AustLit

The 1904 revised libretto deals with the adventures of John Smith, an Australian politician in New Zealand who tangles with a Maori tohunga (priest). The romantic interest, and indeed the focus of the narrative action, comes about through Mara, a 'Katisha' who has been declared 'tapu' or sacred. 'Any man who touches her must either marry her or die - and apparently many have been prepared to meet death cheerfully' (The Sydney Morning Herald 11 July 1904, p10).

New Zealand newspaper The Free Lance provides insight into the principal characters originally conceived by Adams and Hill:

Miss Gertie Campion (Fay Chrysaha) and Mr. D. O'Connor (John Smith) have leading parts as two operatic stars whose civilian dress has been seized by distrustful creditors while they were on the backblocks stage, and who, therefore, in their fancy dress, find refuge in the Maori pah. Smith is mistaken for the Commonwealth delegate, and is honoured accordingly. He also captures the fancy of Mara, a Maori maiden, whose lover (Tonga), in jealous retaliation, makes love to Chrysalia ('Footlight,' p.21).

Arias and ballet music known to have been written for the opera are : 'Hail, Mighty Politician,' 'Poi Dance' 'Bicycle Song,' 'Bedelia,' 'A Woman's Wistful Heart,' 'No Love Like the Old Love' and 'A Happy Family,' "Nobody Takes the Chances,' 'The Terrible Law of Tapu,' and 'O Mara, Your Heart is a Garden.' One particular highlight was the Maori 'Haka,' of which on critic wrote: 'an almost indescribable savage outburst; an ethnologist rather than mere musical critic should be turned on to do justice to so typical and 'nationalistic' a performance' (Age 22 Aug. 1904, p6).

Produced for the first time only two weeks before the death of its composer, H. T. Harrision, Saucy Suzie was described in advertising as a 'nautical burlesque,' comprising over forty songs composed, arranged and selected by H. T. Harrison. Divided into 3 acts and five scenes, Peter Downes records in The Pollards that the work stuggled for acceptance due to its excessive length (p. 137).

Based on the popular pantomime story of Sinbad the Sialor, the narrative was played out in three acts, comprising the following scenes:

Act 1 Scene 1. Davey Jones' Locker. Cavern under the Sea;

Scene 2. Port of Balasora. A village Carnival. Hornpipe in Fetters. Sinbad's Departure;

Scene 3. Saloon of the Bobstay;

Scene 4. Wreck of the Vessel. Storm at Sea. Breakers Ahead. Neptune to the Rescue.

Act 2 Scene 1. The Royal Bath at Nowayer Patiklar. The Nautch Dance and the Ballet of the Harem;

Scene 2. The Mountain Pass. Topical duets;

Scene 3. The Diamond Valley. Ballet of thr Night Elves and the Grand Amazonian March. Starting Trap Scenes. Flight of the Fairy Rock and Escape of Sinbad.

Act 3 Scene 1. The King's Palace. Grand Variety and Specialty Scene;

Scene 2. The Palace Gardens. Recovery of the Koh-i-Noor;

Transformation Scene

Harlequinade

The production's music elements included the following songs and dances: 'Didn't I Run, Run, Run' (sung by Will Crackles), 'Rosie O'Grady' (Ada Baker), 'Il Bacio' and 'Canary Polka' (Frank Lawton), 'Darling Mabel' (Eva Clements), 'We'll Just Have Another and Then' (Crackles and Stanfield), 'Mary Used to Go to Sunday School' (Stella Esdaile), 'Remedies' (Stanfield), 'Love's Duet' (Phillips and Esdaile), and the 'Magnificent Trio Dance' (performed by Misses E. and A. Hooper and Frank Lawton).

Although set mostly in Egypt (with scenes of the pyramids, Cairo, and Ancient Memphis), this original fairytale nevertheless concludes with a scene set in Australia: Melbourne or Sydney, depending on where it was being produced.

The story concerns a beautiful young princess's rescue (by her beloved prince) from a sacrifice at the hands of Matsa, the evil Queen of Fire (who demands the life of a maiden every hundred years). The Fates point to Zelica as the victim and dispatch Pentaur (a revived mummy) to modern Cairo to seize her. Pentaur's attempt is foiled by Colonel Boomley (an American speculator) and Prince Simbal (Captain of the Khedive's Guard), but he manages to trick them into eating the magic apples of Isis the Great, which somehow send them back to Memphis of 3000 years ago, a time when Rameses III ruled Egypt. Zelica is eventually saved, but not before several grand adventures occur, including the group's capture by pygmies. Secondary characters incorporated into the narrative include an ugly Irish spinster and an American heiress, along with warriors, priests, and others. The Sydney Morning Herald critic notes that although 'the comic element in Matsa is not strong... there are some clever lyrics in the libretto... Much [of the production's success, however] is due to the grace and gaiety of the music' (29 February 1897, p.7).

