Janet Achurch, Ibsen, and the New Woman, Australia
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
The Woman Who Did: Janet Achurch, Ibsen, and the New Woman, Australia 1889–1891 by Christine Judith Angel, BTourism, B.A. (Hons) School of Humanities, English Program Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) University of Tasmania September 2014 Declaration of Originality I declare that this thesis contains no material which has been accepted for a degree or diploma by the University or any other institution, except by way of background information and duly acknowledged in the thesis, and to the best of my knowledge and belief no material previously published or written by another person except where due acknowledgement is made in the text of the thesis, nor does the thesis contain any material that infringes copyright. ………………………… September 2014 Authority of access This thesis may be made available for loan and limited copying and communication in accordance with the Copyright Act 1968. ………………………… September 2014 Abstract The Australian theatre in the late nineteenth century was in transition: it was, like the country, seeking its own identity in a period of social change. The contributions made to its development by men are well documented. Those made by women have received much less recognition. This thesis addresses that hiatus, by examining the life, celebrity, and influence of English actress, Janet Achurch. It focuses on her 1889–91 Australian tour and the ambivalent responses to her portrayal of Nora in Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House. Achurch, with her husband, actor Charles Charrington, came to Australia under contract to entrepreneurs Williamson, Garner, and Musgrove. On 14 September, 1889 she opened at the Princess’s Theatre in Melbourne with A Doll’s House, the play now most closely connected with the concept of the New Woman. She closed with the same play at Brisbane’s Theatre Royal on 13 November, 1891. A picture of Achurch’s tour has emerged from newspapers and other periodicals accessed through the National Library of Australia’s digitised database, Trove. After siting the tour within the historical and cultural context of Australia and its theatre, this thesis follows Achurch’s progression, revealed in reviews, opinions, letters to the editor, and advertisements. It then discusses the controversies occasioned by the inclusion of Camille, Hedda Gabler, and Doll’s House in her repertoire, before examining Achurch’s achievements during her two years in the country. Most controversy centred on Doll’s House, which polarised the critics and playgoing public. Responses ranged from deeply supportive to highly condemnatory. Although the sometimes acrimonious debate continued, negative reactions to Doll’s House lessened as the tour progressed. A graph of the responses to Doll’s House and Nora, coded for sympathy, neutrality, or antipathy, demonstrates the early trend towards a less hostile reception. Achurch, through her abilities as a performer, personal popularity, and staging of drama that stimulated public discussion, made three contributions to theatre in Australia that were of particular significance. First, she contributed by building audiences throughout the country, most notably by reinvigorating the industry in Brisbane, and pioneering the inclusion of Perth in the itineraries of first- rank companies. Second, she introduced the emerging realist direction in literature to the Australian stage through the works of Henrik Ibsen. Third, she established the stage as a forum for discussion of issues affecting women in the late nineteenth century. Achurch represents the many women who, to a smaller or greater degree, influenced the development of theatre in Australia as the nineteenth century drew to a close. Acknowledgments This thesis is not only mine, but also belongs to all those whose faith in me did not waver over four and a half most challenging years. First and foremost of the many for whom I have lasting gratitude are my supervisors, Dr Rose Gaby and Dr Rob Clarke, who I thank for their patient and untiring support, and expert yet gentle guidance. If it had not been for their timely assistance and unfailing trust in me this project, as fascinating as it was, would not have been completed. My gratitude also goes to Associate Professor Anna Johnston, whose support has been invaluable. I also thank the Graduate Research Office at the University of Tasmania, whose deadlines ensured that I kept on track, and the Institute for Regional Development at the University’s Cradle Coast campus, who gave me unending support and encouragement. Last, and perhaps most of all, I thank my family and friends for their belief in me. My special gratitude goes to my dear friend Dianne Ollington, whose listening ear, comforting arm, and understanding shoulder are always there. Contents Page Number Illustrations i Tables ii Introduction 1 Chapter 1: Prologue 12 Chapter 2: Dramatis Personae 29 Chapter 3: Setting 50 Chapter 4: Progression 67 Chapter 5: Controversy 113 Chapter 6i: Contribution 155 Chapter 7: