Author Archives: sagesomethymes

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About sagesomethymes

Daniela is a writer, theatre producer and civic educator. She has had short stories and poetry published in: 'Prayers of a Secular World', Inkerman & Blunt; 'Blue Crow Magazine', Blue Crow Press; 'Knitting and other stories', Margaret River Press and Radio National’s '360 documentaries'. Her debut play, 'Talc', was produced in 2010. Her short play, 'Sicilian Biscotti', was produced for the launch of “Women Power and Culture” at New Theatre in 2011 and shortlisted for the Lane Cove Literary Award in 2015. Her second full length play, 'Friday', was produced by SITCO at the Old Fitzroy Theatre in 2013. 'The Poor Kitchen' was produced in 2016 as part of the Old 505 Theatre’s Fresh Works Season and was published by the Australian Script Centre in 2017 (https://australianplays.org/script/ASC-1836). It was re-staged by Patina Productions at Limelight on Oxford in 2019. She co-wrote 'Shut Up And Drive' with Paul Gilchrist and it was produced at KXT in 2016. 'Seed Bomb' was produced at Old 505 Theatre as part of the FreshWorks Season in 2019 and has been published by the Australian Script Centre (https://australianplays.org/script/ASC-2166). She co-wrote 'Softly Surely' with Paul Gilchrist and it was produced at Flight Path Theatre in 2022. She directed 'Augusta' by Paul Gilchrist for the 2024 Sydney Fringe. She is the co-founder of indie theatre company subtlenuance (www.subtlenuance.com) and has produced over thirty plays. Her published short stories can be read via the Short Stories tab on this blog.

Crying in the Cathedral

In Australia, left leaning, liberal thinking, chardonnay sipping, bleeding hearts types are living through hopeless times. It seems there is very little we can do except wait for the next election. At least there is a next election. I was … Continue reading

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I vote therefore I am

It was 1978, Thursday, late night shopping. I was at Liverpool Westfield’s but I wasn’t buying anything. I was witnessing my parents’ Australian Citizenship ceremony. Yep, right there on Centre Stage. You know, where they hold the fashion parades, and … Continue reading

Posted in Time | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

“They do not love us as much as we love them”

Do animals make statues of us? Why do we make statues of them? Why do we make statues? Perhaps to represent, remember, immortalise, inspire? I guess humans make statues, like humans make art. But why statues of animals? Animals have … Continue reading

Posted in Habitat, Spirit of Place, The Animal Kingdom | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

How to Live by Sarah Bakewell; A Life of Montaigne in one question and twenty attempts at an answer

Political assassinations, religious rebellions and civil war, this pragmatic Renaissance philosopher lived through them all, and in so doing practiced the art of living. Sarah Bakewell playfully adopts the Socratic method to investigate the life of Michel de Montaigne.  Using the … Continue reading

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The Curse

I am thirteen years old. I have just discovered blood in my underwear. I have heard the horror stories. I have witnessed the distress in the girls’ toilets. I know this is a curse. I know that now I should not touch pickles, wash … Continue reading

Posted in My Mother and Me, The Sages, The Sex Diaries | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Young Hornblower

Sea sickness is one of Horatio Hornblower’s weaknesses, as are honesty, courage, ridiculous modesty and a penchant for chasing the enemy rather than prize money. Hornblower is a Royal Navy Officer during the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. … Continue reading

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Everybody Matters by Mary Robinson; A Memoir

Someone once famously said “democracy is a verb, not a noun.” For a long time I didn’t understand what this meant. Then I read Mary Robinson’s memoir. Mary Robinson is someone that does. And in the doing she has made … Continue reading

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Optimism by Bob Brown; Reflections on a life of action

“Optimism, like pessimism, feeds on itself.”1 Bob Brown is a commonsense radical whose lovely memoir beats off the twin spirits of despondency and despair that whisper, “Why bother?” and “What can you do?” in our ears. His moving and inspiring anecdotes … Continue reading

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Sex Medicine

My mother had just thrown a handful of spaghetti into a pot of boiling water when she casually asked, “Are you using sex medicine?” “Sorry?” I said, thinking I must have misheard.  I was setting the table for lunch; a … Continue reading

Posted in My Mother and Me, The Sex Diaries, Time | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments