Overview
After heading to Australia earlier this year for a one-night-only show at the Sydney Opera House, Margaret Atwood is heading Down Under once again in early 2020. This time, though, she'll be hitting up six Aussie cities (Sydney, Canberra, Brisbane, Melbourne, Hobart and Perth) as well as Wellington, Auckland and Christchurch.
The Canadian writer also has some very exciting new material to discuss — her long-awaited sequel to 'The Handmaid's Tale', called 'The Testaments'. Released 34 years after the original, the novel is set 15 years after Offred's final scene and is narrated by three female characters. Since it's release in September, 'The Testaments' has already garnered one of the world's biggest literary awards, the Booker Prize, which it won jointly with Bernardine Evaristo's 'Girl, Woman, Other'.
As well as discussing her award-winning new novel, the seminal 1985 book and the captivating TV drama it inspired, Atwood will chat about her life and career, and the rest of her very extensive body of works. While it seems this talk won't be quite as political as her SOH conversation, it's likely Atwood will dip into topics such as extremist politics, feminism and climate change — they are themes that are brought up time and time again in her fictional works, after all.
It'll be an interesting, if not eyebrow-raising, talk — as well as being an obvious advocate for women's rights, Atwood has came under fire for her controversial take on the #MeToo movement and her reluctance to call The Handmaid's Tale feminist.
It's said the talks will also have a Q&A segment, so putt on your thinking hats and get some questions ready.
Margaret Atwood via Wiki Commons, Image credit: Mauro Rico/Ministerio de Cultura de la Nación
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IN CONVERSATION WITH MARGARET ATWOOD 2020 DATES
February 10 — Wellington, Michael Fowler Centre
February 11 — Auckland, The Civic
February 12 — Christchurch, Christchurch Town Hall
February 16–17 — Sydney, ICC
February 19 — Canberra, Canberra Theatre Centre
February 22 — Brisbane, QPAC Concert Hall
February 23 — Melbourne, Arts Centre Melbourne
February 24 — Hobart, Wrest Point
March 1 — Perth, Riverside Theatre
Tickets for In Conversation with Margaret Atwood go on sale Monday, November 25.
Image: Jean Malek