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, 2016, marks its sixth 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 1,200 new records, while also updating many entries previously published.

During the past 12 months 137 new entries and 6 new sections were added, as were more than 30 Research Notes PDFs. This new initiative will for the time being replace the AVTA’s traditional expanded biographies. The increasing availability of digitised resources – especially the Australian National Library’s digitised newspaper service, Trove – now makes these expanded biographies out of date almost as soon as they are published.

Another initiative for 2015/16 and for the remainder of 2016 is to overhaul all records and pages within the AVTA. This will see include:

1. Creating hyperlinks to all currently digitised newspaper resources in Trove and elsewhere (where applicable); and
2. Reformatting all PDFs with full citation details (removing abbreviations)

It is anticipated that this project will be completed by January 2017

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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 21,160 people who visited the site between 10 May 2015 and 10 May 2016. The busiest month was August 2015 with 2,203 visitors.

Celebrity Endorsements & Cross Promotion • Fads and Fashions: Technology • Film & Vaudeville • International Media • Showboats & Cruises • Schools of Arts

Entrepreneurs:

George E. Melrose • A. T. Richards • Charles Sudholz

Fads & Fashion

Coin-in-the-Slot Machines • Salome Dance

Film and Vaudeville

British Biograph Co • Williamson’s Bio-Tableau

Industry

Ayala Champagne • Bambury & White • Bonnington’s Irish Moss • Harold Ashton • Cato & Co • Charles L. Devereaux • Dr Sheldon’s • Freeman & Wallace • G. W. Hean • Andy Hosking • Madison’s Budget  •  S.S. Gippsland • The Player • Product Placement • Rexona • S.S. Rose • A. C. White • White-Cane Agency

Industry: Trans-Oceanic Circuits

Loew’s Vaudeville Circuit •  Orpheum Circuit (USA) • Port Louis Theatre (Mauritius) • United Booking Office of America (USA)

International Tourists

Arthur Albert [UK] •  Alcase-Lorraine • Paul Kinko • Lampini Bros • World’s Entertainers [1]

Music Directors/Composers

J. P. Knowles • R. W. Oyston

Organisations and Partnerships

Amusu Vaudeville • Williamson, Lee & Rial

Practitioners:

Mons. Henry Abdy • Billy & Pearl Akarman • Molly Ambrose • Amusu Duo • Arthur Albert • Joe Archer • Austral Trio [1] • Austral Trio [2] • Doris Baker • Norman Bambury • Heather Belle • Al Bruce •  Charles Bryant • Eileen Capel • Myra Carden • Herbert Cato • Ken Collie • Congo Minstrel [1] • Congo Minstrel [2] •  Congo Minstrel [3] • Piccaninny Congo Minstrel • Keith Connolly • Mary Connolly • Bert Corrie • Corrie & Baker • Corrie & Verne • Freda Cuthbert  • Harriet Gordon • Charley Horton • Elsie Hosking • J. P. Hydes • Jackson & Pagden • Vivie Keeling • James E. Kitts • Madame Lampino • Charles Lawrence • Ward Lear • Ward Lear Jnr • McKisson & Kearns • Murray Masculin • Prince Masculin • The Mintons • George Pagden • Pagden & Stanley • Cleo Rinaldo • Joseph Rinaldo • Gerald Shaw • Gladys Shaw • Harry Shine • Phil Smith • Kitty Stanley • Joe Verne

Practitioners: Other

 Mona Barlee • Henry Deering • Olly Deering • Marie La Varre

Stage Characters

Hank Dinkumflater • Lanky & Bulky

Theatres

Albert Theatre (Geelong) • Huon Mechanics’ Institute (Franklyn) • Mechanics’ Institute (Geelong) • Royal Dramatic Hall • Theatre Royal (Geelong)

Troupes: Other:

Al Bruce and His Rosebuds • Bain & Lawton’s Vaudeville Co • Bryant’s All-Star Novelty Co • Clark & Shine’s All-Star Co • Congo Minstrels • A Day in Dogtown Co • Devereaux’s World’s Biotint Entertainers • Diamond Variety Co • English Pierrot Entertainers • Frivolities of 1935 • Gay Crusaders • Hill’s World’s Entertainers • League of Notions • London Bioscope Co • Loyola’s Magnet Variety Troupe • Myra Carden’s Magnet Co • New York Serenaders [1] • New York Serenaders [2] • O’Donnell & Ray’s Pantomime Co • Old Time Minstrels [1929] • Richards’ Entertainers • Royal Magnet Combination Troupe • Royal Magnet Variety Troupe [2] • Shaw’s Entertainers • Sudholz’s Bio-Tableau & World’s Entertainers • World’s Animatograph Co • Veterans of Variety [1] • World’s Entertainers [2] • World’s Entertainers [3] • World’s Entertainers & Animatograph Co • World’s Star Entertainers • World’s Vaudeville Co

Works

Variety: Beauty and the Beast (1858) • Cafe de Jazz (1924) • Crispin, King of the Cobblers (1847) • Emigration; Or, Harlequin in California (1849) • Fe Fi Fo Fum; Or, Jack the Giant Killer (1849) • Harlequin and the Enchanted Egg (1842) • Harlequin and the Evil Spirit of Wye (1841) •  Harlequin and the Talking Bird (1844) •  Harlequin and the Three Wishes (1849) • Harlequin Greek (1849) • Harlequin Tom, the Piper’s Son (1847) • Humpty Dumpty; Or, Harlequin and the Fairy of the Enchanted Egg (1846) • Jack and the beanstalk (1848) • Lanky and Bulky as Farmers (1918) • Lanky and Bulky in Paris (1918) • Mother Bunch, the Fairy of the Lake and Palace of the Blazing Star (1847) • Mother Hubbard and Her Dogs (1849) • Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe (1849) • Puss in Boots (1848) • The Red Gnome of the Ruby Mines (1848) • Red Riding Hood (1920) • Rich Girl, Poor Girl (1921) • Tom Tom the Piper’s Son (1846) • Transportation, and the Demon Discord (1847) • Vogues of 1935

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The AVTA is another publication from