Kiri wows them in the outback

Press, 5 September 1988, Page 6

Kiri wows them in the outback

By JOHN CALLAN NZPA Beltana Nine thousand music lovers thrilled to the concert sound of Dame Kiri Te Kanawa in a dusty riverbed in South Australia’s outback yesterday. The three-hour twilight spectacular in remote desert-like country that bears an uncanny resemblance to parts of Central Otago was easily Australia’s most original and one of its most successful bicentennial events. “Qantas Opera in the Outback” was staged in the wild flower-filled Yalkarinha Gorge 550 km, or five hours by road, north of Adelaide. The diva and her conductor, the former New Zealander, John Hopkins, chose a programme they believed would have the

widest appeal. In the first half of the sell-out concert, Dame Kiri sang works by Mozart, Bizet, Verdi and Puccini. After the interval she sang her favourite show songs by Gershwin, Bernstein, Richard Rogers and Lerner and Loewe. Her 20m wide stage was set up as if for an outdoor rock concert. It was raised two metres above the ground and flanked by large banks of speakers that reproduced sound with recording studio quality. Slung from the canopy above the stage were four tonnes of lighting. In every way the concert matched opera house standards. In some ways it surpassed them. The sound system was virtually the same as that

used by Elton John 11 months ago on his tour of the country with the Australian Symphony Orchestra. Supporting Dame Kiri on stage was the 68-piece Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, which played individual concert items throughout the programme. The concert ended with three encores and a blaze of fireworks. Beltana’s history-mak-ing day began with about 12,000 revellers attending the annual Beltana Cup picnic race meeting at a nearby race track. As is customary with a country meet, it came complete with a camel race. Before the concert Dame Kiri told a press conference that she would not sing in New Zealand

until Auckland's Aotea Centre was finished. Wearing an Akubra hat and clutching a bottle of insect repellant, she said that when there was an opera house in New Zealand she would be happy to sing in it. She also said that if New Zealand could “match the inventiveness” of the outback concert she would sing in her home country. When she was first approached about singing in the outback about a year ago, she thought the organisers were “mad.” “But then I realised it wasn’t an April fool’s joke and they were serious.” Dame Joan Sutherland was approached first, but she was not available. Dame Kiri described the event as “unique” and

doubted if it would ever be repeated so successfully. Apart from a little dust finding its way into her throat, she said the only

problem with singing in the outback was “almost hitting a kangaroo” while she was driving a friend’s car near the concert site on Friday night. For those who could not get to Beltana, the concert was broadcast throughout Australia on the A.B.C.’s FM radio network. . After the concert, for an extra sAust2s ($3l) the audience was treated to barbecued rainbow trout, grilled lamb and pavlova, all washed down with champagne and beer. Tickets for the concert ranged from sAust9o ($114) to the sAustsooo ($7850) American Express package deal for those travelling from New Zealand. The event raised about sAust7o,ooo ($88,900) for the Royal Flying Doctor