Global Media Post » Life Style

“Man Booker prize embraces ‘Laughter in the Dark’ “

Editor — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 13:57:39 +0000

“Every year a hard core of literary fiction enthusiasts try to race through the six books on the Man Booker Prize short list in the month between its announcement and the award ceremony. This year their task will be less of an endurance test: the judges have made a short list that was immediately described as the funniest in the history of the competition, which started in 1969. One of the chosen novels, Howard Jacobson’s The Finkler Question, can be described as comic fiction, a subgenre that would never have been deemed appropriate for the Booker in its early years. Four of the other titles, including books by the serial prizewinners Peter Carey and Andrea Levy, have humorous elements with only one, In a Strange Room by South African writer Damon Galgut, lacking obvious comic aspects. Not that this should be taken as proof that comedy is booming in literary fiction. Earlier this year Daisy Goodwin, chairwoman of the judges for the Orange Prize (for fiction written by women) complained that there was ‘very little wit, and no jokes’ in most of the books she had to read. Dominated by misery, they had left her ready ‘to slit my wrists’. Asked if humour had been the most notable theme of the original list of 138 Man Booker contenders, Andrew Motion, Britain’s former poet laureate and chairman of the judges, frowns. ‘No’, he says. ‘That was drugs’. The two best-selling books from the long list missed the cut: Christos Tsiolkas’s The Slap, which has been starting book club arguments about misogyny, sex and good dialogue since its publication and, more surprisingly, David Mitchell’s The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet, which had been widely touted as a possible winner”

Tony Blair: “Radical Islam is world’s greatest threat”

Editor — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 16:24:09 +0000

“Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair has described radical Islam as the greatest threat facing the world today. He made the remark in a BBC interview marking the publication of his memoirs. Mr Blair said radical Islamists believed that whatever was done in the name of their cause was justified – including the use of chemical, biological or nuclear weapons. Mr Blair, who led Britain into war in Afghanistan and Iraq, denied that his own policies had fuelled radicalism. Asked about the argument that Chechens, Kashmiris, Palestinians, Iraqis and Afghans were resisting foreign occupation, he said Western polices were designed to confront radical Islamists because they were ‘regressive, wicked and backward-looking’. The aim of al-Qaeda in Iraq was ‘not to get American troops out of Baghdad [but] to destabilise a government the people of Iraq have voted for’, he told the BBC’s Owen Bennett Jones in a World Service interview. The former British leader – who now acts as the Middle East envoy for the international Quartet – said that Iran was one of the biggest state sponsors of radical Islam, and it was necessary to prevent it by any means from developing a nuclear weapon. ‘We need to give a message to Iran that is very clear – that they cannot have nuclear weapons capability, and we will stop them’, he said. Mr Blair said he was not advocating military action, but simply saying no option could be taken off the table. Iran denies pursuing a nuclear weapons programme, and insists its atomic work is for civilian purposes. Mr Blair told the BBC his view of foreign policy had changed as a result of the 9/11 attacks: ’After 11 September, rightly or wrongly, I felt the calculus of risk had changed‘ “

No related posts.

“Tony Blair’s A Journey – begins is hot ticket at booksellers”

Editor — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 12:00:39 +0000

“Retailers predict high sales for former PM’s political memoir And so the journey – well, A Journey – begins. Tony Blair’s heavily embargoed, highly anticipated political memoir hits the shelves this morning, amid feverish predictions from booksellers. The book, running to over 600 pages, leapfrogged into top position in Amazon.co.uk’s bestseller chart this morning from 11th place last night, overtaking bestselling books by Stieg Larsson, Stephenie Meyer and Terry Pratchett. The online bookseller says it is on target to become its biggest-selling political memoir ever. Amazon.co.uk said that Blair’s A Journey had generated 36% more pre-orders than Peter Mandelson’s The Third Man at the same stage. It added that the book “is on target to overtake that title to become the most successful political memoir of all time on Amazon.co.uk” – news that will be welcomed by the Royal British Legion, to which Blair is donating all proceeds from the memoir, including his estimated £4.6m advance… At Waterstone’s – where Blair will sign copes of his autobiography on 8 September amid heavy security – A Journey was hovering in eighth place in its online bestseller chart this morning, while Foyles was predicting that the book would be the independent chain’s bestseller of the week… The book will have to do very well indeed, however, if it is to outsell Margaret Thatcher’s The Path to Power, which shifted an estimated half-a-million copies to become the highest selling British political memoir ever”

“Qantas engine debris ‘could have hit passengers’ “

Editor — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 08:20:36 +0000

“The association representing aircraft maintenance engineers says it is lucky no passengers were hit by debris that blasted a hole in the engine casing of an airborne Qantas jet. The Boeing 747 bound for Sydney out of San Francisco had only been in the air for 45 minutes when one of its four engines failed and exploded, blowing a hole in the casing. It is believed the pilot declared an emergency and dumped fuel over the sea as a precaution before returning to the airport. Officials at San Francisco airport say the plane landed safely and there were no injuries. Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association federal secretary Stephen Purvinas says it is lucky the turbine blade, which came loose, did not fly in the other direction”

Internationally acclaimed hit and much-loved fairy tale tours to Adelaide

Editor — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 08:15:55 +0000

Scottish-born Shona Reppe has been described as the fairy godmother of puppet theatre. She will bring her internationally acclaimed, award winning tabletop production of Cinderella to Adelaide for Windmill’s 2010 season finale. Direct from sell-out seasons on Broadway and in Sydney, Shona’s petite production of Cinderella has toured Canada, Belgium, France, Japan and the Netherlands. The show is suitable for ages 5-10 and their families. The public performances commence on 25 September playing to 2 October in the Forge Theatre, Marryatville High School, 170 Kensington Road Marryatville. Every day is bad hair day for Shona’s ‘Cinders’ as she vies for the hand of the handsome prince and battles her sinister stepsisters across an intricate tabletop stage laced with secret hatches and hidden drawers. Shona Reppe Puppets’ Cinderella is unlike any other you and your kids may have seen. It is a magical and mischievous delight; combining simple storytelling with lush and inventive images. nytheatre.com… It’s a bonny affair from the start. Reppe, who’s visible throughout behind the tabletop stage, has a lilting brogue that makes her words sound like song. Much of the show’s magic lies in her nimble fingers and her interactions with her inanimate cast. Time Out New York
Created, designed and performed by Shona Reppe Cinderella premiered at the Imaginate Scottish International Children’s Festival in 2002 to excellent reviews followed by a successful run at The Netherbow Theatre at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. In 2002 Cinderella received a Total Theatre Award for physical and visual theatre during the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and in February 2003 Cinderella won the Victor Award for best showcase in children’s theatre in Montreal.
The show is co-created by Ian Cameron and co-directed by Gill Robertson.
Shona Reppe undertook Theatre Studies and History of Art at Glasgow University (1988) before completing a post grad diploma in Stage Design at the Welsh College of Drama in Cardiff (1992). Shona Reppe Puppets was established in 1996 and has been dedicated to creating highly visual theatre for children ever since. In 1998 Shona embarked on a world trip with The Little Red Hen – a puppet show in two shopping bags – performing in Australia, New Zealand, USA and Zimbabwe in libraries, schools, theatres, living rooms and beaches (paid in dollars, beer or board). In 2000 her production Tom Thumb toured throughout Scotland before performing to sell-out audiences at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
Cinderella plays in the Forge Theatre, Marryatville High School:
Schools performances commence from 20 September;
Public performance commence 25 September 10.00am and 2.00pm; 27 September 1.00pm; 28,29, 30 September 10.00am and 1.00pm; 1October 10.00am and 2 October 10.00am and 2.00pm.
Tickets are $19; $14groups of 6 or more and may be purchased at all BASS outlets by phone on 131 246 and online at www.bass.net.au

Festival Centre announces new Artistic Director for Adelaide Cabaret Festival,2012, 2013

Editor — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 08:09:48 +0000

Adelaide Festival Centre’s CEO and Artistic Director, Douglas Gautier announcedthat the Artistic Director for the Adelaide Cabaret Festival for 2012 and 2013 will be nohe other than Kate Ceberano. Award-winning singer and songwriter, Kate Ceberano has been a leading star of Australia’s music industry writing and singing soul, jazz and pop for more than 25 years. She has won multiple ARIA and Mo awards, a Logie Award and achieved five Platinum and five Gold albums. She has sold more than one million albums in Australia alone. Kate was the winner of season six of Channel 7’s Dancing with the Stars, helping the show to be the highest rated television program in 2007. She played the role of Mary in Jesus Christ Superstar which toured nationally with the album the biggest hit of the year (4 times Platinum). She also won a Logie Award for Most Popular Music Video for Everything’s Alright taken from the show. Kate also hosted her own late-night cabaret-style show on ABC TV during 1993-1994, Kate Ceberano and Friends. A strong believer in using her gifts for the good of others, Kate is the Victorian Ambassador for the National Breast Cancer Foundation, helping the organisation to raise awareness and funds for the disease. I am very excited about Kate’s appointment as David Campbell’s successor for the 2012 and 2013 Adelaide Cabaret Festivals, said Douglas Gautier, Chief Executive Officer and Artistic Director of Adelaide Festival Centre.

