BERT’S SPIRIT TO ‘CHEER ON’ PATTI
WHEN Patti Newton takes to the stage in Brisbane in late October she hopes to get a little help from above. Newton, 77, lost her beloved husband Bert in October last year and has been grieving since.
But she says Bert would be thrilled she will play the role of the Bird Woman in Mary Poppins for the Brisbane season of the popular musical.
“I do feel Bert will be with me,” Newton says. “Bert and I always had a great feeling about Brisbane and we loved coming to Queensland together. He always said he wanted to live here one day and we have beautiful memories. So it’s very exciting to be coming to Brisbane in Mary Poppins. After a heavy grief you feel like you don’t know which way to turn but Bert would be so happy I am doing this.”
Patti was invited to go for the role and auditioned for producer Cameron Mackintosh, who is presenting it with The Walt Disney Company Australia and New Zealand and Michael Cassel Group.
“That was daunting auditioning for Cameron,” Newton says. “But he was fabulous and it was like meeting an old friend.”
Patti is a veteran performer in her own right and has had a long and successful career in theatre, TV and radio. She started out playing the Tivoli Circuit from the age of four, starring in the company’s legendary pantomimes. Later she worked on Melbourne Tonight with Bert, and the legendary Graham Kennedy and Don Lane and she has appeared in numerous musicals, including The Wizard of Oz and The Sound of Music.
In 1997 she was honoured for her work entertaining the troops in Vietnam. She says she is thrilled to be getting back on stage.
“My role in Mary Poppins is a cameo really and I get to sing Feed The Birds, which is a beautiful song,” Newton says. “The Bird Woman is a bit scruffy and grubby but with her you have to look beyond what you see and that’s a lovely message.”