Article: Rep's Old Time Music Hall Turns 20

muse Arts Monthly

May 1994

C O V E R    S T O R Y

Tony Magee reports on kidnappings, fun, discipline and more self-indulgence.

Oh we are three

Ladies of the Rep Company

Who’ve spent a month in rehearsal

Creating universal

Espirit

In Canberra in the early 1970’s, the late Helen Wilson threw wonderful “showbiz” parties that often ended up with a sing-a-long around 3am. She had in her possession some song sheets which had been procured from Players Theatre in London, which held (and still does) an annual Music Hall. Other guests at these parties included Rosemary Hyde, Russell Brown and Andrew Kay. ‘Hey! Why don’t we put on a music hall show…!’

We’re joined by

Four

Others from the hearts of the Corps

Who take their dancing and singing

As seriously as winning

The war

The heyday of Music Hall was from the 1850’s to the First World War, when it became a distinct kind of entertainment with its own theatre, players and repertory. The actual name “music hall” was simply a description of the places where such entertainment took place. Specially adapted or constructed halls were added to public houses to attract custom by providing entertainment. Songs, sketches and ditties were written or adapted, often reflecting the working class life, who were the intended audience.

We ask you

What is it about the Music Hall

That we sing you this song?

It isn’t just because you’re a Londoner

That keeps you coming along

Canberra’s music hall, which is produced by Canberra Repertory Society, began in 1974 and this year marks its 20th anniversary (there was no production in 1977). Even though it was started out of sheer enthusiasm and a love for the art form, music hall has now also become the financial backbone of the Canberra Repertory Society.

The first show ran for two weeks and was held at Theatre Three. At this time, Ross McGregor was both director and manager for Rep. Rosemary Hyde recalls: ‘Helen and I, together with other enthusiastic performers decided to approach Rep Council about the possibility of staging a music hall, with me as director! They agreed, although Ross was a little apprehensive at first - he would normally have directed all of Rep’s productions for the year. Norma Robertson and Andrew Kay teamed up as our pianists and Hector MacMillan was the MC. Russell Brown took over this job in 1975, however he was involved in the ’74 production as a performer. He has never missed a performance.’

Rosemary Hyde has in fact directed all but two music halls. The late Ian Howard directed in 1980, and Colin Anderson directed in 1991. Rosemary has also performed in all of the seasons to date and is fondly dubbed as ‘The Queen of the Music Hall’.

So here’s to Music Hall and Good Queen Rosemary!

How Norma and Andrew can play!

The ship will not go down with Master Russell Brown

While they all keep banging away!

No music hall entertainer was likely to achieve fame and subsequent demand for their services without at least one familiar song connected with his or her name. In the days before the establishment of copyright (around 1900), the music hall stars would buy their songs outright from the hardworking professional composers (Joseph Tabrar is credited with over two thousand songs) for extremely meagre amounts. Many a lasting favourite was sold for a guinea or two, and was then considered to be the singer’s exclusive property.

Rosemary Hyde: ‘With music hall, the show is never really written until the cast has been decided, then you choose the musical numbers to fit the cast. Some people have special songs which we like to bring back every few years or so.’

Doug Williams and Hec MacMillan could certainly both lay claim to ‘Have Some Madeira My Dear’ as could Trish Williams to the ‘Vienna Schnitzel Waltz’ (bang!). Kate Peters will always be ‘Sweet Emiline’, the then 8 years old Kirsty McGregor is unforgettable as ‘The Fairy on the Christmas Tree’ and in ‘Why do I do It’. Dick Goldberg is fondly remembered in ‘Two Lovely Black Eyes’. ‘I’m Only a Faded Rose’ belongs to Queen Rosemary, and Judy Burnett’s ‘A Spider in the Bath’ is another. Sometimes an act is shared by two or three - how about Dick Goldberg, Linda Pearson and Steve Bardwell in ‘Be My Baby Bumble Bee’!

There are also some originals which pianist Andrew Kay has written with specific performers in mind. 

For Rosemary, Andrew has written ‘The Farthing Song’ and ‘Never Been Kissed in the Same Place Twice’. He has also composed ‘Let’s Go Cricketing Together’ for David Cox, ‘Two Young Ladies From the Country’ and ‘It’s Fabulous Being a Fairy’ for Judy Burnett and Rosemary Hyde. ‘Brunhilda and Val Keary Ride Out’ is one for the threesome of Judy Burnett, Rosemary Hyde and Kate Peters.

Other Composers for music hall have been Peter Fyfe who wrote ‘Too Old to be a Principle Boy’ and ‘The Weed Song’ and Vivian Arnold’s ‘Apron and Cap’ performed by Karen Sourry and ‘Bow and Dickie’ for her husband Lindsay Roe, later performed by Gary Pollock.

And Now we’re 

Many

Dedicated women and men

Who’ll work their hardest and meanest

To make this show the cleanest

The English music halls of the 1880’s included such stars as Jenny Hill (1850 - 1895), Arthur Roberts (1852 - 1933) and Harry Randall (1860 - 1932). In Australia and America, similar types of variety shows were termed ‘vaudeville’ and were also intend as a family style entertainment. The burlesque was also a variety show, but strictly adults only. Two Australian vaudeville stars were Mo (Roy Rene) and Arthur Tauchert, later to be know as the ‘bloke’ in the 1919 silent film ‘The Sentimental Bloke’.

In England, the term ‘theatre of varieties’ was a common billing and the music hall gradually developed from providing entertainment as an extra to refreshments, to being a self contained place of theatrical entertainment. In 1914, the consumption of food and drink in the auditorium was forbidden and this marked the end of the old music hall in its original form.

