On the second Tuesday of May, the Poetry Night at Sappho plays host to AVANT GAGA #73 with guest poets Louis Armand, David Stavanger, Nathan Shepherdson, Hani Abdile and Robin M Eames, plus an open mic section. For the open mic section, sign up is from 6:30pm on the night at the venue. 10 readers will read for up to 2 mins each, after the guest poets have performed. Food and drinks available at the bar. Free entry!
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LOUIS ARMAND is a writer, visual artist, and critical theorist, living in Prague since 1994. His latest poetry collection is INFANTILISMS (Puncher & Wattmann 2024). His graphic novel A TOMB IN H-SECTION came out in April 2025. www.louis-armand.com
DAVID STAVANGER is a poet, producer, parent, and lapsed psychologist living on Wodi Wodi Dharawal land. Co-editor of Admissions: Voices Within Mental Health (2022) and author of Case Notes which won the 2021 Victorian Premier's Prize for Poetry. His new collection is The Drop Off (Upswell Publishing, 2025).
NATHAN SHEPHERDSON is the author of ten books of poetry. His recent titles are axolotl waltz (Puncher & Wattmann), and parallel equators (Recent Work Press). His most recent title soft meteorites was released through Upswell Publishing last September. Nathan has been fortunate to collaborate with artists and writers including Pascalle Burton, Peter Hudson, David Stavanger, Arryn Snowball, Eugene Carchesio, Sandra Selig, and Jonathan McBurnie. He lives in Brisbane/Meanjin.
HANI ABDILE is a writer, student and spoken word poet based in the country of the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, in Sydney. Hani was forced to leave her home country of Somalia and came to Australia seeking protection in 2014. During her 11 months in immigration detention, she found healing in poetry and developed a love for writing. Her first book of 43 poems, 'I will rise', was published by Writing Through Fences in 2016. Hani is an honorary member of PEN International, a lead member of Writing Through Fences, and an ambassador for the Refugee Advice and Casework Service (RACS).
ROBIN M EAMES is a queercrip poet and historian living on Gadigal land. Their work has been published in Overland, Cordite, Meanjin, APJ, Raging Grace, and Health & History, among others. Their research focuses on trans histories, criminalisation, and medicalisation in 19th century Australia. Robin writes in solidarity with all subjugated peoples, from Gadigal to Gaza.
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IMAGE: Alun Leach-Jones, Pueblo, 1973, screenprint, 61cm x 81.2cm.
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