‘David, and Julia Holt before him, were integral in developing the Adelaide Cabaret Festival – one of the jewels in the Adelaide Festival Centre crown – into an event which has attracted attendances of more than 500,000 over its ten year history. It is an event which attracts significant sponsorship and which is a favourite on the arts calendar for artists and audiences alike,” Douglas said.

“David and Lisa Campbell are doing a sensational job and we are looking forward to what they have in store for the 2011 Adelaide Cabaret Festival. They know we are leaving the door open for them to return as the artistic direction team in the future. The success of the last two festivals has very much been due to their creative programming which has really connected with audiences. As a consummate performer himself and one who has great rapport with his audiences, David has a good handle on what audiences want’, he said.

Douglas explained that appointing Kate for 2012 and 2013 is part of the Festival Centre’s desire to keep building and growing the reputation of the Adelaide Cabaret Festival which continues to receive interest from artists, media and audiences from around the world.

Ideally a Festival of this size and scope takes well over a year to bring together so Kate will be able to commence thinking now about what she’d like to bring to the event in 2012 and 2013.

‘I’m very excited and motivated to get into my role as Artistic Director of Adelaide Cabaret Festival 2012-2013. To be able to craft an event that invites the level of talent and creativity for Australian audiences is in itself inspirational, but to also work with the calibre of directors and administrators, who have to date, been making this festival one of the most successful in the world is thrilling,” Kate said.

“I have huge admiration for David and his wife Lisa and what they have achieved over the last two years. He is an inspiration and a great friend and understands exactly what it is to strive to make a difference and really aim for something sky high!!! He mirrors my dreams as an artist. And I’m going to be very challenged and motivated to continue to create the standard he has set’, she said.

Also announced today, by the Premier, was extra ongoing funding of $500,000 per year for the Adelaide Cabaret Festival and $250,000 per year for the Festival Centre’s annual OzAsia Festival from this year.

Premier and Arts Minister Mike Rann said “the Cabaret Festival has grown from strength to strength under Julia and then David’s artistic leadership.

‘David put on a spectacular 10th Anniversary Cabaret Festival this year and I look forward to next year’s Festival under his visionary artistic leadership. I’m delighted that Kate Ceberano has agreed to take over the Festival from 2012, and as we prepare for a new era, I am happy to announce today that the one off funding of $500,000 allocated for the special 10th anniversary event is now to be ongoing. I am also delighted to announce that we have allocated, for the first time, $250,000 per year, specifically for the OzAsia Festival. This unique Festival is important in celebrating the rich and diverse cultures within the Asia Pacific region, the ties we have with countries throughout the region and also in fostering an understanding and celebration of the contribution that these cultures make within our own community’, Mr Rann said.

Douglas thanked the Premier and the State Government for their ongoing support to enable the Festival Centre to bring the best work it can from around the world for South Australian audiences and visitors.

The 2011 Adelaide Cabaret Festival, with David Campbell at the artistic helm, will open on Friday 10 June.

‘We are thrilled to have been given an extended budget to work with for the 2011 Adelaide Cabaret Festival. After the huge success of the previous two Festivals, this helps ensure the next can be even bigger and better’, said David Campbell in response.

‘It is an honour to run the Festival and Kate Ceberano could not be a more fabulous successor. She is a dear friend, an exceptional performer and I look forward to seeing what she does with the 2012 program’, David concluded.

Paul Hogan: “I’d rather go bankrupt than pay the ATO”

Editor — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 03:50:39 +0000

”Paul Hogan has vowed to take his five-year fight with the Australian Taxation Office to the bitter end, saying he would rather go bankrupt than pay money he does not owe. The actor told The Australian in a long interview yesterday that he reckoned he was an ‘ideal scalp’ for the tax office’s $300 million Wickenby investigation into the use of offshore tax havens, but insisted he was not guilty. Hogan, who also appeared on A Current Affair last night to argue his case, said he was tired of being ‘smeared’ as a tax dodger, and that he could not pay even a tenth of what the tax office was demanding, and that the case against him appeared to be based on a statement by a ‘disgruntled’ employee who was sacked years ago. Hogan’s wife, US-based actress Linda Kozlowski, is too scared to join him in Australia while, after being hit with a Departure Prohibition Order, Hogan feels he is being kept a virtual prisoner in the country he loves. ‘It is just so un-Australian’, Hogan said. ‘Whatever happened to this country? Whatever happened to a fair go’? Hogan has been the target of the Wickenby investigation for five years, with its focus on the use of offshore structures to deal with the flow of royalties from his Crocodile Dundee movies. The actor has denied any wrongdoing and has never been charged with any offence. When asked what he thought would happen next, he said: ‘I can’t pay 10 per cent of it, and if they keep me here, seize whatever assets I have . . . they can declare me bankrupt’ “

Germany: Author banker Thilo Sarrazin defends ‘racism’ claim

Editor — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 03:33:38 +0000

“A German central banker with outspoken views on Turks, Jews and the decline of his country has defended himself amid calls for his dismissal by Chancellor Angela Merkel. Thilo Sarrazin told the Sunday newspaper Welt am Sonntag that ’all Jews share the same gene’ and that Muslim immigrants across Europe were not willing or capable of integrating into Western societies. Yesterday at the launch of his book, Germany is Abolishing Itself, which warns against the effects of Muslim immigration, Mr Sarrazin denied he was a racist
and insisted on his right to freedom of speech. The Bundesbank said that its executive board would talk to Mr Sarrazin and then decide on further steps. Mr Sarrazin, 65, caused an earlier uproar by suggesting that people on welfare should spend only $A7 a day on food, mocking them for being overweight and sloppy dressers”

“Ms Merkel and at least three cabinet ministers have denounced his remarks, and
the Social Democratic Party, of which he is a member, is calling for his
expulsion. The banker yesterday insisted his book was balanced. “All I do is
read and make sense of the statistics,” he said. “I don’t want us to end up as
strangers in our own land.”

The German population is sinking rapidly, he says in his book. The demographic
balance is maintained only by immigrants’ higher birthrate. The result, he says,
is dropping school standards and rising crime.

“The intellectual potential of society is shrinking rapidly,” he said, “and
immigration is not the appropriate answer . . . Those coming in from Islamic
countries are posing a threat to the European cultural model.”

A leader of the Turkish community in Germany, Kenan Kolat, accused him of
intellectual racism”

The Australian, Sep 1, via The Times

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/german-banker-thilo-sarrazin-defends-racism/story-e6frg6so-1225912524846

“Depardieu labels Oscar-winner Binoche ‘a nobody’ “

Editor — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 13:59:46 +0000

“Mr Depardieu, 61, the star of Cyrano de Bergerac and Green Card, said: ‘ ‘Tell me what is Juliette Binoche’s secret? I wonder why she has been so respected for so many years. She has nothing. Absolutely nothing’. Binoche, who made her name in films including Three Colours: Blue and Chocolat, won an Oscar in 1996 for Best Supporting Actress in The English Patient and received the Best Actress award at this year’s Cannes Film Festival for her role in Certified Copy. Despite all the plaudits for her performances in almost 50 films, Depardieu – who has never won an Oscar himself – could find no saving graces in her acting ability. ”She’s nobody. Isabelle Adjani, well she’s wonderful, even if she is completely lost [as a person]. Or Fanny Ardant [Francois Truffaut's former wife and leading lady], she’s grandiose and extremely impressive. But Binoche? What’s she ever had going for her’?’ he asked. Depardieu has shot about 200 films, but has never performed alongside Binoche. Her entourage declined to comment on his outburst. Although lauded as a genius at his best, Depardieu has often been criticised for agreeing to appear in countless flops. Indeed, he recently admitted: ”I’ve made 200 films, of which 150 were —-”…. But despite his provocations, the French still have a soft spot for the incorrigible tearaway; his latest appearances in France in films such as Mammuth, a road movie about a 60-year-old oddball, were critical and box office successes”

'Nobody' claims: Gerard Depardieu lashes out at Oscar-winning actress Juliette Binoche. Photos: Still from '36 Quai Des Orfevres'/Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP

Colourful hungry ghost month marked in Malaysia with 11-meter effigy of Guardian God

