Profiles
This is section documents some of the more interesting characters that have made substaintial contributions to our theatre history.
Written by Jo Gilbert
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Jo Gilbert Australia
Jo Gilbert is Jack O’Hagan’s granddaughter and knew him intimately. Born in Melbourne and managing the Jack O’Hagan Estate and family collection of music, photographs and memorabilia, she found herself in a unique position to tell the story of both the man and the songwriter, composer and performer—a huge celebrity in his time—whose songs are recognised as being of cultural, historical and aesthetic significance by the National Film and Sound Archive (NFSA). Jo worked with Barry Humphries, writer director Rodney Fisher and musical director Vanessa Scammell on Peter and Jack, the story of legendary Australian stars Peter Dawson and Jack O’Hagan and Barry’s signature show as Artistic Director of the 2015 Adelaide Cabaret Festival. The sold-out show, narrated by Humphries, starred baritone Teddy Tahu Rhodes, soprano Greta Bradman, a cappella group The Idea of North and the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra. She was awarded a State Library Victoria Creative Fellowship in 2012, has worked as a business management consultant to the creative services industry since 2007 and spent five years as a lecturer in Bachelor of Communication and Bachelor of Design courses for renowned Melbourne universities RMIT and Swinburne. She created the official Jack O’Hagan website https://www.jackohagan.com.au/, writes Jack’s Track digital newsletter for subscribers, and manages Jack O’Hagan social media on Facebook, Twitter/X and You Tube. ‘Along the Road to Gundagai, Biography of Jack O’Hagan and Birth of Australian Pop Culture’ is the first comprehensive history of Jack O’Hagan and Jo’s first book.
Written by Charles Heslop; with picture research and endnotes by Rob Morrison
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Charles Heslop; with picture research and endnotes by Rob Morrison AustraliaWith a background in science and biophysics, Rob is equally at home in the Performing Arts having performed in over 70 stage productions since 1975, including plays, revues and musicals for a number of amateur theatre companies based in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs.
As a broadcaster, Rob has been heard on Melbourne community radio 96.5 Inner FM since 1992 contributing to the Local Theatre programme and as the host of the weekly light-music Kaleidoscope and Musical Theatre Melodies programmes. (A selection of Rob’s past interviews from the latter with noted theatre composers and/or lyricists, Leslie Bricusse, Frank Wildhorn and Sheldon Harnick, plus musical theatre historian and author, Miles Kreuger can be accessed on the THA website under Digital Collections – audio.)
Since early 2023 Musical Theatre Melodies has also been available as a podcast, which may be heard at https://www.innerfm.org.au/shows/musical-theatre-melodies/ and recently earned the distinction of being ranked amongst the Top 10 Australian Theatre Podcasts by Feedspot, as listed at https://podcasts.feedspot.com/australian_theatre_podcasts
Rob has also contributed information and articles to the on-line Gilbert and Sullivan Archive, Gilbert and Sullivan Discography and Edward German Discography websites.
Past articles published in the print editions of On Stage include:-
- ‘Are There Any More at Home Like You?’ (Summer 2009, p.30)
- ‘W.S. Gilbert Makes the Music’ (Autumn 2009, p.7)
- ‘Sir Seymour Remembers Dame Nellie’ (Autumn 2010, p.8)
- ‘Remembering Nichols Remembering Melba’ (Spring 2011, p.9)
In addition Rob collaborated on the research into the background of local Music Hall singer, ‘Syria Lamonte’ (Summer 2010, p.5), as outlined in ‘The Search for Syria’ (Autumn 2010, p. 17); provided the footnotes to ‘Richard Watson: “a molasses of a bass”’ (Spring 2009, p.35 & Summer 2010, p.40.) and researched the discography for ‘Richard Watson’s Recorded Legacy’ (Spring 2011, p.18.)
Written by Frank Van Straten
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Frank Van Straten AustraliaOver the years Frank has amassed a vast collection of Australian theatre memorabilia. He was director of the Victorian Arts Centre Performing Arts Museum from 1984 until 1993. For 15 years Frank researched and presented ABC Radio's popular Nostalgia feature over Melbourne's 774. He contributes historical articles to many theatre programs and journals. His books include National Treasure: The Story of Gertrude Johnson and the National Theatre (1994), The Regent Theatre: Melbourne's Palace of Dreams (1996), Tivoli (2003), Huge Deal: The Fortunes and Follies of Hugh D. McIntosh (2004), Florence Young and the Golden Years of Australian Musical Theatre (2009), Her Majesty's Pleasure (Her Majesty's, Adelaide. 2013), Her Majesty’s Theatre, Melbourne: The Shows, The Stars, The Stories (Australian Scholarly Publishing, Kew, 2018), and Hanky-Panky: The Theatrical Escapades of Ernest C. Rolls (2020).
