Personal Interests... the things that enrich my life and keep me sane!
Flamenco
Documentary Film Making
Creative Writing
I saw my first Flamenco show - a famous Romany family performing at the Expo in Seville in 1992 - and I became an instant addict. Since then I have been a student of Flamenco dance wherever I have lived.
I am very fortunate to have trained with Tanya Diamond at Solo Flamenco, in Cape Town from 2014-2020. Tanya was an extraordinary teacher, performer and artist. As with all the highest arts, Flamenco teaches you not only about dance but also about yourself & your limitations and life & how to live it. www.soloflamenco.co.za
Creative Writing
Documentary Film Making
Creative Writing
I am an avid reader and a long-term closet writer, I write fiction, short stories and poetry. I was a member of a writers circle in Cape Town for many years.
I am also interested in writing as a vehicle for social justice and global change. To this end I took a journalism short-course in 2005 and always try to remember the valuable principles I learned for any type of writing I do.
Documentary Film Making
Documentary Film Making
Acting & stand-up comedy
Documentary film can be used to communicate messages to help effect change in our world.
I have trained in documentary film-making - everything from camera-work to editing - to directing. I have a full professional camera and sound kit and able to edit to a reasonably professional level.
I filmed clinical signs for the World Health Organization.I also featured in a Granada Television series where my film footage of my work in Malawi was shown in the UK.
Acting & stand-up comedy
Acting & stand-up comedy
Acting & stand-up comedy
I am always up for a challenge... and a few years ago a friend of mine commented that I was funnier than the comedians we were watching at a (very lame!) comedy show. She laid down a challenge for me to perform stand-up comedy within 1 year..,, which I did not do.
But I've taken the challenge seriously and have transformed it in to a "before I die" goal. I have undertaken an improvised comedy course and have attended Improv classes. I have also taken intensive acting classes which I find utterly liberating and engrossing.. I am interested in acting at an amateur level when I can find opportunities, and of course, one-day completing my stand-up challenge!
Travel
Acting & stand-up comedy
Mountain Cabin
Aged 18yrs I bought my first backpack (which I still have) and my first hiking boots (long disintegrated) and off I set to explore the world. The farther flung and lesser known the corner, the better. Following this recipe, I have travelled independently and adventurously around much of the globe.
I believe that travel puts us into the type of 'unknown' situations from which we can learn the most about ourselves, others and how the world operates. Sitting comfortably in an easy-chair by the TV will never teach you how to handle a Rwandan machete-wielding gang, or what to do when you find yourself stranded on an airstrip in war-torn Kosovo.
Living through & surviving these things builds courage, wisdom and resourcefulness. I credit much of my adaptability and creative-thinking to having had to navigate my way through such weird (and-not-always-wonderful!) situations time and again. Travel nurtures an ability to read any environment, adaptability & resilience.
Mountain Cabin
Acting & stand-up comedy
Mountain Cabin
I built a cabin in a nature reserve in the mountains outside Cape Town in 2016. This was one of the best decisions of my life.
The nature reserve is in rocky, harsh and extreme environment - but it is also a defiant, surviving and replenishing one too. Bushfires roar through every 3-5 years destroying all in their paths. Not only does this lead to renewed and stronger growth of the indigenous flora but it also brings together neighbors & communities (and fire-services!) and makes us all appreciate the transit & precious nature of what we have.