What’s Hot? – Whangarei Leader – 1^st May 2012 (‘e- edition’)

Thursday evening and it was off with some friends to the Old Library Community Arts Centre.

Tonight, Penny Ashton was in town with her show ‘Hot Pink’ on a tour with the ‘Arts on Tour New Zealand Trust’.

Her early mingling in amongst the audience at the commencement of the show was an introduction into what she was about to ‘un-leash’.

This well-endowed lass, a theme for most of the show, with an abundance of talent had the crowd engrossed throughout the entire performance.

Flaunt it - well she did so in a very tasteful manner much to the delight of the audience. Her poetry, the themes well constructed with strong messages to those that focussed on the words in depth. Even her long time memories of her grandmother who had succumbed to emphysema when Penny was only eleven still brought tears to her eyes as she reminisced the qualities that woman had brought to her life in such a short time.

Poetry abundant for her verse on boy racers, louts in the pub, men she had been unable to subdue, unruly drunks making fools of themselves in audiences of her shows, all added a vision of how she saw the situations before her.

The audience was even given an opportunity on the strength of the language, but there were no takers, so the show continued on the same vein.

A fairly wide cross section of audience proved that a venue like the Old Library caters for so many to enjoy the talent that we fortunately have in New Zealand.

Let’s hope for more - is this why the arts people are asking for an auditorium to boost the entertainment that’s available to our people?

Penny will be visiting Whangarei again, so if you are not a prude, want an evening to let your hair down and have a few giggles watch out for her; you shouldn’t be disappointed.

Warren Slater

Maunu