lorkin's Family at the Beach which features in Hey, Piano Bar Lady! was voted Best Kiwi Summer Song. Join Lorkin in story and song as she recounts her years in 1980’s New York, and her progress from a dilapidated bar to the swanky heights of Park Avenue. Linn Lorkin is a globally recognised jazz maven. Hey, Piano Bar Lady!
 
 

NADIA REID, MOANA MANIAPOTO AND
LAWRENCE ARABIA ARE ON SONG

 
 
 
Moana Maniapoto is one of Aotearoa's most powerful musicians. Celebrated around the world, her stellar 30+ years career has earned her a place in the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame. Her songs are frequently vessels for political and cultural messages and her voice is sublime. See her in On Song: Moana Maniapoto.

Nadia Reid has been called NZ's Joni Mitchell and has toured the world to wide acclaim,  her music is rich, soulful and complex. Nominated for a raft of top NZ music awards, Reid is on a major upward trajectory and we are thrilled to host her at this year's Festival. On Song: Nadia Reid.

Lawrence Arabia has c
ollaborated with Bic Runga and Neil Finn, written songs for Jermaine Clement and Taika Waititi's film What We Do In The Shadows, and this year he has embarked on 2018 Singles Club Project, releasing one single every month. His 1960's inspired indie pop has a wide audience and he's performing at the Festival, On Song: Lawrence Arabia.

Our On Song series will be hosted by the fabulous Tama Waipara, come early, and get a front seat, our festival spiegeltent bar will be open from 6:00pm.
 
 
 

WE MAY HAVE
TO CHOOSE
 




“Farting breaks the ice. Ice caps are good places for Japanese butoh dancing. Dancing fills your body with happy chemicals. Chemicals are destroying the oceans. The Arctic is not a safe place to visit. The polar bears are angry with you...”  Australian writer and actor Emma Mary Hall mesmerisingly lists 621 of her own opinions to provoke us to reflect on how we engage with information, and to think more critically in the social media world which saturates us daily. This award-winning solo piece will be performed three times across the Festival week. We May Have to Choose. The Saturday evening show has already sold out - so be quick!

ALEX ROSS
& STROMA



As music critic for The New Yorker, Alex Ross sets the bar worldwide. His passion for music in all forms, from high classical to post-modern, is infectious. His most widely celebrated book The Rest is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century, is a landmark history of music. Join Ross for The Rest is Noise or hear about his latest book on composer Richard Wagner in On Wagner. Ross will also join mezzo-soprano Bianca Andrew and pre-eminent modern music ensemble, STROMA as they present a very special musical tasting session featuring work by Ravel, Bartók, Stravinsky and, modernist master, Schoenberg. Presented in partnership with  Chamber Music New Zealand.
Alex Ross & STROMA
 
 

BEST BEST SHOWCASE

 
 
 
Returning for another extravaganza of spoken-word performance is Best of the Best, showcasing Aotearoa’s poets, in league with international guests. Te Karere Scarborough hosts an evening with John Carr and Jessie Fenton (both winners of Poetry Idol), Daren Kamali (founder of the South Auckland Poets Collective), Vanessa Crofskey (winner of The University of Auckland and Auckland Regional poetry slams), and the Dilworth School Team (winners of the 2017 inter-high school spoken-word poetry slam). Among those joining the local line-up are the novelist and poet Alex Wheatle (UK), and the renowned performance poet and artist Sonya Renee Taylor (US).
 
 

WRITERS ON FILM

 
 
 
This year's Auckland Art Gallery Series comprises six films each featuring a celebrated local or international writer. Take yourself into the worlds of Maurice Sendak, Margaret Mahy, Amos Oz, Hone Tuwhare and the celebrated feminist publishing house, Virago Press. The Margaret Attwood film has now sold out.
 
 
 
 
 
WITH THANKS TO OUR MAJOR FESTIVAL PARTNERS:



                   

           
 

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