An Evening with Amanda Nguyen

Saving Five: A Memoir of Hope

Content note: The following event description contains references to sexual assault.

Astronaut, advocate and rape-survivor Amanda Nguyen takes the stage for an unfiltered conversation about sexual violence and the systems that perpetuate it, about race, identity, and diaspora, and about what it means to reclaim your life—and your dreams—in the aftermath of the unthinkable.

'A story of survival which ignited an entire movement and enabled sexual assault survivor rights.' - Natalie Portman

In 2013, three months before graduation, Amanda Nguyen was raped at Harvard.

The daughter of Vietnamese war refugees, Nguyen had spent her life defying the odds—studying astrophysics, interning at NASA, dreaming of the stars.

To protect her career, she filed her rape kit anonymously, only to discover the state would destroy the evidence if not renewed every six months, a bitter biannual marker, simply to preserve her chance at justice.

She had two choices: accept a system designed to silence survivors, or rewrite the law. She rewrote the law.

Touring Australia for the first time, Amanda Nguyen takes the stage for an unfiltered conversation about sexual violence and the systems that perpetuate it, about race, identity, and diaspora, and about what it means to reclaim your life—and your dreams—in the aftermath of the unthinkable.

This is not a keynote. It is a reckoning, a testament, and a call to action—from one of the most extraordinary voices of her generation.

*Signed copies of Saving Five: A Memoir of Hope will be available at each performance.

This performance will be Auslan interpreted.

Ticket Prices

VIP Package*
VIP $149

Standard
Premium $99
A Reserve $79
B Reserve $69
C Reserve $49

Group 6+
VIP $119.20
Premium $79.20
A Reserve $63.20
B Reserve $55.20

Auslan 
$79

Seats with a clear view of the Auslan interpreter are reserved for those who require them. To book one of these seats, please use the promo code AUSLEFT at checkout. Use the filters on the seat map to view these seats as desired.

*VIP package includes:

• 60 minute post-show book signing and photo opportunity

• One copy of Saving Five, signed by Amanda Nguyen

• Optional photo opportunity during the signing

Please note, Fane will liaise directly with the VIP ticket holders 3 days before the event. Contact info@fane.com.au if you do not receive this information.

A Transaction Fee between $4 and $8.50 applies to orders made online and by phone. Delivery Fees may also apply. A ticket limit of six is in place online to ensure fair ticket access for all. Want to bring a bigger party? Call our Box Office during business hours on (03) 9699 3333 to book.

About Amanda Nguyen

'I gave up my astronaut dream to fight for my rights and the rights of survivors across the world. Once I passed the laws, I decided I could honour the dreams I had before I was hurt.' - Amanda Nguyen

Nguyen founded Rise, drove the rare and unanimous passage of a bill for the benefit of survivors of sexual assaults, ignited the Stop Asian Hate movement, was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, named TIME Woman of the Year, and, in April 2025, realised her dreams by flying to space—the first Southeastern Asian woman to ever do so.

About Saving Five

Saving Five: A Memoir of Hope was an instant New York Times bestseller and Natalie Portman Book Club pick—a searing, structurally daring account of trauma, rage, activism, and recovered dreams. Told through versions of Nguyen at ages five, fifteen, twenty-two, and thirty, it braids the story of her fight with Congress alongside a beautifully imagined journey through the emotional stages of healing.

'Saving Five is an account of trauma, rage and activism, and also a kind of guide through grief, which shows how every stage propelled Nguyen and served a purpose.' - The Guardian

'Poignant and imaginative … now more than ever, such hope is essential.' - The New York Times Book Review