Sark Theatre Group's wizard performance

IF THE word on the street – The Avenue, to be more precise – is anything to go by, then this small community has an abundance of theatrical and musical talent.

Virtually everyone I met towards the end of last week was talking about the Sark Theatre Group's production of The Wizard of Oz and, if readers will excuse the pun, singing its praises.

With the assistance of someone who has been involved in the group's activities for longer than she cares to remember, we calculated that if we added up the number of those in the cast and the many who were involved in all manner of things backstage, along with the packed houses for all three shows, then well over half the island's population played some part or other. That is an extraordinary figure and – to put it into an easily understandable context – the comparative number for Guernsey would be well over 30,000.

When I walked into the Island Hall I found it absolutely transformed, with what can only be described as a two-storey stage dominating. It was imaginative, professional and – in this humble scribe's not-very-experienced (in this sort of entertainment) opinion – absolutely superb, as was the whole production.

The singing and acting was wonderful, as were the costumes, scenery and special effects, and although roughly 70 names appeared on the programme – some of them twice because several people had at least two roles – it would be unfair to identify some and not all of them, plus the availability of space prohibits that.

The one thought I couldn't get out of my mind as I watched was that the Island Hall truly comes into its own on occasions such as this. The building might be big, it might not be the most attractive in Sark and it might not be to everyone's taste, but it certainly fits the bill when it comes to giving bodies such as the theatre group the opportunity to demonstrate that Sark really does have talent.

I cannot praise enough everything to do with this production and add that its venue lived up to expectations.

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Paul Burgess, the former landlord of the Bel Air Inn, is after money. In May or early June, depending on the weather, Paul intends to kayak the 77km – that's just over 48 miles in the real money my generation understands – around Guernsey's coastline.

He's doing it for two very worthy causes – Help for Heroes and Crimestoppers – and anyone wanting to sponsor him can do so online at a rather lengthy website called virginmoneygiving.com/team/crimestopperkayakchallenge2011, which is a bit of a mouthful.

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Out perambulating the stately acres the other day, as my wife puts it when I go for a walk, I went to see how the building work at La Moinerie Hotel and Restaurant was coming along.

I hadn't been since work started – the muddy road leading to the place was partly the reason – and the place really has been transformed. Gone are the dilapidated old buildings that served no apparent purpose and they have been replaced by guest accommodation in the form of individual cottages, all of which looked as if they were being done to an extremely high standard.

The road between the bar and the restaurant has been cobbled and the whole place looks as if it's going to be very attractive when ready to greet the first guests. I'm looking forward to seeing the finished article.

• The email address for comment is fallesark@sark.net.