WORD Christchurch 2021
Celebrating the written word, WORD Christchurch 2021 is returning for another year to challenge, entertain and inspire audiences.
Running from 25 – 29 August, the theme for this year’s WORD Christchurch, Near and Far, promises to once again bring bibliophiles a huge variety of cutting-edge literary events from local and international writers and authors.
Programme Co-Directors Rachael King and Nic Low have created an engaging programme of storytelling in a celebration of Aotearoa, with new opportunities for aspiring writers to create and publish their own work.
Here are some of our top picks for the festival.
This year, latitude is a proud sponsor of Adventurous Women , which will once again take the audience on an adventurous night of storytelling with five incredible women who take risks in their personal and professional lives, hosted by broadcaster and writer Miriama Kamo.
Kyle Mewburn’s memoir Faking It is an account of growing up and outwardly becoming the woman she always was; Julie Zarifeh countered unimaginable tragedy with travel and an adventurous spirit; Anjum Rahman stands up for the voices of Muslim women to be heard; Emily Writes is a bold voice for mothers and children online and in books; and Dr Hinemoa Elder’s bestselling book Aroha shows us how we can live with love, compassion and empathy. Book early for a night like no other!
Thursday, 26 August
Philip Carter Family Concert Hall, The Piano
8:00 pm – 9:15 pm
$38
Introducing The Faraway Near : a custom digital venue that has the intimacy of a night at the pub with friends – and a favourite writer. It’s a pop-up bar with twelve tables of eight. Grab a coffee or a glass of wine, and settle in for a session of deep storytelling and conversation with a special international guest – sitting life-sized at your table via freestanding FHD display.
Our guests are broadcast from their own homes around the world, and appear in informal conversation with a skilled interviewer who’s sitting with you at the bar. The bar will be open throughout, and you’ll have a chance to ask questions of your guest as well. It’s a world-first, right here in Ōtautahi.
Choose from sessions with: Helen Macdonald, author of Vesper Flights and the sublime H is for Hawk ; Eliot Higgins, founder of open-source intelligence agency Bellingcat; Backlisted, the podcast that ‘gives new life to old books’ with hosts Andy Miller and John Mitchinson and live guest Paula Morris; New York-based novelist and podcaster Hari Kunzru, on alt-right rabbitholes; native American novelist Tommy Orange, author of the ground-breaking There, There ; Kurdish novelist and activist Ava Homa in conversation with Behrouz Boochani; renowned English philosopher A. C. Grayling; and Irish writer Mark O’Connell, author of the pertinent Notes from an Apocalypse.
In a New Zealand exclusive, WORD Christchurch presents an unexpected and exciting romance author: Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York and former wife of Prince Andrew, coming to you live from Windsor via the magic of the internet. The Duchess, who will appear in conversation with popular author Nicky Pellegrino, has co-written a historical romance novel, ‘[drawing] on many parallels from my life’.
Her Heart for a Compass is a fictional account of the life and love story of one of her ancestors: an immersive historical saga that sweeps you from Victoria’s court and the grand country houses of Scotland and Ireland, to the slums of London and the bustle of 1870s New York. We know it’s early, but grab your friends, your mum and your aunts, and come and share the experience over a cup of tea and a bite. You can also submit a question in advance, and if selected will get a front row seat and the chance to ask it face to (digital) face!
Saturday 28 August
James Hay Theatre, Christchurch Town Hall
8:00 am – 9:00 am
$38
Helen Clark ‘s work has brought her close to the two most urgent issues of our time: climate change and the coronavirus pandemic. Last year, Clark took on the task of co-chairing the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response, an impartial and comprehensive review of the internationally co-ordinated response to COVID-19.
As editor of the new anthology Climate Aotearoa Clark brings together New Zealand experts to examine the climate situation as it is now, as it will be in the years to come, and what we can do about it.
In this essential hour, she discusses the findings of the COVID report, published in May, and the book, and what needs to happen to avert future catastrophe for both the planet and its occupants. In conversation with the University of Canterbury’s Bronwyn Hayward.
