Spoken Word

Somali-Australian poet, Hani Abdile, is interviewed about her first collection of poetry, I Will Rise, by Di Cousens.

Trixi Rosa reads from her new collection of poetry, Double-knotted Shoelace, published by Girls on Key Press.Trixi Rosa is a poet and artist from Punakaiki, Aotearoa (New Zealand). She currently lives between Tāmaki Makaurau and the unceded Kulin Nation lands known as Melbourne. Trixi works for local non-profit organisations, collaborating with other artists to co-design community arts and cultural development projects with youth. Visit her at www.trixirosa.com.

A live recording of local poet, Ren Alessandra, performing at the monthly spoken word gig, Girls on Key, at Open Studio in Northcote. Ren was winner of the Australian Poetry Slam in 2020, and was recently published by The Weekly Service, in The Bard Book. Her work explores her relationship with her femininity and her journey into self-discovery. She is currently working on her first collection.This performance was recorded on 3rd February 2021.

Thuy On is a freelance arts journalist, critic and editor who's written for a range of publications including The Guardian, The Australian, The Saturday Paper, The Age/SMH, ArtsHub, Sydney Review of Books, and Australian Book Review. She is the books editor of The Big Issue and her first collection of poetry, Turbulence, was published in 2020 by UWAP. Interviewed by Di Cousens.Photo by Brett Rawlings Photography.

Noisy chants for the imprisoned refugees in Carlton; nasty racists Marine Le Pen, Xi Jin Ping and Pauline Hanson put on trial; revolutionary poetry by Percy Bysshe Shelley, Pablo Neruda and Maya Angelou - in this revolutionary half hour with Santo Cazzati.

Santo Cazzati invites poet/singer/songwriter of Brittle Sun, Viki Mealings back to 3CR Spoken Word for a programme with a social justice slant. Viki is a gritty, honest artist who will not cover over difficult issues with saccharine and fake optimism. And yet, her poetry is indeed cause for optimism precisely because it is real and can thus show the way forward. Viki covers a wide range of subjects. A highlight of the programme is her singing her tribute to Bobby Sands, the IRA hunger striker.

Sandy Jeffs' new history of Larundel, a Melbourne psychiatric institution, is written from an insider perspective. As a past inmate she has an unparalleled understanding of the experience of living there and how it managed mental illness. In this book Sandy has collaborated with former staff member and social worker, Margaret Leggatt, to create a qualitative history of Larundel. It includes interviews with former staff and inmates as well as Sandy's poetry.

A bit of nostalgia for the times that were, and some reflections on the strange times that we find ourselves in! Director of Melbourne Spoken Word, Annie Solah, joins us to talk about the role technology has played in keeping gigs going during the pandemic, and chats about the MSW Spoken Word Gala, coming up on the 4th December 2020 at Twitch.TV/MelbSpokenWord With performances by Peter BakowskiAnna FernViki MealingsEbony StewartMiss Yankey

On this week's show, we talk to Daz Chandler, producer of the multi-disciplinary arts congregation, Vigil for the Smooth Handfish. The global event aims to provide a space to contemplate loss, grief, the parameters of care, radical hope, and “collaborative survival”. We hear samples of the extensive line-up of performances from individuals and communities all over the world, including Chris Bonney, Ivana Dash, Dorion Sagan, Jane Hirshfield, The Letter String Quartet featuring Marita Dyson, and Zoe Keating.To register for the free event, Vigil for the Smooth Handfish, go to: https://www.paralleleffect.com/vigil and click the "Register" button. The vigil occurs on 22nd November 2020.

Anne M Carson talks about her poetic biography of Dr Felix Kersten who was Heinrich Himmler's personal masseur during World War 2. As a result of his access to HImmler and his exceptional ability to alleviate pain, Kersten was able to organise the release of many prisoners.