Sydney or Melbourne? Which to choose. Well, in the end it was easy. Sydney, as fabulous as it is and as much as I love visiting, simply did not compare to Melbourne’s art scene and secret alleys. The two are so beautifully complemented by the café lined streets to provide a sweet taste of Europe in your own backyard. How could one refuse?
When returning to your home country and feel like you are suffering culture shock all over again, it is the arts that we turn to for inspiration, acceptance and a hit of diversity.
No more dust filled streets of North Sudan lined with goat farmers, or Ethiopian dancers on a New Year’s eve in the city of Gonder, to relieve the stress and adventure of descending the stunning Semien Mountains. No more wandering off to discover ancient cities such as Lalibela, or even just walking about the snow capped
mountains of Switzerland; which I’m sure are put there daily for the tourists. Nope, after many years of exploring the untouched corners of this wonderous world of ours, it was back to marvellous Melbourne. I knew I would make it through the initial stages of rehabilitation into normal life, because I knew Melbourne had a buzzing art scene. I just had to find it and when I did, I was hooked.
It is here I discovered my innate love for dance all over again. Any kind of dance. From Hip Hop to Ballet, whatever it was, I would be there. Even if it was the cheap seats up the back. As long as I could see, I could be transferred into someone else’s world. However, I did not just limit myself to the world of dance, it was greats like ‘Nineteen Eighty Four’ by Mr Orwell that overwhelmed me with respect and admiration for how such a novel could be transformed to the stage, to the point that audience members were yelling out “just say 4” in the final scene. Or, the Hip Hop version of ‘Othello’ that had everyone in tears of laughter. How does one turn a Shakespearean tragedy into a comedy? Well the boys from New York did; and it was fabulous. But what really stuck with me even to this day, was the tribute to Nijinsky. The choreography and dancers were simply amazing. And yes, I know I sound like a snob, but I don’t care, because talent like that deserves to be acknowledged and I dare say, funded.
So, when Rona made a very unwelcome appearance in Melbourne and we had to return our tickets for Volt, I knew that for all the changes to come about this year, it would be the Arts I would yearn for the most.
It is without a doubt, the things I have missed the most this year is really just one thing, and that is the theatre. In any shape or form. It is the creative abilities of choreographers, directors, writers and more, that have kept me sane in the years it has taken to adapt to the monotonous life of routine and stability; all over again.
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