ART IN THE HILLS: ARVY’S PLACE, 540 Mt Dandenong Tourist Road, Olinda

I am just home from the opening of the exhibition of the retrospective exhibition of the lovely paintings by Connie Walker, 90 years+plus artist who has recently been awarded the OAM. This remarkable woman was there to share the day with us, together with her husband, and many of her students who are now successful artists themselves.

Two of these artists, Leonie Williams and Merran Berry, are Curators for this exhibition and are to be congratulated upon their beautiful presentation of Connie’s works, which cover her paintings since the early 60s. Mostly landscapes, they move between realism and romanticism, but are always deeply satisfying.  They range between Loch Ness, London and the RD post boxes in a local area, always capturing the essence of their environment.

The exhibition will hang until 1st November, so wander in and enjoy a leisurely stroll as you view Connie’s work.

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I just received a note from Tim of Books for Cooks in Carlton, asking me to pass on details of a book launch happening next Monday. Follow this long electronic address for details!

Www.booksforcooks.com.au/blogphp/2014/10/event-beautiful-food-by-jody-

vassallo-Monday-20-october. Phew…….

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Last week Burrinja Theatre presented two wonderful shows, quite different, but both very satisfying.

THE 39 STEPS was hilarious, performed by a cast of four who were obviously enjoying themselves almost as much as the audience! We had spoken with the sole female cast member, Anna Burgess, on The Good Life and had given us a few tips about the show, which has been touring over the past months.  She told us that there were so many dress and character changes that the cast had to whip off and on appropriate items of clothing on stage!  This really was hilarious and at times became almost farce.

At other times it had the quality of a panto, such as when chairs and a few other items of furniture were tossed together to simulate a car, while the cast sat and jigged and shook around on what was supposed to be a bumpy road.

The story was based on a classic novel by John Buchan, a spy thriller written in 1915 and later made into a film by Alfred Hitchcock in 1935.

It was a night of great entertainment but disappointing that there was only one performance.

THE THIRTY NINE STEPS @ BURRINJA THEATRE, Glenfern Road, Upwey.

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The following Saturday night we had the pleasure of sharing an evening with Dominic Finley, as he recreated his own version of the great music of Neil Diamond. Of course those of us who had heard Dom perform on The Good Life earlier in the week had high expectations, but these were far exceeded by the performance of Dom and The Diamentes, a group consisting of female vocalist/guitarist, bass player, keyboard and drums.

Dom dressed for the occasion (!) with sparkles, sequins, fringes.. the lot!

The very enthusiastic audience was treated to the whole spectrum of Hot August Night songs, laced with tales of Neil early years, which in many ways were paralleled with Dom’s own story….. one a New York boy, the other a lad from Lancashire.

Hearing these early tales and sharing the stories behind some of the songs gave the evening a feeling of intimacy, to which the audience really responded, joining in with enthusiastic singing and clapping.

This really was a great evening and for me one of the highlights was the beautiful duet “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers”…… a satisfying night of entertainment by a consummate performer and his group.

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