JOAN: Key For Two is a very funny play and you can see it at Amdram Theatre. Opening night is tomorrow, Thursday Dec 8, and it will continue giving entertainment to Whanganui audiences from then until Saturday 17.
It has been strange for me not to be involved with a play
that Mike and Talia are acting in. I have watched Mike drive off to rehearsals and looked forward to his return and his news about how they are going. I went along to rehearsal last week because I couldn't stay out of it any longer! I laughed and laughed. As the 'plot thickened', I really didn't want an interval as I just was dying to know how these barmy characters were going to get out of the mess that the writers of this British farce had got them into.
I love farce. If it is well written, performed slickly, tongue in cheek, allowing the audience to intimately share each joke and silly situation, then it is a winner. Cast and director, Graham Dack, have cracked it. Larger than life characterisation, crazy situations, ideal set and lighting make for a truly 'let's-have-a night-out-before-Christmas-with friends' evening. We all truly need a good laugh, especially shared, and this honestly meets the bill.
Of course I am biased as far as Talia and Mike are concerned, but the new members of the cast , whether on stage a little or a lot are fun to watch and enjoy themselves as well. This is the ideal choice for Amdram and the ideal choice for your night out. Have a meal in town with friends, a drink (or two!) at the Amdram Bar and, in a cosy environment, laugh out loud! Ok, cast and crew ... live up to that!
MIKE: A couple of years ago we were invited to visit Creative Space in the Community Arts Centre. It's an organisation which caters for people with disabilities, encouraging them to express their feelings and ideas through the medium of art. We were greatly inspired by the joy and fun being shared and the quality of the art being produced.
Last week another invitation arrived from Paul, to view the Creative Spaces Capsule. This project began at an Arts Access Aotearoa conference in Wellington, its aim being to connect the 50 or so Spaces throughout New Zealand. The exhibition started its journey in Invercargill in July, and, after a few days here, it moves to other centres, each one adding one piece of art - maximum size A3 - to the capsule. Final destinations are the Auckland, Wellington and Dunedin Fringe Festivals, 2017. When we visited on Thursday, a group from Creative Journeys in Palmerston North had been invited by Karen, the organiser here, to participate alongside the Whanganui contingent. The Community Arts Centre was buzzing with the activity of more than 20 young people, busily working on their chosen field - painting, drawing, craft, collage, Xmas decorations etc. Among the exhibits on the wall were several 'co-operative' pieces. Paul explained that these had been divided into small squares, each one decorated by a different person. "The effect is more than the sum of the parts," he said. One of these has been selected as the Whanganui addition to the capsule, removing the difficulty of choosing an individual's work.
Particular mention must be made of Amy's work, which was quite breathtaking. Amy herself was not present, as she is quite shy about her art being on display. Paul told us that she has cerebral palsy and is confined to a wheelchair. Since Amy has very limited arm movements, Karen came up with the idea of attaching a brush or small roller to a pole, about five feet in length. A long strip of paper was laid out on the floor, then Amy got to work. And what work! Her two pieces, about three metres long, have been hung from ceiling joists down two corners of the room. One is a melange of intermingling reds, oranges and yellows, an abstract work to which the viewer can respond as he/she wishes. The other I found quite staggering. Brown, earthy areas at the lower end, with shrubs and flowers discernible, meander upwards into delicate trees in shades of green, culminating in a blue sky with fluffy white clouds. It is marvellous! Despite her physical limitations, Amy has produced some wonderful work. She is an inspiration to all of us.
In another room there are several paintings by Roger Rawiri Whiteside, his first solo exhibition. The accompanying notes state that Roger has recently been concentrating on 'smooth, tribal patterns' and that he is 'culturally motivated , careful in his work, thinking about colour, line and movement'. Three pieces sold during the opening session and I am sure that others will have been snapped up.
We rushed to the Chronicle offices, where we implored Laurel Stowell to publicise the show. In Saturday's paper there was a Stuart Munro photo, and some notes on the exhibition, which was, unfortunately, closing that day. Many thanks to Laurel, Stuart and the Chron for that swift response.
Footnote: The organisation is shortly to be part of Growing Communities at New World,giving you an opportunity to vote for it.
MIKE: The new exhibition at Space Gallery displays individual works by 35 artists. Entitled One Hit Wonders, it continues until December 16. Space was packed out for the opening, the usual number of attendees enlarged by a large number of the artists. Relying on my infallible(!) technique of 'I know what I like', I especially liked these works. Stacey Hildreth's extremely detailed, painstaking Excavate was created in drypoint, colour and charcoal. Graham Hall's three plates, white and bluish grey, each portrayed a different suburb of Whanganui. Aramoho and Gonville had already sold! A pigment print Night Wananga by Cecelia Kumeroa is an intricate, compelling work. The delicate tracery on the surface of Catherine MacDonald's table appealed to me. Catherine Sleyer's photographic collage, Domestic Wallpaper, caught my eye with its swirling shades of blue. I loved Rachel Garland's Wallflower, a painting on flowered wallpaper of an extremely imposing lady.
If any artist fells deprived of particular mention, it is space, not 'Space' that prevents my naming more. This is a great exhibition.
¦ mjstreet@xtra.co.nz