Art is Always Political (2024) - Louise Adler, Brook Garru Andrew, Violette Ayad, Gil Beckwith, Declan Greene, Simon Longstaff & Emile Sherman

The culture wars are seeping out of the real world and infiltrating our pages and stages.  Art has always traversed unfamiliar and even dangerous territory. But with recent calls to boycott cultural institutions, donors pulling funding, and the cancellation of works and talent, are some discussions too fraught to engage with? Louise Adler is the Director of Adelaide Writers’ Week. She has spent over 30 years in the culture business and continues to be committed to the dissemination of dangerous ideas. Brook Garru Andrew is an artist, curator and writer who is driven by the collisions of intertwined narratives emerging from the mess of the “Colonial Wuba (hole)”. His practice is grounded in his perspective as a Wiradjuri and Celtic person from Australia. Violette Ayad was born on Whadjuk Noongar Boodja to Palestinian and Lebanese parents. She is now based on Gadigal land where she works as an actor, writer, director, and voice artist.  Gil Beckwith has a significant career in the Arts and Not For Profit industry in senior finance and administration management roles. Her working career spans over 40 years and includes working for Sydney Theatre Company, Melbourne Festival, the Victorian AIDS Council, and most recently CEO of Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. Declan Greene is a playwright, director, and dramaturg. As a director he has worked for many of Australia’s major theatre companies, including Sydney Theatre Company, Melbourne Theatre Company, Malthouse, Belvoir, and Griffin Theatre Company.  Emile Sherman is an Academy Award and Emmy Award-winning film and television producer who co-founded See-Saw Films in 2008. Based in Sydney and London, See-Saw Films has worked with many of the world’s leading filmmakers and actors.  Chaired by philosopher and Executive Director of The Ethics Centre, Simon Longstaff.