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The White Hat Melbourne NewsletterArchived Newsletter No.197 - 23 November 2006Contents
Fairs, fetes & markets Christmas activities The White Hat Survival Guide to Handel’s Messiah Children & families Advance notice The Long Walk New bars & clubs Elton & Kylie New listings Country Victoria The White Hat Quiz +----------------------------------------------------+ FAIRS, FETES & MARKETS There are a number of fairs and fetes at this time of year where you can pick up Christmas gifts. This weekend there is the Scandinavian Bazaar at the Swedish Church in Toorak. There is the Melbourne Craft Mafia market and a Bourke Road Fair. On Sunday there is the Melbourne Design Market in the carpark at Fed Square. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Festivals/FairsFetes.asp The Wednesday night market is under way at the Vic Market. This year there appears to be less emphasis on specialty food and wines and more emphasis on alternative and new age products. However that is just an initial impression based on the first market of the season. On Thursday the first St Kilda Beach Night Market for the season gets under way. We recommend a visit some time over summer if only to enjoy the atmosphere. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Victoria/Markets/Twilight.asp +----------------------------------------------------+ CHRISTMAS ACTIVITIES At this time of year there are an increasing number of Christmas events. A number of them, particularly those based at shopping centres, range from the tawdry to the tacky. Many events are conscious of exerting their God-given right to keep religion out of Christmas. However if you sift through the dross you are sure to find some gems. Some of the forthcoming Christmas events that look promising include the ‘living’ Advent Calendar at Fed Square throughout December. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Places/FedSquare.asp There are numbers of Carols by Candlelight performances around Melbourne including the QV centre in the city on Saturday night, the Collingwood Children’s Farm on Thursday, Nelson Place in Williamstown the following weekend and of course the Christmas Eve event at the Music Bowl. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Music/General.asp +----------------------------------------------------+ THE WHITE HAT SURVIVAL GUIDE TO HANDEL’S MESSIAH We realise that some of our subscribers lack some of the social skills to slot comfortably into Melbourne Society, so we have decided to publish an occasional Survival Guide to assist you with your behaviour in polite society. Because we are entering Messiah season, this seems a good place to start. With much classical music you may be able to bluff your way through the foyer discussion by learning some obscure facts about the music in advance. Not in this case. When it comes to Handel’s Messiah and to Gilbert and Sullivan there are no obscure facts about the music that are not already known by many of the audience. The foyer is usually like a classical version of Spicks and Specks. Best to stick to peripheral issues. For instance the correct name is not ‘The Messiah’ but ‘Messiah’. Here is the opportunity to divert the conversation into the use of the word ‘the’, and I know that many of you can probably speak at length on the use of the definite article. It is traditional to stand for the Hallelujah Chorus – a practice reputedly begun by King George II. That’s not going to impress anyone – they all know that. But what if you study up some obscure facts on George II? – that will catch them off guard. If you can get a recording beforehand, learn to recognise the ending of the piece before the Hallelujah Chorus. That way on concert night you can stand with much rustling of papers just before the end of the preceding piece. That should impress. One final warning. Don’t start packing up when you hear the final ‘Amen’. There’s still a while to go. Handel can fit more notes to two syllables than Mariah Carey. There are several performances of Messiah coming up in the suburbs. On Sunday there is a People’s Messiah’ at Collins Street Baptist in the city where you get a chance to sing along. Then the following week there is a full scale performance at the Melbourne Town Hall complete with the Town Hall Organ. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Music/Choral/Messiah.asp +----------------------------------------------------+ CHILDREN & FAMILIES The Dream Seeds event for children and adults continues at Fed Square on Saturdays. On Sunday there is a chance to ‘Come and Try Rowing’ at $10 per head. That investment in your children may pay off when your yacht starts to sink in Bass Strait. You will also notice we have added a lot of school holiday activities to our children’s pages. On Wednesday there is a Wiggles concert. It was with sadness that we learned that Greg’s illness has led him to hand over his yellow skivvy to a new incumbent. Thanks Greg. For a number of young Australian kids The Wiggles have been surrogate ‘Dad’ figures. Still, just as the White Hat has been handed on from generation to generation I am sure the yellow skivvy will be around many years from now. (It is a little known fact that there was originally a fifth Wiggle in a white skivvy. He soon left the group but can occasionally be seen in the foyer at performances of Messiah – minus his pipe nowadays - expounding obscure facts about the original Dublin edition.) Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Lifestyle/Children.asp +----------------------------------------------------+ ADVANCE NOTICE The following weekend, the Australian Ballet School present a full-length Swan Lake at the Music Bowl. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Theatres/MusicBowl.asp Australian opera’s production of Julius Caesar opens at the Arts Centre. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Music/Classical.asp Australian Dancesports Championships commence at Melbourne Park. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Events/DanceM.asp +----------------------------------------------------+ THE LONG WALK On Sunday, The Long Walk fostering a united Australia will be held at Albert Park. All money raised will be donated to the Sir Douglas Nicholls Fellowship for Indigenous Leadership. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Activities/Walking.asp +----------------------------------------------------+ NEW BARS & CLUBS Two weeks ago we mentioned a number of ‘establishment’ clubs and said we would mention some of Melbourne’s bars, clubs and night spots which cycle in and out of favour. A number of our readers may know Macs Hotel in Franklin Street near the Victoria Market. It is a classic bluestone coaching inn from the gold rush days. It was here that an angry crowd gathered on the 10th November 1880 to protest about an event the next day. However the outbuildings and stables have long since disappeared and the balcony by which many recognize it was added it was added sixty years later. What has remained for several generations has been a shell of historical significance but with little or nothing inside dating back to the goldrush period. Various internal refurbishments have been tried but despite efforts to the contrary the pub often remained a smoky, blokey area not particularly comfortable for womenfolk. In recent weeks, Macs Hotel has been transformed into a hip establishment known as ‘Miss Libertine’. If you are of the generation that thinks of a hip establishment as the place you go to get your knee or hip joints replaced this is probably not the place for you. Also, if you are of the of the generation that believes that 1880s buildings should be left as they were in the ‘Misty Watercolour Memory Period’ (that is, the way they were after their 5th makeover in the 1960s) then you won’t be comfortable there. However I have to say that we at White Hat like it – and we have more than a passing interest in history. The internals have been completely made over in a black and white theme. Even the line of the dado continues through the prints hanging on the wall blacking out all parts of the print that fall below it. I suppose that one thing that appeals to us is that, unlike many makeovers it does not reek of the ‘half-done’ or tokenism. It now caters for live music and DJs on certain nights of the week. Give it a visit. You’ll probably either love it or hate it. Macs Hotel (aka Miss Libertine) is in Franklin Street between Swanston & Elizabeth Streets. +----------------------------------------------------+ ELTON & KYLIE This week Elton & Kylie are appearing in Melbourne. If you want to buy memorabilia for either go to Commercial Road South Yarra. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Music/Pop.asp +----------------------------------------------------+ NEW LISTINGS You will find a number of new listings on our website including school holiday activities, Summer Fun in the Parks, Shakespeare under the Stars, The Wind in the Willows at the Botanic Gardens, New Years events and more. You will also notice that the musicals Phantom of the opera and Miss Saigon have been announced for 2007. It is pleasing to see that our website has been recently acknowledged as the most comprehensive and trustworthy listing of such events in Melbourne. This acknowledgement has sometimes been slow in coming because there are commercial companies, government departments and government funded bodies which have spent megabucks attempting to achieve the same recognition. We put our success down to good looks, charm and the fact that we never offend anybody. +----------------------------------------------------+ COUNTRY VICTORIA This weekend there is the Little Malop Night Market in Geelong, the Torquay High Tide Festival, the Meredith Music Festival, the Peninsula Baby and Children’s Market and the Cameo Outdoor Cinema commences in Belgrave. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/victoria.asp +----------------------------------------------------+ THE WHITE HAT QUIZ How well do you know Melbourne? First to last week’s quiz Quick Quiz for Dummies: We had numbers of correct answers. 1. What dangerous creatures would you find in the East Alligator and West Alligator Rivers in the Northern Territory? – Crocodiles (the early explorers mistook them for alligators) 2. What form of public transport would you find in Tram Road Box Hill? – Buses – trams no longer run in Tram Road. 3. Melbourne has various local governments or ‘councils’ with names like Bayside, Hobsons Bay etc. In which local government area would you find Bayside Secondary College? In which local government area would you find Hobsons Bay Secondary College (recently renamed)? – Bayside Secondary College is in Hobsons Bay and Hobsons Bay College was in Bayside. 4. In Swanston Street there is a statue of an explorer who has a major city street named after him. What is the name of that street? – Matthew Flinders (outside St Paul’s). Bourke Street was named after Governor Bourke of NSW not Robert O’Hara Burke (note the spelling) of Burke & Wills 5. There has been a lot of publicity about swimmers in the last week so here is a pair of simple swimming question. If a swimmer overtakes the person in third place during a race, what position are they now in? If a swimmer overtakes the person in last place during a race what position are they now in? – Overtaking 3rd place puts you in 3rd (not 2nd). You can’t overtake last – there is nobody behind last. To avoid embarrassment, we won’t name those who got the answers wrong. Now to this week’s quiz. Have you been paying attention? 1. What were the angry crowd at Macs Hotel protesting about? 2. What is a dado? 3. Where was Handel’s Messiah first performed? 4. Who has a bigger organ – Melbourne or Sydney? 5. Dancesports is the current marketing name for an activity that in earlier days included ballroom dancing. What local footballer was known as ‘twinkletoes’ and why? 6. Complete the following song in your own words (to the tune of ‘There’ll Always Be An England’ with an upbeat Wiggles accompaniment): “There’ll always be a Yellow Wiggle, While children watch TV - - - - - - (If you need help, Mr Squiggle, rhymes with Wiggle) Send your answers to quiz@whitehat.com.au No prizes – just glory and a warm inner glow.
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