Monday, May 18, 2020

Powerful Words and Feelings by Corrina Vanderent

“Poetry is ordinary language raised to the Nth power. Poetry is boned with ideas, nerved and blooded with emotions, all held together by the delicate, tough skin of words.”
— Paul Engle, from an article in The New York Times.


While Working from Home, I came across a poet who has a knack for lifting the veil from the hidden beauty of the world, and makes familiar objects be as if they were not familiar. Corrina is a poet of the invisible virtual embraces and much more ... I hope insightful observers such as Maria get to peruse Corrina's poetry

A short simple poem Corinna "penned for y’all to keep your spirits up during this Lockdown …"

“Stay safe my friends,
When you are locked down,
With no place to go
Nowhere to Run

Don’t despair
Feel no fear
‘Cos there’s always a
Helping hand that’s near

Reach out and touch
That invisible face
Never reject
That virtual embrace

Let’s fight for the future
Side by side
Hold your head high
As you walk with pride

And when the darkness
Turns to light
We’ll live happy again
‘Cos we’ve done what’s right

Copyright Corrina Vanderent  27/4/2020

A TRIBUTE TO AUSTRALIA – by Corrina

“God bless Australia,
This vast Land locked by Sea,
That’s earned its respect
As the Lucky Country

Its lush valleys, mountains
And green pastures restore
May its magnificent glory
Rise up once more

God save the koalas
And possums in trees,
Let the kangaroos, wallabies
And emus run free

Replenish the earth,
Restore it again,
May it rise from the ashes
And heal with the rain.

God bless all races
That inhabit this land,
That welcomed the migrants
And now united we stand,
To rebuild Australia,
Our island home in the sea,
May the sun never set
On this Lucky Country”

20200113_Copyright_ Corrina Vanderent

CODA:

Take a tour of the Art Gallery of New South Wales Not too Far from Parramatta
The Art Gallery of NSW is one of Australia’s leading art museums. Through our collections, exhibitions, programs and scholarship we aim to inspire our visitors’ engagement with art. Click on the link here and take a tour.

One of many cancellations due to the pandemic is the Public Theater’s annual Shakespeare in the Park performances. But for the next three weeks, PBS is streaming their Great Performances recording of last year’s Shakespeare in the Park production of Much Ado About Nothing for free on their site (embedded above, reviews here).
This bold interpretation of Shakespeare’s comedic masterpiece features Danielle Brooks (“Orange is the New Black,” Broadway’s “The Color Purple”) and Grantham Coleman (“Buzzer,” “The Americans”) as the sparring lovers Beatrice and Benedick. Tony Award winner Kenny Leon (“American Son,” “A Raisin in the Sun”) directs with choreography by Tony Award nominee Camille A. Brown (“Choir Boy”).
To whet your appetite, you can check out some of the highlights of the performance in this short video.
P.S. You can also watch this 2009 production of Macbeth starring Patrick Stewart in the lead role.

Who’s Behind Glasgow’s Covid-19 Street Art?

It’s not “strictly legal” to be out during lockdown (though it’s not strictly illegal either), so most of the artists will only speak anonymously. “One of those behind some of the most striking paintings is known as The Rebel Bear, a kind of RU Bear . … The Bear said he wanted to ‘provoke hope’ of life after lockdown. ‘And also to show the tightrope between fear and love that many of us are walking at the moment,’ he added.” – BBC