Memoir by John Murrell, reviewed by SC.

My first encounter with this riveting work was hearing it performed for CBC Radio, directed and produced by my father Robert Chesterman. I was initially convinced to listen because of the play's subject matter (Sarah Bernhardt) - being a drama freak growing up - and because both its lead actors had entranced my youthful heart when introduced by my dad (whose frequent referral to "Teddy" on the one hand and a virtual living goddess of the stage on the other, probably didn't help)...
But all that superficial silliness took its proper place as soon as the play's sparkling dialogue drew me in, and indeed Martha Henry as La Bernhardt and Edward Atienza as her faithful (adorable, lovable...) assistant Georges Pitou came alive, and it seemed as if we were right there with these two quick-witted dynamos, bodies yet a little crippled by time but minds as sharp as that of their creator...
Having already at that early age (tho my darling mother says I taught myself to read at two) read The Memoirs of Sarah Bernhardt – who'd become a legend in her time, if not in my mind, as THE original drama queen of them all – I'd had my girlish qualms allowing these and similar precious perceptions to be trampled - by a man?!  Course, such pettiness proved to be exactly that, aggrandized fears to which young girls are prone – since it turned out Dad was RiGHT (was there the slightest doubt? – no, not from him 'at any rate'!):  this John Murrell was really quite a genius...
[And so, I'd realized – swept up in a sort of heady delirium, honoured to have such highly grown-up high-jinx shared with ME! - was my dad Robert C, for catalyzing such a sweet performance from this trio of perfection…]
I'm stoked today too, full of my experiences revolving round this rare theatrical event that celebrates the sheer delight of adding flights of fancy to existing history as written while, in the process, gaining unexpected understanding of times past. Those two hours of auditory elevation had me pondering a host of fresh perceptions, not least of which included heightened respect for my father's work.
Writing this review adds yet another layer to the fullness of a well-spent moment, being transported back to giddy times shared, hanging with my dad-bud when the world was our never-boring stage and the rest would melt away, as he and I would relish what we shared as father-daughter and recognize the best of what the other had to offer.…
[Marking this too as a moment to remember, brought to me – and you – by John Murrell, while reflecting on another Eve of Yet Another Year...]

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
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iT's MY pLaneT Too!

... so OF COURSE i care about global warming - & any oTHeR human activity contributing to its abuse! As i used to say when i was little, 'They're wrecking my fun!'

Here's my response to Douglas Todd's Vancouver Sun article "Who Cares Less About Global Warming?" at this link: http://goo.gl/jnA2

Forget conspiracy theories, fears, 'hoaxes' ET AL + pare down to the facts: Global warming or not, human activity has done needless damage to our planet Earth - mostly by rampant consumerism and resulting greed (eg. unethical corporations/humans doing whatever it takes to meet those demands, for selfish gains). Spilling gallons of oil into oceans; clearcutting whole chunks of forest without considering the powerfully regenerative, restorative benefits of trees and replanting accordingly; appropriating whole mountaintops in unsuspecting third-world regions to decimate all vegetation and wildlife for mlies around; further destabling those lands by grinding out endless chunks of rock for tiny bits of gold then chucking the resulting poisonous waste directly into freshwater systems (thus killing whole fish habitats and all other other life forms along the way)... Those are just a few of the countless wake-up calls to which people are responding with more than mere desire to restore nature's balance and establish less harmful ways of doing things.

Some European countries have already implemented changes to become 100% sustainable. Canada needs to step up and protect its Arctic from further development which – conspiracy theorists or not – WILL affect its complex ecosystems, as it has done to so many lush, thriving wilderness regions around the world which have been exploited by humans (many Canadian). That's fact - not theory - based on actual consequences of dangerous, risky activities... such as offshore oil drilling! (Does anyone around here read, or travel, or have a clue what's going on in the world?? Yikes..)

Scientists DO agree that Arctic polar ice (which influences and helps regulate global weather systems) is melting more quickly than expected/predicted, and that even boat travel thru newly-melted Arctic waters - which has picked up as a result - affects the area's ecological quality. People who care want to do something about it, starting with implementing - eg. legislating - positive changes in how we operate vis-a-vis how we treat our environment. Is that so wrong? Only to those who stand to make obscene amounts of $$ gauging out Earth's surface (i.e. those who probably already have)...

Wildlife (ya, those polar bears) are our best friends AND educators when it comes to our surroundings.  The less we interfere with their habitats and instincts (eg. by 'culling', mass slaughter and other gross indecencies inflicted on them - to our own detriment) the better their ability to inform us of atmospheric/ environmental/ terrestrial changes, impending disasters etc.

Poisoning our lands and waters, killling off other life forms to satisfy our immediate 'needs' (= greeds), dumping mine waste down rivers into once-pristine nature parks, ETC... the iDiOCY of these destructive human activities is obvious. AWARENESS of its rampancy in industry is what's making people speak out and take action, because governments are not.  'Ordinary' people wanting to help:  THIS is the humanity that fills me with hope and inspires me to act.  Those who simply knock down others or procrastinate with mindless "Lord and Saviour" phrases repeated randomly throughout bible-quoting irrelevancies have no (actual, apparent or intended) benefit or healing/selfless purpose.

Meanwhile, back on Earth - in the here and now, REALIZING THE DAMAGING CONSEQUENCES OF OUR ACTIONS - WANTING TO RIGHT THOSE WRONGS FOR EVERYONE'S BENEFIT is an obviously worthy mission.  Anyone who wants to argue with its basic moral principles, let alone its scientific basis, is surely out of touch with what matters - i.e. life itself...