Dick Goldberg recalls: ‘I remember when we were in Theatre Three, the audience were allowed to drink during the show! They would bring flagons of wine and pass them up and down the rows.’ Rosemary Hyde continues: ‘One night, an audience member was enjoying copious amounts of alcohol and became so noisy it looked like the audience was gong to lynch her! We offered her a refund during an interval, but she insisted that she would refrain from interjecting, which she did.’

Kate Peters was kidnapped from the stage one night, as Russell Brown recalls: ‘Kate had just finished performing ‘Why Am I Always The Bridesmaid’ and got called back for an encore. Two large men jumped up onto the stage and carried her off out the side door. I think Kate may have been a bit frightened at first, but fright quickly turned to anger when she realised they meant no harm, but had completely ruined her encore - there was a competition on at the time to see who could milk the most encores out of the audience!’

Just for the record, the undisputed encore king was Phil Thomas, who could get up to five on a good night.

Since being relocated to the ANU Arts Centre, the only drinking that goes on in the auditorium is by the MC, Russell Brown, who is delivered a delightful cold ale every so often by one of the enchanting female members of the chorus, affectionately known as ‘beer girls’! This practice is unique to Canberra’s music hall and came about through absolute necessity! Russell Brown explains: ‘Occasionally, something would go wrong - a performer would lose their voice and be unable to go on, or as on one accession, a delayed plane fight meant that the performer simply wasn’t there! Of course, being out front I never knew about these backstage mishaps so a note would have to be brought to me by a cast member, so I could announce a replacement act. It was decided that I needed a regular visit from a cast member, with a plausible reason for visiting - hence the beer girls slip me a note with my beer if there are any changes to the show!’

Something else unique to our music hall is the ritual of ‘warming up the audience’, as the man who conducted it, Graham Robertson, explains: ‘Warm-up really started when Norma and Andrew noticed that on nights when the audience sang through the overture, it always lifted the whole tone of the evening. So it was decided that a sing-a-long should start every show. I later developed a huge hand on the end of an extremely long arm that I could sort of poke down, and up, into the audience to ‘greet them!’’

Then more come by

And give your scruples one in the eye

And tell you naughty is nicer

And other good advice on the sly

Besides vocal renditions, music hall also has a huge visual impact. Helen Yiannakopoulos has been responsible for much of the choreography (as she is again this year), Lyn Ashcroft and Jeanette Brown are the ladies of the wardrobe, and the Master Of Ceremonies is also the Master of set building - Russell Brown. The music hall backdrop was designed and painted by Michael Salmon in 1977 for a show called ‘Deadwood Dick’ and has been used for music hall ever since.

The musical accompaniment for the original English music hall ranged from a single battered upright piano or accordion in the smaller venues to 20 or more piece orchestras in the larger halls like the famous Oxford Music Hall in Oxford Street. The musical team that is the engine room of our music hall is something of a legend  - pianists Norma Robertson and Andrew Kay. ‘I came to Canberra from the Sydney band scene’, explains Norma.

'I was in a 4 piece that used to play at the Businessmen’s Club in Crows Nest - piano, bass, drums and vibes! I’ve always treated playing with another pianist like playing with a band and in the case of Andrew and I, it just sort of evolved. We’d slog it out in Farrer Primary hall, working out who should do what. At first we used to commit the whole show to memory, but now it’s all written out.’

Andrew Kay continues: ‘Norma and I had actually played together in another show, a 1976 review, but it’s the music hall songs that have really developed our playing style as a piano duo.’

In fact, this musical unity is so strong that it prompted Bill Stephens, owner of the School of Arts Cafe in Queanbeyan, to ask Norma and Andrew if they would do their own piano based show at his venue, an invitation which they accepted, much to the pleasure of the patrons. ‘The best way of describing what we do is that Norma accompanies the performers, and I accompany Norma!’ says Andrew.

Pianist and colleague Pauline Sweeney has also recently been involved. She replaced Andrew while he was overseas last year, and this year replaces Norma, whilst she has a well earned break.

Oh!

We’re almost at the end, we’ve got to go

And sing our last boom-ta-ra-ra

Take off the mascara

And so

Music hall was definitely the bastion of the affluent working-class and lower-middle-class until 1911, when a command performance was held in the presence of King George V. Suddenly, ‘respectable’ people flocked to music hall! One very notable star of the time, Marie Lloyd (1870 - 1922), was so incensed that she was not invited to perform for the King that she set up a rival performance in the same street on the same night! In Australia, patrons of vaudeville were also mainly from the lower class, but the King’s attendance in England prompted several Australian State Governors to follow suit.

The last generation of true music hall artists included Marie Kendal (1873 - 1964), Billy Merson (1881 - 1947) and Australia’s own Florrie Forde (1874 - 1941).

Music hall’s surviving repertory is rich in good tunes and personal association and retains an atmosphere which a production like Rep’s ‘Old Time Music Hall’ fondly exploits on behalf of the modern world’s love of nostalgia and the past.

It’s time to call

Your carriage to the door of Music Hall

And tell your friends that you’ll see them

Here at next year’s seasonal brawl

The Canberra Repertory

Old Time Music Hall

Th-that’s all!

Linking verse: Kay, A. Andrew’s Anthem to Canberra Repertory’s Old Time Music Hall. 1989, 1990. (The closing number in Rep’s Old Time Music Hall since 1989)

Article originally published in Muse Arts Monthly, May 1994