Australia’s largest performing writer’s program, Word Travels’ Story-Fest returns on October 13th to 15th to Sydney with three jam-packed days of poetry slams forums and live literary mayhem.
Story-Fest is partnering with the Government of Canada, to bring renowned Canadian slam king Ian Keteku to Sydney Opera House for the Australian Poetry Slam – National Final on Sunday October 15th.
Keteku will also headline Spoken Four, Story-Fest’s expansion in Western Sydney. This slam poem showdown sees four master wordsmiths twist electric verbs and wield noun bombs in breathtaking back-to-back sets to live DJ beats at Penrith’s Joan Sutherland Performing Arts Centre on Friday, Oct 13th.
“Blending slam poetry with Afrofuturist hiphop, Keteku - a World Poetry Slam Champion, has shared the mic with members of Wu-Tang Clan and legendary American rapper and slam poet Saul Williams,” said Miles Merrill, Creative Director of Word Travels. “He will be backed by Canadian beat-boxing ukulele player Brad Morden.”
Story-Fest delivers an espresso hit of racial diversity and outspoken political confrontation. “Australian-Sikh Sukhjit Kaur Khalsa, known for her hard-hitting address on Australian racism on Australia’s Got Talent, will join Keteku, alongside Afro-Latino feminist poet Arielle Cottingham, who won the 2016 Australian Poetry Slam, and Troy Wong, whose racially-charged work draws from working at Villawood Immigration Detention Centre, will host the Sydney Slam Final,” Merrill said.
“This is a festival that celebrates the courageous, the creative, and the unspoken.”
The highlight of every annual Story-Fest is the electrifying Australian Poetry Slam Finals.
Sydney Slam Final: Hosted by Troy Wong, where the best of Sydney’s spoken word poets go head to head for three spots in the NSW Final at Sydney Dance Lounge, Walsh Bay.
NSW Poetry Slam Final: The voice of a state comes to life in one poetry packed night at State Library NSW, where two wordsmiths will be chosen to represent NSW in a National Final the next night.
APS National Final: 1000 poets, 20,000 live audience, 60 events across Australia - all rise to a thunder clap at Sydney Opera House, with the winner representing APS on a tour of writers’ festivals worth $11k.
The Story Fest program will also feature a series of activities, children’s workshops and events which are set to be announced soon.
WHAT: Word Travels’ Story Festival
WHEN: Friday 13 – Sunday 15 October, 2017
WHERE: Sydney Dance Lounge, State Library NSW, Sydney Opera House and Joan Sutherland Performing Arts Centre
WORD TRAVELS’ WEBSITE: www.wordtravels.info
WORD TRAVELS FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/wordtravels.info
AUSTRALIAN POETRY SLAM FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/AustralianPoetrySlam
AUSTRALIAN POETRY SLAM YOUTUBE: www.youtube.com/user/AustralianPoetrySlam/videos
For more information and ticketing, please visit: www.wordtravels.info
