S-Town has revolutionised the traditional conventions of audio journalism, provoking an avalanche of explicit online commentary and conjecture in the process.
Investigating a baffling murder in Woodstock, Alabama, Reed came across the unforgettable character and horologist, John B. McLemore. In Reed’s rendering, McLemore is as vivid and novelistic as any subject drawn from the hand of Truman Capote.
More than a narrative, S-Town explores the poverty, prejudice, apathy, intimacy, greed and mental illness of America today behind an unmatched literary aesthetic.
Wheeler Centre director, Michael Williams, said of the announcement, “As a reader, there are few things that excite me more than being gripped by a new story. In any medium, we seek out that singular thrill of being seduced by a voice in total control of the tale it’s spinning; the rush of narrative at its most compulsive and addictive.
“Like tens of millions of downloaders worldwide, many of us here at the Wheeler Centre are devotees of S-Town, and have spent hours in the thrall of John B. McLemore’s voice and story, and arguing back and forth. We can’t wait to host its creator Brian Reed, and share his insights with Melbourne audiences.”
