Bouddi at Bells - Giving Young Performers an Edge
When you are young, it’s tough to break into the performing arts, no matter how talented or hardworking you may be. The competition is huge, and it sometimes seems as though no one cares whether you make it or not. You need an edge, something that helps you overcome the obstacles and the hurdles that lie in your path. The Bouddi Foundation for the
Arts was established to make the struggle of young talented performers a little less frustrating, a little less lonely. To give them that helping hand. This October, at the Bells at Killcare Resort on the Central Coast just north of Sydney, the Foundation stages a concert featuring some of the best performing talents in Australia, with all profits going to advance the careers of talented young performers from the Central Coast. John Bell, the famous Shakespearean actor and director who created the Foundation, states: “young people of talent can often be shy ... they are not sure how to make a start in the business. I believe those of us who have got there have a duty of care to lend a helping hand”. The Foundation has lent more than a helping hand to many talented young performers at the start of their careers. Imogen Sage, for instance, from Pretty Beach, who in 2011 was the first Australian to be accepted into the prestigious London School of Speech and Drama. This school has taught many famous actors including Judy Dench, Laurence Olivier, and several of the legendary Redgrave family. The Foundation has contributed a large share of her fees for the past three years. Ashleigh Mounser, an 18 year old writer from Empire Bay, has received numerous awards including the 2012 Sydney Morning Herald Young Writer of the Year and the Henry Handel Richardson Centenary Writing Competition youth prize. She wrote: “thanks to the grant provided by the Bouddi Foundation I was able to move to Wollongong to study for a Bachelor of Creative Writing as a Dean’s Scholar. Without the Foundation’s generous support, this would not have been possible.” As a Dean’s scholar she will receive a year’s study at the University of California, Berkeley Campus. The Foundation’s grant will cover her travel expenses to the US. Jasper Wand is a young oboist from Forresters Beach who has twice received the Bouddi Society’s Woodwind Scholarship to the Central Coast Conservatorium and has attended workshops with both the
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Vienna and Berlin Philharmonic Orchestras. The Foundation’s grant enabled him to attend the Australian Youth Orchestra camp in 2013. Many other young hopefuls have also been helped to develop their talents by the Bouddi Foundation For the Arts. So what exactly is Bouddi at Bells which gives these young people a helping hand? Bells of Killcare is a magnificent resort and spa in a beautiful old house set in large grounds amidst magnificent scenery. World famous performers such as celebrated jazz singer Wendy Matthews, together with such high- profile performers as actor Graeme Blundell, John Bell, television personality Rob Carlton, and writer and lecturer Jane Caro, performed last year, without fee, a mix of Shakespeare, opera and comedy for an audience from all over the country. This year Bouddi at Bells promises to be better than ever. Bookings are already coming in from people keen to make sure they do not miss performances by flautist Jane Rutter, stars from Opera Australia, Jane Ede and Luke Gabbedy, Fusion Vocal Group, Greg Gould, The Central Coast Conservatorium Orchestra, NAISDA, and Good Times She Wrote. A pre concert, 3 course lunch is available at the much awarded in-house restaurant Manfredi at Bells for only $95 per person, or patrons can come early and picnic on the beautiful lawn, food and beverage stalls are available. Chairs are set up on the lawn and from 3pm relaxing with a glass of good wine the audience enjoys the show. Imogen, Ashleigh, Jasper and many others have gotten the edge they needed, thanks to the helping hand offered by the Bouddi Foundation For the Arts. This year, and in the years to come, a lot more talented young people will get their edge, too, from the many lovers of the arts who flock to Bouddi at Bells, or make a contribution to the cause.