Editor — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 13:25:16 +0000

“The ghost month of August has concluded in Malaysia, with offerings being burnt to appease the deceased. In Chinese tradition, the seventh month of the lunar calendar marks the time when the gates of hell open and the deceased visit the living. The Hungry Ghosts Festival was kicked off by the ethnic Chinese population, with families offering food and drinks, and burning paper money for their deceased relatives. It is a time for people to show filial piety to ancestors. It’s believed that by burning offerings, ghosts and spirits will be able to receive the gifts. ’It (the practice) has been with the Chinese for thousands of years, you know, it carries the values, of not only respecting the elders but also for a memory or just the respect for their great grand fathers who have passed away,’ said opposition state lawmaker, Lee Kim Sin. This year, a record-setting, 36-foot(11 meter)-tall giant effigy of the Guardian God of Ghost, known to locals as ‘Da Shi Ye’ was created for the festival. Chong Nyet Heng, designer and creator of the effigy said it took him a month to complete at a cost of about 100,000 ringgit (32,000 U.S. Dollars). ‘We hope that by making it taller, there will be prosperity and peace for the country, health for everyone, we are asking our Da Shi Ye to protect us,’ he said. The giant effigy was burnt together with the rest of the offerings”

“New Oxford Dictionary will never be a book”

Editor — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 12:55:55 +0000

“A team of 80 has been working on it for the past 21 years, but now the lexicographers compiling the third edition of the Oxford English Dictionary are being told that it will never appear in print, its owner has admitted in a report. The dictionary’s owner, Oxford University Press (OUP), has said that the impact of the internet means the latest update to the definitive record of the English language will never be published as a book. ‘The print dictionary market is just disappearing, it is falling away by tens of percent a year’, said Nigel Portwood, chief executive of OUP. Asked if he thought the third edition would be printed, he said: ‘I don’t think so’. The OED will live on online, where it has already been available for a decade and receives two million hits a month. An annual subscription costs £205 (US$217) plus value added tax (VAT). OUP also gets royalty payments from Google, which uses an unbranded Oxford dictionary in its search engine. Google was added to the dictionary as a verb in 2006, a century after HG Wells, in his novel ‘The Sleeper Awakes’, first envisaged all literature appearing on screen rather than in books. The printed dictionary is following illustrated reference books and atlases in being consigned to history. Portwood predicts they have a shelf life of another 30 years at most. The speed of change that is affecting the publishing industry is because of the impressive sales of ebooks, which for some texts in America are outselling their hardback equivalents. Despite its worldwide reputation, the OED has never made a profit. The continuing research costs several million pounds a year. ’These are the sort of long-term research projects which will never cover their costs, but are something that we choose to do’, Portwood said. ’I really do see OUP as the arbiter of the English language because we have control of the OED’ “

Top Gear’s The Stig’s identity finally revealed as Formula Three driver Ben Collins

Editor — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 15:24:03 +0000

Secret motor racing identity The Stig, who tests out cars on the track for TV series Top Gear

“New evidence has reportedly unmasked the mystery racing driver known as The Stig who appears in ‘Top Gear’ disguised in a white helmet and black visor. Documents naming a former Formula Three driver called Ben Collins, 35, point to his being the famous anonymous figure, NewsCore reports. Though his name has been suggested before, this is the first time evidence has apparently linked Collins to the arrival of the white-clad Stig on Top Gear in 2003 – replacing the previous ‘black’ Stig. The accounts of the driver’s company, Collins Autosport, show he established an important commercial relationship with Top Gear just as the new Stig appeared. In December 2003, a month after the new Stig’s first appearance, the firm recorded a ‘cornerstone year’. This was partly down to ‘driving services provided for the BBC, mainly in the Top Gear program”

“Elijah Wood to star in US pilot of Australian comedy Wilfred”

“The only place Jimi Hendrix called home”

Editor — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 15:13:35 +0000

“The Handel House Museum is a place of narrow, wood-panelled rooms and rickety staircases occupying the house in Mayfair where the composer lived and wrote Messiah. But turn left on the first floor landing, and you pass through a doorway into the adjacent house: a building presided over by a very different musical spirit. A ‘no entry’ sign on the second floor marks the entrance to what was, for a few years in the Sixties, a flat belonging to Jimi Hendrix – a place the legendary guitarist declared to be the only real home he ever had”

Home sweet home: Jimi Hendrix in his Mayfair flat

South Australia: Creole-style Village planned for Carrick Hill French Festival

Editor — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 15:04:46 +0000

Mr Jean Francois Sita, vice president of Region Reunion and HE Kevin Scarce, Governor of South Australia

A Creole-style village staffed by French chefs preparing multicultural food from the French Island of La Reunion will be one of the gastronomic highlights of the French Festival to be held this 13 and 14 November in the gardens of Carrick Hill, Adelaide. La Reunion in the Indian Ocean off the coast of East Africa will be focus region for the Alliance Francaise’s seventh annual French Festival. With strong backing from the region the 2010 Festival is planning one of the biggest delegations of musicians, dancers and visual artists that the Festival has ever presented. La Reunion is now directly accessible to Australians with the recent introduction of direct Air Austral flights to the island from Sydney and on to Paris. Recently a delegation of six French officials from La Reunion Island visited Adelaide to help set up the basis for the Festival and create new links with South Australia in the fields of education, tourism, business and culture.

The delegation, comprising Mr. Jean Francois Sita, Vice President of the region, and representatives from French cultural, tourism, political and business arenas met with key South Australians including the Governor of South Australia, representatives from The University of Adelaide, TAFE, Office of the Premier, WOMAD, Events SA, Adelaide Festival of Arts, Tandanya, the French Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Tourism SA. Alliance Francaise Director Philippe Marse said the La Reunion delegation was particularly pleased by the warm welcome of South Australians and is looking forward to coming back in November. Future partnerships between key state institutions and the region are also being discussed.

Venice about to boast its first official female gondolier

Editor — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 13:04:21 +0000

“Venice is on its way to having its first official female gondolier. City Hall says Giorgia Boscolo has passed the practical exam to become a gondolier. She is the first woman to pass this test, considered the most difficult of those required to pilot a boat on Venice’s canals. Boscolo must pass one further test, a written, multiple-choice exam, in order to join the guild of official gondoliers. Deputy Mayor Sandro Simionato says her success breaks ’900 years of male dominance’ in the profession, and that it will likely inspire more women to try. A German woman once won the right to transport guests of a Venice hotel, but only aboard the hotel’s gondola. According to the ANSA news agency, Boscolo is a 24-year-old mother of two”

Rostrum, serving the Australian community with flair

Editor — Sat, 14 Aug 2010 14:03:38 +0000

“In July this year, the Senior Finalists in the Rostrum Voice of Youth National Final in Brisbane were honoured to be invited to become Friends of Australia by Tourism Australia. Friends of Australia is an advocacy initiative by Tourism Australia to encourage influential voices such as those of Dick Smith and Baz Luhrmann to help spread the word about Australia as a great place to travel. As well as supporting these students, Rostrum Members from 110 Rostrum Clubs in Australia contribute to the community not only by supporting each other in gaining confidence and improving their public speaking skills, but by providing training and speakers for community groups and encouraging adults and students to defend freedom of speech in Australia, and combating ‘spin’ though clear thinking and plain speaking. Patrick Bourke, the National President of Rostrum, said there had never been a greater need for Australians speak up and to discuss issues honestly, to present their ideas concisely and unambiguously, and to bring extra value to their employment, in the public or private sector, through clear communication. Rostrum gives its members of all ages the confidence and skills to do so with flair’, Patrick Bourke concluded. Globalmediapost.com readers can find out more about Rostrum and read how Rostrum helps its members, and Australia, by visiting www.rostrum.com.au or emailing mbrostrum@gmail.com

Dymocks Booksellers release innovative N-Vital brain-enhancement audio program

Adelaide Festival Centre’s Pivot(al) programme

Editor — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 13:38:58 +0000

Adelaide Festival Centre’s Pivot(al) programme
presents Bangarra Dance Theatre’s
‘OF EARTH & SKY’

A new double bill from Bangarra Dance Theatre in 2010
‘Riley’ by Daniel Riley McKinley and ‘Artefact’ by Frances Rings

Following the extraordinary success of their 20th anniversary tour in 2009, Bangarra Dance Theatre returns to Adelaide with a stunning new double-bill from 8 – 11 September in the Dunstan Playhouse. Always innovative and exciting, Bangarra presents two stories inspired by the evolution and diversity of both traditional and contemporary visual art forms. Rejoining the company is highly regarded choreographer Frances Rings with her work Artefact. Frances is well known to Adelaide audiences and first made the move from dancer to creator with the company’s Walkabout in 2002. Bangarra is also excited to introduce the new choreographic talents of Daniel Riley McKinley making his debut with his work Riley. Riley is a celebration of the life of late Indigenous photographer and film maker Michael Riley and his acclaimed cloud series.

