Petr Malapanis: Writing the Unspeakable

Born in Melbourne, Petr has been writing for over 20 years. She has had work published in the anthologies Mother Lode (Poetica Christi Press, 2003) and Set Free (Poetica Christi Press, 2004), and in the journal Etchings (vol. 4, 2008). Petr’s work also appears in the coffee table book, Reflecting on Melbourne – a vision of Melbourne through the eyes of some of its poets and artists (Poetica Christi Press, 2009), in the anthology Southern Sun, Aegean Light (Arcadia 2011) and in issue 10 of the journal Page Seventeen (Busybird Publishing 2012). In 2012 Petr qualified for the finals of the Sydney Rd Poetry Cup and made the transition from the page to the stage officially that year. She has appeared regularly at the Dan and featured at House of Bricks, Passionate Tongues, Muses, Musos and the Barleycorn and at Steps Gallery. Her work appeared in the anthology A Lightness of Being in 2013 (Poetica Christi Press) and as part of MSFW ARTZ in 2014.  After some dirty dancing with breast cancer and a two-year hiatus from writing, Petr finally articulated the experience in an intense feature at West Word. Her choabook, Unspeakable (2019), is her first solo offering from that period  Her work focuses on themes of identity and belonging, motherhood and gender. Petr writes to process.   Unspeakable is available here: http://owlpublishing.com.au/chapbook-series.html Produced and Presented by Tina Giannoukos