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Plan for 1951
Arts Festival
If the National Theatre Movement has
its way, Melbourne will be the venue, from
Australia day 1951, of an arts festival on
the lines of the Edinburgh Festival.
Miss Gertrude Johnson,
founder and honorary director
of the movement, will leave by
the Strathmore on June 26 to
make the overseas arrange
ments.
She will travel by sea and
by air to Bombay, Rome, Vien
na, Salzburg and London dur
ing her tour of 3% months to
secure an opera producer and
to interest Australians abroad
to return for the festival.
"We are assured of full
financial backing," said Miss
Johnson last evening, adding
that opera, ballet and plays,
orchestral concerts and cham
ber music would make up the
festival programme.
Sir Bernard Heinze will be
invited to become chairman
of the programme committee.
The movement, said Miss
Johnson, was at present con
sidering the appointment of
an organiser, who would un
dertake preliminary arrange
ments for the festival in her
Before she goes to England
and Scotland Miss Johnson
will see and meet the organ
isers of the Salzburg Festi
val.
She is confident that she
will Interest such Australian
artists as Robert Helpmann,
Sylvia Fisher, John Brownlee
and John Lanigan.
"We want them," she said,
"to play with the companies
we have pioneered in Mel
bourne.
"Mr. W. P. Carr, who is
gaining much experience in
the English theatre, will be
returning in time for the fes
tival."
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