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Saens The Swan, Gershwin’s Walking the Dog,
35 Johnson’s Outback Daybreak with Kangaroos
and many more classics. All tickets cost £6.50
and to buy them ring the Box Office on 01483 444777
or online at www.guildford.gov.uk/musicalmenagerie.
Alternatively you can pop into the Electric Theatre in
person.
Spring half term is coming up. If you are already
thinking about what to do with the children then don’t
forget Wild Learning’s outdoor adventure club in the
woods at Winkworth Arboretum Godalming, and
Claremont Landscape Garden Esher, for kids aged 5-
12. With lots of free play, plus crafts, bush skills,
nature walks, mud sculpture, den building, fire making
and much more there’s enough to keep them happy
all half term. Find out more at www.wild-learning.net
or by calling 01483 424400.
Les Amitiés Françaises will meet on Thursday 21st
February, at 7.30pm in the Baptist Church hall,
Queen Street, Godalming, for a lecture on Vauban,
the great military architect of 17th century France.
Visitors to France will still see existing evidence of his
work in French towns. Amongst other things, he took
part in 17 sieges. In peacetime, he ringed France with
fortresses and invented several new weapons. Later,
he unsuccessfully tried to change the French tax
system but this had to wait for the Revolution.
Altogether, a man of many parts! Further information
from John Petty on 01483 861974.
Haslemere Decorative and Fine Arts Society (HDFAS)
has a wide variety of arts topics planned for 2013. Art
collectors and collections are examined, ranging from
William Bankes to Catherine the Great who left the
Hermitage as her legacy. The influence of the
Hanseatic League, the heritage of Sicily and the forces
behind the shaping of a Baroque city provide historic
insight into a diverse selection of subjects. Two
weighty questions are the topics for talks in the
autumn: who stole the Mona Lisa and what lies
behind all the stitches in the Bayeux Tapestry?
Lectures take place on the third Tuesday of the month
(except July and August) at Haslemere Hall. The
society is also organising outings to the Ashmolean
Museum in Oxford, Kingston Lacey and the National
Gallery in London. New members and guests are
always welcome. Contact 01428 683578 or for full
details of all their activities go to
www.haslemeredfas.org.uk.
Now that the evenings are drawing out and there are
signs that spring may not be too far away, it may be
time to try something new. Circle Dancing is
wonderful exercise, great fun and an opportunity to
make new friends. The dances are international folk
38 x R&A HASLEMERE & VILLAGES
dances to beautiful ethnic music from many different
countries such as Greece, Russia, Serbia, Israel,
Bulgaria and many more. They are done in a circle
mostly holding hands and everyone attempts to do
the same steps at the same time. People speak of
feeling different after an evening of Circle Dance. If
you are tired before coming, it can revitalise you, yet
it is also relaxing. The dances vary from the fast and
energetic to the slow and meditative, from the simple
to the slightly more complicated. Why not try it for
yourself? Lynn Frances is an experienced teacher of
some 30 years and runs classes at: Pirrie Hall Brook on
Thursdays in three ten-week terms, 7.30-9.30pm; St
Catherine's Hall Guildford on the 3rd Tuesday of the
month, 7.30-9.30pm; WI Hall Hartley Wintney on the
2nd Wednesday of the month, 7.30-9.30pm.
The Surrey Hills Music Festival 2013 takes place over
the May Bank Holiday weekend, from the 2nd to the
4th May 2013. It is guaranteed to mesmerize classical
music lovers as an impressive line-up of world class
musicians and artists perform an awe inspiring
repertoire in intimate locations across the Surrey Hills.
We will be featuring this in our April issue, but if you
cannot wait, tickets are available now from the
Guildford Tourist Information Centre on 01483
444334 or from the website at
www.surreyhillsmusicfestival.com, which will also
have the programme of events.
I reported in December that a local chap from Witley,
Mat Dibb, who has a kidney disease called Focal
Segmental Glomerulosclerosis, is organising a
fabulous event over the weekend of 15th-17th
March to be held at Chichester Hall in Witley. The
event – DibbFest 2013 is a fundraising event, and is
aiming to raise much needed funds for South West
Thames Kidney Fund. As a keen cyclist (having
previously raised £4,000 for CHASE Hospise by cycling
from John O’Groats to Lands End), there will be
cyclists on static turbo trainers cycling non-stop for 48
hours attempting to cycle 1,000 miles, quite a feat!
There will be kids’ entertainment, a bouncy castle, a
bar (of course!), plenty of food, and great local bands
playing including the Will Shackleton Band, Blowin’
Smoke, and The Cheap Shots. There really is too much
going on at DibbFest 2013 to list here, so please visit
www.dibbfest.com for further information, and also
to buy tickets, and please Like and Share on FaceBook.
Winkworth Arboretum has a Children’s Half Term
Trail from Sat 16th to Sun 24 February from 10am to
4pm. Guaranteed fun, come rain or shine! Get some
fresh air as you walk around the Arboretum with our
children’s trail during this half term holiday. Normal
Admission applies plus 50p for trail.
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February 2013