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This afternoon
we witnessed
three incarnations of Barry Humphreys
supreme Australian comic
Dame Edna Everage
glitzy, outrageous
larger than life megastar -
who descended from the flies
with Cecil B DeMille extravagance
in mauve bouffant wig
diamond studded glasses
to charm and embarrass her adoring audience
with her often cruel
but always topical wit
and her armfuls of long stemmed gladioli
Sir Les Patterson
spitting with enthusiasm
and alcohol
A grotesue parody
of an aging uncouth Australian bloke
with his vulgar sexual innuendos
his sleazy persona
his ill-fitting food stained suit
and his bloated
over-made up face
And best of all
Sandy Stone
resurrected from the grave
of the Nineteen Fifties
A gentle and poignant
portrait
in dressing gown
and tartan slippers
reminding us of the days of
Ball & Welsh,
Foy & Gibson
Buckley & Nunn
blotting paper
and telegrams
Seated in a faded armchair
under the light of a standard lamp
he showed us
with understated simplicity
and extraordinary poignancy
the appalling reality
of modern residential aged accommodation services
(nursing homes)
and their lifeless residents
who have their hair done
all the time
because there's nothing else to do
Except die...
Alison Cassidy
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