Image: National Gallery of Victoria, London
The National Gallery of Victoria Women’s Association will host its 2026 Spring Lunch on Tuesday 1 September, bringing playwright, screenwriter, novelist, librettist and columnist Joanna Murray-Smith AM to Gandel Hall at NGV International in Melbourne. The fundraising event is scheduled for 11.30am to 2.30pm and will take place at 180 St Kilda Road.
The lunch is presented by the NGVWA, a volunteer group that raises funds through events in support of the NGV Collection. According to the gallery’s NGVWA page, the association was established in 1961 and supports the interests of the National Gallery of Victoria through acquisitions and a travel scholarship for NGV curators. Since 1963, it has also provided Encouragement Awards for promising students of the Victorian College of the Arts.
Murray-Smith is described in the announcement as Australia’s leading playwright, screenwriter, novelist, librettist and newspaper columnist. Her plays have been produced and translated around the world, including on Broadway, in the West End and at the Royal National Theatre London. The NGVWA notes that her work has been read by actors including Meryl Streep, Annette Bening, Laura Linney and Dame Eileen Atkins.
The program is set to focus on Murray-Smith’s creative life and career journey. The announcement cites a long list of her works, including 'The Talented Mr Ripley', 'Julia', 'Switzerland', 'Honour', 'Songs for Nobodies', 'Bombshells', 'The Gift', 'Love-Child', 'Rapture', 'Nightfall', 'American Song' and 'L’Appartement'. It also notes that she recently adapted 'Switzerland' for the screen, with Helen Mirren, and that the film is due for release in 2026 as 'A Talent for Murder'.
Murray-Smith is currently adapting 'Honour' for the screen, Charlotte Wood’s 'The Weekend' for screen and 'Stoneyard Devotional' for the stage, according to the event text. The announcement also says she has adapted classics for contemporary audiences, including 'Hedda Gabler', 'A Doll’s House' and Bergman’s 'Scenes From a Marriage' for Sir Trevor Nunn in London, and that her adaptation of 'Uncle Vanya' has just completed its season at Melbourne Theatre Company. She has also written opera libretti and three novels.
Alongside the talk, the Spring Lunch will include a raffle with a prize pool valued at more than $20,000. Prizes are listed as being offered by Captain’s Choice, Paspaley, Royal Mail Hotel Dunkeld and Trader House. Tickets are priced at $330 per guest or $3,300 per table for up to 10 guests, and bookings are available through the NGVWA website or by phone. The NGVWA notes that tickets are non-refundable.
