Making an opera out of something

By Kimberly Johans
Published in The Macau Daily Times
September 29, 2007, page 18 (1,091 words)

The cast of Rigeletto have just two and a half weeks to convince a Macau audience that the Verdi opera is one guaranteed to make a dramatic impact at the upcoming International Music Festival next month.
Judging by the passion and fervour that has been extended to this task by both the actors and the crew, they have nothing to worry about, despite this being the first performance of the opera in Macau.
Julie Edwardson from Opera Australia has been given the job of Revival Stage Director for the opera and admits that they only have a single day off, the one before the big performance, in which to rest.
“I’m used to four weeks in Australia to put on a revival [and] it’s double cast as well,” she says, but adding that everyone had been “really fantastic to work with.”
It’s not as dramatic and worrying as it sounds though, given that “everyone who is performing the roles have done the roles before so it means that you can take short cuts in terms of analysing text and things like that,” she says.
With a cast that encompasses some 16 countries, it shows an incredible diversity.

It’s a new chef and a new menu for Okada Japanese restaurant

By Kimberly Johans
Published in The Macau Daily Times
September 29, 2007, page 5 (308 words)

Wynn Macau announced a new chef de cuisine to help launch the new menu at Japanese restaurant Oakada yesterday.
Chef Hirofumi (Hiro) Imamura flew in from Las Vegas along with sake sommelier Sachii Imamura both of whom will be resident in Macau for at least a year.
While Chef Hiro uses traditional Japanese cooking techniques to prepare authentic shush, sashimi, teppenyaki and tempura, Saschii will be pairing Okada’s signature dishes with specially selected sakes.
With a 12-capacity dining area, Wynn will be flying in produce from Japan three times a week, including more than twenty varieties of fish.
Both Chef Hiro and Sachii have more than 10 years’ experience in their respective areas of expertise.
Chef Hiro has worked for numerous leading Japanese restaurants including the position of Kitchen Advisor at CHANTO New York, the US branch of Japan’s leading restaurant brand.
His training also includes six years at Kawashou, one of the most respected Sushi Kappo restaurants in Japan, learning the traditional style of preparation from master chefs.
Sachii will be Macau’s first sake sommelier, drawing on specialist knowledge about the history and quality of sake to pair them perfectly with each dish.

Unemployment remains steady and low

By Kimberly Johans
Published in The Macau Daily Times
September 29, 2007, page 4 (210 words)

The unemployment rate for the period between July and August remained unchanged at 3.1 percent compare with the previous period of May to June, according to figures released by the Statistics and Census Service yesterday.
This figure shows a reduction of 0.8 percent year-on-year.
Meanwhile, the part time and casual employment rate remained unchanged as well, standing at 1.1 percent for the same period, but representing an increase of 0.1 percent against 2006.
The number of unemployed rose by more than 300, to 9,800 over the preceding period. This was mainly due to more fresh graduates and school leavers entering the labour market.
Among them, 2,400 people were searching for their first job, up notably by 8.3 percent. This took up a total of 24.9 percent of the unemployed.
The total labour force for July to August 2007 was estimated to be 314,100. Of this total, 304,300 were employed, up by 3,100 over the previous period of May to June.

Mobile “3″ opens third store right next to the opposition

By Kimberly Johans
Published in The Macau Daily Times
September 29, 2007, page 4 (200 words)

The third store for mobile company “3” was opened yesterday to much fanfare.
Located on Rua do Dr. Pedro Jose Lobo, the store is conveniently located right next door to CTM.
Speaking with the Macau Daily Times, Ms Elizabeth Fong, CEO of 3 mobile said of the store’s location, “this is San Ma Lo, a very business, communications, banking and tourist area” while she described the Soi Hang Mei area as “more residential.”
She added that the reason for the location also came about after undertaking a series of surveys where respondents had questioned why the company had not opened a store “somewhere more convenient.”
Asked why 3 mobile had chosen to locate their latest store right next door to the competition, Ms Fong’s response was, “this is an open market” adding that “this street is also very good for high traffic.”
As well as the three free-standing stores, the mobile company also has three mobile stations within Watson’s chemists around Macau.

Coming to a casino near you, something to slip into

By Kimberly Johans
Published in The Macau Daily Times
September 29, 2007, page 2 (1,192 words)

Richard Atkins is one of those people with a business idea that makes one wonder, “why didn’t I think of that?” When you add the fact that he’s also a partner in a sourcing company for manufacturing garments as well as being a designer for premium denim company The Proportion of Blu, you’ve got someone who probably never sleeps.
Baffies International, that company with the brilliant idea, manufactures slippers for hotel and casino chains. Not the sort of slippers that either never make it out of their packaging or get worn once and left behind.
These are designed to be taken home, with the sort of quality that ensures they won’t fall apart after one wear.
Speaking from Hong Kong, the 29-year-old said, “while I was living in Shanghai I came across several factories where they were manufacturing Las Vegas slippers.”
“We moved our view onto Macau for the hotel chains over there which is basically the same as Las Vegas chains,” adding that “it’s made it a lot easier with less quotas so we can get  a better price for our clients.”
The company currently has a joint venture with three factories at present, designing the slippers according to each hotel’s budget and class, “so it doesn’t break the bank.”