Sitting comfortably in her fabulous wheelchair adorned with her signature leopard print, much loved and flamboyant showbiz sensation turned gutsy stroke survivor Maria Venuti breaks joyously into a beaming smile as she prepares to cut her 85th birthday cake.
“Mum loves a party, especially when it involves her family and close entertainment friends. She also adores a glass or two of French champagne. And the cherry on top is spending time with her four-year-old granddaughter, Allegra.
“It’s why Mum never stopped smiling all day,” shares Maria’s only daughter, Bianca Venuti, 46, in an exclusive interview.
“And this is yet another Maria Venuti good-news milestone… ever since Mum suffered her catastrophic, life-altering stroke on November 5, 2016, she’s battled back with an astoundingly fierce determination.”
REASONS TO CELEBRATE
Maria is celebrating her 85th birthday with a group of her nearest and dearest in the private garden courtyard of a hotel near their Sydney home.
“I remember when Mum was in ICU for seven weeks, and I’d been warned she may not make it, I began visualising a list of starry milestones and dreams to achieve together. The first was for her to make it through the initial three days in ICU. As she’d been paralysed down her right side, another milestone was to move her left hand and know who we were. Soon enough, big ticks there.
“Over the past nine years and four months, she’s made amazing progress, including returning to her TV role as Mama Gigliotti in the Fat Pizza revival and being back on stage for her 80th.”
“But for us, the most heartwarmingly poignant moments were holding her granddaughter for the first time, and travelling to Portugal to walk me down the aisle and sing at my wedding.”
“Mum sang The Look Of Love and there wasn’t a dry eye among any of the guests.
“I’d been dreaming of a fairytale wedding since I was a little girl, and always hoped Mum would play wedding singer.
“My husband Gary Freitas and I look back at our beautiful wedding photos and relive the glorious memories and, all things considered, it couldn’t have been more perfect.
“So to have Mum now celebrating her 85th birthday is a blessing, a miracle, and another milestone. She’s now surpassed all the milestones I’d originally listed!”
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“With all she’s been through, incredibly, she’s also now outlived her own mum, Bella, who passed away in 1999 aged 84.”
Bianca explains that being all together at the Venuti-Freitas household is like a crazy sitcom at times.
“Mum is totally dependant. She can only say a few words but, amazingly, she can sing an array of song lyrics. Her mobility remains limited and we don’t yet have a lift so she spends most of her time downstairs in her wheelchair.”
“So I’m up and down constantly, helping Mum get dressed in her style, with lots of feedback on what she will and won’t wear… then there are her meals to prepare while Gary and I get Allegra ready for preschool.”
“All the while I’m working in a leadership consulting role at Deloitte and completing my PhD studies in positive psychology, while Gary has his media production business to run. It’s full on but we love it!”
THE SHOW MUST GO ON
As Maria parties the day away, occasionally singing along to the music, a sunny smile radiating out from under her trademark big hair, Bianca shares there are still a few more milestones to conquer.
“She’d been a Melbourne Cup attendee for years, and had been sipping champagne in the famous birdcage three days prior to her stroke. She’d love to attend the Cup again – it’ll be a decade on this year.
“We’ve talked about it and she almost leaps out of her chair in anticipation,” laughs Bianca.
“Then there’s her 90th birthday which, like her 80th, will be huge. And just imagine if she made it to 100!
“I remember when the chips were really down, I was playing Tina Turner’s Simply The Best over and over. I know it prompted her to fight like hell.
“Almost 10 years on, and Mum is not only a survivor, she’s a thriver, and we’re heartened to know that she’s become an inspiration to others dealing with the long-term ramifications of a stroke.
“With that, I’m writing a book titled The Show Must Go On aimed at those in a similar situation.”
Through it all, Bianca says Maria has never lost her cheekily defiant streak.
“I always keep a stash of Magnum ice-creams in the freezer, and lately I’ve been noticing when I’m not around, she’ll wheel herself over to the fridge, help herself to the ice-creams, and can eat three in a row!”
“She also loves it when I cook the Venuti’s famous lasagna – the one she so proudly made for Magic Mike star Channing Tatum when he was in Australia in early 2016.”
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