Saturday, 28 August
James Hay Theatre, Christchurch Town Hall
2:30 pm – 3:30 pm
$25
Something dark is afoot in Scotland. Ian Rankin’s Rebus is facing a crisis in A Song For The Dark Times . And in his brand new book, Rankin joins forces with iconic Scottish crime writer, the late William McIlvanney, completing the manuscript he left behind. The result is The Dark Remains , which brings to life the criminal world of 1970s Glasgow with McIlvanney’s DI Laidlaw, the detective that inspired a gritty genre.[LD1]
Thanks to the wonders of technology, we’re joining one of the world’s most significant literary festivals happening simultaneously on the other side of the planet. Edinburgh International Book Festival presents beloved crime writer Ian Rankin live from their studio in an exclusive event just for WORD. Rankin will appear with an interviewer on stage at The Piano, giving the audience a chance to ask questions face to (digital) face.
Saturday 28 August
Philip Carter Family Concert Hall, The Piano
7:30 pm – 8:45 pm
$25
For one night only, WORD transforms Tūranga to bring to life the ancient story of Tāwhaki that is woven into the building itself.
Using the spectacular central staircase as the stage, with audiences ranged around the balconies on all sides, this not-to-be-missed transformation of Tūranga will fly you to the heavens in pursuit of matauraka, the knowledge of the gods. Presented by master storyteller Joseph Hullen (Ngāi Tūāhuriri / Ngāti Hinematua), taonga puoro virtuoso Ariana Tikao (Ngāi Tahu) and Juanita Hepi (Kāi Tahu, Ngāti Mutunga, Ngāi Tukairangi), this is your chance to hear a uniquely Murihiku Ngāi Tahu telling of a story that is well over a thousand years old. Please note that while some seats are available, most audience members will be standing for thirty minutes.
Thursday 26 August
Tūranga, 60 Cathedral Square
6:30 pm – 7:00 pm
Free
Jackie Clark founded the charity The Aunties in 2013. Her big heart and take-no-bullshit attitude has won her a league of loyal fans and followers, and in 2018 she was the Supreme Winner at the Women of Influence Awards. Join Jackie for a relaxed talk at Linwood Library as she shares her experiences and talks about the new book, Her Say , which features stories of women overcoming trauma from abusive relationships, told in their own words.
Friday 27 August
Linwood Library, First Floor, Eastgate Mall
1:30 pm – 2:00 pm
Free
In the 1990s, Ross Calman (Ngāti Toa, Ngāi Tahu) stumbled on a manuscript in an archive: a 50,000-word biography of Te Rauparaha , handwritten in te reo Māori in the 1860s by his son Tamihana. Realising this was his ancestor’s work, Ross set out to master te reo, and now, decades later, has translated Tamihana’s words – complete with eyewitness accounts and ancient curses – as He Pukapuka Tātaku i Ngā Mahi a Te Rauparaha Nui (A Record of the Life of the Great Te Rauparaha) . Ross and tribal historian Dr Te Maire Tau (Upoko of Ngāi Tūāhuriri) discuss these fascinating and turbulent times of warfare between the two iwi, including the saga of Kaiapoi pā, and the peace marriages that came after. With taonga puoro accompaniment from Ariana Tikao.
Friday, 27th August
Philip Carter Family Concert Hall, The Piano
4:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Free Entry
Come and hear from some of the best poets working in Aotearoa today. Karlo Mila’s Goddess Muscle spans a decade of work, and explores both the personal and political. Kate Camp’s How To Be Happy Though Human was described by David Eggleton as ‘like a bumper ride in a fairground … at once jarring and exhilarating’. Tayi Tibble‘s second collection, Rangikura , asks us to think about our relationship to desire and exploitation. Find out what drives these poets, what they think makes a good poem, and their insights into how you can write your own. Chaired by fellow brilliant poet, Bernadette Hall.
Friday 27 August
Philip Carter Family Concert Hall, The Piano
1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Free
When is a festival not a festival? When it’s a festival-within-a-festival! Follow WORD Christchurch down the rabbithole into the packed-out bars, cafes, shops and broom-cupboards of New Regent Street for a selection of rapid-fire readings, launches, games, projections and talks. Christchurch’s most characterful laneway will be transformed into a literary hive, with a dozen venues hosting back-to-back events and activities. Romance at Gin Gin? Improvised poetry at the AV club? Rapid-fire book launches at The Last Word? Sea shanties and salty rants at The Institution? All this and more, featuring over fifty local and visiting writers for your pleasure. And best of all – it’s free! Check back for the full lineup, online from 1 August.
Friday 27 August
New Regent Street
6:00 pm – 7:30 pm
Free
