Sydney, Ep. 1

May 19, 2022 — Literary Death Match made its Sydney debut at Carriageworks, pairing with the masterminds at the Sydney Writers Festival for a fantastic night that saw Eunice Andrada outduel Sara M. Saleh in a calamitous Author Spelling Bee IV Finale that won Andrada the LDM Sydney, Ep. 1 crown, and literary immortality to go with it. 

Here's the full lineup from the night: 

JUDGES: 
Literary Merit: Sisonke Msimang, author of Always Another Country: A Memoir of Exile and Home and The Resurrection of Winnie Mandela — plus, her Ted Talk is excellent

Performance: Lizzy Hoo, stand-up comedian and actor who's appeared at the Oxfam Gala and before sold out audiences at the Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney Comedy Festivals

Intangibles: Matt Okine, award-winning comedian; creator/star of THE OTHER GUY for Stan; author of Being Black 'N Chicken & Chips; host of Australia’s first daily breakfast podcast, Matt & Alex: All Day Breakfast

READERS:
Round 1:
* Omar Sakr, author of the poetry collection The Lost Arabs (winner of the 2020 Prime Minister's Literary Award for Poetry) and the debut novel, Son of Sin

* Sara M. Saleh, poet, writer and activist who won both the Peter Porter and Judith Wright Poetry Prizes, and her debut novel, Songs for The Dead and The Living (Affirm Press) is out next year

Round 2: 
* Claire G. Coleman, author of the novels Terra Nullius and The Old Lie and the non-fiction book Lies, Damned Lies: A Personal Exploration of the Impact of Colonisation

* Eunice Andrada, poet, educator and author of Take Care (shortlisted for the Stella Prize) and Flood Damages (winner of the Anne Elder Award and shortlisted for the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Poetry and the Dame Mary Gilmore Award)

Hosted by LDM creator Adrian Todd Zuniga (author of the award-nominated novel Collision Theory)