Australian Variety Theatre Archive

The Australian Variety Theatre Archive (AVTA) is a research website devoted to popular culture entertainment in the Australasian region between circa 1850 and 1930. This year, 2015, marks its fifth year of publication.

The website went online on 10 May 2011, the 146th anniversary of the birth of Australian vaudeville entrepreneur Harry Clay. Since then the archive has published more than 1100 new records, while also updating many entries previously published.

The goal for the past 12 months, to publish one entry a day, was exceeded by 38, with 403 new entries added to the AVTA.

Dr Clay Djubal would like to thank all those people who have contributed to the archive during the past 12 months. Without their help the AVTA would be much less enlightened.

He would also like to thank the 18,852 people who have visited the site between 10 May 2014 and 10 May 2015. The busiest month was August 2014 with 1,966 visitors.

2014/15 also saw the introduction of two new sections:

Film and Vaudeville

Revusical Ballets & Chorus

Entrepreneurs:

Vincent M. Beebe • George H. Birch • Dan Clifford • Frank Hussey • George H. Jones • Robert McLeish • Graham Mitchell • George Stephenson • Frank Weston

Fads & Fashion

American Box Ball • Ball Punching • The Mutoscope • Netball • Push Ball

Industry

1. M. Dinsdale • Will Andrade [1] • Will Andrade [2] • Australasian Publicity Bureau • Australian Melodist • Australian Musical Productions Pty Ltd • Henry Benjamin • Board & Residence Establishments • Clifton Gardens (Mosman, Sydney) • Valentine Day • Dreamland (St Kilda, Melb) • Eastern Vaudeville Agency • Goodson Bros • Goodson Pictures • Green Room Club (Melb) • Green Room Club (Perth) • Huon Mechanics Institute (Tas) • North’s Concerts (Melb) • Prince’s Court (Melb) • R.S.L. Concert parties • Sidelines • Joe Slater • Joe Slater Publishing • Snowy Sturgeon • E. Totten • Val Morgan Advertising Contractor • White City (Perth) • Wonderland City (Sydney)

Industry: Trans-Oceanic Circuits

Pantages (USA) • Sullivan & Considine (USA)

International Tourists

Charles Backus • Backus Minstrels • Emil Biermann • Paul Cinquevalli • Frank Dix • W. C. Fields • George Gibbons • Harry Houdini • Harry Lauder • Sable Minstrels • Eugen Sandow • Chung Ling Soo

Music Directors/Composers

May Brook • Kenneth L. Duffield • Hal Dyson • Lou Weichard • F. Wynne Jones

 Music Directors/Composers [Other]

 Herbert De Pinna • H. T. Harrison • Willy Redstone • Reginald Stoneham

Orchestras & Bands

Flying Squadron Orchestra (Rockhampton)

Organisations & Partnerships

All-Star Vaudeville • Austral Picture Co • Australian Musical Productions Pty Ltd • British Bioscope Co (Rockhampton) • Delohery, St John and Holland • Dix’s Gaiety Co • Efftee Film productions • Empire Theatre Ltd • Lyceum Pictures Ltd • Mount Morgan Amusement Co • North’s Concerts • North’s vaudeville Co • Olympia Amusement Co • Weston & La Feullade

Practitioners:

Percy Abbott • Dan Agar • Armstrong & Howarth • Armstrong & Phillips • Armstrong & Rose Armstrong & Verne • Chic Arnold • Sam Babicci • Billy Barlow • Bob Bell • Bert Ralton & His Havana Band • Bridges Trio • Jack Bryant • May Bryant • • BryantTom Buckley • Buckley & Holly • Mae Busch • William Busch • Frank Cane (aka Kavello) • Vera Carew • Billie Carlyle • Denis Carney • Carr-Glynn, Neva [1] • Carr-Glynn, Neva [2] • Daisy Chard • Nat Clifford • Maud Courtney • Colin Croft • Finlay Currie [aka Mr C] • George Dean • Sam Dearin • Dora De Vere • Leonard Doogood • Driscoll Bros • Ethiopian Serenaders [1] • Nellie M. Ferguson • Ferry the Frog • Buster Fiddes • Johnny Gardner • Johnny Gilmore • Ben Goodson • Syd Hollister • Charles Holly • Mabs Howarth • Dot Ireland • Jarvis & Campbell • Essie Jennings • Keith’s Syncopating Jesters • Keating & Ross • Sylvia Kellaway • Annette Kellermann • Willie Kerr • Jantz Kohlman • Kohlman & Gardner • Page Lang • Hal Lashwood • Emil Lazern • Minnie Love • Edna McCall • George McCall • Val Mack • Durham Marcel • Maud Courtney & Mr C • Clement May • Carl Mehden • Harry Mehden • Page Lang Entertainers • Paragon Trio • “Banjo” Patterson • Queenie Paul • Tommy Peel • W. S. Percy • Peter Piccini • Alexander Poe • Victor Prince • Reg Quarterly • Grace Quine • The Racoons • Molly Raynor • Ada Reeve • Goodie Reeve • Maurice Rooklyn • The Three Ruddles • Lynn Smith • Lynn Smith’s Royal Jazz Band • Ernest Nicholls • Doc Rowe & Mystic Mora • Terrt Scanlon • Joe Small • Stampini • Marjorie Streeter Pain • “Tassie” Tole • Tom Katz & His Saxophone Band • Madam Verto • Percy Verto • The Tyrells • George Wallace Jnr • Ward & Sherman • Matador A. Zigomar/Zigomars

