New chairpereson volunteers to Ted Gretgrix please.
Presidents Report
Hello again to you all. On our last day as co-presidents, it was great to see at least 35 members and guests log in this morning for our meeting, with our chairman Stan Hendy managing to keep us all well-behaved and on schedule.
Our guests this morning included Debbie Bish, immediate Past President of the Rotary Club of Rochester; ADG Ron Payne, and our guest speaker Bevan Madden, Systems Manager of the Bendigo Theatre Company. It was great to see Honorary member David Breaden join us from his home in Fernmount, northern NSW, accompanied by Mark Weragoda, who is visiting with his wife, Leonie. Martin Ruffell was again joining us from his home in Robe, SA – another much-appreciated effort from Martin, considering the time difference means he has to get on-line a half an hour earlier than the rest of us.
Back to Bevan - a pleasant surprise for him was to meet up again with Ron Payne, his former head master at primary school. Bevan spoke to us about the busy Arts and Theatre scene in Bendigo and his involvement in productions, both as a performer, and on the management side. It was a most interesting and informative presentation, and we thank him very much for his time today.
Due to the pandemic restrictions still in place, rather than deferring our Changeover for some indeterminate time, we decided to have a low-key event today. Hopefully, by the end of August, we can have a face-to-face formal changeover to get together, present our new Board more formally, and welcome Ted Gretgrix again as our 2020/21 President.
Our changeover was at the home of Ted and wife Liz, and we hope you all enjoyed this years’ very different version. We know some of the sound quality during the presentation was a little scratchy, but it was difficult to avoid this - at least the three of us knew what we were supposed to be doing …. As co-presidents, we have now morphed from peacocks to feather dusters ….
New President Ted introduced his new board members for the year 2020-2021, and they are as follows:
The guest speaker for the meeting was Bevan Madden. Bevan is Systems Manager for the Bendigo Theatre Company. The Bendigo Theatre Company is an amateaur group which provides opportunities for young talent to perform and entertain the community of Bendigo. Headquarters for the group are in Allingham Street Golden Square and the current membership is around 200. Bevan is very much a "Jack of All Trades" fulfilling roles such as Director, Actor and Musician as well as the administrative role he has as a member of the Committee of Management.
Bevan outlined the exhaustive process which goes into staging a production. He suggested that the equivalent of 15,000 hours went into the preparation for the recent staging of "Wicked". The production process draws on a range of skills including lighting, set design and costuming. Bevan highlighted the emergence of lighting specialist, Ian Scott, who first became involved with BTC when he was ten years old. He is now recognised in Melbourne and across Victoria as an expert in his field.
The Bendigo Theatre Company was founded in 1952 with its first production being "The Chocolate Soldier". Since that time it has staged over two hundred productions. The Company relies heavily on volunteers and puts any box office profits into the next production. As an amateur group it is not eligible for the recent grants to the Arts announced by the Federal Government. Involvement in schools especially the support of musical productions is a high priority for the Company.
The Bendigo Theatre Company provides a wonderful forum for the development of a wide range of local talent. It is wonderful to hear of the passion and commitment of people like Bevan who generously give of their time and skills in the service of others. Bevan gave members a very polished and informative presentation. We thank him for his willingness to be the guest of the Club and we congratulate him on his commitment to the leadership and management of the Bendigo Theatre Company. We wish him well in the completion of his teacher training and in his future career.
CENTENARY OF ROTARY AUSTRALIA LAUNCH
To celebrate the launch of the R100 Baton Relay, you are invited to join us via Zoom from Government House, Canberra in the presence of Governor-General and Mrs Hurley.
Rotary’s Centenary is a time of celebration. It is a time to reflect on our past, and take pride in all that has been achieved.