Epilogue 178 Notes 186 Works Cited 197 Appendices 218 Index Appendix 1: Reviews, Opinions, and Letters to the Editor Appendix 2: Itinerary and Repertoire Appendix 3: Company: Cast, Supernumeraries, and Support Personnel Appendix 4: New Woman Plays i Illustrations Page Number Janet Achurch 33 Novelty Theatre 33 Henrik Ibsen 37 William Archer 43 George Bernard Shaw 46 Janet Achurch and Charles Charrington 69 Janet Achurch 77 Janet Achurch and George Rignold 79 ii Tables Page Number Table 1: Number of references (excluding advertisements) in Australian newspapers to A Doll’s House and Nora during the period mid September 1889 to mid November 1891 relating to productions of A Doll’s House in Australia 122 Table 2: Graph comparing sympathetic, antipathetic, and neutral items (excluding advertisements) appearing in Australian newspapers and periodicals for A Doll’s House and Nora during the period mid September 1889 to mid November 1891 123 The Woman Who Did: Introduction Angel 1 Introduction When twenty-six year old English actress Janet Achurch arrived in Australia in September 1889, she had already established herself as a leading player on the London stage. A talented and popular young actress, she brought to the country drama that was different, contentious, and thought-provoking. Australia was taking its place in the international arena and as the country developed, so did its theatre, not a little assisted by the men and women who performed on its stages. Early colonial theatre is well- represented in literary research, but theatre in the last decades of the nineteenth century has attracted less attention. In particular, contributions made by women have received little recognition. An examination of Achurch’s tour of Australia from September 1889 to November 1891 supports my contention that an exploration of public response to New Woman plays sheds light on the contributions made by women in the last decade before the twentieth century. The response to the drama Achurch presented reveals the impact that it made, not only on theatre, but on theatregoers. This thesis tells the story of Achurch’s time in Australia, and of the controversies and contributions it occasioned. It focuses on the effects of Achurch’s presentation of Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, and of the play’s protagonist, Nora. A Doll’s House was of a genre new to Australian audiences, and it created controversy wherever it was staged. The staples of the Australian stage since European settlement had been melodrama, traditional comedies, tragedies, farces, and some more serious drama, particularly Shakespeare. A Doll’s House, by contrast, discusses women’s role in society. It is now considered to be the play most closely connected with the concept of the New Woman. The New Woman was a manifestation of what was known as the “woman question,” which encompassed, and contributed to, contemporary discourses around women’s nature and role. The idea of the New Woman also encompassed those women who recognised, and tried to breach, accepted social boundaries. The New Woman as a social phenomenon gave rise to a genre of fiction that was popular between the 1880s and the 1930s. As well as over 160 novels and short stories, at least thirty- six New Woman plays have been identified by researchers. Appendix 4 provides details of those plays. They include not only A Doll’s House (1879), but also two other Ibsen dramas, Hedda Gabler (1890), The Woman Who Did: Introduction Angel 2 and Rosmersholm (1886); both plays highlight the sometimes tragic consequences of women’s search for security. While Rosmersholm was not produced here until 1911, Achurch introduced both Doll’s House and Hedda to Australia, the former in 1889, and the latter in 1891.1 In doing so, Achurch made three contributions to theatre in this country that were of particular significance. First, she contributed by building audiences, most notably by helping in the reinvigoration of the industry in Brisbane, and pioneering the inclusion of Perth in the itineraries of first-rate companies. Second, she introduced to the Australian stage the emerging directions in realist drama. Third, she established the Australian stage as a forum for discussion of issues affecting women. This thesis draws upon the potential offered for archival research by developments such as the “Trove” service of the National Library of Australia. It presents evidence from reviews, articles, letters to the editor, and advertisements in newspapers contemporary to the tour and available from the Trove digitised database. It builds on research recently undertaken in Australia which examines facets of Achurch’s tour and its significance to theatre in this country. Here, I review the literature arising from that research, before detailing my process of data retrieval and analysis, and providing a précis of the thesis chapters. A review of the literature “This innovative period,” suggests Veronica Kelly, speaking in relation to the last decade of the 1800s and the first of the 1900s, “laid the foundations for twentieth-century global entertainment” (1).