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Wednesday 7 September 2022
5974 9000 or email: team@mpnews.com.au www.mpnews.com.au SPARK Youth Dance Company's new production Granuaile hits the stage this month to tell the true story of Grace O’Malley, a rebellious leader and pirate queen who challenged the political waves of 16th century Ireland. Featuring a collaboration of contemporary dance and live orchestra, Granuaile’s story can be seen as an inspiration to a new generation of young women and girls to follow in O’Malley’s footsteps. Company director Alexandra Dellaportas said it was a story about empowered women, based on an old story of Grace O’Malley, who was a courageous, independent woman who challenged stereotypes. “I became fascinated in Grace’s story and became even more fascinated after speaking to the author Anne Chambers in Dublin, who said O’Malley was literally written out of history because she was a woman,” Dellaportas said. “It’s a really amazing story that we have turned into a dance piece, it delves into who O’Malley was, her relationship with the ocean and the emotions she goes through in her life. “By part three, we look at her relationship with Queen Elizabeth I, another strong-willed, independent woman - it’s got some incredible characters and messages.” The play has an all-female cast and a live orchestra and is on at Frankston Arts Centre over three performances on 29 and 30 September. Spark Productions Australia is a non-profit Australian arts organisation driven by youth under 25. Based on the Mornington Peninsula, it provides a platform for young dancers and creatives to create new dance works together. Details: sparkproductions.org.au/ or artscentre.frankston.vic.gov. au/Whats-On/Events-directory/Spark-Granuaile Liz Bell
Spark brings O’Malley back to the present
FRANCESCA Grande stars as Grace O’Malley in Granuaile, by Spark Productions. Picture: Yanni
Shire’s ‘shout out’ lobbying Keith Platt keith@mpnews.com.au MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire has stepped up its lobbying for a range of projects and issues as candidates compete for votes in the 26 November state election. A “pledge tracker” added to the shire’s website lists candidates’ preelection promises as well as outlining priority projects for the electorates of Mornington, Nepean and Hastings. The pledge tracker is a more refined version of one introduced during the May federal election and urges residents to get involved by filling out forms and “shout out” that they agree with the shire’s views. The forms include names and ad-
dresses and will be sent to candidates. The shire says its list of priorities was made following “many community consultation sessions”. The criteria for pledges to be included on the tracker include them being new commitments and being detailed enough “so that we can ascertain what is being funded”. The shire - which prefers “advocacy” to “lobbying” - is also urging residents to contact candidates (by writing, phoning or meeting), join community action groups or start a petition. Candidates listed on the pledge tracker are: Hastings - Liberal Briony Hutton; Labor Paul Mercurio. Mornington: Liberal Chris Crewther. Nepean: Labor (sitting MP) Chris
Brayne; Liberal Sam Groth. Over the weekend the shire’s online list of candidates did not include Kate Lardner, who is standing as an independent for Mornington (“Independent bid for Mornington” The News 30/8/22). Although not standing in the November poll the candidates’ list includes sitting Mornington MP David Morris and Hastings MP Neale Burgess. The pledge tracker details “priority projects” in each electorate - 14 in Nepean; 16 in Mornington; eight in Hastings - as well as shire-wide issues. The shire wants peninsula residents to “shout out” on issues such as the shire being classed as peri-regional (instead of metropolitan or regional) to “unlock” government grants and “safeguard our precious Green Wedge
protections”. Other issues for the “shout out” are coastal management, digital connectivity, the Peninsula Trail, performing arts centre and recycled water. The shire wants $30m for a scheme to use recycled water for agriculture, sports grounds and to fight bushfires. The Clean Ocean Foundation says treatment of the water being pumped into the sea near Gunnamatta should be taken to the next level to make it fit for human consumption (“Taxpayers’ cash ‘pours into the ocean’” The News 30/8/22). The “shout out” for coastal management includes $500,000 for “coastal adaptation planning” and $100,000 for “immediate damage control”. The Liberal Party has announced it will spend $10m on developing a plan to
tackle erosion on Port Phillip beaches, although critics say the investigative work has already been done (see Page:5 “Lib $10m erosion plan ‘waste of time, money’”). On the need for better mobile coverage the “shout out” states that black spots are “endangering lives and businesses”. The shire wants $62.5m to fill in missing links on the Peninsula Trail and $500,000 to develop a business case and concept for a performing arts centre. The shire estimates the centre will cost $110m-$150m (“Casting for performing arts centre” The News 25/7/22). Other issues on which the shire is lobbying include public transport, safer roads, homelessness, family violence and medical research.
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