Daniel Riley McKinley, who shares a connection with Michael through blood and land, explores the themes of connectedness to home soil, the invasion of natural forces and the cycle of life, death and spiritual rebirth. One of Michael Riley’s photographs from the cloud series is part of the Adelaide Festival Centre’s visual art collection on display in the theatre foyer.

Artefact is inspired by the history between man and object. Artefact is a moving passage into the world of these much respected relics. From museum antiquities and kitsch tourist souvenir through to the ancient tools imbued with symbolism this work is a powerful insight into the fragmented relationship that exists between these objects and us.

“of earth & sky is a beautiful dance theatre exploration of spirituality, culture and the body…The real beauty of this production is that nothing is ham fisted or overdone. It seems as if each member of the production team appreciates the importance of subtlety and the value of creating enough space for an audience to contemplate.
of earth and sky will make you think and make you feel. So make sure you see it” – Brisbane Times

“Bangarra is a dance theatre company that visibly breathes. Lighting, soundscapes, imagery and movement come together to create a work of art that is both reflective and provocative” – Australian Stage Online

For more information log on to www.adelaidefestivalcentre.com.au or www.bangarra.com.au

What: Bangarra Dance Theatre ‘of earth & sky’
Venue: Dunstan Playhouse
When: 8 & 9 September 6:30pm (Q&A follows 9 September performance)
10 & 11 September 7.30pm, 11 September 2pm
Cost: Premium $54.95, Adult $50.95, Concession $44.95/ Student $22.95 / GreenRoom $19.95
Season Pass Adult $44.95 / Season Pass Conc $40.95
Bookings: BASS on 131 246 or online at www.bass.net.au

“Rising to the task of slowing down”

Editor — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 12:30:29 +0000

“The pace of life feels morally dangerous to me”

– Richard Ford, novelist

” ‘Slow’ is not a quality I’m used to embracing, nor is it often a realistic option. As a person who runs a round-the-clock Web site and a weekly magazine, I race through each day — assigning stories, writing stories, editing stories and then assigning more, writing more, editing more. I rush from editorial meetings to business meetings and back again. And though I sometimes manage to disconnect briefly — to have dinner with my husband or friends — I’m reliably online late at night and early in the morning. I realize I have good company in living life at this frenetic pace. In fact, this sort of life is increasingly the rule rather than the exception. Economist Juliet Schor notes that the average US worker in 2006 worked nearly a month more than he or she did in 1969. Of course, the distinction between working and not working has diminished, too. We’re expected to be on call at all times — and we feel guilty about taking a break from our smart phone-driven, perpetual overtime. Salon’s Rebecca Traister puts it well: ‘Now, it often seems, there is no ‘gone for the weekend’. There is certainly no ‘gone for the night.’ Sometimes there’s not even a gone on vacation. . . . I don’t think the notion that we have to be constantly plugged in is just in our heads: I think it’s also in the heads of our superiors, our colleagues, our future employers and our prospective employees. Forget smelling the proverbial roses, we’re so busy sprinting from point A to point B — with our cellphones and Kindles and iPads, e-mailing and texting and Tweeting — we don’t even spot the roses in the first place. This August, I’m trying to do things differently. I’ve been inspired in part by Carl Honore’s wonderful book In Praise of Slowness. ‘The problem is that our love of speed, our obsession with doing more and more in less and less time, has gone too far’, Honore writes. It’s easy to agree with his assessment about the dangers of multitasking. (We had plenty of warning on this front: Publilius Syrus, a Roman philosopher from the first century B.C., said, ‘To do two things at once is to do neither’). But Honore also documents the negative impact of speed on our relationships, our health, our economy. To reverse this damage, he encourages us to rediscover the off button {and pick up a good book]”

Mongolia: How the winter of ‘white death’ devastated nomads’ way of life!

Editor — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 13:25:12 +0000

“A lifetime of experience, years of training and a sleepless night of preparation – yet Tsedendamba’s stallion, in the fifth and prime year of its racing career, trailed across the finish line in 12th place. ’Last year it came in second. This time we had the dzud, bitter winter conditions, and that’s why I didn’t push it harder in training. The horse is too thin’, said the 61-year-old herder. Mongolia‘s national festival of Naadam, which saw contests in the ‘manly sports’ of archery, racing and wrestling across the country, dates from before Genghis Khan’s time and celebrates the country’s fabled nomadic spirit. Almost a third of the population are herders. But the catastrophic winter killed millions of animals and left thousands of rural families struggling to survive. It has also exacerbated the country’s financial woes, increasing the pressure to exploit its vast but largely untapped mineral resources. Two decades after the collapse of communism, Mongolia may be at another turning point”

“Tsedendamba, who like many Mongolians uses only his given name, was experienced enough to foresee the dzud, or “white death”. He roamed far across central Övorkhangai province to ensure his livestock fed well despite the summer drought. He prepared fodder for the coming winter and built up their shelter. Others slaughtered the weakest animals to ensure more food for the strongest.

None of it was enough. Temperatures fell to -50C and thick snow buried the grass. By the time it finally melted in May, nearly 9,000 families had seen their entire herds freeze or starve to death. Another 33,000, including Tsedendamba’s, lost half their livestock. Almost 10m cattle, sheep, goats, horses, yaks and camels have died, a fifth of the country’s total, at a cost of 520bn tögrögs (£250m).

Pregnant animals miscarried and weakened ones are still succumbing to illness. Only the ravens are fat here, gorged on carrion. For many households, their only recent income has been UN payments for burying carcasses.

But beneath the soil could lie a fresh start for the country: gold, copper, uranium, lead, fluorspar and coal.

verty and rationing

After years of political wrangling, Mongolia agreed a deal last October for the Oyu Tolgoi copper and gold seams, which should bring $5bn (£3.3bn) of foreign investment – a little more than the country’s GDP last year. Analysts at one investment bank have predicted it could unleash an unstoppable transformation and create a “Mongolian wolf” economy.

For its citizens, such prospects are long overdue. The former Soviet satellite has been hailed as a success story of post-communist political transition, moving with relative smoothness to democracy. But its economy has taken it close to disaster in the last two decades. The country lost almost its sole source of aid and trade. Poverty rates soared in the 90s and rationing was in place during the early years of capitalism.

Even after recent annual growth rates of around 8%, the proportion living below the poverty line – 101,600 tögrögs (about £50) a month – appears stubbornly unchanged at more than a third.

Many are clustered in the unlovely capital of this strikingly beautiful country. Six times the size of the UK, Mongolia has just 2.75 million inhabitants, and almost 40% of them live in Ulan Bator. In the last decade, its population swelled from 800,000 to almost 1.1 million, with arrivals peaking in the wake of harsh winters. Tens of thousands more are likely to arrive as the consequences of this winter play out in the next few years. NGOs say destitute herders have already moved to small settlements, just as they did after the last dzud, before realising there was no work and drifting towards the capital.

Some have arrived already. It took 14 days for Erdenebileg’s family to drive what remained of their flock the 300 miles from southern Dundgovi province to a bleak hillside in Töv province, close to the city. Once, they enjoyed “a pretty decent life”, selling cashmere and spare animals for cash to supplement the meat and milk from their 600-strong herd. Then came the winter.

“Every day we saw our animals dying in front of us. I was devastated,” said the 32-year-old, her face etched deep by the wind and worry.

The 80 surviving animals graze close to the family’s tent, overlooking a disused concrete factory and rubbish tip. Her husband has been lucky, finding a factory job through relatives. But the couple and their four children will barely scrape by on his 150,000 tögrögs (£75) a month. The government recently withdrew substantial child benefits.

“We hoped things might be easier closer to town, but it’s not what I expected. It’s much worse,” said Erdenebileg. “Our future is uncertain, but we know there’s no going back.”

Most longer-term migrants are stuck in the crowded ger (yurt) settlements around the capital, where 46% live in poverty. Stray goats pick their way through the mud and children kick at corrugated steel fences separating each plot. Sanitation and services are poor. Many lack the documents to claim benefits – though a registration drive should help – and the skills to find work. Some scrabble over rubbish dumps for plastic or glass to sell to recyclers.

Cheerleaders of the move to exploit the country’s natural resources believe it can tackle such entrenched poverty, creating jobs and growth.

Robert Friedland, executive chairman of Ivanhoe, Oyu Tolgoi’s Canadian co-developer, boasted recently: “When production begins, Mongolian GDP could rise by 30% and employment by 10% per year for 30 years.”

