As a person who was involved in the just concluded run of The Hot Mikado, put on by BMDS at the City Hall theatre, I found it extremely disappointing that during the 9-performance run of this musical, The Royal Gazette provided the production with practically no coverage. I think an important journalistic opportunity was missed.

In addition to being worthy of a straightforward review as a musical and dramatic event, it seems to me that the production was newsworthy in some more fundamental ways. We currently see and hear in the media many stories that have a divisive "us versus them'' angle: black vs. white, young vs. old, rich vs. poor, local vs. expat, green vs. growth, and so on. While there is no doubt that these stories do exist, and that the media is performing a legitimate function in bringing them to the attention of the public, there are also some unifying, "us with them'' stories, that the media seems to almost willfully neglect. The production of The Hot Mikado is one example.

I can best relate the story from my position in the orchestra pit. The musical team sharing that cramped space on opening night consisted of 6 blacks (4 local, 2 expat) and 2 whites (1 local, 1 expat). The age range was from a little over 20 to a little over 50. Occupations represented (in addition to musician) included student, scientist, architect, restaurateur, and teacher.

This disparate group, reasonably representative of the population resident in Bermuda, worked hard together to accomplish the task at hand, which was to provide musical support for the cast. We had a blast in the process! Did we always agree on everything? Not a chance! There were lots of varying opinions on things musical -- different ideas of what tempo to take here, how to enter there, how that lick should be played. However, consensus was (almost) always achieved, and the job got done.

The social interaction in the group was perhaps also worthy of reporting. Was the banter amongst the band members between scenes and songs politically correct? No way! Topics of humour included race, sex, religion, national origin, occupation, wealth, and the size of one's instrument (size does matter to musicians). I can only hope that the sound crew had the pit microphones turned down during these conversations! Nevertheless, no one's basic decency or essential humanity was ever called into question, and no one was hit in the head with a trombone or a piano bench.

At a point in time when we are so often told that black and white, local and expat, labour and management, may be able to work together from 9 to 5, but can't interact socially or culturally after hours, an event like The Hot Mikado seems a newsworthy item. This production involved a very large amount of after-work time on the part of its participants, and was integrated in every sense of the word. A diverse group of people came together to create a wonderful product, and had a wonderful time doing it. Events such as this can't be found everywhere in the world, and are examples of Bermuda at its best. It is my hope that in the future, rather than being discussed after the fact by an amateur writer in the 'Letters' section of the newspaper, such events will be covered by professional journalists, and be given the more timely and prominent placement in The Royal Gazette that they deserve.

Sincerely yours, Hank Trapido-Rosenthal Hot Mikado Band Why we need expats May 24, 2000 Dear Sir, I would like to take a moment to think about a few things that happen here in Bermuda.

Like the issue of tourism. We are spending millions of dollars to try and bring tourists back here. Tourism will never be as big as it was. We have too few hotels, guest cottages and tourist sites. How many hotels have closed in the last year or so? How many restaurants? Why waste all of that money on something that will never come back? I am not saying stop advertising all together, but spend some of it on International business, which is going to be what keeps Bermuda going for a long time.

Also when you have the people of Bermuda here letting tourists rent bikes with those egg shell helmets we have, then why do we get surprised when so many tourists get hurt or killed on our roads? Now if we do want to encourage International businesses how can you try and remove all the "ex-pats''. A high percentage of the jobs in Bermuda could not be held by Bermudians. Some are not qualified and there are not enough Bermudians to fill all the jobs.

I am only 16 and have thought these through in my head. Just use some common sense and we will make this island a better place. I am not trying to discriminate against Bermudians, there are just some things that we cannot do, don't have the capability to have and we need people from else where to help keep Bermuda going. I know some very hard working Bermudians black and white, but there are always a few that don't quite want to keep in line.

One more thing. How can Cable and Wireless be cutting out channel 40 Much Music for Nickelodeon? We have no more music channels left except BET. And that's not music all the time! Please put channel 40 back on, put Nickelodeon on somewhere else. The teens of the island will be rather aggravated that their only all time Music channel is going. VH1 disappeared too, why? Confused Warwick Setting record straight May 23, 2000 Dear Sir, We must clarify an apparent mistake or typing error that was printed in the letter by "Grateful Visitor'' in the May 23rd's issue of The Royal Gazette .

Although we are extremely excited that Grateful Visitor felt it necessary to publicly thank us and that she is obviously healed from her ordeal we must clarify the contents of our Permit for the Concession to the public yet again.

We do in fact rent snorkeling equipment for only $10 per person, we also have underwater cameras, sodas, water and chips on hand. At no time and we repeat at NO TIME have we ever requested to sell BEER or any other Alcoholic Beverage from our concession. We are responsible for our snorkelers and will not rent gear to anyone that we may feel will cause harm to themselves or others while in the water, especially if they are slightly intoxicated. However, for you Beer lovers out there we have not forgotten you as we do have the famous ROOT BEER that you can thrive on.

We would like to publicly thank all of the Guest Service Agents at all Hotels and the many other locals and visitors that have shown their support over the last two years for us. We once again look forward to a very busy and exciting year at Church Bay Beach.

Sincerely, Alex Madeiros Glenn Johnson Operators Church Bay Beach P.s. And to all of the parents of wonderful children, we DO NOT sell BEARS or any other type of furry little animals from our concession.

A dangerous path May 25, 2000 Dear Sir, The Chairman of the Housing Corporation has been going around trying to shake down our international business community for subsidised loans, and no doubt implicit in the shake-down was the promise of Government cooperation with regard to work permit applications and the like.

