POETRY MONTH: Expands with an with Ambitious National Program

Australian Poetry Month is breaking boundaries in 2025, extending its celebration well beyond August with a packed program that kicks off with Writers Victoria on 30 July and culminates at the Sydney Opera House on 3 September. This year's festival represents the most ambitious iteration yet of the national poetry celebration, featuring everything from daily commissioned works to heated literary debates and a groundbreaking youth ambassador program.

The festival's centrepiece remains the innovative 30in30 initiative, which delivers brand new original poetry, reflections, and writing prompts every single day throughout the celebration. Commissioned and paid by Red Room Poetry, this year's collection features an impressive roster of contemporary Australian voices including Evelyn Araluen, David Brooks, Winnie Dunn, Nardi Simpson, and Tyson Yunkaporta, alongside emerging talents like Grace Yee and Madison Godfrey.

Leading the festivities is a stellar lineup of Poetry Month Ambassadors that reads like a who's who of Australian literary and cultural life. Stan Grant brings his powerful voice and indigenous perspective, while Luke Davies offers his acclaimed novelist and screenwriter insights. The inclusion of DOBBY, Leah Senior, Nyaluak Leth, and Julia Baird demonstrates the festival's commitment to showcasing poetry's intersection with music, journalism, and broader cultural discourse.

Particularly significant is the introduction of four inaugural Youth Ambassadors, to be announced on International Youth Day, 12 August. This new program acknowledges poetry's vital role in nurturing emerging voices and ensures the art form's continued evolution through fresh perspectives.

The in-person events span the continent, reflecting poetry's truly national reach. Tasmania kicks things off with a showcase at MONA in Hobart on 3 August, while Western Australia follows with a Fremantle Library event on August 7. These regional celebrations demonstrate how poetry transcends Sydney and Melbourne's literary centres to engage communities nationwide.

One of the festival's most intriguing events promises to be The Hatred of Poetry Great Debate at Melbourne's Wheeler Centre on 14 August. This provocative discussion, featuring Evelyn Araluen, David Quirk, and Suren Jayemanne among others, tackles poetry's complex relationship with contemporary culture and its critics. Such intellectual sparring reflects the festival's willingness to engage with poetry's challenges as well as its triumphs.

Sydney audiences have multiple opportunities to engage with the program. The Ekphrastic Fantastic: Art After Hours event at the Art Gallery of NSW on 6 August brings together visual art and poetry through the works of Eunice Andrada, Nardi Simpson, and Omar Sakr. This cross-disciplinary approach demonstrates poetry's ability to dialogue with other art forms.

The festival's commitment to diversity and inclusion shines through events like Ritual: A Night of Muslim Australian Poetry at PYT Fairfield, celebrating the release of what's described as the world's first collection of Muslim-Australian poetry. Similarly, Young, Gifted and Black: Africa in Australia Showcase at The Vanguard highlights the contributions of African-Australian poets to the nation's literary landscape.

The National Poetry Month Gala at the State Library of NSW on 28 August serves as the festival's traditional centerpiece, bringing together the year's commissioned poets and ambassadors for a celebration of contemporary Australian verse. This event has become a key fixture in the literary calendar, offering audiences direct access to the voices shaping contemporary poetry.

Workshop offerings cater to both developing and established poets. International expertise arrives through Dorianne Laux's Finger Exercises for Poets session, while local knowledge sharing includes DOBBY and Leah Senior's lyric writing workshop, tied to ABC Radio National's Middle of the Air competition.

The festival's online programming ensures national accessibility, with events including an NT poetry panel with Red Dirt Poetry Festival and an accessible open mic with Writers Victoria. This hybrid approach recognises both the intimate nature of poetry and the need for broad community engagement.

The program concludes with a cinematic celebration at the Sydney Opera House on 3 September, where Shortwave collaborates with Red Room Poetry to premiere new commissioned films alongside established poetry shorts. This multimedia finale demonstrates poetry's evolution beyond traditional page-bound formats.

Poetry Month 2025's expanded timeline and ambitious programming reflect the art form's growing confidence and cultural relevance. By stretching across five weeks and multiple states, the festival positions poetry not as a niche literary pursuit but as a vital form of contemporary expression deserving sustained national attention.

Australian Poetry Month 2025 runs 30 July – 3 September. Full program details and ticketing information available through Red Room Poetry and individual venue websites.