The online magazine of Theatre Heritage Australia
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Loose Lips Sink Broadcasters
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In Britain during the 1940s, variety was popular on both radio and television, but as PETER BURGIS discovered, it was mandatory for producers and broadcasters to watch what they said... In 1975 I was fortunate to conduct a series of oral history interviews with pioneer Australian radio and... -
Marvellous Minton: Yvonne Minton at 86 (Part 1)
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The 4 December marks Yvonne Minton’s 86th birthday. To celebrate the occasion, ROGER NEILL takes a look at the career of this marvellous Australian mezzo. Marvellous Minton DeccaWhy is it that Yvonne Minton, one of the greatest of all Australian singers, now has such a low level of awareness, even... -
Marvellous Minton: Yvonne Minton at 86 (Part 2)
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The 4 December marks Yvonne Minton’s 86th birthday. To celebrate the occasion, ROGER NEILL takes a look at the career of this marvellous Australian mezzo. An Australian at Bayreuth Brangäne in Tristan und Isolde (Bayreuth, 1976). Photo by Siegfried Lauterwasser. July 1974 brought another major... -
Remembering Clem Gorman
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Clem Gorman, 1938–2021 I regret I haven’t done this sooner, however I have been paralyzed with grief and it is only now that I feel able to write a few words to honor the life of my late husband Clem. Those who knew Clem would have to agree, Clem always made a difference in what ever endeavour he... -
The View from Prompt Corner: Diana Ross
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Some time in the late 1970s, working as part of the team setting up a function at Dallas Brooks Hall in Melbourne, MATTHEW PECKHAM recalls an unexpected encounter with a legendary American pop singer. Before Melbourne’s entertainment landscape was adorned with its present constellation of concert... -
Gerald Keane’s JCW Toolbox
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As the unofficial historian for J.C. Williamson Ltd., KEVIN COXHEAD has been gathering stories on the many people who have worked for the Firm in its 102 year history, including Melbourne-based Gerald Keane, who as chief scenic carpenter was one of the many unsung heroes of the theatre. Reading... -
Obituary: Jack Hibberd
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Jack Hibberd, 12 April 1940–31 August 2024 Jack Hibberd, 1981. Photo by Rennie Ellis. State Library Victoria, Melbourne. There is nothing resembling a Hall of Fame for Australian playwrights, of course. They’re used to battling for that prized first production, which very rarely leads to a second; their... -
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Obituary: John Newman OAM
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John Newman OAM, 30 August 1930–28 July 2024 I am delighted to write this article for Theatre Heritage Australia to pay tribute to one of Melbourne’s legends of showbusiness John Robert Newman OAM. I only met John Newman once. It was at a function at Her Majesty’s Theatre in 2018. I managed to... -
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Greg Dempsey OAM (Part 1)
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In the first part of a three-part biography of Melbourne-born opera singer Greg Dempsey, GEOFFREY ORR charts his early career from boy soprano, dancer and pianist to new recruit for the Sadler’s Wells Opera Company. Gregory John Dempsey, OAM., was born in Collingwood, an inner suburb of Melbourne, on 20... -
James Foran: The Australian–Irish Tenor
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In 1995, STEVE RATTLE had the opportunity to interview Moia Braidwood, a former actress and teacher—and daughter of James Foran, a tenor who had been on the stage and made recordings with HMV in England. With this meeting Steve was keen to find out more. Remembering the great Australian... -
Charles Pollard & Nellie Chester—Theatrical Entrepreneurs through plagues, wars, and family disputes (Part 1)
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Young Australians in Canada: A Pollards Lilliputian Opera Company troupe on the steps of the Badminton Hotel, Vancouver, in August 1902.1 Major Matthews Collection, AM54-S4: Port P1375, City of Vancouver Archives. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the name Pollard was... -
Amateur Entertainment 1875–1895 in Western Australia: Sex & Drugs & Gilbert & Sullivan
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During the period 1875 to 1895, amateur theatre in Western Australia thrived under the leadership of the WA Governor Sir William Robinson. But as BRENDAN KELLY discovers things were not quite what they seemed. National Library of Australia, CanberraIn the late Victorian era, the word ‘amateur’ did... -
Hitching a Ride with the Ashton Circus Family
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Have you ever dreamed of running away and joining the circus? Well, that's exactly what PIXI ROBERTSON did (sort of)! In an extract from her book A Long & Winding Road: A Pictorial History of Ashton’s Circus, she tells her own story and that of the fabulous Ashtons— “the world’s longest-running circus family... -
Gabriel Joffe’s Steamer Trunk
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One person’s rubbish is another’s treasure. KEVIN COXHEAD shares the extraordinary story of JCW musical director Gabriel Joffe and his steamer trunk, which almost ended up on the tip. Tthe things one can find on the side of a road. Out and about driving through Malvern one day around thirty years... -
A Royal Divorce; or, Definitely not Tonight, Josephine!