Practitioners: Other

Peter Finch • John Gavin • Alf J. Goulding • J. A. Lipman • Vaiben Louis • Louise Lovely • Albert Lucas • Dot Mendoza • Gladys Moncrieff • Marietta Nash • Tal Ordell • Arthur Stignant • Dion Titheradge • Ronald Whelan • Byrl Walkley • Howett Worster

Repositories

American Minstrels Shows Collection (Houghton Library) • Concerts and Theatre Programs Collection (AWM)

Stage Characters

Bluey & Dopey • Little Hermie • Mutt and Chop

Theatres

Academy of Music (Launceston) • Albert Hall (Adelaide) • Albert Hall (Brisbane) • Albert Hall [2] (Brisbane) • Alexandra Hall (Toowoomba) • Apollo Hall [2] (Melbourne) + Eastern Arcade • Arcadia (Rockhampton) • Austral Gardens (Adelaide) • Austral Hall (Toowoomba) • Centennial Hall (Moss Vale) • Central Hall / Queen’s Hall [2] (Adelaide) • Coliseum (Rockhampton) • Dale Street Vaudeville Hall (Port Adelaide) • Earl’s Court [2] (Rockhampton) • Empire Theatre (Adelaide) • Empire /Star Theatre (Port Adelaide) • Empire Picture Theatre (Bowral) • Exhibition Gardens (Adelaide) • Golden Gate Gardens (Sydney) • Goodsons’ Promenade Concert Grounds (Rockhampton) • Mack’s Theatre Royal (Moss Vale) • Majestic Theatre (Launceston) • Manchester Unity Hall (Charters Towers) • Northcote Theatre (Melb) • Oddfellows’ Hall (Charters Towers) • Olympia (Rockhampton) • Olympia Skating Rink (Charters Towers) • Palais Royal (Adelaide) • Port Adelaide Town Hall (Port Adelaide) • Port Theatre (Port Adelaide) • Prahran Town Hall (Melb) • Prince of Wales Theatre (Charters Towers) • Queen’s Theatre (Adelaide) • Queen’s Hall [1] (Adelaide) • Rex Theatre (Fortitude Valley, Brisbane) • Rivoli Theatre, Camberwell (Melb) • Royal Assembly Rooms (Toowoomba) • Royal Victoria Theatre (Adelaide) • School of Arts [1] (Brisbane) • School of Arts [2] (Brisbane) • School of Arts (Charters Towers) • School of Arts (Millchester, Charters Towers) • School of Arts [1] (Mt Morgan) • School of Arts [2] (Mt Morgan) • School of Arts [3] (Mt Morgan) • School of Arts [1] (Toowoomba) • Stadium / Olympia Theatre Strand Theatre / Tivoli Theatre (Rockhampton) • Temperance Hall (Hobart) • Theatre Royal [1] (Melb) • Theatre Royal (Rockhampton) • Tivoli Gardens (Adelaide) • Tivoli Theatre (Adelaide) • Toowoomba Town Hall [1] • Toowoomba Town Hall [2] • Walhalla Hall (Toowoomba) • Walker’s Store (Toowoomba) • Wintergarden (Rockhampton)

Towns

Albany (WA) • Boulder (WA) • Bowral (NSW) • Charters Towers (Qld) • Eastern Goldfields (WA) • Fremantle (WA) • Kalgoorlie (WA) • Moss Vale (NSW) • Newcastle (NSW) • Rockhampton (Qld) • Toowoomba (Qld)