Written by Charles Heslop; with picture research and endnotes by Rob Morrison
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Charles Heslop; with picture research and endnotes by Rob Morrison Australia
With a background in science and biophysics, Rob is equally at home in the Performing Arts having performed in over 70 stage productions since 1975, including plays, revues and musicals for a number of amateur theatre companies based in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs.
As a broadcaster, Rob has been heard on Melbourne community radio 96.5 Inner FM since 1992 contributing to the Local Theatre programme and as the host of the weekly light-music Kaleidoscope and Musical Theatre Melodies programmes. (A selection of Rob’s past interviews from the latter with noted theatre composers and/or lyricists, Leslie Bricusse, Frank Wildhorn and Sheldon Harnick, plus musical theatre historian and author, Miles Kreuger can be accessed on the THA website under Digital Collections – audio.)
Since early 2023 Musical Theatre Melodies has also been available as a podcast, which may be heard at https://www.innerfm.org.au/shows/musical-theatre-melodies/ and recently earned the distinction of being ranked amongst the Top 10 Australian Theatre Podcasts by Feedspot, as listed at https://podcasts.feedspot.com/australian_theatre_podcasts
Rob has also contributed information and articles to the on-line Gilbert and Sullivan Archive, Gilbert and Sullivan Discography and Edward German Discography websites.
Past articles published in the print editions of On Stage include:-
- ‘Are There Any More at Home Like You?’ (Summer 2009, p.30)
- ‘W.S. Gilbert Makes the Music’ (Autumn 2009, p.7)
- ‘Sir Seymour Remembers Dame Nellie’ (Autumn 2010, p.8)
- ‘Remembering Nichols Remembering Melba’ (Spring 2011, p.9)
In addition Rob collaborated on the research into the background of local Music Hall singer, ‘Syria Lamonte’ (Summer 2010, p.5), as outlined in ‘The Search for Syria’ (Autumn 2010, p. 17); provided the footnotes to ‘Richard Watson: “a molasses of a bass”’ (Spring 2009, p.35 & Summer 2010, p.40.) and researched the discography for ‘Richard Watson’s Recorded Legacy’ (Spring 2011, p.18.)
Written by Roger Neill
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Roger Neill UKRoger Neill is a UK-based arts historian. He curated the exhibition Legends: The Art of Walter Barnett for the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra in 2000. He helped Sam Wanamaker to re-build Shakespeare’s Globe in London. His most recent book is The Simonsens of St Kilda: A Family of Singers. With Tony Locantro he co-produced the 4CD set From Melba to Sutherland: Australian Singers on Record for Decca Eloquence.
Written by Richard Fotheringham
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Richard Fotheringham AustraliaRichard Fotheringham is Emeritus Professor of Theatre History at the University of Queensland. His books include Sport in Australian Drama (Cambridge University Press, 1992), In Search of Steele Rudd (UQP, 1995) and Australian Plays for the Colonial Stage 1834-1899 (Aust Academy of the Humanities/UQP, 2006).
Written by Matthew Peckham
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Matthew Peckham AustraliaMatthew Peckham is a freelance consultant providing expert advice on everything related to building, maintaining, renovating or operating theatres and other places of entertainment. Over the past forty years, he has worked on countless productions in theatres too numerous to name, gaining experience he is always willing to share.
Written by Bob Ferris
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Bob Ferris Australia
Bob Ferris is a member of the Australian Cartophilic Society and has collected cigarette and trade cards since the late 1970s. He has been a regular contributor to the Society Newsletter and Magazine—The Australian Card Collector—for over twenty years and has served as Co-editor of the magazine for seven years.
Bob was awarded Life Membership of the Society in 2019.
Written by Frank Van Straten
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Frank Van Straten Australia
Over the years Frank has amassed a vast collection of Australian theatre memorabilia. He was director of the Victorian Arts Centre Performing Arts Museum from 1984 until 1993. For 15 years Frank researched and presented ABC Radio's popular Nostalgia feature over Melbourne's 774. He contributes historical articles to many theatre programs and journals. His books include National Treasure: The Story of Gertrude Johnson and the National Theatre (1994), The Regent Theatre: Melbourne's Palace of Dreams (1996), Tivoli (2003), Huge Deal: The Fortunes and Follies of Hugh D. McIntosh (2004), Florence Young and the Golden Years of Australian Musical Theatre (2009), Her Majesty's Pleasure (Her Majesty's, Adelaide. 2013), Her Majesty’s Theatre, Melbourne: The Shows, The Stars, The Stories (Australian Scholarly Publishing, Kew, 2018), and Hanky-Panky: The Theatrical Escapades of Ernest C. Rolls (2020).