A Gala Night of Storytelling – February 13th, 2010

As someone who meticulously prepares travel times – making sure to allow extra time for the very possible and unforeseen delays of the Melbourne public transport system, seriously miscalculating how long it takes to catch a tram from one place to another – having to rush from work to Melbourne Town Hall for the Wheeler Centre‘s inaugural public event “A Gala Night of Storytelling” was weighing heavily on my nerves. Luckily, I not only was let off from work fifteen minutes early but the public transport gods conspired to make my tram ride a speedy sojourn, with the added bonus of having only one drunken tourist starting a slurring imitation of conversation with me, and I arrived at the corner of Swanston and Collins with ten minutes to spare.

The ten minutes giving me ample time to continue walking up Collins to join the end of the swarming queue of literati, the bespectacled, the well-read, and, let’s be perfectly honest here, the really really ridiculously good looking. The line thankfully moved quickly, abuzz with anticipation, and shuffled eagerly into the hallowed halls. Welcoming comments and introductions from the Wheeler Centre director, government Arts ministers and indigenous leaders were succinct, encouraging, and inspiring.

Then, the main acts, a veritable who’s who of Australian literature and culture: Chloe Hooper, Paul Kelly, Cate Kennedy, Judith Lucy, Shane Maloney, David Malouf, John Marsden, Alex Miller, John Safran, Christos Tsiolkas, Tara June Winch, Alexis Wright; each of them offering a short story from their own lives, based largely on their families and the wisdom passed down generations. The tone varied from the gut-bustingly hilarious and flattering (to paraphrase Shane Maloney, “if the roof caved in now, the average Australian I.Q. score would instantly drop by twenty points.”) to the poignant and poetic; the best combining both. I don’t think a single person was unaffected by Paul Kelly’s amazing rendition of “South of Germany”, made all the more moving after hearing the family legend that inspired it.

Despite the massive crowd, the stories mostly felt intimately personal, as though being told over a coffee or two. The variety of voices made me appreciate the distinct sounds and nuances of the Australian accent, and the range of experiences and stories we all have to offer each other. Inspired to seek out the written stories from the voices I’d sat and listened to all evening, as I made my way home through a rougher suburb of Melbourne – its reputation much, much worse than its actual bite – I listened closely to the voices around me and the stories they told, a reminder that there is just as much quality storytelling available in our daily lives, through families and friends, or drunks on the bus, as in the pages of books.

The Wheeler Centre’s launch event was a roaring success, and it was more than worth the five dollar student concession ticket price just to hear famed Australian young adult author John Marsden drop the magical phrase “mad cunt.”