But many observers are concerned that the prospects are being oversold. “Expectations have gone, in my view, way ahead of reality,” said Arshad Sayed, country representative of the World Bank. “There is a big danger society faces, because when people’s expectations are not met, at some point they will get very upset.”

Nomads of the 21st century

Oyu Tolgoi will create 3,000 jobs, but the real question is how the government spends the revenues and whether the mine will kickstart the wider economy. The deal was stalled for years by concerns that foreign firms would not give Mongolia a fair deal and anxiety about the geopolitical implications. Negotiations on the development of Tavan Tolgoi, a massive coal seam, are mired in similar debates.

“[Oyu Tolgoi] may not be the best agreement but I don’t think it’s the worst either,” said Sanjaasuren Oyun, a trained geologist, former foreign minister and one of only three opposition MPs, thanks to Mongolia’s grand coalition. “Time is also of the essence. After 20 years of transition, many people’s lives are economically no better off than under communism.”

Boost health and education spending and Mongolia can diversify its economy and see real development, she said. That is all the more necessary because the winter blizzards precipitated a rural crisis that has been long in the making.

“Forty-four million animals was far beyond [Mongolia's] natural capacity,” said Tungalag Ulambayar of the UN development programme, who believes even the surviving livestock population pushes the limits of sustainability.

Tens of thousands of families moved to the countryside in the 90s, when the economic crisis led to food shortages in cities. Some say that contributed to the increase in herd sizes, with new herders unaware of the dangers of overgrazing.

But challenging herders is “very political,” Tungalag added, not only because they form a powerful constituency, but because nomadism is identified with the country’s very spirit. You can drive for hours across Mongolia without seeing a fence, and permanent buildings are few and far between. On the horizon, dotted about, are the gers, the traditional white, circular, felt tents of herders.

The scene appears timeless. But its inhabitants have been buffeted not only by the weather but by man-made forces arising far beyond the steppes: desertification partly caused by global warming, bad loans and rising interest rates, and volatile commodity prices.

When cashmere prices soared, they bought more goats, which damaged more pastures. Then the financial crisis hit. Wealthy westerners reined in their spending, cashmere prices halved and incomes plummeted.

“Of course you [may be] a nomad – but you are a nomad in the 21st century, and you have to adapt to the market to survive,” said Tungalag, who believes herders need training in risk management and new livestock practices.

Yet many are undeterred by the turbulence of the last few years. Lkhagvasuren moved to Ulan Bator when a cruel winter wiped out his livestock three years ago, rebuilding his herd only to see it destroyed again this winter. Now he plans to find labouring work.

“But if I make some money I’ll use it to buy more animals,” he said as he crouched in his leaking ger. “Mongolia without herders is unimaginable.”

“Flights at Russian international airports have been grounded and visibility in Moscow is down to a few dozen yards”

Editor — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 13:08:56 +0000

Smog: The Kremlin in Moscow is barely visible as clouds of smoke from peat bog and forest fires blanket the city “Flights at international airports have been grounded and visibility in the capital is down to a few dozen yards as the fires continue to tear through forests and villages. Russians wore protective face masks as dozens of forest and peat bog fires around the city continued to burn, fanned by south-easterly winds and the country’s most intense heat wave in 130 years. More than 500 separate blazes are active, mainly across Russia’s European territory, according to the [Russian] Emergencies Ministry” Travel chaos: St Basil’s Cathedral is visible through the gloom. International flights have had to be grounded or diverted because of the fires

Mary Poppins’ Musical

Editor — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 04:16:40 +0000

Book by Julian Fellowes
Music and Lyrics by Richard and Robert Sherman, George Stiles and Anthony Drewe
Her Majesty’s Theatre

“The Mary Poppins musical is pure magic. Backed by Disney and Cameron Mackintosh, it harnesses theatre’s spectacle and powers of illusion to present a slick, colourful and imaginative experience, the kind of show that no childhood would be complete without. It has a lot to live up to, of course. The 1964 film starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke remains a children’s classic, and the genius behind this musical is that it takes the best elements from the film – including the much-loved Sherman brothers’ songs – and positions them much closer to PL Travers’ books. If Julie Andrews’ Poppins possessed only a spoonful of sugar, it was a very large spoon indeed. This musical gives us a richer and more complex version of the original super-nanny. It recognises that Poppins’ authority – so absolute that birds fly to her hand, toys pack themselves away, and unruly bedding arranges itself into the plumped pillows and crisp sheets of a freshly made bed – is an authority that proceeds from embracing the chaos of life. Verity Hunt-Ballard is magnificent in the role. Prim and imperious one moment, endearingly mischievous the next, it’s a commanding performance, combining beautifully precise comic acting with vocals as sharp and clear as a bell. This Mary Poppins is more enigmatic and worldly than Andrews’: statues and stars come to life at her whim, yet her perfect childcare policy does not preclude a fondness for comfortable shoes and rum punch”

US: “Recent near-collisions raise air safety alarms”

Editor — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 12:08:08 +0000

“Alarmed by a spate of near-collisions involving airliners, the [American] government is trying to find out why air traffic controllers and pilots are making so many dangerous errors. In recent months, there have been at least a half-dozen incidents in which airliners came close to colliding with other planes or helicopters _ including in Chicago, Houston, San Francisco, Burbank, Calif., and Anchorage, Alaska. In some cases, pilots made last-second changes in direction after cockpit alarms went off warning of an impending crash. ‘This spring we had several close calls that got everybody’s attention, and I think that’s the thing that really keyed us into taking at look at some of the risks, try to identify what we’re missing’, Robert Tarter, vice president of Federal Aviation Administration’s Office of Safety-Air Traffic Organization, told employees in a conference call kicking off the new safety effort. Just last week, a United Airlines flight waiting to land at Reagan National Airport near Washington came within less than a mile of a Gulfstream business jet that was climbing after taking off from another nearby airport. The United pilot can be heard on an air traffic control recording saying to his controller, ‘that was close’, according to Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., a passenger on the United flight who has listened to the recording”

The FAA has also seen a sharp spike in incidents in which planes violated minimum separation distances, a cornerstone of air traffic safety. Those distances depend on several factors, including an airplane’s altitude and its proximity to an airport.

“Elijah Wood to star in US pilot of Australian comedy Wilfred”

Editor — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 15:00:30 +0000

“Lord of the Rings star Elijah Wood has signed on to star in a US version of the Australian hit TV comedy series Wilfred. Wood will star as nice guy Ryan who is attempting to woo the girl next door despite her mongrel dog, Wilfred, making it as difficult as possible for him. The twist is that only Ryan can see Wilfred as a human in a dog costume. Executive producer David Zuckerman has described Wilfred as ‘part Labrador retriever and part Russell Crowe on a bender’. The Australian version of the show, which was born out of a Tropfest film competition entry, was broadcast on SBS to much critical acclaim. [Talented] Australian Jason Gann will reprise his role as Wilfred in the show, which is set to begin filming in the coming months. The role marks Wood’s first foray into television”

No related posts.

Cabaret Festival review: Caroline O’Connor – A Musical Life

Editor — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 14:54:35 +0000

It’s been 10 years since this leading light of the musical comedy stage has performed at the Adelaide Cabaret Festival – and that’s far too long. With her super powerful voice and vivacious personality, Caroline O’Connor has always brought her own brand of larger-than-life showbiz razzamatazz to everything she does, and A Musical Life is no exception. Sporting a shimmering gossamer gown covering a body-hugging under-garment, O’Connor’s shapely body contours were omnipresent as she moved cat-like around the stage and always with an elegant turn of leg that stemmed from her early training as a professional dancer. This was a first-class diva at work and yet she maintained her “chummy” relationship with the audience throughout as she reminisced about her early musical days in Australia and the UK, her first leading role at the age of 33, and her many contemporary achievements and opportunities.

A Musical Life featured musical-theatre classics by legends such as Stephen Sondheim, Leonard Bernstein, Jerry Herman and Kander and Ebb. O’Connor also uncannily reincarnated some of the most famous ladies of the boards, including Ethel Merman, Judy Garland and the little sparrow of Paris, Edith Piaf. The pace was relentless but the energy level was maintained and the atmosphere was electric, right through to the rousing encore, which had the audience singing “Waltzing Matilda” in the middle of a “Broadway Baby” melody. Needless to say, an offer was made to “take us all on tour’ with her!

It’s not easy to change a conventional playhouse into a cabaret setting but the Festival Centre has overcome this by having seven cabaret tables complete with candles placed at the front of the auditorium, which presumably would be classed as premium seating. But wherever the audience was seated, there’s no doubt Caroline O’Connor’s largesse in voice, talent and spirit reached their marks and made a lasting impression on her cheering aficionados.

