Celebrate storytelling, poetry and the Sargeson Prize as acclaimed poet Tusiata Avia headlines this special event.

Mark your calendars for the evening of Saturday 3 October, when the University of Waikato will host the 23rd annual Frank Sargeson Memorial Lecture. This popular event, which is free to attend, is open to the public and honours the life, legacy and Hamilton birth of the short story writer and novelist Frank Sargeson.

In 2026 we are delighted to welcome Tusiata Avia as our guest speaker. She will present a lecture entitled Poetry: What's It For? Why does it freak people out? Why would people rather go to the rugby? What happens if it gets you in trouble? Tusiata speaks about these and other age-old questions around this often elusive and rarified branch of literature.

Tusiata Avia is a poet, writer and performer. She has published six books of poetry and is also the author of children’s books, a short film, a radio documentary and plays. Her iconic play Wild Dogs Under My Skirt showed Off-Broadway in 2020, where it won the Fringe Encore Outstanding Production of the Year.

Tusiata has received a number of awards during her 25-year career, including the 2024 Prime Minister’s Award for Literary Achievement: Poetry; the 2024 Creative New Zealand Pacific Senior Artist Award; the 2023 Distinguished Alumni Award at Te Herenga Waka Victoria University; and the 2020 Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to poetry and the arts.

The Savage Coloniser Book won the 2020 Best Book of Poetry at the Ockham New Zealand Book Awards. The stage version, The Savage Coloniser Show, won New Aotearoa Play of the Year in 2024 at the Wellington Theatre Awards and became the centre of a political controversy in Aotearoa New Zealand.

The lecture is co-hosted by the Friends of Hamilton Public Libraries.

Sargeson Prize

At the lecture we will announce the winners of the 2026 Sargeson Prize – Aotearoa’s biggest short story competition. The Sargeson Prize, sponsored by the University of Waikato, is coordinated by writer Catherine Chidgey and offers a prize pool of $20,000, with the overall winner receiving $15,000. The winning stories will be published by Newsroom in its literary section, ReadingRoom. This year the competition attracted more than 1,500 entries and is judged by Becky Manawatu.

The Sargeson Lecture presents a unique opportunity for the Waikato writing community to engage with a leading literary figure, enjoy light refreshments, and network with fellow writers, industry professionals and academics.

The lecture and prize announcement will be held at the Gallagher Academy of Performing Arts, at the University of Waikato, starting at 5.45pm. Ticket scanning and refreshments will be available from 5pm.

Free parking is available on the weekends. Parking is available at either Gate 1 or Gate 2B.

Please register your attendance by clicking on the website link above. If you are attending in person, remember to bring your e-ticket with you on the evening, as it will be scanned at entry.

If you are unable to attend in person, please still register and you can join the event via livestream. The information for the livestream link will be shared with you once you register.