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May 1, 2025

Newsletter for the Offshore Residents of Pittwater, Australia - Volume 26, Issue 1224

We acknowledge and pay our respects to the Traditional Custodians of Pittwater, as well as our Indigenous readers

'Wedding Island'

The new island play opening this month

Roy Baker

Most of the cast of Wedding Island. Left to right: Nettie Lodge, May Blackband, Mara Syngros, Jess McGowan, Ian White, Lizzy Brand, Roy Baker, Larry Woods. Missing: Alix Ah-Pet, Elise Nicol & Sophie Lepowic.

Wedding Island, the latest island comedy, performs in Scotland Island Community Hall on 9, 10, 16 & 17 May. For full details and to buy tickets, click here. Below I explore the background to the play, and what you can expect on the night.

A history lesson
We all have reasons to thank Robyn Iredale, former SIRA president. For myself, principal among them was her phone call in early 2023 inviting me to join the cast of Two Catherines. Without that experience I would never have had the confidence to put myself forward for parts in Secret Island (last year’s play) or, now, Wedding Island. Indeed, without Two Catherines, I’m not convinced that those plays would have ever existed.

A scene from Two Catherines. Left to right: Larry Woods, Ian White, Sophie Lepowic & Roy Baker. All return in Wedding Island.

It's worth telling the full story. Scotland Island has a long tradition of live performance, including concerts, comedy nights, plays and, once upon a time, ballet, lantern displays and the like.

Much of that rich heritage is celebrated in the PON’s YouTube channel.There you’ll find talent and daring stretching back to the 1980s, mixed with plenty of bad acting, forgotten lines and other reasons to cringe. But you’ll also hear lots of laughter. There’s a reason they’re called ‘plays’, because ‘play’ is what they allow adults to do. I haven’t had this much fun since kindy.

So many contributed to our thespian history that I will offend by singling out names. But perhaps a few stand out: Bob Blackwood, Rod Blaine, Tracy Smith, Martin Erdman, John Travers and Annette Freeland. Kerry Borthwick and Bob Bolton were the latest big shots, but they departed several years ago. The PARs and Fresnels remained bright through the likes of Petra Godfrey and Barbara Labram who, along with others, put on comedy nights. But then came Covid. And everything stopped.

A moment of self-discovery in Secret Island

Except it didn’t quite. In 2020 resident Paul Kininmonth began performing Shakespeare in Catherine Park. Then in 2022 Robyn Iredale received funding for a play crafted especially for the Pittwater community. Serendipitously, a Belgian/Australian actor moved to Elvina Bay at around the same time. Professionally trained in theatrical direction, Sophie Lepowic corralled a gaggle of offshore amateurs, myself included.

The outcome was Two Catherines, written by Jasper Marlow, which told the story of Catherine Bouffier and Catherine Benns, two women associated with island history. But in terms of our thespian history, the two women who got the show back on the road were Robyn and Sophie.

Out of Two Catherines, hidden talent emerged. Admittedly most of it belonged to Bogue Anthill, a playwright who, Clark Kent style, had lived among us for years. Bogue pitched Secret Island, a comedy based around international espionage, although really it was an excuse to parody SIRA. The play premiered in March 2024 and was a sell-out success. Thanks to Shane O’Neill, Secret Island can now be enjoyed by clicking here.

Nettie Lodge and Larry Woods in Secret Island.
Both return in Wedding Island.

Secret Island leads us to Wedding Island, which Bogue describes as the second and last in his Island trilogy. Much of the talent that brought you Secret Island returns in Wedding Island.

Sophie directs and appears in the play, and throughout rehearsals has displayed the vision and patience we have come to expect. Bogue and I are co-producers, which involves doing the boring stuff that rarely gets noticed. Speaking of thankless tasks, Gilli Unwin returns as stage manager, keeping the cast going with tea, coffee and wonderful cakes.

What's Wedding Island about?
The basic premise: a young couple want to get married. Sounds easy, doesn’t it? But no, this is Scotland Island and everything that can go wrong, goes wrong.

In telling their story we bring you music, dance, satire, slapstick and miniature spring rolls. There's even what you might call animatronics. For visitors to the island, we often say come prepared for any weather conditions. For this show, we’re saying that if you’re sitting in the front row, come prepared for any weather conditions. You’ll find out what we mean when you come along.

Quieter talents: Boyd Attewell and his son Emile in the lighting box during Secret Island.

But what’s Wedding Island really about? Of course there’s an underlying message. ‘I masterfully interpolate the trials of offshore life into a discursive examination of contemporary society, traversing the seismic shifts shaping our world,’ explains Bogue. ‘In Secret Island I dissected international tensions’, he continues modestly. ‘In Wedding Island I interrogate the challenges of climate change.’ In other words, prepare yourself for a night of dunny humour and fart gags.

Why should you attend?
There’s a licenced bar provided by the Men’s Shed, there’s free food, and on opening night there’s a ferry back to Elvina Bay and Church Point after the show.

But the real reason to come? You spend an evening in congregation with your neighbours and friends, laughing at that predicament we call offshore life. At the prices we charge, it’s cheaper than therapy, and a damned sight easier than trying to afford a house on the mainland. To buy your tickets, click here.

Introducing the cast

Here's the cast for Wedding Island, introduced by order of appearance.

Alix Ah-Pet with her daughter, Elise Nicol

Reducing the cast's average age, we are joined by two island youngsters who share the part of my granddaughter.

May Blackband, aged 12, has been dancing since she was three, and has sung at island festivals alongside her brother Will. Besides ballet she plays soccer and cricket. She also has professional acting experience: when she was 10 she was in an advert for an esky brand.