The production included the usual Williamson spectacles: grand marches, sumptuous ballets, and elaborate and striking costumes. Some notable features of the production were 'The Mist of Past Ages', 'Ancient Memphis Restored', 'The Tomb of the Kings', 'The Triumphant Return of Rameses III', 'The Great Martial Procession' (comprising some 250 people), 'The Land of the Pygmies', 'Matsa's Cyclopian Guards', 'March of the Elephants, Lions and Tigers and Other Animals', 'The Home of the Queen of Fire', 'Sensational Fire Ballet', 'On a P and O Steamer in the Suez', 'The Court of the Queen of Air', and the 'Astounding Ariel Ballet.'

The visual highlight of the production, according to one review, were George Gordon's scenes 'The Rising of the Nile' and the 'Startling Inundation Scene', which show the destruction of Matsa's temple by an inundation of the Nile. 'The priestesses,' records one critic, 'are seen dancing in the fire, until overwhelmed by the water. The massive temple sinks bit by bit, the Nile rises higher and higher, and at last the stage 'looks like a vast extent of water shimmering under a full moon' (Sydney Morning Herald 2 January 1897, p.4).

Staged in three acts and ten tableaux, the pantomime opened with the traditional Fairy Land setting, where children dressed as elves hammered miniature anvils with little golden hammers. After the Forces of Evil are called up, the scene changes back to Earth: a nautical setting on the banks of the Thames. From here, the story follows, in a fashion, Defoe's original story, including Crusoe's embarkation, the storm and shipwreck, and the island upon which he finds himself stranded. The storyline deviates at various intervals, largely as a means of incorporating spectacle. Two such scenes are 'The Fight with the Tigers' (act 2, scene 2) and 'The Rajah's Palace' (last act), where the Rajah of Chimpanzee consents to the marriage of his daughter with Crusoe, thus bringing the pantomime to an end.

The musical program included 'Sweet Bells Say' (sung by Marie Luella), 'At My Window' and 'What is it Whispering in My Heart' (Edith Moore), 'He Got it Where the Chicken Got the Axe' and 'Ting a Ling Ting' (Bobby Watson), 'The Fighting Tailor' (Tommy Cosgrove), 'I Don't Want to Play in Your Yard' (Florrie Ranger), and 'The Band Played On' and 'The Boy in the Gallery' (Amy William and Amy Gourley). Other musical music highlights included 'The Sinbad Ballet' (performed as Crusoe departs on his voyage of discovery), 'The Trilby Ballet' (staged with 'an entirely new novelty'), 'The Cannibal Ballet', 'The Harem Ballet' (an Oriental dance), and a thirty-member hornpipe dance performed by children.

Among the numerous novelties incorporated into the narrative were 'Peter Jackson the Fighting Kangaroo' and 'Henry the Braying Donkey.' The visual spectacle saw a depiction of Crusoe's ship wrecked in the thunderstorm, with the staging including a mechanical device that allowed Crusoe to be tossed about on his raft. The harlequinade was also described as novel, being staged aboard a train that was apparently racing through the countryside. The transformation scene was titled 'Through the Mazes of Fairy Land to the Home of the Naiads.'

Described by its creators as a 'Fairy Tale of Old Japan', and with echoes of The Mikado throughout, the story concerns Djin Djin, an evil demon who holds the talisman that can save the life of Princess Iris. She will die unless someone defeats Djin Djin and liberates the talisman. To do this, they must risk entering the ruined temple where the demon and his horde of followers are based.

The pantomime was advertised as a 'grand spectacular extravaganza,' and indeed it had no fewer than thirty-eight named performers, with a host of other actors and dancers playing roles such as Mousinées, Flower Fairies, Snow Elves, Japanese Ladies, Samurai, Councillors, Officials, Courtiers, Coolies, Guards, Jinrikishamen, Spirits, Demons and Monkeys etc. The principal characters were Prince Omi (a Japanese feudal prince), Prince Eucalyptus (a suitor from the sunny south whose yacht is wrecked on the shores of Japan), Hojo-no-Kami (Diamio, a feudal prince), Princess Iris (a daughter of the Diamio), Cheekee (the Diamio's other daughter), Okiama (the Diamio's maiden sister of uncertain age), Djin Djin (the Bogie-man), Oda Nobunga (the Great Shogun), Prince Omi (the Shogun's son turned into a baboon by Djin Djin), Chrysantheme (the Fairy Queen), Dede, Maid to Princess Iris), Gay-Jay (the Grand Vizier), Fli-qui-Sami (Japan's astrologer), and Tom Wallaby (Prince Eucalyptus' faithful valet and friend).