These companies are, for the most part, answerable to their stockholders, who are certainly unlikely to approve subsidees to support the Bermudian lifestyle.

This is a dangerous path to start down...especially since Mr. Dill is such an amateur with financial matters.

TAXPAYER Notable organisation May 29, 2000 Dear Sir, I write in response to the article in your newspaper on May 19 entitled "Sour Notes''. The article described how the music examiner Mr. James Lawless from the Toronto Conservatory of Music was very impressed with the musical skills of those who had been entered for the examinations set by that organisation.

The article also pointed out how disappointed Mr. Lawless was to learn that the programme might not be able to continue due to the lack of support from the Bermuda Arts Council.

As local representative of the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM) in Bermuda, I would like to point out a few interesting facts about this organisation whose purpose is also to provide a set of graded examinations for future development and musical enhancement of musical students on the island.

The ABRSM has been active in Bermuda for 75 years. Practical examinations are held here annually in May and November; in 1999 there were 321 candidates for the practical examinations. Theory of music examinations are held annually in March and in November; in 1999 there were 191 music theory candidates. The pass rate for both sets of examinations averages at about 75%.

Examinations are held at levels ranging from Grade 1 to 8 in music theory, piano, organ, violin, viola, cello, guitar, singing, recorder, flute, oboe, clarinet, saxophone, horn, trombone, tuba and percussion. It is also possible for advanced students to enter for all branches of the Licentiate of the Royal Schools of Music (LRSM) in all of the above subjects after several more years of preparation for this internationally recognised professional qualification.

The ABRSM is recognised as the most important examination board for the assessment of musical qualifications in the world. It is represented in Africa (17 states), Belize, Canada, Guyana, Mexico, USA (19 states), 16 Islands in the Caribbean, 12 countries in the Far East to include Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, 4 countries of the Indian Subcontinent, 13 Middle Eastern Countries, 24 European Countries. Music teachers, colleges and universities respect certificates issued to those who have successfully passed AB examinations at any level from Grade 1 to the LRSM, as the bench mark for musical achievement.

Since its establishment on the island in 1925, the Associated Board has never expected or requested support from the Bermuda Government or from any other sponsor. The system of examination is completely supported by the fees, which are collected from the candidates several months in advance of the actual examination date. These fees are used to pay for all the organisational and administration costs involved in providing this extremely important service to local young musicians.

To date, there are 55 local teachers who use the ABRSM system of examinations.

These teachers are employed as music teachers in primary and secondary schools, or they are independent music teachers who train young musicians who attend other schools. Mount St. Agnes Academy, Saltus Grammar School, Bermuda High School, Berkeley Institute, Warwick Academy, The Bermuda Institute, The Bermuda Academy of Music, The Bermuda Conservatory of Music and the Menuhin Foundation are all very important supporters of the ABRSM.

Bermuda is indeed fortunate to be well established in this worldwide organisation and should be very proud of the young musicians who successfully attain the international standard set by the ABRSM. Long may they continue to produce many more "sweet notes'' for their teachers and parents -- at no extra cost to anyone! MRS. ANTOINETTE DAVIS Local Representative ABRSM Bermuda Why not a woman priest? Dear Sir, If St. Mark's were looking for a married priest they should also have considered a woman priest. Gone are the days when a wife was supposed to be out there helping to run the Parish. Most of the previous Rector's wives had their own occupations.

ANGLICAN Driven barking mad Dear Sir, I was pleased to read in the paper this morning that the Government is getting tougher on dogs and dogs' owners.

My question is for Mr. Arthur Hodgson: What are your plans on barking dogs at night when the owner is supposedly sound asleep? What are your plans on barking dogs during the day when their owners have gone to work and do not worry about the disturbance to their close neighbours? This is a very serious problem here as we all live so close to each other.

Many dog owners do not realise the responsibility of owning a dog and very often they do not take care of them and let them bark at any time of the day or night. Most of the times the owners are absent and even one dog can really ruin a whole neighbourhood.

I would also suggest heavy fines for such dog owners as they are causing a breach of the peace.

Look forward to hearing something about that big problem.

JUST WONDERING Pembroke Never a dull moment May 19, 2000 Dear Sir, I'm writing in regard to In Motion's 3rd annual Recital which I attended on Friday, May 12th. I would firstly like to commend all the dancers who participated in this lively and interesting showcase. I never knew there was such a high standard of dancing in Bermuda until I witnessed this recital.

There was never a dull moment on stage because of the professionalism and the excitement that the dancers possessed on the stage, even the younger kids.

I was also very impressed by the male dancers who performed. It's not very common to see Bermudian males dancing but again In Motion proved me very wrong and it was obvious that those guys had put a lot of effort into their training as well as the rest of the dancers.

The show on the whole was very impressive and I would like to send my deepest regards to Lizz Pimentel, the director for putting on such a wonderful show as well as her choreographers/staff. The choreography showed a myriad of all dance styles and I'm very happy to know that some of Bermuda's upcoming stars are being trained by such great people, who seem to really take an interest in their students.

Congratulations In Motion on a fabulous show and all the best in the future! Impressed Warwick Use closed hotels May 15, 2000 Dear Sir, My wife and I visited Bermuda last week and read The Royal Gazette almost everyday.

We would like to comment on the problem of affordable housing. Perhaps (your) Government should consider the use of those closed hotels for use as Senior Citizen housing.

They would be perfect, since there would be a dining room, elevators, recreation space,and the rooms would be ideal as small apartments.

No sense in letting these properties waste away and cost the taxpayers money, while they could also serve a useful purpose and contribute to solving that affordable housing problem.

J R REINER CENTER HARBOUR, N.H.