Melbourne Observer - Wednesday, November 20, 2013 - Page 119
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Radio: Nova goes national ........................... Page 120 Theatre: Join the circus at Prahran .................... Page 121 The Spoiler: Advance plotlines for TV soapies .......... Page 121 Jim and Aaron: Top 10, best movies and DVDs ............ Page 122 Cheryl Threadgold: Local theatre shows, auditions ........... Page 123 PLUS THE LOVATT”S MEGA CROSSWORD
MELBOURNE’S OPERA FEAST Di Rolle’s column ● From Page 10
● Bill Bryson ■ Gain insight into the man behind the myriad books as he shares previously untold stories and gives us a unique perspective into being one of the world’s most admired and successful authors. Bill Bryson has a charm, wit, ruminative insight and modesty that will have audiences hanging on his every softly spoken word. Like the great thinkers Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo or Galileo is a Renaissance man, whose expertise traverses many topics and diverse subjects. His bestselling travel books include Down Under, The Lost Continent, A Walk In The Woods and Notes From A Small Island. His acclaimed book on the history of science, A Short History Of Nearly Everything, won the Royal Society’s Aventis Prize as well as the Descartes Prize, the European Union’s highest literary award. He has also written books on language, Shakespeare and his own childhood in the hilarious memoir The Life And Times Of The Thunderbolt Kid. Bryson’s most recent critically lauded book, One Summer: America 1927, chronicles a forgotten summer when America came of age and changed the world forever. "I can't wait to come back to Australia,” Bryson said. “It is always a pleasure to be there." Event Producer Simon Baggs said :“Bill Bryson – Many A True Word Extends Lateral Events Intellectual Entertainment series of events which have included live shows with Heston Blumenthal, Sir David Attenborough, Professor Brian Cox and Neil Oliver.” www.lateralevents.com/public-events/bill-bryson Bill Bryson will appear next year in Melbourne at 8pm, Saturday, March 22 at The Plenary, MCEC; Tickets are $85-$185 Bookings: www.ticketmaster.com.au or phone 136 100 Tickets are on sale now. - Di Rolle
Melb. Now opening weekend ■ A range of programs are being staged this weekend for the official launch of Melbourne Now. A range of free talks, performances, screenings and workshops will celebrate and challenge the way in which audiences interact with the exhibition, from Friday-Sunday (Nov. 22-24). One highlight includes a dance performance set in the Great Hall and curated by Antony Hamilton. This audience is placed within the performance environment – they will be seated in a grid pattern on swivel stools and will all have their own unique perspective on the performance .
By JULIE HOUGHTON ■ November is a big month for opera lovers in Melbourne, with Wagner's epic Ring Cycle being impossible to ignore! Add to that the free immensely popular Opera in the Bowl concert at Sidney Myer Music Bowl at 7.30 on Saturday November 23 and music lovers are in for a good time. Wagner's Ring Cycle consists of four generously sized operas, and such is its popularity throughout the world, that there are many opera lovers who fly from distant places to wherever a Ring Cycle is being staged. As it requires an enlarged orchestra pit, a huge number of singers and associated crew, it is not something that can be thrown onto any old stage at a moment's notice. Opera Australia's Ring Cycle has been years in the planning, and has been sold out for some time. The four operas are Das Rheingold, Die Walküre (with the famous Ride of the Valkyries that has been used in many non-operatic settings), Siegfried, and Götterdämmerung. Opera Australia is staging the operas in three separate cycles, with the operas happening on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Mondays until December 13. Wagner is not for those with short attention spans, as while Das Rheingold is only two hours and 40 minutes, Die Walküre is just over six hours, Sigfried is 5½ hours and the granddaddy of them all, Götterdämmerung runs for seven hours. However, there are substantial breaks within the operas to stretch the legs. I was fortunate enough to be part of a packed audience for the final dress rehearsal of Das Rheingold, and it was an experience I will remember and treasure. There is something about these incredible stories of myth and legend set to dramatic music and performed by some of the best voices in the world that grabs the audience and casts a spell. While this was still a rehearsal, at the end of it the State Theatre went wild - I don't think I have ever heard all three levels of the state theatre erupt in such wild cheering, applause and shouts of ‘Bravo!’ Young conductor Pietari Inkinen studied at the Cologne Music Academy and now works all over the world, including as Music Director of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. Overseas luminaries include Swedish bass baritone Terje Stensvold, making his Australian debut as king of the gods, Wotan, and expatriate Australian mezzo-soprano Deborah Humble as Erda and Waltraute, as well as a fine Australian line-up of principals. Deborah sings in all four operas, so having a day between each performance is essential as Wagner certainly deserves the colloquial description 'a big sing'. Deborah said that she uses the time off to think about what comes next and to go through the music and the moves mentally. "The action is sometimes quite pared back to allow the intimacy of relationships to shine through. Wagner is all about text. The meaning is right there on the page; a singer's job is to make the text speak through the music to give the listener a clear understanding of the story." Deborah has been delighted with the reaction to having a Ring Cycle in Melbourne. "Melbourne has been hit by Ring Fever - people are arriving from all over the world for this international event which is wonderful for emphasising what the arts in Australia is capable of, and the local community is really excited too - dress rehearsals were full to capacity," Deborah said. If you aren't one of the lucky ones with a ticket to The Ring Cycle, Opera In The Bowl is happening on November 23 and it won't cost you a cent as it is a free concert. Apart from soloists Jacqueline Marbardi, Milijana Nikolic, Bradley Daley Andrew Jones and Warwick Fyfe and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, with conductor Anthony Legge, there are also nearly 400 voices in Opera Australia's Community Choir, organised by former Opera Australia tenor and Choir of Hard Knocks/Hope and Inspiration, the inspirational Jonathan Welch. The concert will feature arias and overtures from Carmen, Tosca, The Pearlfishers, Carmina Burana, The Barber of Seville and more, promising a great night of opera highlights. Now, if only we can appease the weather gods to smile upon Melbourne, it should be a lovely night for anyone who loves music, regardless of their financial situation. Opera should be for everyone, and on this night it will be. - Julie Houghton
Class Clowns
● Wes Snelling, Crash Course Comedy Workshop for Teachers facilitator ■ The Melbourne International Comedy Festival presents a Crash Course Comedy Workshop for Teachers on Monday, December 9 at the MTC Lawler Studio. Facilitated by Melbourne performer Wes Snelling and created especially for schoolteachers, this comedy workshop acts as a unique professional development opportunity for school leaders who want an insight into how to perform, and therefore teach, the art of comedy well. The Crash Course Comedy Workshop is also a great avenue for teachers who want to guide their students into the national Class Clowns competition, the flagship event of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival’s education program. Returning Australia-wide in 2014, teens aged 14-18 can enter the ever-expanding competition to perform their own five-minute comedy routine, with heats running throughout Victoria during February and March next year. Wes Snelling has been working within the arts industry for more than a decade as a comedian, actor, singer, writer, director, and radio presenter, production/stage/tour manager. Wes is a celebrated Australian artist whose work has seen critical acclaim and has had him touring throughout Australia, Europe, the UK and most recently to New York. Teachers will take home a barrel of new comedy knowledge from a professional in the industry, as well as valuable materials to use back in the classroom after the day. It’s time to pull a ‘Mr G’ and make it all about the teacher. Date: Monday December 9 Time: 1.00-4.00pm Venue: Lawler Studio, Melbourne Theatre Company, Southbank Cost: $25 per person Bookings: For more information or to register interest please contact Melbourne International Comedy Festival Producer Karin Farrell karin@comedyfestival.com.au or 9245 3700. For more information on the Class Clowns program, check out www.classclowns.com.au - Cheryl Threadgold