UK’s biggest Poetry and Performance Festival comes to Parramatta
Contains Strong Language, the BBC’s flagship poetry and performance festival, is leaving British shores for the first time in its eight years—to put a spotlight on Sydney.
Partnering with Red Room Poetry and the ABC, Contains Strong Language is coming to Parramatta for a day of free live and broadcast events including spoken word and hip hop performance, slam, panel and film as part of this year’s Poetry Month.
Red Room Poetry presents in partnership with the BBC and ABC’s Radio Australia
Contains Strong Language: Poetry of the Pacific
In a special live broadcast by Radio Australia as part of Contains Strong Language, host Hau Latukefu puts a spotlight on Australian poets and writers with ties to the Pacific region. In conversation with and live readings by Winnie Dunn, Christine Afoa, Daley Rangi, Sela Ahosivi-Atiola and Mel Ree.
Red Room Poetry presents in partnership with the BBC and ABC
Contains Strong Language: BBC Radio 4 The Verb
The Verb, BBC Radio 4’s much-loved ‘Cabaret of the Word’, rolls into Parramatta as part of Contains Strong Language. UK poet Ian McMillan hosts performances from some of our most exciting and electric spoken word and hip hop artists including Dobby, L-Fresh the Lion, Sara Mansour, Hani Abdile, Mohammad Awad, L-Fresh the Lion, Yleia Mariano and Adrian Mouhajer.
Red Room Poetry presents in partnership with Sweatshop
Contains Strong Language: Speak Australian
Sweatshop is the nationally renowned literacy movement devoted to empowering Indigenous, migrant and refugee communities through reading, writing and critical thinking. In this star-studded line-up as part of Contains Strong Language, Sweatshop’s greatest wordsmiths will perform and discuss their most recent and acclaimed works. Race, class, gender and sexuality will come crashing against each other through a collection of diverse and eclectic stories that tap into the soul of contemporary Australia. Hosted by Michael Mohammed Ahmad, the line-up includes Jazz Money, Natalia Figueroa Barroso, Winnie Dunn, Mark Mariano and Katie Shammas.
Red Room Poetry presents in partnership with WordTravels, Westside Slam and Westwords
Contains Strong Language: Australian Poetry Slam – Parramatta Heat
Are you the next Australian Poetry Slam Champion? All you need is an original poem and two minutes on the mic. If you are one to shine from the audience, join us at this special Contains Strong Language heat at Riverside Theatres to cheer, snap, and hold-up scorecards in this nationwide celebration of spoken-wordsmiths. Hosted by DEFNE, feature set by Zohab Zee Khan. This Australian Poetry Slam event is presented by West Side Poetry in partnership with WestWords, Word Travels and Red Room Poetry.
It is an examination of how archives and the legacies of collection affect First Nations people and wider Australia, told through the lens of acclaimed Wiradjuri artist, Jazz Money.
Jazz Money’s first feature-length film premiered in 2023 with an electrifying score by DOBBY. Join Jazz and DOBBY in person for this special screening as part of Contains Strong Language.
Presented by Riverside Theatres, Red Room Poetry and by the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia.
In English
Wheelchair accessible
Companion Card accepted
Assistive Hearing system available (FM)
Find out more about accessibility at Riverside Theatres
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Red Room Poetry is assisted by the Australian Government through Creative Australia, its principal arts investment and advisory body, and by the NSW Government in association with Create NSW. This event is supported by the Australian Government through the International Cultural Diplomacy Arts Fund, the British Council, the City of Sydney, and the Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund.
Riverside Theatres acknowledges the Dharug people who are the traditional custodians of the land of Parramatta. We pay our respects to the elders past and present of the Dharug nation and extends that respect to other Aboriginal people visiting this site.