Elise Nicol is nine and loves art, drawing, creating stories and singing, having been in a small homeschool choir a few years ago. She also practices Jiu-jitsu.

Alix Ah-Pet, Elise's mother, takes on the part of Jade, the esoteric wedding celebrant who tries, unsuccessfully, to wed the happy couple. Alix is French, but has called Scotland Island home since 2016. New to the stage, Alix says she's scared of making a fool of herself. Too late now, Alix!

Perhaps stretching credibility to its limits, the happy couple consist of myself and Mara Syngros. I play Monty, a cocky, virtue-signalling environmentalist whose self-esteem exceeds his competence. He also seems strangely uncomfortable with nature. A retired academic lawyer, I'm president of the fire brigade, drive the community vehicle and edit the PON.

L to R: Nettie Lodge, May Blackband, Mara Syngros & Jess McGowan

Mara Syngros plays Tracy, my fiancee. Another environmentalist, she's your real deal. Introverted but committed and capable, Tracy is down-to-earth in every sense.

Mara is from Germany and arrived on the island as an au pair. Besides looking after three island boys, Mara has discovered the sense of community that theatre can bring, and enjoys the diversity of people who make up the cast. As a child Mara participated in musicals, but says she's happy to leave the singing to others, feeling more at home in acting.

Jess McGowan plays Steph, Tracy's sensible and slightly intimidating mum. Born into a family of musicians and creative types, Jess studied architecture but got distracted performing in university revues. After moving to the island in 1999, she has run offshore choirs, sung jazz and acted in comedy nights. When not showing off on stage, she works for a local naval architecture firm.

Nettie Lodge will be known to much of the offshore community, having appeared in many island plays. An accomplished artist and illustrator, Nettie painted the murals on the Community Hall and Rec Centre. She played Fitzy in Secret Island, and takes on another male role in Wedding Island: Trev, a proficient plumber, but one with an unusual phobia.

Ian White portrays Craig, SIRA president and stickler for procedure.

Sophie Lepowic, our director, plays Chloe the bridesmaid, a conservative real estate agent who doesn't like anything getting between her and the next sale. Sophie grew up in Belgium before moving to the French West Indies. She studied screen acting, script writing and film direction at NIDA and the AFTRS.

Larry Woods takes on the role of Harry, a heckler, drinker and pub philospher who, unexpectedly, is a pretty good sailor.

Born in 1951, Larry moved through 24 different schools. In no case was the arson ever proven. Larry's working life was similarly varied, encompassing 50 jobs, including bank teller, TAB collator, waiter, delivery driver, computer operator, stand-up comedian, commercial diver, dive shop manager, dry cleaner, nursing assistant, handyman, builder's labourer, strata cleaner, and assistant cruise director.

Ian White plays Craig, SIRA's pompous and efficious president. Having fought in a number of world wars, Craig believes that rules and procedure will best maintain calm and order in a crisis.

Lizzie Brand, Roy Baker and Larry Woods

Whitey to his friends, Ian had plenty of experience to draw on when shaping his character. A former councillor, Whitey has sat through more tedious meetings than I'd like to imagine. He is also a retired schoolteacher, besides being senior deputy captain of the island fire brigade, where he looks after the team who respond to medical emergencies.

Finally, Lizzie Brand plays Elspeth, head of the SIRA Rec Club. Gently spoken but sharp of tongue, Elspeth may have a bit of a thing for Craig. Lizzie is another veteran of the island stage, having appeared in her first play in 1992. That was when she connected with her partner of 13 years. According to Lizzie, 'hooking up with fellow actors seemed the norm back then!' Lizzie runs Interlace, a fancy dress shop in Dee Why, and she supplies many of our wonderful costumes.

Roy Baker

SIRFB Events

Medical training and an Easter Egg hunt

Left to right: Ross Hardy, Emma Ives, Lexie Le Blang, Ian White (CFR leader), Maria Burke, Kylie Bennetts.
Absent were Mandy Daher and Sharon Kinnison

There were at least two good reasons to celebrate Scotland Island's volunteer fire brigade last month. First, many of our Community First Responders (CFR) team travelled to the Tocal Agricultural Institute in the Hunter Valley for a two-day annual conference hosted by NSW Ambulance. Scotland Island community first responders attend medical emergencies on the island, tending to patients pending the arrival of an ambulance crew from the mainland, while other brigade members provide transport for the paramedics, as well as assisting in the evacuation of the patient to Church Point.

Friday night was a fun team-building exercise for our community first responders, and a quick catch-up with other CFR units, but Saturday is the big day. Starting at 8.30am and finishing at 5.30pm, the team participated in five different scenario/training sessions. These included drowning, spinal injury, possible electrocution and multiple casualty situations. Sunday covered various skills including those relating to maternity, water rescue equipment, haemorrhage control and injection protocols.

The annual Easter Egg hunt, Catherine Park

The CFR team is always looking for new members. If you are interested in joining, please contact Ian White (0400 600 958) or Lexie Le Blang for a chat.

Closer to home, the brigade hosted the annual Easter Egg hunt in Catherine Park. Children of various ages searched for chocolate eggs, while the older ones were put through an exacting test of mental and physical stamina in order to earn theirs. Thanks go especially to Lizzie Hazelwood for helping to organise the event.

Along with fire shed dinners and the annual Santa Run, the Easter Egg hunt is one of a number of social and community events regularly run by the brigade.

Lexie Le Blang and Roy Baker