The scene breakdown for the 1895 Melbourne premiere production was:

Act 1: Scene 1. The Shrine of the Soothsayer;

Scene 2. A Street in Nagasaki;

Scene 3. Palace Gardens of Hojo No Kami. Grand Procession and Fan ballet, Brilliant Illumination of Nagasaki.

Act 2: Scene1 Courtyard of Damio's Palace;

Scene 2. Enchanted Bamboo Grove;

Scene 3. The Frozen Forest. A Novel and Beautiful Transformation. Dance of Snow Elves and Chrysanthemum Ballet;

Scene 4. Exterior of the Haunted Temple;

Scene 5. Interior of the Temple. Grand Demon Trap Scene. The Earthquake. The Eruption of Fuji San.

Act 3: Scene 1. The Shogun's Court; Grand Specialty Entertainment by John Coleman, the Banvards, the Ridgeways, Ivy Scott and Carrie Moore. Off to Fairy Land;

Scene 2. The Golden City; Grand Ballet - Dazzling Scene of Electric Splendour. Grand Harlequinade and old English Comic Scenes by the Ridgeway Family.

[Source: Australian Variety Theatre Archive]

Bert Royle's text for the burlesque is said to follow the original storlyline closely, though much of the dialogue and all of the songs were 'obviously new.' It is likely, however, that some of the material may well have been based on an earlier burlesque of the Black-Eyed Susan story, staged in 1890 by John F. Sheridan, and for which Royle contributed lyrics to J. A. Robertson's music. One of the most ludicrous incidents in the burlesque, records the Sydney Morning Herald critic was the scene in which 'a boat full of tars who rowed gaily over the waves, and then, to the delight of the whole house, walked upon the stage with the shell of the boat round their waists.' Another particular highlight was Crosstree's escape over a human bridge formed by four acrobats (6).

Musical numbers incorporated into the narrative included the songs 'Too Long A-Lingering' (sung by Fred Dark), 'The Gipps Street Buccaneers' (trio), 'At Four O'clock in the Morning' (Forde); and a nautical dance performed by the 'tiny' child Kitty Lohr.

Staged with no less than twelve scenes in its three act division, along with the traditional harlequinade and transformation fantasy, and with many of the scenes again subdivided, the production was said to 'bristle with incident' (Sydney Morning Herald 24 December 1894, p.6). Topical allusions, 'atrocious puns' and 'awful political squibs' aimed at prominent local politicians were said to be numerous. Indeed, the Herald's theatre critic records that 'during a casual lapse into plot, one gathers from the dialogue that the house that Jack was to build was a new house for the Legislature of this long-suffering colony. This transpires in fitful flashes in the utterance of heroic metre that permits itself generous license as to scansion; but it is made perfectly plain in the elaborate set piece that is arranged to illustrate the idea' (6).

Musical highlights included the songs 'I Don't Suppose You Have' (sung by Florrie Forde), 'The Charming Slave Ballet;' and 'The Fire Ballet,' with the latter having been devised by George Rignold. Set in the witch's cave, and performed by the Fairy Butterflies, this sensation dance required the dancers to be surrounded by flames, an effect which was claimed had never been tried on any stage in Australia. The Sydney Morning Herald review describes the ballet thus:

Several highly materialised spooks... [dance] a la Macbeth round a cauldron. Presently they set fire to a pile of faggots underneath, and the cauldron is transformed into a sort of shell, wherein rests a beautiful maiden. The flames rise, surround her, and play furiously about her beautiful form, but she preserves a serene smile as one whose conscience is easy and who has a heavy life insurance policy. Then she rises and dances gracefully amid the flames, and soon she is joined by dozens of others (p.6).

Other highlights included 'Christmas in England - Revels in the Snow,' 'The Ascent of the Flying Machine,' and 'The Ogre's Palace of Cards

A number of performers from the 1894 Her Majesty's (Sydney) season were engaged for a tour under the title the Royal Variety and Ballad Company. Jack the Giant Killer's 'Grand Pantomime Harlequinade,' which had been invented and arranged by Will Perman, was staged as a second part extravaganza (with the first part being essentially a minstrel/vaudeville programme. Advertising for the Brisbane Theatre Royal season indicates that the harlequinade was staged in two scenes: Sc 1. 'Regent Street in Humpybong'; Sc 2. 'Any Place You Know Of.'

[Source: Australian Variety Theatre Archive]

A song about a man giving up his larrikin gang (push) lifestyle for the love of his woman (donah).

