The Festival of Questions
PART OF THE Melbourne Festival, the one-day Festival of Questions is your chance to join a host of forward-thinking writers, politicians, academics and comedians as they tackle everything from right-wing politics to feminism. The first session for the day is ‘Questions for the Nation: Melbourne’ ( noon
1.30pm), in which each speaker on the panel will make a case for the most pressing issue that they believe Australia needs to confront. You’ll hear from the likes of human rights activist and barrister Julian Burnside, writer Helen Razer and comedian and writer Deborah FrancesWhite. Next, dive straight into Trump, Brexit and Pauline Hanson with ‘What is Right? What is Left?’ ( 2.30-4pm). In this session, prepare to grapple with the world’s evolving political landscape with powerful voices including Liberal MP and former Human Rights commissioner Tim Wilson, freelance political writer Lauren Duca, political cartoonist Oslo Davis and Getup! human rights campaign director Shen Narayanasamy. Then head to Philosophical Fight Club ( 5-6.30pm) and watch intellectual heavyweights including author Anna Krien, comedian, musician and writer Jordan Raskopoulos and writer and activist Celeste Liddle battle it out over big questions around citizenship, identity politics and more. The final event, ‘What the Hell? The Handmaid’s Tale in 2017’ ( 7.30-9pm) is for anyone who came away from the HBO adaptation of the Margaret Atwood novel with a deeply unsettling feeling that this dystopian story is all too relevant to our world. Individual tickets are $20 each, and full-day passes are available for $60. ■ RJ