Poetry Night in Dunedin - 8 April 2026

By Octagon Collective - Mac MacDonald | Posted: Wednesday Apr 15, 2026

Poet and Octagon Poetry Collective committee member extraordinaire, Mac MacDonald, shares highlights from their latest poetry reading:

Back Seat Shenanigans of the Elderly

In association with Unesco City of Literature Dunedin and the New Athenaeum Theatre, the Octagon Poetry Collective hosted another colourful night of poetry at the New Athenaeum Theatre in Dunedin on April 8. A wonderfully supportive audience numbering around forty were entertained by twenty-one open mic poets aged twelve to the mid-eighties. Their material ranged from the preciousness of a seed to random streams of throw away memories, and from a sensitive eulogy to the back seat shenanigans of the elderly.

The first of two Feature Poets, Natasha Hope-Johnston (Dunedin), expressed deep reservations about the extreme methods being considered by conservative parties in the New Zealand political scene to solve labour shortages in key industries by legislating against death being used as an excuse for not turning up to work

The second Feature Poet, Teoti Jardine (Riverton), pointed out that when crossing the road, it pays to make sure that you are, in fact, crossing the road, and not watching Grandmother tidy up the sky or the Tahakopa River change course.

The next Octagon Poetry Collective Poetry Night will at held at 7pm, May 13, at the New Athenaeum Theatre in the Octagon, Dunedin.

Feature Poets: Eli Gray and Tunmise Adebowale

MC: Nicola Thorstensen

Everyone very, very welcome.

Thanks Mac and Octagon Poetry Collective.