Mister Brisbane: Gang show | Kombi comeback | Steak sanger | Memory lane | Cruise controls
In your inbox on a Tuesday morning as my eclectic gift to you
It’s a week of superlatives. Also, a chance to sample some old-fashioned comfort food and to continue the discussions about the north-south divide and cruising.
IS WEST THE BEST?
I love a bit of hyperbole, but I do wonder whether West Side Story really is “the no.1 greatest musical of all time”. Well, that’s what the media release says about what it rightly calls a “remarkable collaboration” between Leonard Bernstein, Arthur Laurents, Stephen Sondheim and Jerome Robbins. The show coming to Brisbane’s Lyric Theatre from July 24 is the BB Group production directed and choreographed by Robbins’ protege Joey McKneely and coproduced by the Australian Opera and GWB Entertainment. First performed in 2003, it is one of several acclaimed revivals of the 1957 musical inspired by Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and set amid gang warfare on the mean streets of New York. (For those who study these things, it’s not the current Broadway version directed by Ivo van Hove.) What you need to know before you book is here.
SOUTHERN COMFORT
The great North-South debate, which led my last newsletter, has received more than a little attention on my social media feed. As I expected, a lot of people have come to the defence of the southside, although specific reasons for that preference were thin on the ground. Others have pointed out that, geographically, some “northside” suburbs, for example Toowong and Indooroopilly, are further south than “southside” suburbs such as Bulimba and Morningside. The reason, of course, is the side of the Brisbane River they are on and the fact that, until quite recently, the river was a formidable barrier.
IS EVERYTHING SHIPSHAPE?
My item about cruises also provoked some response, from somebody wanting to set sail with me to someone who pointed out this article, which suggests I should reconsider my favourite holiday experience. It notes that the Covid-19 coronavirus is just one of many reasons why one should not cruise, including sexual assaults on board, people going overboard and the environmental damage ships can cause. It concludes that “the cruise industry will bounce back from the coronavirus news as many cruise fans may well just elect to ignore all the aforementioned dangers and repercussions”. Why is that? I think it’s because, while bad things happen at sea, they happen on land too. And for many people, myself included, cruises are seen as a fun and social way to holiday. Cruises are also, as one of my Facebook friends pointed out, a source of income for a lot of people. That’s not just the people who work on board, but everyone in the supply chain that keeps the industry afloat, from primary producers to tour operators. If you’re wavering, do some research and decide for yourself. Whatever you do, at sea or on land, be careful.
COMFORT FOOD
The steak sandwich is back, just the way I used to like it. In my most recent suburban sojourn, I had a late lunch at the Stellarossa cafe at Arana Hills. I originally wanted the spaghetti carbonara, but apparently the were all out of pasta, so I had to panic order at the till, and opted for a steak sandwich instead. “I nearly ordered one of those,” my luncheon companion said, “but I thought it would have that terrible thick bread they always use.” “They” being just about every other cafe. So, while this wasn’t the no.1 greatest steak sandwich of all time, it certainly took me back to my youth, when a thin piece of steak between slices of “normal” toast, plus a few bits of vegetable matter, was a perfectly acceptable dining-out experience. Does anybody know another place where they don’t fancy-up the old favourites?
A NIGHT TO REMEMBER
It’s a line-up you wouldn’t have seen on stage 20 or 30 years ago, because they’d all be busy with their thriving solo careers. But this week, from March 4-8, at the QPAC Playhouse you can catch Tony Barber, Max Gillies and John Howard (the actor not the former PM) in the revue Senior Moments 2: Remember Remember. Details here. Around the corner at the Cremorne Theatre, Noni Hazlehurst is starring in a return season of Daniel Keene’s one-woman play Mother.
NOW, HERE ARE THE ARTS …
In my InQueensland column last week, I wrote how sport isn’t anywhere near as popular as the arts when it comes to venue attendance. This raises the question: why don’t we value the arts as much as sport? The news media certainly doesn’t give anywhere near the time or space to arts reporting as it should, given the demonstrated level of interest in the subject. Newspapers and magazines do run arts stories, albeit with too much emphasis on Hollywood stars and “reality” show contestants, but a local arts event has to be really big to make the television news (even though even the most minor sporting events get a guernsey*). How about an “arts” or at least an “entertainment” report in the nightly news?
*See what I did there?
VW RE-DUBBED?
I’ve heard that the VW Kombi is making a comeback, but some people are sure to prefer the old design. How this one – pictured at a suburban shopping centre – remains on the road is a bit of a mystery, though.
THINGS TO DO
+Avoid the Covid-19 coronavirus by practising good hygiene. Wash your hands regularly with soap and water or santitiser; try not to touch your face; cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue or your shoulder. If ill, see a doctor and follow medical advice.
+Continue to go out and support local businesses, but apply sensible precautions (see above). The Brisbane Comedy Festival and the Sit Down Comedy Fringe are on, and there are plays and gigs to see, and pubs, cafes and restaurants to visit.
+If you’re stuck at home, muck about in the kitchen. Here (above) is a salad I prepared earlier. Just some lettuce mix, tomato, parmesan cheese and chunks of salami with a dressing made of balsamic vinegar, olive oil and dijon mustard.
+Book early for the Alliance Francaise French Film Festival at the Palace cinemas in James Street and the Barracks from March 18 to April 14. The program features Ladj Ly’s powerful drama, Les Misérables, which was inspired by the 2005 riots in France, and other winner from the recent César awards. Absent, however, is Roman Polanski’s J’accuse (aka An Officer and a Spy) which was met with protests both inside and outside the awards ceremony.