December 21

It's a few days before Christmas. Joe and I and the staff of klpac exchanged gifts last week - well most of us did - and enjoyed potluck - again, most of us did. There are some, only one or two who are showing signs of not wanting to celebrate each other's festivals, but would not mind taking the gifts under the christmas tree! My comment was - woe is us who think that way - 1 Malaysia Hurray!

Over the weekend a huge hamper came from Toh Puan Aishah & Tun Omar, and today two boxes of cup cakes from Lyn Chai & friends from E&O! How sweet - that makes life so worth living.

Last week saw 4 performances of 'Handel's Messiah' receiving standing ovations - it was grand and words like brilliant were heard from many. I sat through 3 performances enjoying the brillance of Handel's work more and more. I told Joe that I'd like to see another performance somewhere in the world. It's an experience worth repeating.

And in the indicine was Mark Beau's 'Strange Tales of Ma-Lai-Si-Ah 1 OINK' - also receiving fairly good houses. Mark never lets us down.

As I write this someone is playing the piano in the lobby of klpac. It's nearly 7p.m. - there'll be a dress rehearsal at Pentas 2 'Light in KL City' directed by Ray Buono, and a screening of the film version of Bernada Alba at 8.30p.m.

Life does not stop here. This afternoon we had a first production meeting of Kimmy Kiew's maiden direcion with klpac, as she joins us in January, 'Women of Silk River' to be performed at TAS@LOT10 first week February, and on Wednesday night - a reading of Adi Widjaya's latest play, to be directed by Megat Sharizal - 'ADLI'S REVENGE'.

Good night for now, back to my Mahjong game on this computer!!

klpac artistic director honoured with Order of Australia award By PAUL GABRIEL

KUALA LUMPUR: There was certainly no theatrics when award winning actor-writer-producer-direc­­­­­t­­or Joe Hasham fought hard to hold back his tears at the Australian High Commissioner’s residence.

Honoured with a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) by the Governor-General for his exemplary service to the performing arts, Hasham, who moved to Sydney in 1949 as an 11-month old from Lebanon, could hardly speak as he accepted the award in a solemn ceremony earlier this week.





“Nothing ever matches being honoured by your own country ... it is a feeling that I cannot describe.

“I’ve been taken in by two countries, Australia, and my adopted home, Malaysia, and I am very grateful for that,’’ he said, choking with emotion as his wife Datuk Faridah Merican and close friends watched.



Proud moment: Williams (centre) presenting the Order of Australia award to Hasham while Faridah looks on in a ceremony at the Australian High Commissioner’s residence in Kuala Lumpur earlier this week.
High Commissioner Penny Williams paid tribute to the 61-year-old who was a household name in Australia in the 1970s for his role as the iconic character Don Finlayson in Number 96 (one of the most popular series in Australian television history), describing him as “one of those rare people whom two countries would count as a living national treasure.”

“Just as importantly, Hasham has become a symbol of the forging of deep cultural ties between Australia and Malaysia.

“In fact, it is difficult to think of an individual who has made a greater contribution to the promotion of Australian performing arts in Malaysia than him.

“From Australia’s point of view, though we certainly do claim him as our own, we are prepared to share him (with Malaysia),’’ she said.

Hasham, who moved to Malaysia in 1984 to set up the country’s first privately-owned production house, is currently the artistic director of the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLPac).

A Permanent Resident of Malay­sia, Hasham’s love of the performing arts was nurtured in school when at the age of 14, he won the Best Actor award at the Genesian Drama Festival.