The story begins in the 'Wolf's Lair' at Spider Web Valley, where the Wolf and his accomplice, Fox the Lawyer hatch their evil plan. The action then moves to the 'Happy Village of Maypole' where characters such as the Dame (Principal of the school) and Little Red Riding Hood are introduced. After wandering in the woods Red falls asleep only to be captured by the Wolf. Little Boy Blue later mounts a rescue which leads to a duel to the death. The final scene, described as a "genuine pantomime feature" saw the inclusion of a Dolls Quadrille, 'in which dolls of every height and shape, from giants to the veriest dwarfs, solemnly descended a grand staircase at the back of the stage, and amidst shrieks of laughter joined in the dance.'

The narrative (at least in the 1893 Melbourne production) is said to have contained numerous references to topical issues, in addition to a burlesque of I Pagliacci. The Melbourne version, which was advertised using the alternative title) also included a procession of sporting representatives (lady jockeys, footballers, cricketers, sailors, fishermen, billiardists, golfers, bicyclists etc), which does not appear to have been presented for Sydney audiences.

[Source: Australian Variety Theatre Archive]

Written, adapted and arranged by Bert Royle with 'music largely derived from Ancient Oriental Sources, and with Modern Music Hall Melodies' composed and arranged by H. T. Harrison, this version of the popular Forty Thieves story begins in Toadstool Swamp where a conclave of Mephistos plan the overthrow of the thieves. The narrative's humorous intent is demonstrated in the scene that follows the grand ballet (set in the Temple of Terpsichore). Ali Baba and his wife arrive on the scene in a tandem dog cart drawn by two eccentric and humorous donkeys. The cart falls to pieces and the occupants are thrown out just as Ali's son turns up in the company of a policeman, Cerulo. This leads to 'all sorts of amusing repartee and funny antics [which keeps] the action briskly moving until the arrival of Hassarac and his band of desperados' (Age 27 December 1892, p.6).

[Source: Australian Variety Theatre Archive]

Advertised as a 'refined musical extravaganza,' this localised version of the F. C. Burnand burlesque on Douglas Jerrold's original 1929 drama had an extensive musical component, containing (according to one source) some forty musical numbers. The story was set in seven scenes, with these being:

• Act 1; Scene 1. Susan' Cottage

• Scene 2. Rocky Pass

• Scene 3. The Jolly Mugs

• Scene 4. Dame Halley's Cottage

• Act 2; Scene 1. The Jolly Mugs

• Scene 2. The Gaol

• Scene 3. Deck of H.M.S. Calliope

The additional material supplied by Bert Royle no doubt required of him some intensive research into local identities and recent events when the production was taken on tour. For example, its staging in Brisbane (1890) saw part of the story is set in the Brisbane Gaol, which suggests that the text would have contained satirical hits aimed at the local audience. The Brisbane Courier writes in regard to this aspect of the 1890 production, 'Mr Sheridan, as Henry Irving Smith, a smuggler, and afterwards Captain Crossgrain, was irresistibly funny, and had been supplied with any number of local hits' (28 April 1890, p.4). When the company returned for a two night season a week later (having opened for two nights at Ipswich during the week), the paper's critic further noted that 'the dialogue was interspersed with many local allusions to persons and occurrences [which] were appreciated, and created a great deal of amusement' (3 May 1890, p.5).

The musical programme inserted into the production included 'a magnificent song, '"Traveller's All" [sung] by Mr Montague, [of which] it is said… had not been heard in Australia for over a quarter of a century,' 'The Villagers Chorus,' 'Merry Little Bridesmaids' (female trio), 'The Smugglers, Silence and Fun' (male trio), 'The Coquette' (solo), 'How He Carries On' (solo), 'On Board the Lugger' (company), 'Two Lovely Black-Eyes' and 'Villains of the Deepest Dye' (quintet), 'Heave Away' (solo/ chorus), 'It's English, You Know' (with dialect verses in English, Irish, Scotch, French, Yankee and Dutch sung by J. F. Sheridan), 'Farewell My Own,' and 'Pretty See-U-Pass' (company), 'Moonlight Killarney' (duo), 'The Kranky Boys' (quartette), 'Turn on Old Time' (trio), 'Tooral-I-Oo-Ral-I' (company), 'Beautiful Moon' (duet) and the solo/chorus 'The Blatherun' (Brisbane Courier 28 April, p4). The Sydney season (1891) was commended, too, for the quality of the several ballets, the highlights being 'The Snow Ballet,' which was described as 'a scenic and terpsichorian display [that ranked] as the most wonderful and picturesque ever presented to an Australian audience' and 'The Grand Sailor Ballet' (Sydney Morning Herald 25 Apr. 1891, 2). John F. Sheridan also performed two new numbers, 'You Can't Think of Everything' and 'Is He Guilty?' (a parody on 'Bright Little Glass').