Maggie Scott

“Tiger Woods… in divorce deal with Elin Nordegren”

Editor — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 14:40:42 +0000

“Tiger Woods is banned from letting girlfriends near his kids in a divorce deal netting his estranged wife Elin Nordegren a record $883 million. The golfer… has agreed to keep single women away from daughter Sam, three, and son Charlie, one. He can bring a new flame into their lives only if he has married her, London’s The Sun reports. In return, former wife Elin Nordegren, 30, gets the biggest payout ever seen in a celebrity divorce – £500 million (AU$883m). But she can never publicly speak out over his flings with socialite Rachel Uchitel, reality star Jaimee Grubbs, porn queen Joslyn James and up to 17 others, who will work out costing him £25m ($44m) each”

“Hamas is a threat to the Palestinian cause”

Editor — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 12:58:02 +0000

“It’s a pity that Israel, while substantially loosening its grip on Gaza, will continue to enforce a blockade when, with just a little imagination, it could insist on a deal with the activists once again steaming its way: You can proceed to Gaza if, once you get there, you demand that Hamas cease the persecution of women, institute freedom of religion, halt the continuing rocketing of Israel, release an Israeli hostage, ban torture and rescind an official charter that could have made soothing bedtime reading for Adolf Hitler. This may take some time. In fact, these demands would never be met. Gaza is a mean and brutal place with a totalitarian government steeped in a cult of violence and death. This hardly means that the government does not have a measure of popular support and did not, as some of the activists naively point out, come to power by democratic means. So did the Nazis. The term ‘Islamic fascism’ gets thrown around a lot. I initially recoiled from it because I prefer to reserve fascism for fascists. The term is too loosely employed — New York City cops were called fascists by Vietnam-era peace demonstrators — but Paul Berman, in his new book The Flight of the Intellectuals makes a solid case that it can, with justice, be applied to Hamas”

WICKED flies west to Adelaide in April, 2011

Editor — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 11:50:06 +0000

Arguably, the most successful musical in the world today, WICKED, is officially set to fly west to Adelaide to open in the Festival Theatre in April 2011. WICKED Australia Co-Producer John Frost said: ’Right from the start this show has been an overwhelming hit so we are absolutely thrilled to be able to bring this show, in all its emerald glory, to my home town of Adelaide – there is no place like home. More than 20,000 South Australians have already seen the show during its record breaking Melbourne and Sydney seasons and there has been an active fan-based Facebook campaign to bring the show to Adelaide’

WICKED is a phenomenon, the most successful musical in the world today, and appeals to everyone from 8 to 80. People love it for so many different reasons – some people come to see WICKED for the engrossing story inspired by the best selling novel of the same name by author Gregory Maguire, some for the astonishing sets and costumes, some for the soaring ballads, some for the deeper messages, and some to see the life-affirming friendship between the two girls who grow up to be Glinda the Good and the Wicked Witch of the West. Melbourne and Sydney audiences have been blown away by WICKED, which heads next to Brisbane in January 2011.

‘WICKED is the winner of 35 major awards including the Grammy Award, three Tony Awards and six Helpmann Awards. It’s a musical that enchants audiences around the world and right across the spectrum’, he said. The show’s record-breaking Australian run began in June 2008 at Melbourne’s Regent Theatre, where it broke the city’s box office record and ran through August 2009. The production transferred to Sydney’s Capitol Theatre on September 5, 2009 and will conclude its record-breaking run on September 12, 2010 having played more than 866 performances and having been seen by well over 1 million people.

WICKED relates the untold story of the witches of Oz. Long before Dorothy drops in, two other girls meet in the land of Oz. One, born with emerald green skin, is smart, fiery and misunderstood. The other is beautiful, ambitious and very popular. WICKED tells the story of their remarkable odyssey, how these two unlikely friends grow to become the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good.

Currently in its 7th year on Broadway, WICKED’s four North American and four international companies have cumulatively grossed $1.9 billion and have been seen by 24 million people worldwide.

WICKED, with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz (Godspell, Pippin, Academy Award-winner for Pocahontas and The Prince of Egypt) and book by Winnie Holzman (My So Called Life, Once And Again and Thirty Something), is produced by Marc Platt, Universal Pictures, The Araca Group, Jon B Platt and David Stone, with John Frost as Australian Co-Producer.

For more information about the show or to waitlist for updates on the Adelaide season of WICKED
go to wickedthemusical.com.au

“Polish Film’s Amoral New Wave”

Editor — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 13:56:35 +0000

“It took 60 years for Poles to be able to laugh about Stalin, muses Borys Lankosz, the 37-year-old director of Reverse, a darkly satirical comedy that has critics giddy with anticipation that a new wave of young directors is finally shaking up the sometimes staid and moralistic universe of Polish cinema.
Blog. The film — a cult hit in Poland since it was released late last year — was that country’s entry this year for best foreign language film at the Academy Awards. Mr. Lankosz is in discussions to release and distribute it in the United States and the film is set to screen soon in Russia. Alternating between past (filmed in spare black and white) and present (in color), Reverse (Rewers) tells the story of Sabina, a 30-something bookish and timid poetry editor (played by the waifish Polish actress Agata Buzek), who lives in a claustrophobic bourgeois apartment with her meddling mother, Irena (Krystyna Janda), and grandmother (played by Anna Polony) during the repressive Stalin era in 1952… Paradoxically, Polish cinema has been undergoing an existential crisis since 1989, when Communist rule was overthrown and new freedoms — and a dearth of funding — seemed to stymie directors from finding their own voices. But critics here consider Reverse part of a new wave in Polish cinema, in which the blithe morality tales of the past are giving way to stark, sometimes amoral films that breach conventional notions of love, family and tradition with reckless abandon”

“Political murder, Jessica Rudd wrote:”

Editor — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 11:52:45 +0000

“His lip quivered. His wife’s grip spurred him on. ’I am proud’, he says, going on to list the things of which he’s proud, including ‘health, tax and education’. He thanks his family, and makes a lame joke. Journalists laugh. Finally, he says: ‘God bless’. Those words could have been written about Kevin Rudd on Thursday. In fact, they were written many months ago, by one Jessica Rudd, daughter of the ousted prime minister. Ms Rudd’s new novel, Campaign Ruby, is not due out until August, but the degree to which she predicted the events of the past few days is spooky. Indeed, the first 100 pages are a freakily prescient script for the way events actually unfolded, for her father and his replacement, Julia Gillard. Ms Rudd writes about an incumbent prime minister rolled by his deputy – a woman – who becomes the nation’s first female prime minister. As happened with her dad, the execution is a ‘swift and seamless move’ ”

“The ousted PM fronts a press conference. In the book, he does it on the steps of
Old Parliament House; in real life, he did it at the new Parliament House. He
says, “I am proud”, and then goes on to list the things of which he’s proud.

Of his successor, the book says: “This is an historic day. She will be
Australia’s first female prime minister . . . few people expected this day would
come quite so quickly, if at all. Everyone is stunned.”

Ms Rudd then has the first female PM stepping up, to make her speech. “The
phones stopped ringing and the nation listened,” she writes. “At the lectern,
she spoke. ‘I stand before you today as a newly sworn-in Prime Minister of
Australia. I am enormously proud to hold this office but saddened it has
happened this way’.”

Of the man she’s just knifed, she says: “I have been blessed to serve alongside
him.” On Thursday, Ms Gillard paid tribute to Mr Rudd, describing him as “a man
of remarkable achievement”.

The next scene has journalists chatting to each other, saying: “Do you think the
opposition knew this was coming?” and “Well, no, they are probably watching
things unfold on the TV, just as everyone else is. They’ll be knocked for six by
this news.”

With eerie prescience, Ms Rudd then has the opposition leader step up, to say
how sad he is that the sitting prime minister had to be despatched by his own
party.

“My team and I are ready to govern,” he says.

On Thursday, Tony Abbott said he was “moved” by Mr Rudd’s speech after his
political execution, lamenting that “prime ministers should not be treated this
way”.

Ms Rudd, who lives in Beijing, was not available yesterday to discuss her book’s
dead-on predictions, and the publishers, Text, didn’t return calls.

So back to the book: an election is called. It pits the new, female PM against a
male leader of the opposition, in a post-gender space.

Who wins? As in life, you’ll have to wait and see.

Extracts from the novel Campaign Ruby by Jessica Rudd, to be published in
August:

Spoken by one of the characters in the book, a political journalist:

“The PM’s been toppled … and the new PM’s on her way to Yarralumla” … “This
was a seamless move … Very few people expected this day would come quite so
quickly, if at all. Everybody is stunned.” … “This is an historic day. She
will be Australia’s first female prime minister.”

