COUNTRY LIFE IN AUSTRALIA

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29388, 15 December 1960, Page 2

COUNTRY LIFE IN AUSTRALIA

“Living Still Hard”

“Life in Australian country districts is still hard by modern standards,’’ said Mrs Dawn Grosser in Christchurch yesterday. There was no power supply in such areas, and people used refrigerators run on kerosene, and refrigerators and stoves on low pressure gas, she said. Added to this, was the extreme heat (temperatures sometimes reached 115 degrees), and the hazard of poisonous snakes. Mrs Grosser inee Pitcaithly), was born in Christchurch, and was a trained radiographer. While working in Fiji, she met her husband, who is on the staff of an oil company. This means that the Grosser family has had quite a few moves. They lived in Western Australia for three years and a half, and Mr Grosser will soon take up a position in New Ireland (New Guinea),

When she first went to Dalwallinu. Western Australia, Mrs Grosser founded a repertory company there. Membership soon reached about 32, and the company became affiliated with the National Theatre in Perth, which enabled it to obtain scripts and properties. The company is unique in that all profits above expenses go to various charities. The company also travels to country towns within a radius of about 50 miles, joining in with the Parents’ and Citizens’ organisations in the towns, and sharing profits with them. “To get your audience in a country area, you must work in with harvest and seeding times, and arrange the date of performances accordingly,” Mrs Grosser said. "When I first went to live in the heart of Western Australia, I found myself doing all sorts of things that I’d never dreamed would interest me.” she said. "But they do, because you must make your own social life and everyone mixes well.” Golf and tennis were the most popular sports among country people there, she said, and nearly everyone played one or the other. Rowing was also popular. Mrs Grosser is on holiday in Christchurch with her mother. She has brought her small daughter, Francine, and the two will join Mr Grosser in Melbourne to leave for Kavieng (New Ireland).