Free First Nations storytelling events at Adelaide Festival Centre this weekend

OUR MOB 2022 festivities continue at Adelaide Festival Centre this weekend with free First Nations storytelling events, OUR WORDS and OUR STORIES.

OUR WORDS and OUR STORIES events encourage people of all ages to come together to listen and share knowledge from a narrative that is over 60,000 years old at Adelaide Festival Centre’s Space Theatre and Festival Theatre’s Quartet Bar on Saturday 3 September.

Curated by Ngarrindjeri and Kaurna award-winning poet, Dominic Guerrera, OUR WORDS will bring together some of the most exciting First Nations creatives from South Australia and beyond for a series of conversations in the Festival Theatre’s Quartet Bar from 11am.

TED Talk speaker Jacinta Koolmatrie and Wiradjuri librarian Nathan “mudyi” Sentence open OUR WORDS with panel one – Decolonising and Writing. Hear from two strong Aboriginal voices from within the museum sector who will explore the complexities of working for cultural institutions and explore how their processes can be decolonised.

The second panel – Domestic: Writing and Truth telling – will hear from Narungga activist and poet Natalie Harkin as she provides insight into the process of writing her highly anticipated book, Domestic, and explores the lives and experiences of Aboriginal women who historically worked as domestic workers for white families. Natalie will be joined by family members of domestic workers, Margaret Brodie, Debra Moyle and Sharon Gollan.

Award-winning Yankunytjatjara author Ali Cobby Eckermann and founder and Artistic Director of Winda Film Festival, Yaegl woman Pauline Clague join OUR WORDS for its third and final panel – Aboriginal Narratives. They will discuss the construction of Indigenous narratives and why it’s important to maintain the unique storytelling process.

On the Space Theatre stage, families are welcomed around the OUR STORIES campfire to hear traditional Dreaming stories for children from South Australian storytellers, including Ngarrindjeri, Nurungga, Ngadjuri woman Sonya Rankine, Narungga, Nantowarra, Kaurna woman Kylie O’Loughlin and Boandik woman Aunty Michelle Jacquelin-Furr.

Following the Dreaming stories, children seven years and up are welcomed to an illustration workshop run by award-winning illustrator and graphic designer, Yorta Yorta woman Karen Briggs, while younger audience members can participate in a colouring activity designed by emerging Narungga artist Shakaya Butler in Adelaide Festival Centre’s Children’s Artspace.

For OUR WORDS registrations, please visit https://www.adelaidefestivalcentre.com.au/events/our-words/

OUR STORIES has reached capacity, to register for the waitlist please visit https://www.adelaidefestivalcentre.com.au/events/our-stories/

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Header image by Ben Searcy