Equus at Twilight

 Four musicians from Brisbane of diverse background including throat singer Bukhu from Mongolia and middle eastern strings.

Twilight Series concert

La Fille mal Gardee

Queensland Ballet did La Fille Mal Gardee at the Empire Theatre for 2 nights. We got good seats in row F. It was recorded music but quite a complex set and the clog dance was a highlight.

Kurt Fearnley live

Kurt Fearnley was guest speaker at USQ Ipswich Open Day so we headed down after parkrun, with the trailer loaded with a bright red sofa bed from the tip shop. We left the trailer parked in Em's garage and headed up to the campus where Em was on duty. She joined us for the talk which was quite memorable and complemented his book with his thoughts at moments such as winning gold.
After installing the sofabed we tackled the extra shed and spent several hours dismantling until dusk. Then it was time to prepare for the Womens AFL state of origin game which was disappointing but we had a lovely meal from the local Thai.
Next morning Em and I went to Bundamba pool at am and did laps while Dick finished dismantling, apart from the roof where some screws had rusted firmly.
We loaded up the trailer and got home in time for golf.

Sheila Fitzpatrick at UQ

We went with Jim and found it very interesting. After the talk we introduced ourselves to her then walked back over the green bridge and had dinner at Jim's, stayed overnight and had breakfast in Ipswich with Em before loading the rest of the shed into the Impreza. Home by 10 am for Dick's violin lesson.

Jim left early to pick up Mike, Paul and Julie from Coolangatta airport, with an early morning wait at Kirra beach thrown in.

Hosted by the School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry and the UQ Art Museum

Speaker: Professor Sheila Fitzpatrick
               The University of Sydney and the University of Chicago

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Russian Revolution. How should it be remembered today? Interpretation of the Russian Revolution has always been politically contentious, in the West as in the Soviet Union and its successor states. But the centenary, coming only a few decades after the collapse of Communist regimes in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, finds Western scholars at a loss – and in Putin’s Russia is an outright embarrassment. In this talk, Professor Sheila Fitzpatrick will survey past and present interpretative controversies about the Russian Revolution.

Celebrating (or not) the Centenary of the Russian Revolution

Thu 7 Sep 2017 6:00pm–7:30pm

ACO Collective

This was held in the Armitage Centre with unallocated seating. We were a little later getting there after they had let people in as we had an extended call re our Nepal trip before leaving. It was nice to find Barbara and then a yoga colleague waving us to seats in front of her, just along from Barbara. So we ended up with perfect seating only a few rows back in the centre. It was an energetic performance with their Finnish leader, and players rotating roles as they are trainees.
I noticed Andrew and Stephen in the major donors in the program so I texted them thanks for their support. It turned out that they were at ACO in Sydney and thought we were also there. A nice coincidence.

Brandenburg Baroque Toowoomba

 Australian Brandenburg Orchestra at Empire Church Theatre

Paul Dyer on Harpsichord, 2 violins, viola cello and flute/recorder

West Side Story

A production by Qld Conservatorium students at the Con Theatre at Southbank. We went to the 2.30 pm matinee on Saturday by train from Park Road. Em had complimentary tickets from Griffith University and we really enjoyed the production. A big cast and orchestra and lots of good dancing as well as the singing.

Visitors

Visitors by Barry Norris
Directed by Michael Taylor
Bev Irwin-Taylor as Edie, Michael Rose-Miller as Arthur, Halina Wills as Kate, Adam Goldfinch as Stephen

a gentle but quite relevant family drama about ageing and the choices we must all eventually make.
In a farmhouse, by the edge of the Salisbury Plain, a family is falling apart. Stephen can't afford to put his mother into care and Arthur can't afford to stop working to look after his wife. When a young stranger with blue hair moves in to care for Edie as her mind unravels, the family is forced to confront their future. Visitors takes a haunting , beautiful look at the ways our lives slip past us.

The Marriage of Figaro

Opera Australia presented Marriage of Figaro in English. We got tickets late but they were in the middle of row E and the two seats beside me were empty despite a full house. The small orchestra was a bit loud at times but we got good sound from the voices without apparent amplification.

Camerata at Empire Church Theatre

Encouraged by dick's new violin teacher, we went to Camerata which is Brisbane's string orchestra. They perform standing up like the ACO and it was a good performance with guests Diana Doherty on oboe with her partner on Cor Anglais, the combination making a delightful sound. The last item was a solo cello piece. It started at 7.30 and finished at 9 pm which  made a pleasant evening out.

Mother's Day Concert

An overnight stay at Yeronga and more cleaning of cupboards meant that we were able to go to the Indooroopilly Chamber Orchestra Concert at Indy High to support Ian Aitchison. Once again we had the youthful energy of conductor Nathaniel Griffiths and clarinet soloist Jessica Hort who played Weber's 2nd Clarinet Concerto. the orchestra opened with Cimarosa's Overture Il Matrimonio Segeto and did Beethoven's 7th Symphony after interval.
After the concert we enjoyed the afternoon tea with light rain but did not catch up with Ian as it was a slow path for him up to the foyer and he had a lot of family there.
Peter Doherty Theatre is a nice intimate venue and the amateur orchestra with a few augmented players is enjoyable.

Nepalese dinner

I have supported the Nepal Australia Friendship Association Qld since the earthquake. It was formed in Brisbane after Expo in 1989.
We went to the Nepalese New Year Earthquake Rebuild Dinner at Lourdes Hill College in Hawthorne with Emily. It started at 5 pm with drinks on the terrace overlooking the river. The large hall/gymnasium was nicely decorated with prayer flags and they had an interesting slide show.
I have been making photobooks for our recent Japan and Indian trips and had started looking at photos for further books on our 2011 Thailand and 2010 India/Nepal trips so I really enjoyed the photos of Nepal.
We had a round table central and near the front [I must have booked early] with a couple Helen and Nikko [Austrian], and Lesley and Jane who were buddhists. We enjoyed their company and the food was very nice. It was done by Tibetan Kitchen.
There was a nice display of goods and we bought a batik [from Indonesia but it had elephants] and made an unsuccessful bid in the silent auction. It was bad luck that Dick did not wear his Modi jacket as it would have looked good with the other costumes. I wore my blue/maroon kain/kurtha which was good and Em looked glamorous in a maroon long dress [ from a shopping expedition to Smithfield many years ago].
After some presentations on their work in Nepal, there was some dancing and we headed home around 9 pm.

The One Day of the Year

The One Day of the Year by Alan Seymour
Directed by Adrian Smith.
Peter Devey, Jenny Langton, Brett Fahey, Ken Morrisey, Julia Winning, Trevor Hilsdon

the classical Australian play for Anzac Day

Australia Day

Australia Day by Jonathan Biggins
Directed by Lyn Hodgson
Peter Bevan, Adrian Smith, Dianne Rozynski, David -Graham Parker, Ethan Mesken, Kylie Zadow

A witty look at this nation's identity.