Troupes

Digger Troupes:  Amateur Frolics Co • Australian Dandies • Australian Flying Corps Concert Party • The Beaufort Merrymakers • Black Diamonds Costume Comedy Co • Blue Dandies • Blue Diamonds • Cheer-Oh Girls • Dum Dum Dinkums • The Empties • Field Artillery Pirates • Flying Kangaroos • Green Diamonds • The Kangaroos [2] • Kangaroos Koncert Kompany • Kookaburras [3] • The Merrymakers • The Night Birds • The Perhams Stars • Serenaders • The Tropical Troubadours • The Wattle Birds • Whizz-bangs • The Wombats

Other:  Ada Reeve Vaudeville Co (Perth, 1924) • Australian Bushranging Bio & Specialty Co • Australian Minstrel Co • Baltimore Minstrels [1] • Baltimore Minstrels [2] • Barlow, Bromley, Buckley & Holly • Billy Cass Revue Co • Billy Maloney’s New Ideas • Billy Maloney’s Scandals [1] • Billy Maloney’s Scandals [2] • Biograph and Trans-Atlantic Entertainers • Blondenette Lady Minstrels • Boley’s Minstrels • Bosley Vaudeville Co • Buckley & Gardner Minstrels • Buckley & Holly’s Pleasure Party • The Cameos • Campbell’s Minstrels [1] • Campbell’s Minstrels [2] • Christy’s Minstrels [1] • Christy’s Original Sable Opera Troupe • Cosmopolitan Band and Coloured Opera Troupe • Ethiopian Serenaders [2] • Gibbons’ Minstrels • Hussey, Kelly & Holly’s Celebrated Comedians • Jones’s Huge Surprise Party • Jones’s Mammoth Moving Theatre • Kenna’s Empire Minstrels • K-Nuts • La Feuillade, Peel & Weston’s Christy Minstrels • Lawton, Dearin & Sayers’ Troubadours • Lawton and Dearin’s Federal Minstrels & Comiques • Lottie Magnet Variety Troupe • Mutoscope Biotint Co • Nightingale Serenaders [1] • Nightingale Serenaders [2] • 1925 Minstrels (Perth) • Old Time Nigger Minstrels [1] • Old Time Nigger Minstrels [1] • Paragon Bellringers • Polite Vaudeville & Minstrels Co • Priddy’s Electric Marvels & Mammoth Specialty Combination • The Revellers • Royal Magnet Variety Troupe • Sam Dearin’s Minstrels & Comiques • Smith, Brown and Collins Minstrels • So & So’s (Perth) • So and So’s Costume Comedy Co (Adel) • Stanley McKay’s Gaieties • State Entertainers • Swastika Players • Ted Tutty Vaudeville Co • T.O.M.C.A.T.S. (Charters Towers) • Topics of 1925 • Verto Vaudeville Co • Vert’s Biotint & Novelty Co • The Wanderers • Weichard’s International Vaudeville Stars • Weston & Hussey’s Minstrels • Weston & La Feuillade’s Minstrels • William Anderson’s London Vaudeville Stars • Will’s Surprise Party • Ye Olde Nigger Minstrels • Young Australia League (Y.A.L.)

Works

Variety:  Aladdin (1914) • Babes in the Wood (1929) • Carrie on Carrie (1918) • Combien (1919) • Demons of the Deep (1922) • Dick Whittington (1917) • Dick Whittington Up to Date (1919) • Dolly’s Dilemma (1918) • Fiddle De Dee (1933) • Flying Colours (1933) • Fortune Hunting (1918) • Fun Rays (1934) • Gay Paree (1934) • Gee Whiz (1934) • Goody Two Shoes (1880) • HMS Pin-A-4 (in Black) [2] (1882) • Laughter Unlimited (1934) • Oddments (1934) • Oh Baby (1934) • The Radio Girl (1926) • Saucy Suzie (1899) • She’s Crazy About You (1934) • Sky High (1934) • Something Different (1934) • Snap (1925) • Tons of Money (1924) • While the Billy Boils (1919)

 Legitimate:  Australia First (1914)

 Film & Vaudeville:  Cinesound Varieties (1934) • Efftee Entertainers (1931-33) • Harmony Row (1933) • His Royal Highness (1932) • Show Business (1938) • Strike Me Lucky (1934)

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The AVTA is another publication from