The new PM in her first speech after the leadership spill:

“The Australian people have been telling us for some time now that change is
needed – not a change of government, but a change of leadership.”

Description of the ousted PM’s farewell speech:

He was emotional, supported by his wife, her hand firmly on his back. … “I am
proud” … His lip quivered; his wife’s grip spurred him on”

The Australian

Cabaret Festival review: Liz Callaway

Editor — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 15:02:51 +0000

Liz Callaway is refreshing performer with a breathtaking voice and a variety of musical styles that emanate with seasoned ease from a friendly, down-to-earth lady who seems (after 25 years of professional theatre) to not quite believe her luck to have the successful life or the wonderful husband she has. On more than one occasion, she referred to husband Daniel Foster (he was seated at our cabaret table on the main stage of the Festival Theatre) as her “stalker” – because he loved and pursued her vigorously at the start of their relationship. Well, I can testify that this gentle and seemingly unassuming man still appears totally mesmerised by Callaway’s talent, swaying to her varied and timeless musical repertoire with his eyes closed. That has to be true love!

From the instant she came on stage in a sparkling black dress that stopped at the knee, Callaway won the hearts of the audience with her polished rendition of “You There in the Back Row” from the show 13 Days to Broadway. The singing was phenomenal and it felt like she was singing to every one of us in the audience, including those in the back row. Callaway also confided that she was tired, not because of jetlag (she came from New York), but because she so much wanted to please her Adelaide audience that she had stayed up late deciding which songs we would like to hear. She needn’t have worried, because her song choice was impeccable – there was something for most tastes, from pop through to musical theatre.

The 90 minutes spent with Callaway covered many cherished musical memories, including her Academy Award-nominated song “Journey to the Past” from the animated feature Anastasia (it was chosen for a gold medal performance in the Bejing Olympics), “Downtown”, “Meadowlark” from Stephen Schwartz’s The Baker’s Wife, Stephen Sondheim’s “Marry Me a Little” from the show of the same name, “The Story Goes On” from Baby, and even a little Barbra Streisand thrown in for good measure.

Two standing ovations later and the enraptured audience was invited to “come by and say hello” at the after-show CD signing session. This was a musical evening to remember!

Maggie Scott

– Festival Theatre Stage, June 24-25

Cabaret Festival review: Alex Rathgeber – Experiment

Editor — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 04:54:29 +0000

Call me naïve or Maggie, which ever fits the bill, but I never realised that Cole Porter was gay! In fact, it was only when I read that Alex Rathgeber’s Experiment aspired to “dig deeper to reveal the master’s knack for subversion” with his cabaret selections of the Cole Porter Song Book that saw him openly reveling in the erotic undercurrent of some of the 20th century’s best-loved songs, including ‘Too Darn Hot’ and ‘Anything Goes’, that the dime finally dropped so to speak. It was David Campbell’s brilliant idea for Rathgeber to participate in this year’s festival as a solo performer using the music of Cole Porter and the young performer (and WAPA graduate), fresh from the Melbourne season of Simon Phillips’ The Drowsy Chaperone with Geoffrey Rush, literally jumped at the chance.

Seated in anticipation at a cabaret table setting in the Festival Centre’s Banquet Room, I watched Rathgeber’s musicians stroll on stage and at first glance it appeared that ‘Alex’ (as he styled himself with his frank and intermittent reminisces of male loves lost and won during a one year tenure as Phantom’s Raoul in the West End) appeared to be one of them until he slipped on a jacket and took his place centre stage bathed in blue light. From the onset, it was clear that Rathgeber is a talented performer with a fabulous voice that covers almost the entire vocal spectrum with ease. His interpretations of Porter’s songs were energetic, taking the audience on a musical trip back some 60 years or more, with modern arrangements and was more than ably assisted by his three excellent backing musicians comprising James Simpson on piano, Mick Morena on drums and Alana Dawes on strings.

Sadly, however, I found the intermittent monologues of ‘Alex’ the young gay man exploring his options in London with gags that included foreplay emphasis on everyday words such as COCKney, and CUMIN decidedly unfunny as they did to the others at my table. While Rathgeber’s musical talents speak for themselves, his comedic/tragic timing was just not honed to the same degree and the ‘Alex’ monologues seemed as interruptions to the main musical fare that was most enjoyable and very well received by all.

Maggie Scott

Live review: Waiting for Godot

Editor — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 13:56:35 +0000

“You might salivate a little during Waiting for Godot. I expect it will be a result of the delectable acting, gorgeous staging and chilling sound effects… Even if you know nothing about the play, you’re bound to know nothing happens in the play. That’s why it’s so terribly famous… Roger Rees and (Sir) Ian McKellen are stars of a quality South Australian audiences don’t often get to see.. From the first boot-wrenching scene, the partnership sucks you in. The classic comedy duo structure is perfectly executed by Rees as straight man Vladimir and McKellen providing comic relief in the guise of Estragon. The disconcerting mirror partnership of Pozzo and Lucky is also finely acted, with these characters wrenching every inch of comic potential from the sparse and dark script. Staged on floorboards with the requisite desolate tree and an interesting variety of holes and ditches spotting the stage, the set interacts brilliantly with the soundscape. Two gothic archways lead off to each wing and from these all the fears of the world are imagined and dismissed… The beautiful lighting enforces the parallels between the two acts with recreations of a day’s worth of sunshine, shadowing and moonlight you could set your watch to. All the elements add up to make something so logical it feels real, while all the time your brain is telling you it’s ridiculous. This is the crux of enjoying the play despite its negligible entertainment value. As nothing is superbly played out in front of you, your mind will drift and start to think. Led by the artistry of a great play well done, you will think all the thoughts of those who have been awed by Godot before you. It will be one of those rare occasions when your mind is completely full – all thanks to the vast emptiness perfectly recreated on stage”

Farrin Foster

South Australia: Tenth Adelaide Cabaret Festival opens in style

Editor — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 13:22:39 +0000

“The celebration began, as the 2010 Adelaide Cabaret Festival opened with a star-studded line-up of Cabaret performers arriving in BMW’s on the red carpet for the Variety Gala Performance, with a host of other shows filling the Festival Centre venues. Headlining this year’s Cabaret Festival and appearing in her only Australian performances was nine-time Grammy award winner Natalie Cole on the weekend with principal partner FOXTEL broadcasting her concert on the BIO Channel. Natalie sang some of the great lyrics and melodies of the American songwriters, accompanied by the Adelaide Art Orchestra in magical evening that was sure to be ‘unforgettable’! This years’ Festival includes over 124 performances of some 46 different shows across sixteen nights”

More than 40 performances have sold out and this year the Festival has reached 95% of box office target and has already taken 11% more than we took for the entire Festival last year.

The 2010 program features 41 artists from the United States of America, United Kingdom, Italy, Japan and France and the best from Australia with 220 Australian artists, 117 of those South Australian performers. There will be 12 international shows, 12 Adelaide premieres, including 9 Australian premieres and 7 world premieres.

Opening weekend don’t miss musical genius and sex symbol Earl Okin, Sydney Cabaret Showcase winners Elizabeth Cousemacker and Tom Sharah, the one-man living cartoon Italian Ennio Marchetto, broadway antics from New Yorks larger than life Mark Nadler. See Tim Rogers as you’ve never seen him before in Cabaret mode, catch father and daughter team Dick & Christa Hughes, Lainie Lane will Sing the Blues, Adelaide’s own Robyn Archer, the best and worst of Queenie van de Zandt and complete your Cabaret experience with Frenchy chic band Nouvelle Vague performing late night in the banquet room.

Artistic Director David Campbell says, “We can’t believe another year has come around so fast and we’re so excited with the jam packed program this year. With the number of shows on offer, it’s an all nighter here at the Adelaide Cabaret Festival, with our ‘Some Like It Hot’ terrace our audience can begin their evening there, see back to back shows, watch the wonderful Mark Nadler in the piano bar for free and then party till late in the Banquet room with some of the coolest bands in the world. We’re ready to have some fun and look forward to seeing everyone to do it all again.”

Adelaide Festival Centre is THE hottest place to be this winter! Come and see a couple of shows at the Adelaide Cabaret Festival and soak up the Festival’s warm atmosphere in between – with great food, wine and free entertainment too! Will you be warming up at the 2010 Adelaide Cabaret Festival?

Full program details available in the Adelaide Cabaret Festival brochure.

Tickets on sale around the country through BASS Dial n Charge 131 246 or online www.bass.net.au Interstate guests call BASS Special Events on (08) 8400 2222 for details of accommodation packages.