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From its first performance in 1891 and into the 1920s, W.G. Wills’ historical play A Royal Divorce thrilled audiences in the UK and Australia, with its gorgeous period costumes and dramatic tableaux including The Battle of Waterloo and Napoleon’s retreat from Moscow. JUDY LEECH takes a look at the...
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NOTABLE PRODUCTIONS
1 September 2024
Quality Street: Overview
Author: Elisabeth Kumm
For some people the name Quality Street will immediately suggest the 1901 play by J.M. Barrie, while others will recall the brightly decorated tins of chocolates produced by Mackintosh’s in England. Indeed, the chocolate range, which was introduced in 1936, was inspired by Barrie’s play, the romantic characters on the tin being based on Miss Phoebe... Read more
11 June 2024
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
Author: Rexton S Bunnett
A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum is probably the funniest of all farces written for the stage and its roots happen to be the oldest. Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart’s inspiration for the book came from the works ot Titus Maccius Plautus, a Roman playwright of the third and second centuries BC (254 to 184 BC to be exact).... Read more
16 January 2024
The Pajama Game
Author: Frank Van Straten
The Pajama Game had its genesis in a novel, 7½ Cents, which author Richard Bissell based on his experiences in his family’s pajama factory in Dubuque, Iowa. Broadway producers Hal Prince and Robert Griffith saw the story’s musical possibilities and snapped up the rights, but persuading people to work on the project proved far more difficult.... Read more
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BOOK REVIEWS
CAROL RAYE: FUNNY BUSINESS by John Senczuk, Arcadia, 2023In 1964, The Mavis Bramston Show swept across Australian television, and TV would never be the same again. Created by and starring Carol Raye, with Gordon Chater and Barry Creyton, this one-hour ... Read more
1 March 2023
1 December 2022
1 December 2022
1 September 2022
1 September 2022
1 June 2022
1 June 2022
SERIAL ARTICLES
Following their successful ‘come-back’ tour of Australia and New Zealand in 1932–33, Madge Elliott and Cyril Ritchard returned to London via America (where ... Read more
2 September 2021
27 May 2021
9 June 2020
Madge Elliott has told us of her graduation from the ranks of the Exquisite Eight to leading lady in The Cabaret Girl, which ran for a long and happy ... Read more
31 August 2019
31 August 2019
26 May 2019
(left) Theatre Royal, Adelaide, 1881. Photo by Samuel Wright Sweet. State Library of South Australia, Adelaide. (right) C.H. Workman. Photo by Dover Street ... Read more
Title banner photos by Allans Studios published in Punch (Melbourne, Vic.), 10 December 1914, p. 21, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-page13430946Clearly the ... Read more
12 December 2019
15 September 2019
19 September 2023
In this, the last instalment of J. ALAN KENYON’s memoirs, he shares more anecdotes and pays tribute to some of the men and women of the theatre and films.George ... Read more
1 December 2022
During the 1950s, scenic artist J. ALAN KENYON was back at J.C. Williamson Ltd, working on sets for Annie Get Your Gun, Oklahoma! and other plays, as he ... Read more
1 March 2022
In Part 8 of J. ALAN KENYON’s memoirs, he recalls (among other things) working on the 1940 epic film Forty Thousand Horsemen, the story of Australian Light ... Read more
27 May 2021
Scenic artist J. ALAN (GEORGE) KENYON’s memoirs continue. In this installment, after taking time out from film work, he returns to the studio where among ... Read more