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The Update - March 22, 2016

ABR Arts 22 February 2016
Florence Foster Jenkins Why is bad singing so funny? Why do missed high notes induce such hilarity? Is it all vaudeville or a case of Schadenfreude? Curiously, we have two new films about the egregious soprano par excellence, Florence Foster Jenkins (whose awful recordings are legendary and who died soon after giving a disastrous recital in Carnegie Hall in 1944). The first – Marguerite, direct ... (read more)

Peter Porter Poetry Prize Judges' Report 2016

Competitions and programs 10 March 2016
More than 700 poets entered this year's Peter Porter Poetry Prize; just over 200 of these entries came from overseas. The judges were Luke Davies, Lisa Gorton and Kate Middleton. They completed their judgement without knowing the name, gender, background or nationality of any entrant. This prize honours Peter Porter and its judges seek to honour him not only in name but in principle: by valuing v ... (read more)

2016 Winner

Competitions and programs 10 March 2016
Australian Book Review is delighted to announce that Amanda Joy has won the 2016 Peter Porter Poetry Prize for her poem 'Tailings'. Morag Fraser named Amanda Joy as the overall winner at a ceremony in the ABR office at Boyd Community Hub. She receives $5,000 for her poem, which was selected from a field of around 730 poems. She also receives Arthur Boyd's etching and aquatint 'The unicorn and th ... (read more)

The Update - March 8, 2016

ABR Arts 22 February 2016
The return of Olivier Messiaen Olivier Messiaen's masterpiece for solo piano Vingt regards sur l'enfant-Jésus was last performed in Melbourne in February 2009 – days after the opening of the Melbourne Recital Centre. Steven Osborne was the soloist on that occasion. His was a memorable performance – in front of a pitifully small audience, not helped by the eccentric programming so typical of ... (read more)

Brian Johns (1936–2016) by Andy Lloyd James and Peter Rose

March 2016, no. 379 29 February 2016
Brian Johns, who died in Sydney on New Year's Day, was a remarkable man, a great friend to many, and a great enabler. His family came to Sydney from Queensland in 1947, and at the age of sixteen Brian entered St Columba's Seminary. After three years he left and went to Canberra to become a journalist. It was the start of a career marked by his passion for providing increased opportunity to Austral ... (read more)

Letters to the Editor - March 2016

March 2016, no. 379 29 February 2016
OPEN LETTER TO THE PRIME MINISTER AND MINISTER FOR IMMIGRATION AND BORDER CONTROL Dear Prime Minister and Minister Dutton, As writers committed to protecting and defending human rights, and as citizens of conscience, we the undersigned wish to express our deep abhorrence of the ongoing mistreatment of refugees in Australia's offshore detention centres. As writers, we are called in our work to e ... (read more)

News from the Editor's Desk - March 2016

March 2016, no. 379 26 February 2016
Porter Prize Five poems have been shortlisted in the 2016 Peter Porter Poetry Prize. The poets are Dan Disney, Anne Elvey, Amanda Joy, Lisa Gluskin Stonestreet, and Campbell Thomson; their poems can be read here. The judges on this occasion were Luke Davies, Lisa Gorton, and Kate Middleton. Join us at our studio in Boyd Community Hub on Wednesday, 9 March (6 pm), when the poets will introduce an ... (read more)

The Update - February 23, 2016

ABR Arts 22 February 2016
Sydney Symphony Orchestra Flash Sale Sydney-based music lovers shouldn’t miss the Sydney Symphony Orchestra’s 72-hour flash sale. Design your own concert package and book three performances from twenty different programs in the 2016 season and receive 50% off the full ticket price. Possible combinations include Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, Shostakovich’s Leningrad Symphony, and Pink Martini ... (read more)

David Williamson

Reading Australia 08 February 2016
David Williamson (1942–) is one of Australia's most decorated playwrights. Writer of award-winning theatre, film and television, David's works have remained consistently relevant, with new seasons performed yearly. He has won awards in both film and theatre, with The Removalists (1971) earning him the George Devine Award as well as the prestige of being the first foreigner to win the award. The ... (read more)

The Update - February 9, 2016

ABR Arts 08 February 2016
On the unanimity of arts critics Peter Wilby – whose column 'First Thoughts' is the first thing Arts Update turns to in New Statesman – enjoyed the current revival of Guys and Dolls in London. 'I had no quarrel with the national newspaper critics' seemingly unanimous awarding of four stars,' he wrote. 'Why, though, was one of them not sufficiently generous to give it five stars and why was th ... (read more)