“Our gadgets, ourselves”

Editor — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 12:13:39 +0000

“That’s technology writer Nicholas Carr’s term — and the title of his new book — for the invisible, invidious impact of computers on the modern brain. Carr compares himself to HAL, the malfunctioning computer in ’2001: A Space Odyssey’. lamenting as its circuitry is unplugged, ‘Dave, my mind is going. I can feel it’. As Carr writes, I can feel it too. Over the last few years I’ve had an uncomfortable sense that someone, or something, has been tinkering with my brain, remapping the neural circuitry, reprogramming the memory. My mind isn’t going — so far as I can tell — but it’s changing. I’m not thinking the way I used to think. Trying to read a book, he says, ‘my concentration starts to drift after a page or two… I feel like I’m always dragging my wayward brain back to the test’. Me, too. I thought it was middle age, and maybe it is, or perhaps belatedly self-diagnosed adult attention-deficit disorder. But Carr’s assessment — ‘what the Net seems to be doing is chipping away at my capacity for concentration and contemplation’ — jibed uncomfortably with my own experience”

“Dying girl sings for Simon Cowell”

Editor — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 11:50:49 +0000

A five-year-old girl has fulfilled her dying wish by singing in front of acid-tongued judge Simon Cowell

“A five-year-old girl has fulfilled her dying wish by singing in front of acid-tongued judge Simon Cowell. The Daily Mail newspaper says Bethany Fenton who had an inoperable brain tumour, visited the set of Britain’s Got Talent at the weekend and sang Twinkle Twinkle Little Star for Cowell before the show. Bethany died in hospital two days later”

Wall Pieces – Matter as Urgency and Illusion

Editor — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 13:46:01 +0000

Somewhere between jewellery and sculpture, South Australian artist Don Ellis presents twenty five small wall objects in his latest exhibition Wall Pieces – Matter as Urgency and Illusion, on display in the Adelaide Artspace Gallery from 30 June – 25 July 2010. In this exhibition, Don Ellis reflects on a lifetime of work, spanning across his career as a jeweller, painter, teacher, writer, as well as his early beginnings as a fitter and turner. ’This exhibition incorporates a lifetime of making. When approaching this body of work, the contemplation of a life in craft/art and the particular complexities associated with family life just drifted together eventually to be formalised in an exhibition’, said Don Ellis.

Using jewellery materials and found objects, Don Ellis has created a collection of intricate sculptures that use the home as a site to explore interruptions to domestic life in an overtly material and digitised world.

The home is seen as simultaneously gentle and aggressive and peaceful and disturbing by interweaving tangible and illusionary imagery.

‘Looking back it struck me that my art practice was poured into and filtered by a complex domestic world. The exhibition reflects on this state of affairs; it represents and symbolises this world, my domestic life and the work were so intertwined that they were inseparable’, said Don Ellis.

Visual Arts Programming Executive Susan Jenkins said: “This exhibition is an opportunity for Artspace Gallery visitors to engage with the work of a longstanding South Australian artist. It provides a complement to the usual visual arts program of group or community exhibitions.”

The exhibition will be officially opened at 6.00pm on Wednesday 30 June by Professor Marie Brennan, School of Education, University of South Australia. Don Ellis will conduct a free floor talk at 5.30pm before the opening.

What: Wall Pieces – Matter as Urgency and Illusion by Don Ellis

When: 30 June – 25 July 2010
Venue: Artspace Gallery, Adelaide Festival Centre (upstairs in the Dunstan Playhouse foyer)
(Access via Festival Drive, or Dunstan Playhouse Foyer)
Disability access via Festival Bridge from North Terrace, or Festival Centre Amphitheatre ramp
Hours: 12noon – 5pm Wednesday – Saturday, 10am – 4pm Sunday
Cost: FREE entry

“Hollywood pays tribute to Dennis Hopper”

Editor — Sun, 30 May 2010 11:57:12 +0000

Dennis Hopper's loved-ones and co-stars have been paying tribute to the late actor who dies of cancer

“Dennis Hopper’s friends, loved-ones and co-stars have been paying tribute to the late actor. The Hollywood legend – who passed away yesterday (29.05.10) aged 74, due to complications caused by his prostate cancer – has been praised by numerous celebrities friends who are keen to pay their respects to the screen star. Dennis’ ‘Easy Rider’ co-star Peter Fonda – who he also wrote the Oscar-nominated script with – admits he was ‘blessed’ to know him. He said: ‘Dennis introduced me to the world of Pop Art and ‘lost’ films. We rode the highways of America and changed the way movies were made in Hollywood. I was blessed by his passion and friendship.’ Dennis’ ‘Hoosiers’ co-star Gene Hackman admits he also felt privileged to work with the late star”

Leonard Cohen announces a ‘six-date tour of Australia’

Editor — Wed, 26 May 2010 13:56:19 +0000

“Leonard Cohen has announced a six-date tour of Australia less than two years after wowing audiences during his last visit. The Canadian singer songwriter will perform concerts in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Hobart, Adelaide and Perth from November 6-24 following three shows in New Zealand. Cohen last visited Australia in early 2009 when his tour won the Helpmann Award for the Best International Concert. He is expected to be welcomed back warmly by audiences after donating $200,000 to the Victorian bushfire appeal.

The reclusive 74-year-old is famed for his distinctive voice and mournfully emotive songs such as Suzanne and Hallelujah.

The tour will stop at Brisbane Entertainment Centre (November 6), Sydney Acer Arena (8), Melbourne Rod Laver Arena (12), Hobart Derwent (15), Adelaide Entertainment Centre (18) and Perth ME Bank Stadium (24).

Tickets go on sale on Monday, May 31″

The Man In Black – The Johnny Cash Story: Tex Perkins, Rachael Tidd and The Tennessee Four

Editor — Mon, 24 May 2010 12:58:12 +0000

Tex Perkins, ‘dead set rock god’ and one of Australia’s most electrifying front men will walk the Johnny Cash line in Adelaide for 5 performances only from July 22 to 25 bringing the hard-living country legend to life at Her Majesty’s Theatre for five performances. Tickets go on sale through Bass from Friday 21 May. Following sell-out seasons in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane the multi ARIA Award-winning Perkins (The Cruel Sea, The Beasts of Bourbon) will lead band The Tennessee Four – Shannon Bourne, Dave Folley, Steve Hadley and Shane Reilly in a show that includes twenty-four Cash hits including Folsom Prison Blues, Get Rhythm, I Walk The Line and Ring of Fire.

Written by Australian theatrical producer Jim McPherson (Wild World – The Cat Stevens Story) who confesses to a forty -year fascination with the wildly unpredictable Cash, the show celebrates the life and times of one of the most incredible singers, songwriters and entertainers ever to grace the stage. The Man in Black is two hours of Cash’s greatest hits interwoven with the story of his rise to stardom, fight for survival and eventual redemption.
The show also explores Cash’s relationship with the greatest love of his life, June Carter. Perkins’ co-star Rachael Tidd, who has sung and acted in everything from Shakespeare to Sondheim, will interpret Carter’s dynamic vocal style.
Perkins … ‘possesses the dark charisma of Cash, seems to be able to relate to the dark material of the songs and has the range to cover Cash’s diverse musical palette.’ The Age
‘… Perkins has the voice and hard-man presence to channel the man himself.’ The Australian
‘Tex is Cash. Captivating and entertaining. And so is the show. It will satisfy hardcore fans of both men. And that’s no mean feat.’ Herald Sun
Singer. Rebel. Outlaw. Hero. No matter how you describe the legendary Johnny Cash he was one of America’s most influential musicians. Cash stood up for the downtrodden, the disenfranchised, the imprisoned and all those who had suffered a raw deal in life.
Right up until his death in 2003, Cash covered a range of genres including country, rockabilly, rock ’n’ roll, blues, folk and gospel.
Over his long career he sold more than 50 million records and his music continues to sell today. With his driving freight-train chords, steel-eyed intensity and a voice as dark as the night, Cash revolutionised music like no other.

Carole King and James Taylor in concert

Editor — Mon, 24 May 2010 12:51:40 +0000

Review by Suzie Keen

“It’s been 40 years since Carole King and James Taylor first performed together, but age has not wearied the legendary singer-songwriters. From the gentle opening ballads of ’Blossom’ and ‘So Far Away’, to the thigh-slappin’, boot-scootin’ ‘Smackwater Jack’ (‘he bought a shotgun, cos he was in the mood for a little confrontation’), the duo and their seven-piece band played into the hands of their fans at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre and kept us enthralled for almost three hours. King and Taylor first met and worked together in 1969, by which time the former had already written a swag of hits with ex-husband Gerry Goffin. Their musical connection led to the pair performing live together at Los Angeles’ legendary Troubadour club, where King gave her first live performance. Their reunion at the club’s 50th anniversary in 2007 sparked the idea for an international Troubadour Reunion tour, which began in Melbourne at the weekend”