At the Sydney Opera House on Sunday 25 October, the crowd, not the critics, will choose the poet who carries Australian spoken word to the world. Five judges pulled at random from the audience decide every round of Australian Poetry Slam 2026, from 65 heats in 60 towns and cities through six State and City Finals to a $20,000 prize package and a year representing Australia at international festivals.
The finals season opens in Tasmania on Saturday 19 Sept and runs through South Australia (26 Sept), Sydney (9 Oct), Victoria (10 Oct), New South Wales (16 Oct) and Queensland (17 Oct), where the nation's top 16 spoken-word artists earn their place on the Opera House stage. Ubud Poetry Slam Champion Kismet Krystle joins the National Final as a special guest.
Miles Merrill, CEO and Creative Director, Word Travels, said: “Give a poet two minutes and a mic and they will tell you more about this country than any press conference. This is an invitation for audiences to elect a 2026 Australian Poetry Slambassador and let Poets Run This.”
The winner is named the 2026 Australian Poetry Slambassador, sending them overseas on a program of festival appearances through 2027. The title opens doors to publishing and performance opportunities at the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival, Singapore Writers Festival and more.
The role is already in play: 2025 Slambassador Arantza Garcia Ferrand is on the Ubud program this year, following her 2025 National Final win with ‘An Ode to Her’.
Presented by Word Travels, Australian Poetry Slam gives poets the stage to perform their own work. Across the 2026 season, heats and regional finals lead into the State and City Finals on the road to the Sydney Opera House.
The circuit runs on local stages like: Speakeasy in Dubbo, Spill in Launceston, Mackay Poetry Slam and Enough Said in Wollongong all feed the 2026 season. Word Travels works alongside Red Dirt Poetry in the Northern Territory, Canberra Slam, Spoken Word SA and Perth Slam, and helps incubate Black Ink, an emerging BIPOC literary arts organisation in Brisbane.
Word Travels’ regional APS tours also take heats and workshops together with story-sharing cuppas with First Nations and new migrant communities.
Tickets for every Australian Poetry Slam 2026 final are on sale now at australianpoetryslam.com, with the National Final at the Sydney Opera House on Sunday 25 October.
AUSTRALIAN POETRY SLAM 2026 – FINALS EVENT DETAILS
Tasmania State Final
Saturday 19 September, 1:30pm-3:30pm
Glenorchy Library, Glenorchy, TAS
Tickets: https://www.australianpoetryslam.com/all-events/tasmania-state-final-aps-2026
South Australia State Final
Saturday 26 September, 7:30pm-9:30pm
Goodwood Theatre and Studios, Goodwood, SA
Tickets: https://www.australianpoetryslam.com/all-events/south-australia-state-final-aps-2026
Sydney Final
Friday 9 October, 7pm-10pm
Word Travels - International Performing Writers Centre at Impact Story Lab, Darlinghurst, NSW
Tickets: https://www.australianpoetryslam.com/all-events/sydney-final-aps-2026
Victoria State Final
Saturday 10 October, 5pm-7:30pm
The Performance Space at The Wheeler Centre, Melbourne, VIC
Tickets: https://www.australianpoetryslam.com/all-events/victoria-state-final-aps-2026
NSW State Final
Friday 16 October, 7pm-9:30pm
State Library of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW
Tickets: https://www.australianpoetryslam.com/all-events/nsw-state-final-aps-2026
Queensland State Final
Saturday 17 October, 7pm-9:40pm
Queensland Multicultural Centre, Kangaroo Point, QLD
Tickets: https://www.australianpoetryslam.com/all-events/queensland-state-final-aps-2026
Australian Poetry Slam 2026 National Final
Sunday 25 October, 5pm-8pm
Sydney Opera House, Sydney, NSW
Tickets: https://www.australianpoetryslam.com/all-events/national-final-aps-2026
WHAT: Australian Poetry Slam 2026 - Poets Run This
WHEN: Finals run 19 September to 25 October 2026
WHERE: Venues across Australia, culminating at Sydney Opera House
INFO: www.wordtravels.org.au