Listen to Recorded Works
“These words have lived for years in a pink cardboard hatbox with ‘memories’ scribbled on the top.”
Early in 2021, I attended a series of workshops on writing plays for radio. At that time, I was asked, “do you have a body of work?” and my reply was, “I have a box”.
That exchange inspired me to lift the lid and re-discover the works that were languishing there. Then, with the help of some dear friends from Bijou Theatre days, I began recording.
It’s Time
IT’S TIME is an “imagining”.
What would happen if the usual 60th Wedding Anniversary was not the “wonderful 60 years and never a cross word” scenario.
Elena doesn’t paper over the cracks; it’s time to blow the whole thing up!
Performed by Dale Johnson, Julian Hockley, Kym (Bid) Bidstrup and Meredith Waters. Recorded by Hope FM Esperance.
Seasons on the Lake
Living overlooking Pink Lake, Esperance and observing the changing appearance of the lake as the seasons progressed, was the inspiration for this poem.
A writers’ course run by the University of the Third World in 2001 resulted in a publication called “Writing Lives” in which “Seasons on the Lake” appeared. A recent reading of the publication delivered the shocking realisation that at least 6 of the 11 writers are now dead. I have recorded this poem in memory of the talent and companionship of those good people.
Read by Meredith Waters, Hope FM Esperance.
Memorials
Written as a monologue, the play was performed at the Bijou Theatre in Esperance in 2013.
Instead of the usual story of men and war, this is the story of my war-widowed grandmother, Dorothy (pictured). It is an aspect of war that is seldom told but is every bit as important.
Now recorded with three voices, it is beautifully performed by Victoria Brown as the writer or narrator, Hannah Siemer as the young Dorothy and Isabel Shelton, the writer as a 10-year-old girl.
The radio version was featured on Hope FM Esperance on Anzac Day 2021.
Regaining Her Senses
This poem expresses a time when our children had left home and a very hectic business had been sold. Free at last, uproarious laughter accompanied the writing of this piece.
The paintings that went with the writing, also have a sense of fun and a loose naivety. The writing and the paintings sold as one artwork and it is a fervent hope that the owner has had as much fun with them as I had in their creation.
Read by Meredith Waters, Hope FM Esperance.
That’s How The Light Gets In
This was written as a monologue for a revue called “HEAVEN FORBID, A Little Peek at Death” which had a season at the Bijou Theatre in Esperance in 2014.
It was part of a larger project, which also featured an art exhibition called “IMPERMANENCE” exploring the often-shunned subject of death and dying. It is also my tribute to Leonard Cohen, who has given me so much joy over the years.
Lyndel Taylor performed it on stage and again in its rewritten form for this recording.
Cal - The Wonder Bird From Siberia
Cal was written as an educational work to teach school children the story of the amazing migration of the Red Necked Stint, a tiny bird that flies between Siberia and Australia every year to breed.
It was performed by South Coast Natural Resource Management employees and members of the Esperance Bird Observers’ Group.
Kym (Bid) Bidstrup has given this performance a completely different and entirely adult interpretation!
The Tree
Based loosely on family events and centred on a lone Tuart tree (pictured) that is a prominent landmark below our home, “The Tree” began life as a short story and was adapted to a radio play.
Much was learnt from this experience, being my first attempt at writing for radio. Apart from the complexity of the characters and the story, a problem presented itself that will not be repeated. Seven cast plus do not fit into one recording studio!
Regardless, the generous performances of the cast gave the play a warm, homely feel. So please, join us at home on Naranda Springs.
Special Feature: Don’t Look Back
Recently written, this is a true story of an experience that took place 60 years ago.
Flashbacks to the events of the early 1960s became problematic early in 2021 and as therapy I wrote down the experience of the young Dale Johnson (pictured) and that became “DON’T LOOK BACK”.
The work was featured in mid-2021 on the ABC Esperance radio station morning program.