ART GOES TO THE COUNTRY

New Zealand Listener, Volume 15, Issue 376, 6 September 1946, Page 9

ART GOES TO THE COUNTRY

A New Community Service Planned

church, Dunedin and sometimes Invercargill, hear and see concert artists who fly through New Zealand after. a tour of Australia;') Whangarei, Gore, Cambridge, Blenheim, Taumarunui, Kaikohe, Queenstown, the Palmerstons (North and the other), Gisborne, Otaki, Oamaru, Timaru and all the others have to rely or the radio for a hearing and the newspaper portraits for a sight of famous artists. But it may not always be this way. This month a start is to be made with a scheme for taking the Mahommets to the mountains: through the newlyformed Auckland district Community Art Service even Lili Kraus will visit Tauranga, Te Puke, Whakatane, Opotiki Te Awamutu, Katikati, Tirau. ... In great excitement last week Owen Jensen and J. F. McDougall, of the Adult Education Centre, Auckland University District, called at our Auckland office to explain how the scheme is to work. They had just finished making arrangements with Lili Kraus for her tour later in the year and they were keeping at least three of their four eyes on our clock because they said they had a very important engagement at 2.15. They looked so anxious to be asked what this important engagement was that we humoured them and asked. "We're going to see Mr. Kerridge," they both said at once. We saw the implication: the best halls in some of the country towns are Kerridge theatres and if Mr. Kerridge would be willing. ... It would be a grim prospect — a country town with .no hall available, only an empty picture theatre mocking: in its darkness. A E Wellington, ChristEo a * HE inspiration of C.E.M.A. (Council for the Encouragement of Music and the Arts) in England and the example of a similar organisation in Australia helped the enthusiastic organisers here, Owen Jensen and Jim McDougall, to start the Community Art Service working. It is formed under the auspices of the Adult Education Centre in Auckland and its activities will be arranged in the first place from this Centre. It is hoped that later the idea will spread southwards and perhaps artists and touring companies will be exchanged, so that all districts will benefit from the best artistic activity in the individual districts. As a feeler for the scheme a few months ago Owen Jensen arranged a short tour for the English violinist Vivien Dixon, who visited country centres from Dargaville to Katikati giving public concerts and recitals in schools. This tour was such a_ success that organisations in the districts visited, and others besides, have been clamouring for the new scheme to begin. They Have To Do Their Bit "You need to understand," Mr. Jensen said, "that these tours are not to supplant local endeavour, but to encourage and stimulate it. We do not want to appear to be highbrow about it, but while we hope our shows will be entertaining in the best sense of the word, they must also have an_ educational

bias-educational again in the widest sense of the word. In other words, it is not our job to hand out light entertainment. And also they have to do their bit. If they show they’re interested and want help we’re here to help them; but we're certainly not going to spoon-feed them." There was that mysterious group of people he was calling "them"-jus! who were they? Mr. Jensen calmed him self. "You see, in every country centre there are organisations — perhaps you could. call them cultural organisations. Sometimes it’s the Borough Council, sometimes it’s the Citizens’ Association sometimes it’s the Parent-teacher Association. And sometimes there hasn’t been anything at all. But committeés comprehensive of the interests of each place are being formed. In almost every letter sent in about the Community Art Ser-vice-and the deluge has been almost embarrassing-there has been mention of a committee in process of formation. They are the people who are supposed to do their end of the organising-by the way, we’re fixing advertising, we’re handling all advertising for all the tours. If they write to us and say they want to see the puppet show and they are busy fixing up the roof in the hall because it’s leaking, well we know that they are pretty keen and so we'll send them the puppet show. But if they write and say that they want to hear Lili Kraus but they haven’t got a piano, we put it to them that they’d better find a pianono piano, no pianist," We asked Mr. Jensen how he arranged transport-what had he planned. He looked at Mr. McDougall and Mr. McDougall said that they had planned to use everything up to a bus. "Including a bus?" we asked. Also a Ballet "Yes, as a matter of fact, we are going to use a bus when we take the ballet out." We settled down to hear about the ballet. "Sooner or later we hope to have our own ballet trained, just a small ballet of

six or seven, a convenient number to tour with; but first we are being am-bitious-it’ll take a bus to carry the dancers and all the $rops-and doing a tour with the Nettleton-Edwards Ballet Company of about 20 dancers. One thing they will do will be Prokofieff’s Peter and the Wolf. They danced it in Auckland recently and it was very well received. But of course there’s the same difficulty with a ballet as with all dramatic productions-we’ve got to try to keep everything simple and small and easily handled, scenery, settings, costumes, stage props. Of course there are places we may visit where lots of things are available-but there are other places where we'll get nothing but a small stage without wings, just a set of steps leading from the auditorium-or perhaps I mean the ‘body of the hall.’ But of course that’s all part of the fun." "Dramatic productions, Mr. McDougall. Have you some plots arranged?" "Oh yes, lots of thick and thickening plots there. George Byrt is busy preparing a group to take round one-acters and excerpts from bigger works; or even a three-act show." "But many of these country places you are visiting have flourishing dramatic groups of their own. Do you plan anything about co-operation with those?" "That’s an important point,’ Mr. McDougall said. "Our idea is to work in with the local groups-either by adding to our travelling players from them or by sending a few experienced peopleif they are asked for-to give advice or to help in various ways. In fact, all the time we want to emphasise that this is Community Art Service. We are here merely to supplement what each community can already provide for itself and, as I said before, encourage them to more enthusiastic efforts," said Mr. Jensen. * oe %e We added up and found that the Community Art Service intends to provide or help to provide music-instrumental end vocal, from soloists and small com-binations-and various types of drama

on these tours. But then Mr, Jensen mentioned something more: "This is Mr, McDougall’s show," he said. "Ask him to tell you about the art exhibitions." It seems that for some time the Adult Education Centre, through Mr. McDougall, has been sending out collections of a dozen to a score of paintings selected from the work of New Zealand. artists and showing them in various centres. This scheme is now to be extended considerably. "Well it seems that these country districts are to have so many visiting arts and artists that they'll scarcely have time to go back to sleep between tours," we said unwarily. Mr. Jensen pounced at once. _ "Now don't you make any mistake about that-these country places are not asleep, far from it. It’s because they’re wide awake that they’re asking for these tours and are getting them. Oh no, they’re not asleep, but very much awake."