Tirohia, Tirohia mai e ngā pura whetū.
Ko ngā karu o te rangi
Tiaho ai koutou i te kupu
Karangahia a Hinātore kia tau

Nau mai, whakatata mai koutou katoa ki te hui ahurei o Verb ki Te Whanganui a Tara.

Maringi noa ngā kōrero hei rawa ma te katoa.

Ko tātou tēnā e whakahirahira ai i ngā kaupapa katoa o te kupu.
Arā ko te ira tāngata tēnā, ko ngā pakiwaitara, ko ngā pukapuka, ko ngā kaituhi me te kōrerorero hoki!

Whakatauki: He nui tau e ako, he nui ake māku te ako

Look, Look, you stars of the heavens
The celestial eyes
Shine your gaze upon the word
Call forth the light of understanding to settle among us.

Welcome to the Festival of Verb Wellington.
We are so excited for all that we have in store
Join us to celebrate people, stories, books, writers, readers and conversation!

There is much you have to teach me, more still that I have to learn

Kia Ora tātou

Welcome to Verb Festival 2020. Thank you to Trent Hohaia for our beautiful mihi mihi above. We are so lucky to be presenting a festival of live events a this time, in this year. Our Festival is a celebration of Aotearoa writers and the ideas and stories they gift us through their work. We firmly believe that Te Whanganui-a-Tara is one of the world’s most vibrant literary cities and it’s in that spirit that we have created a programme in celebration of our place and our people. We are rich with writers, publishers, bookshops, and readers who are hungry for the nourishment that books and stories can offer.

We welcome you to explore the programme and discover conversations: from living in the wild, to Kai Māori, to the books that sustain us, to inspiring life stories, to poetry cabaret, to a theatrical lecture on the power of art. There is something for everyone. We thank our 2020 guest curators: Te Hā, Stasis, Sweet Mammalian (Nikki-Lee Birdsey & Rebecca Hawkes), Starling, Freya Daly-Sadgrove, Annaleese Jochems, Eliana Gray & Jordan Hamel for your creative energy and expertise.

Much of our festival is koha or free thanks to our Supporters and our incredible Verb Community who are a network of book-loving, interested individuals who care about the place of writing, books and conversation in our society.

This has not been an easy year. This Festival is here for you to enjoy and escape into. It’s here to inspire you and also offer entertainment and ideas to sink your teeth into.

For key information on ticketing, venues and on how COVID is affecting how we operate please visit our FAQ page.

If there is anything we can help you with please don’t hesitate to contact us.

We look forward to gathering with you in November for great conversation and the love of a good story and a bright idea.

Ngā manaakitanga,

Claire Mabey (Verb Director, Founder)